Pura Vida

When most people think of a trip to Costa Rica, an image comes to mind of flying on zip-lines through the air like monkeys or reeling in the big-one while deep sea fishing. While both of these activities are some of my favorites when visiting Costa Rica, scuba diving is still what I look forward to the most each year.

My family and I have visited the Quepos and Manuel Antonio area of Costa Rica every year since I was in fifth grade, and it has become a place I hold close to my heart. In fact, I was reluctant to write this week's post on this location because I fear it will one day become an over-commercialized tourist attraction like so many best kept secret locations do. But, deep down I knew this place had to be shared.

Manuel Antonio National Park
(pic from:http://skvots.net/costa-rica-national-parks.html) 

This Costa Rican "diamond in the rough" is most well-known for the Manuel Antonio National Park. The park includes 1,700 acres of land mass and 135,906 acres of marine reserve. Manuel Antonio includes four white sand beaches and never-ending lush jungle. The ocean surrounding Manuel Antonio's reserve is the prime location for scuba diving, and it is where most dive tours are conducted.

Available Manuel Antonio Dive Sites
(Pic From: www.oceansunlimitedcr.com) 

Now let's talk about the kind of diving you can expect. As I said, most of the good dive sites are located within the reserve and are relatively easy to get to. I recommend planning your dive trip during the dry season (Dec-May) because the visibility is better than in the wet season (June-Nov), but either way you will be able to see some amazing marine life. Depending on the dive site's depth, you could see anything from angel fish and trumpet fish to sharks and eels. If you are lucky and it is the right season you may even see the migrating humpback whales.

The dive company I recommend is Oceans Unlimited. Oceans Unlimited has a very knowledgeable and helpful staff. I was impressed with the company because it really catered to everyone's dive abilities. 


Oceans Unlimited separated our tour group into an advanced group and a beginner group, allowing everyone to dive at their own comfortable speed. Considering that my dad had not seen scuba gear, let alone used it since he was 27 it was comforting that he didn't have to try to keep up with the advanced divers. The company's rates are relatively inexpensive and transportation to and from your hotel is also included.

La Mariposa Pool and Hotel
(Pic From: http://centralamerica.com/cr/hotel/mariposa.htm)

 Between Manuel Antonio and Quepos there are all sorts of hotels that fit any price range. My family and I were fortunate enough to stay at La Mariposa the first time we visited and have stayed there since.

Hotel La Mariposa is located on the highest point in Manuel Antonio and is known for its breathtaking views and unearthly sunsets. It is a relatively small hotel with only 62 rooms, a restaurant (with the best breakfast I've ever had), and three perfectly-placed pools for watching the sunset. Its quaint and attentive atmosphere made me feel like I was the only guest at the hotel and that my experience at their establishment was all they cared about.

Costa Rica's friendly locals and rich culture welcomes all visitors who are looking for a memorable time. So pack up your dive fins, buy a new swimsuit and schedule your flight today!

Saba, the Island for Divers

My adventure began on Wednesday night, two days before spring break, when my roommate asked me to join her and her family on their spur-of-the-moment trip to St. Barthelemy ("St. Barts"). Realizing my passport was expired and my family was out of the country, I started my search for a miracle that would allow me to board the plane to St. Bart's on Saturday.

Fortunately, after two trips to Houston, two passport applications and a generous man who took pity on an absent-minded college student I was on a plane headed to the paradise known as St. Bart's. 

Sadly, my roommate is not scuba certified, so I anticipated that our group would only snorkel. Although I was upset that I would not be able to tell all of you about my personal experience diving in St. Barts, I did not want to miss out on the opportunity to research the island and report back to all my followers about the diving in the territories of the Leeward Islands.

While on a sunset cruise I questioned the crew about the best dive sites, the visibility and the sea-life a diver could expect while diving around the islands. When I asked about the best location for diving, the man thought about it for about two seconds and pointed into the distance at a nearby island and in a thick, French accent muttered, "Saba."

Glorious Saba Island
(picture from J2venture.com)

Saba is a Dutch island located in the Lesser Antilles, southwest of St. Barts. The volcanic island is only five miles long and has an estimated population of about 2,000 people as of 2010. The island is known for its Saba National Marine Park; scuba divers come from all over the world to explore the park's mysterious depths. Saba is interesting because it does not have beaches on the island, so if your looking for white sands to relax and drink piña coladas on you might want to try one of the other Caribbean Islands.

Notorious Saba Runway at Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport
(Picture from Oddee.com)

Besides the magnificent diving, Saba is known for its treacherous runway at the Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport. This runway has established itself as one of the most dangerous runways in the world. The runway is 1,300 feet in total length and there are no overrun areas on either end of the runway, where cliffs immediately drop 200 feet into the sea.

Now that I've sufficiently terrified you, I thought I would describe the Saba diving experience in more detail. While there are exciting shallow reefs and walls for less experienced divers, Saba is known for it's awe-inspiring pinnacles (summits of underwater mountains) that begin at about 85 feet deep. While diving among the pinnacles you can expect to see numerous large fish and pelagics such as sharks and sea turtles. Saba's marine park is different from most marine reserves in that it was founded before diving tourism was popular in the area. This is why the reserve remains undamaged.

 When researching Saba's dive shops I found two that seemed promising. The first one is the Saba Deep Dive Center. The shop was opened in 1981 and was Saba's first "dive shop." Saba Deep offers multiple dives each day including night dives. They will also help you plan the rest of your trip by booking hotels, providing transportation and of course planning your dives.

The second promising dive shop is Saba Divers and Scout's Place Hotel, which is a convenient and unique combination of dive shop and hotel all-in-one. The Saba Divers dive center offers multiple inexpensive packages for every diver's needs, with a discount for each package if booked in advance. Your package will also include transportation to and from Fort Bay each day you dive.

Saba Divers Dive Center

While I missed out on the opportunity to dive in the crystal-clear water surrounding Saba Island, I do not want the same to be true for you. Don't let Saba's runway scare you out of booking your flights today; you will get to experience the dive of a lifetime.

  

Learn While Traveling

Most scuba divers acquire their scuba certification in their neighborhood pool or at the local dive shop, leaving them with a lackluster first impression of scuba diving. Instead of taking scuba lessons next to the 5-year-old swim class, why not take your first breath under water next to a school of Banded Butterflyfish?

Odyssey Expeditions Yacht in St. Lucia (Kat McDonnell)

For the ultimate first-time scuba experience I would recommend Odyssey Expeditions. Odyssey Expeditions offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance to live on a yacht with fellow divers for 14 to 28 days while you gain your certification. Odyssey offers multiple voyages throughout the summer in either the British Virgin Islands or the Windward Islands.

I personally gained my Open Water Diver certification while participating in the Windward Island North SEA Voyage. My voyage was specifically organized for previously certified divers to obtain their PADI Advanced Diver certification. The Odyssey crew was extremely flexible and offered to certify me if I could arrive two days before the planned departure.

I was nervous that I would not reach the level of the other divers before our departure, but my instructor was very patient and supportive throughout the certification process, which put me at ease. By the time the others arrived, I had grown so comfortable that it seemed like I had been born with a regulator in my mouth.

I highly recommend the method of being certified in the ocean because it makes you more comfortable than beginning divers who have been certified in simulated scuba situations like pools. There is no replacement for the actual experience of being certified in open water.

While on my voyage I not only gained multiple scuba certifications but also traveled all over St. Lucia and Martinique. I experienced the culture first-hand and had numerous adventures including a hike to the top of the volcano, Mt. Pele in St. Pierre.

My overall experience with Odyssey Expeditions was unforgettable and I would highly recommend the program to anyone. So if you love to travel and want to become scuba certified then Odyssey Expeditions is the place for you!

There are still openings for the 2011 summer voyages so hurry and request a brochure off their website today!