2014-05-12 20:11![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
kumimonster
kumimonsterSo I'm learning that the resort I'm staying at outside of Nha Trang is pretty damn remote. Or it might not be. But I do know that getting out of the resort and into town at odd hours will set you back $150 - each way.
I guess it's one of those places that would rather you stay within the resort - or at least use the vendors they work with in order to get away.
This means that another wrench has been thrown into my diving plans.
This also explains the $200 2-tank dive price at the resort with Sailing Club Divers. We're just a further distance away from the Marine Park as well as city harbor where most of the dive boats start out.
I wrote to the resort a couple of weeks ago and shot-gunned off a number of questions. I really would've wished that they could've supplied this information with me before I looked into booking dives with other operators. (Why not say, "FYI we are some distance away from town and further away from the dive sites so we work with a dive operator here at the resort in order to save you some time/money. However you can contact other operators, but they leave from the main harbor in nha trang and that is FAR AWAY! BTW, if you want to leave the resort at odd hours to meet other dive boats we can totally arrange that - $150. each way." BAM!)
I can't help feeling a little resentful at finding this out now.
Oh, and another thing that annoys me is how the first responses I get to my initial diving inquiries pretty much pushed taking PADI dive courses (open water, AOW, EANx, rescue... )
I could understand that if I wrote asking about trying out diving but I did not. I included my cert information. I also asked questions regarding other things like water temp, thermocline... I don't know. Maybe I just think that the process seems kind of like a PADI machine where they feel a need to get people into the system rather than treat them as divers with (some) experience. (I can't help but think about how great my dealings with Ed Robinson's Dive Adventures in Maui was. It seemed there, divers were treated like divers rather than new meat for the PADI grinder).
I'm determined to make this work. Even though this is starting to become increasingly insane! The boat rides are starting to cost 3x more than the dives themselves!!!
I'm still going with Rainbow Divers - Nha Trang for the first day though even tho I'm going to shell out $300 for the private speedboat to the Electric Nose dive site (3 tanks is only going to be $95).
Because from what I've just learned, the boat from the resort to their Pearl Farm harbor is $150. Then I'd have to take a 30 minute car ride via taxi into town (about $20). Then if I stuck to my original plans, I'd shell out another $150 for Rainbow Diver's speedboat to the dive site. So instead, I'm splurge and get the direct pick up from the resort and give RD some more of my cash. I hope this dive site is worth it!
I sent a response off to Sailing Club and asked about getting more details for diving with Richard on the 27th. I asked about adding a 3rd tank option. Hopefully they'll respond. But either way, it looks like we'll probably go diving with them instead of RD on Wed.
I guess it's one of those places that would rather you stay within the resort - or at least use the vendors they work with in order to get away.
This means that another wrench has been thrown into my diving plans.
This also explains the $200 2-tank dive price at the resort with Sailing Club Divers. We're just a further distance away from the Marine Park as well as city harbor where most of the dive boats start out.
I wrote to the resort a couple of weeks ago and shot-gunned off a number of questions. I really would've wished that they could've supplied this information with me before I looked into booking dives with other operators. (Why not say, "FYI we are some distance away from town and further away from the dive sites so we work with a dive operator here at the resort in order to save you some time/money. However you can contact other operators, but they leave from the main harbor in nha trang and that is FAR AWAY! BTW, if you want to leave the resort at odd hours to meet other dive boats we can totally arrange that - $150. each way." BAM!)
I can't help feeling a little resentful at finding this out now.
Oh, and another thing that annoys me is how the first responses I get to my initial diving inquiries pretty much pushed taking PADI dive courses (open water, AOW, EANx, rescue... )
I could understand that if I wrote asking about trying out diving but I did not. I included my cert information. I also asked questions regarding other things like water temp, thermocline... I don't know. Maybe I just think that the process seems kind of like a PADI machine where they feel a need to get people into the system rather than treat them as divers with (some) experience. (I can't help but think about how great my dealings with Ed Robinson's Dive Adventures in Maui was. It seemed there, divers were treated like divers rather than new meat for the PADI grinder).
I'm determined to make this work. Even though this is starting to become increasingly insane! The boat rides are starting to cost 3x more than the dives themselves!!!
I'm still going with Rainbow Divers - Nha Trang for the first day though even tho I'm going to shell out $300 for the private speedboat to the Electric Nose dive site (3 tanks is only going to be $95).
Because from what I've just learned, the boat from the resort to their Pearl Farm harbor is $150. Then I'd have to take a 30 minute car ride via taxi into town (about $20). Then if I stuck to my original plans, I'd shell out another $150 for Rainbow Diver's speedboat to the dive site. So instead, I'm splurge and get the direct pick up from the resort and give RD some more of my cash. I hope this dive site is worth it!
I sent a response off to Sailing Club and asked about getting more details for diving with Richard on the 27th. I asked about adding a 3rd tank option. Hopefully they'll respond. But either way, it looks like we'll probably go diving with them instead of RD on Wed.
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While in contact with Rainbow Divers, I asked about Whale Island and they were very upfront in telling me that the dives up there were not what they once were and that aside from being a pretty and isolated location, I'm not going to get much more out of it. It's not that they weren't willing to take my money, if I wanted to go they totally would have! (BTW, private boat ride up there is around $600). I really appreciated the honest opinion. I was also told that if I really wanted to dive up there, they offered some afternoon and evening shoredives. FYI, Whale Island is north. The resort told me it's about a 2.5 hour journey via coach/bus).
I then asked about the Electric Nose dive site. It's not a part of the marine area, and it's at a different location, thus requiring a separate boat hire. The price I got from Rainbow was $300 for the speedboat from my resort and $95 for the 3-tank dive. I mentioned to RD that it was a bit steep for me so they suggested I take the speedboat directly from the main harbor for $150 instead. That seemed MUCH better!
And since they also offer a 3-tank dive day at Mun Island, I booked that for me and my buddy for the following day.
They also told me that I should contact my resort about getting a boat transfer to the main harbor. RD would then get us to the shop and back for the actual dive journey.