We loved everything about this experience and it was an excellent first non-course dive for my little one after getting PADI Open Water jr certified. The only downside is you cant bring cameras (You can bring your own mask and dive computer) and they don't offer to take pictures or videos of your experience. I was fortunate we had family members (needed a park ticket) who were able to take pics and videos. You can do this experience without park tickets but we plan our day around this event.. We loved playing rock, paper, scissors, waving, blowing bubbles, and entertaining the kids. The water is crystal clear, no current, and if you burn thru your tank and there is still time in the 45 min window they will quickly swap you out and you can go back in to see huge turtles, hammer heads, rays etc..Im defiantly diving this every time we go to Disney if possible. read more

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This was one of the coolest attractions ever! When I found out you could dive in the Nemo aquarium at Epcot I immediately started making reservations! It was relatively inexpensive for what you do. It includes all gear, a commemorative c-card, and a t-shirt. They have shower and changing facilities with shampoo and conditioner. I highly recommend this for any diver! It's a super fun experience!! I was even one of the lucky few to find a shark tooth in the tank :) read more

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Totally different from diving in the open ocean for all the skeptics out there, but such a spectacular experience! Perfect for both new and experienced divers, and there are few places in the world that you'll see the this variety of marine life on a single dive. You get the opportunity to get up close with the animals, much closer than most situations, to see how incredible these animals are. From sand tiger sharks to eagle rays, guitarfish, bonnethead sharks, and so much more! The experience includes a behind the scenes tour of The Living Seas and timed dive in the habitat where you become part of the Disney cast. You can interact with guests at the window or just do your own thing and check out the habitat. And if you're an air hog, they'll even switch tanks for you mid-dive. A truly wonderful experience, even for divers with a ton of amazing ocean dives. read more

For my 100th review I wanted to write about something epic and one thing immediately came to mind: Disney's Epcot DiveQuest. It has been several years since I did it, but I still have really strong memories about it because it was such an incredible experience. Short version of my review: do it, pay whatever they are asking, thank me later. DiveQuest was actually the first dive that I chose to do after getting my open water certification and I can't think of a better choice I could have made. You're in a controlled environment with perfect visibility where safety is the utmost concern. There are multiple Disney employees watching out for you at all times and they treat you like royalty. When I got out of the water someone was there to hand me a warm towel for my face. I just outstretched my arms and someone took off my tank. Talk about being spoiled! Besides all of that the experience is just incredibly enjoyable. DiveQuest takes place at Epcot's "The Seas" pavilion. You don't have to buy admission to Epcot if you're doing DiveQuest. You make your reservation and then just head to the guest services area at a designated time. Cast members come out to get you and lead you on a back route to the attraction. It was really interesting getting to peek "behind the curtain" and see an area of the park that guests don't normally get to see. You're given a tour of the inner workings of The Seas and learn about what a big effort it is to keep so many sea creatures happy. As interesting as this was I was somewhat distracted because I was so excited/nervous about getting the dive underway. After a safety/rules briefing you are given a wetsuit and are told to go change. It wasn't until later that I realized that no one ever asked me about what size I should get. The cast members deduced it by looking at me and they were right! Obviously there are different changing areas for men and women and each individual person gets a small, private changing area, along with your own private shower. I was somewhat mortified to discover that they were then going to march us through The Seas to the stairs that led to the tank. Lots of curious tourists were snapping our pictures. If you're self conscious about being in a skin-tight outfit in front of a bunch of strangers watch out! I just decided to laugh and roll with it. When the dive began the dive master had us follow him for a little while and we eventually each took a turn swimming into structure at the bottom of the tank that provided an air bubble. We each took off our masks and smiled and got our picture taken. Loved that! After that we were able to swim around on our own. It was pretty amazing to see the variety of life (over 6,000 creatures) in the tank with you. Fish would get close to you but not too close. One of the most amazing moments for me was when I stopped moving and just let a giant sea turtle swim right in front of me. Like most kids that saw Jaws earlier than they should have I get pretty freaked out by sharks. Thank goodness the sharks kept their distance from people most of the time. I immediately swam right to the window where my loved ones were. We got some great pictures from that. It was also really fun interacting with the tourists that were eating in the restaurant and walking through The Seas. In our briefing they told us we were honorary cast members while we were in that tank (and to act appropriately). It's interesting to think that I could have been a part of a memory a family will always have of their trip to Epcot. Before I knew it I heard the noise that signaled that it was time to exit the tank. After a quick shower I made the (easy) decision to purchase a DVD of the footage that was shot of us and they released us into the park to enjoy the rest of the day. A portion of the money I paid to experience this went to the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund. I think that it's so great that a program like this is offered and is one of many reasons that I love going to Disney. read more

Epcot Dive Quest - Hey, I know those people! - Aquariums Near Me - Lake Buena Vista, Florida

WOW! Excellent dive! A chance to dive with some animals that you may never see in the wild without some travel, and luck. The Sand Tiger sharks are awesome and beautiful animals, and so graceful to watch... as are the other sharks in the tank. The turtles are not afraid of you, and will swim right up to you. Lots of Eagle Rays, Cownose Rays, and two Devil Rays (like baby Manta's)... again, very used to divers and will brush up against you. Lots of fish (one Queen Triggerfish was swimming in circles around me, it was hilarious! the visibility last night was 203 feet... which is phenomenal! Makes you wish all your dives were like that! Great dive for rookie divers, or advanced divers! You get to interact with some of the park guests in the restaurants that have windows into the tank, and it is fun to play with the kids. They seem fascinated by the divers... and love it when you wave or do somersaults for them. I just hung upside down and waved, and it was fun seeing their reactions... lots of laughter and jumping around! The video of the divers produced by the Epcot staff is good quality and makes a great souvenir. The staff are very good about making everyone feel comfortable, and take very good care of you. The equipment they give you to use is top end too. The background tour of the facilities is a lot of fun, and you will get to see some manatees and dolphins up close. All in all a great time! Highly recommended! read more

If you are a certified diver you must experience Dive Quest! Extremely interactive not only with the sea life but with your loved ones who are watching from the outside. To be able to experience the dive without having to dive with my hubby was so amazing! They are closed Monday's, have two dive sessions per day and they also offer a military discount ... An absolutely amazing great time! read more

Epcot Dive Quest - Aquariums Near Me - Lake Buena Vista, Florida

My husband and I are advanced water divers and my husband is also rescue diver trained. His mom actually mention this to us last time were visiting Florida and we brushed it off because we thought it would be boring since it was in a man-made fish take (we have been spoiled living out in Hawaii). BUt this time, I convinced him it would be fun, different, and an experience many never get a chance to do. My parents kicked into help on the cost and we made the reservations! The Reservations were easy to make and were given many different options on time (all in the late afternoon/evening). The dive masters who met us outside and then brought us in on a tour were great. They were educated and involved and were able to show us the inner workings of fish tank at Epcot. Once we had the tour, we covered rules, procedures, etc. and changed into our dive gear that they provided which was in excellent shape and well taken care of. You enter the tank off a ledge which makes entry so smooth and nice. You get down there and the dive master guides you around for about 10 minutes....and then you are free to explore. Sea Turtles, numerous sharks, huge fish, and many other little creatures. This dive is amazing because you don't have to worry about much....you can just relax and enjoy the animals up close and personal. The best thing about the whole dive was that my family was able to see us through the glass and my little niece LOVED it! read more

Epcot Dive Quest - Looking out from the tank at our niece and nephew :) Priceless! - Aquariums Near Me - Lake Buena Vista, Florida

I LOVED THIS EXPERIENCE! This was my first scuba diving experience after being certified and i felt so amazing. I got a chance to scuba dice with sharks, turtles, rays and plenty of fish! You're not allowed to bring a GoPro for "the fishes and your safety", but i think they just want to sell you their video. Which is okay. One of the best parts is swimming up to kids looking into the aquarium and meeting their hands. It feels like you make their day! If I'm ever back in Orlando, i would love to do this again. read more

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Anniversaries can be hard sometimes. We're not big on gifts, so I wanted to do something fun. Since we hadn't been Scuba diving in a year, I thought it'd be good to take a trip somewhere as a refresher, but we only had one day to do it in. Enter Disney! Although I used to work at MGM, I'd never had the chance to do Disneys Living Seas scuba dive before. It's in the second largest aquarium in the world, and they let you swim around with their sharks and rays and turtles. And it was really fun! We got a little walk around the backstage area of the living seas and got to see the dolphin and manatee area before changing into our wetsuits. What I really liked about the program was that we didn't need any gear or flippers or anything, so I didn't have to lug our gear into the park. In the water, which was nice and warm to begin with, but felt freezing by the time we were done, we swam a circuit of the tank for the photographer before swimming off on our own. I had asked one of the divers beforehand where a good spot to sit to see the sharks was, so we sat in a clearing and just watched them drift by our faces. The rays came to see us too, close enough to reach out and touch. I suppose the Disney divers feed them in a similar manner, because they seemed really interested in us, and rather disappointed when no food manifested. I love scuba diving because you feel so weightless, and it's such different scenery, it's like you're on another world populated by fish and friendly turtles. It was extra surreal at Disney because a lot of things were fake. The fish were real, but the coral and scenery were just statues. Add to that the crowds of people watching you through the viewing areas in the park, and you felt a bit like a fish in an aquarium yourself. Some of the other divers in our group of five really got into the show part of the dive, and looked like they had a lot of fun waving for the cameras on the other side of the plexiglass. I had more fun with the show that the sea turtles and sharks were putting on. Even though it was a guided dive through an aquarium, it was really well done. It was a three hour tour, and we had 40 minutes in the water, which ended up being perfect for the temperature and amount of air I had in my tank. It was a small group, and the dive masters were really accommodating. I asked one if there was a good place to see the sharks, and she told us just where to wait to get them to come up to us. So we got to swim with some sharks, refreshed our diving skills, and after the dive, they let us go into the park, so we ended the night with dinner in Japan and fireworks! read more

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I went with my 15 year old, and we both enjoyed the experience. The highlights are certainly chasing the sand tigers and interacting with the tourists... My son is going to be in a lot of family vacation pictures. :-) The whole process was smooth and well run, and the staff are all very nice and helpful. I mentioned at the beginning that I normally have a drink of water before diving, and our guide had a cup of water ready as we got into the water. Yes you are diving in a fish tank, but what a fish tank... Plenty to see (and having crystal clear water helps a lot!), certainly more unique variety of shark/ray/turtle you would see on any other open water dive. It is certainly an experience that we will repeat when we are back in Orlando. The only downside diving in larger groups like this (around 12 people) was my kid's crestfallen expression when he didn't see himself interacting with the sharks on the DVD, even though both of us saw the moment recorded. I bought the DVD anyways, but still it would have been better if more of the footage shot made it onto the DVD. read more

This is probably the easiest dive you'll ever do but it will also spoil you. I've dived a lot and been up close and personal with wildlife a few times but on this dive there were giant loggerhead and green sea turtles, sand sharks, black nose sharks, brown sharks, bonnet head sharks, zebra sharks, etc. Because they are accustomed to divers, they get close enough to you to count their teeth! If people are more your cup of tea, the viewing windows offer lots of opportunity to interact with kids (and grownups) who all seem pretty excited to see us bubble blowers in with the sharks. It was a fun dive. 78°, 203 ft visibility, 40 minutes exactly. I was surprised that we dove with 63s instead of 80s but at 28' max depth, there's plenty of air in a 63 to last 40 minutes. Bring your own mask and wrist computer if you like but leave your gear and cameras behind. You must use their gear (in decent shape) and if you want pics, have your family take them from an observation window or pay $35 for their 15 minute video of your dive (which was actually quite good). If you're a certified open water diver, you have $179 to spend, and you're going to be in Orlando, this is something you should plan on doing. You won't regret it. read more

Epcot Dive Quest - ...and you can count the teeth in the tiger shark's mouth! - Aquariums Near Me - Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Did this Dive with my daughter. This is the easiest dive you will ever do. Brilliant dive in a 6 Million gallon aquarium with the best variety of fish (and Turtles) you will ever find in one place. You have to use the Disney dive gear but then it is first rate so that is not a problem. They produce a DVD of the dive which is a bargain and a good memory. The icing on the cake ... all the money for the dive and the DVD goes to Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund. Disney puts on the tour and donates all the money. A must for any Certified diver in Orlando. read more

I can't express how great an experience this is. Let's start with the staff, our guide was comical, Disney friendly (that's that like, next level friendly where they're kind to everyone regardless of whether or not they're a jerk), checked our C cards (super important), and really made you feel welcomed. The process before getting in was pretty great, after a routine (slightly lengthy) check-in process, they give you a little behind the scenes entry tour, and then down to the locker rooms. These were great, your wetsuit, and other items were in there ready to go, with locks. After that, you get *slightly embarrassing* paraded up to the main viewing area to an area that lets you go into the tank. There, he'll tell all your loved ones that you'll be getting in really soon. If there are non-divers in the group it's REALLY cool still that they can see you swimming next to sharks, it also makes a unique photo op. The behind the scenes is AMAZING, seeing the technical guts behind the event was worth the price of admission alone. When you get to the aquarium, everything is laid out for you, including your weights (they were pretty close on mine, just a bit heavy). They will pair up single divers regardless of skill level, so I was a Divemaster paired up with a diver on her 4th dive (she was great!). If you do get paired up, it might be worth asking a friendly question before going under, just so you're aware. When you're underwater, there's an abundance of divemasters, within a few fin kicks of you. The wildlife is GREAT, couple critters you're unlikely to see out in the ocean. The coral is fake and serious business, if you plow into it, you'll know it. Visibility, 200' :) Right. Enough said there. Dive ends with a warm towel, no gear clean up, and a video pitch, I picked up a copy, cause they film you with your family on the other side of the glass, it was well done and not too pricey. This is an experience you should do once in your life. As good as it gets. read more

Yet another hidden gem at Disney where else can you dive the nations 2nd biggest aquarium 6.5 Million Gallons to be exact with 65 different Species of Fish , Sharks, Rays and Turtles. One phone call and a few dollars and it's all there for you to do. Everyone can say they went to Epcot .. you can say you dove Epcot .. Our Tour Lead Chad was Awesome and the whole support crew .. If you ever get the chance take this and do it you'll be glad you did read more

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Great dive! Besides being in close proximity to relatively tame marine life (they are used to divers), the best part of the dive is entertaining the patrons on the OUTSIDE of the glass! The kids love to watch the divers frolic, and the divers love to watch the kids laugh at their antics. This is a relatively inexpensive and all-around enjoyable experience (and you don't even need an Epcot ticket to do the dive - you can do just the dive if you want). The proceeds go to wildlife, so Disney really hit the nail on the head with this one. read more

What can I say that isn't great about this experience!? Right from the start, the staff who were running the tour treated us like VIPs. There was a lot of interesting information about the facility and it was good to see how they cared for the animal life. The dive was awesome! The visibility was great and who can complain about no current! I personally loved playing with the other guests. Being able to interact with people from the inside of the tank was an experience I'm not going to forget. The ability to have so many types of animal life in one location was mind-blowing! Being able to see Turtles, Rays, Sharks, and assortment of fish all at once was amazing! I would not hesitate to do this dive again! read more

Epcot Dive Quest - Aquariums Near Me - Lake Buena Vista, Florida

I don't think I can say anything different than what anyone else has said about this place already, but if you have the chance, DIVE THIS AQUARIUM! You DO NOT need a park ticket to do this dive. It's half the price of the Atlanta Aquariums dive. The staff was amazing with us; it was supreme Cadillac diving. It's spoiling to dive like this but so worth it! Make sure you make the reservations well in advance by calling; if you get cold, ask for a full wetsuit because they only provide a 3mm shorty and at 78 degrees, I got chilly. Other than that, enjoy!!! read more

My daughter (12 years old ) and I got to do this after getting our ow certification. This was just perfect for a beginner! I will definitely be doing this every time I go down to Florida. read more

Dive Quest was awesome!! If you're a diver, this is a must do at Epcot. Like others have said, to check in you wait at the bench and a cast member will come and get the group. They check your C-cards and sizes. The tour is pretty interesting, you get to go backstage and see what goes on behind the scenes. Once you're suited up, they walk you from the locker room, through the guest area of The Seas (Yes, in skin tight wetsuits) and up the stairs to the top of the aquarium. There you are met by the divemasters who help you get suited up. All the gear is good quality. You don't have an octopus but it's not really needed. The aquarium is 25' deep and all the dive masters have pony bottles. You are not allowed to bring your own gear, except a mask and dive watch. They don't give you a dive computer or timer so you just know your depth and tank pressure. I would've liked to have brought my wrist computer but I didn't. The animals were great to see and swim with. There were big Rays and a couple big Sharks along with a variety of other species. After the dive, you get to shower and change in the very clean locker rooms and you meet in the class room. They show you bits of the dvd that they shot and you can buy it at the end. They did a great job. During the dive they get a shot of you with your family at the observation window. It turned out great. They give you a shirt and a dive log sticker for your logbook and release you into The Seas. read more

This was an awesome dive! We dove with Sand Tiger Sharks, Sea Turtles, Sting Rays..and much, much more! I hadn't been diving in a couple of years so this was a great way to re-acquainted with the water! Since all of fish are pretty much hand fed there was nothing to worry about as far as the sharks were concerned. It is not like being in the ocean, but it is a close second. You get to see and be close to a shark with out the fear of it being hungry..... the guests at the windows are always fun...the kiddos get excited when you wave at them and really get a kick out of when you turn summer salts or turn upside down for them. I would do this again in a heart beat! read more

Great controlled dive with my 14 year old son. I definitely recommend. Staff is great. You get a little behind the scene tour before the dive. Marine life is awesome. Only ones that didn't cooperate were the turtles, but the guitar fish and sharks made up for it..!!! read more

Best tour ever. My only complaint is that I cant be under for at least 2-3 hours. I would rent the damn thing out for that long. Is it real like your in the ocean no. But is it real enough to get a good feeling and swim around yes!!! its awesome!!! My family who is not certified did the Acqua Tour (you just snorkel) and they had a blast!!! my youngest cried the whole time as she wanted to do it too. She had to be 8 so we will come back when your 8 read more

Yelp needs to add a sixth star, five is just not enough to express how fabulous this experience is. From the staff to the equipment to the dive itself, everything was perfect. Nothing more needs to be said. read more

I really expected a lot more for the cost. This was our first trip to Disney World. We chose to do this dive for our anniversary. I hadn't been diving in two years, so I was looking forward to a little "overview" like we've experienced with every dive we've been on. There was none. It was a quick "get your stuff on and hop in." Not even advising divers to do a buddy check nor giving much time to equalize our ears on descent. I realize that this is only a 25 ft deep fish tank, but an issue with either your bcd or ears could be seriously dangerous, especially for new divers. Taking 5 minutes to go over safe diving guidelines would have been nice. The dive itself was pretty much what I expected. Plenty of one-on-one time with sharks (not my favorite thing but I know a lot of people enjoy that). The Rays and turtles were all beautiful. There is one very large stingray that was just mesmerizing to follow. It was also fun to wave at the park goers inside. I was a little disappointed in the fake coral. It was pretty simple and not remotely real looking. I also really wanted to go watch the Dolphins, but they made it very clear that we were not to go near their area. Understandable, but still a bummer. The video was another let down. The camera is only in the water for maybe 15 minutes. I think we were on it for about 30 seconds total. So, $35 for 30 seconds of us waving at a camera is simply not worth it. The "contamination" excuse to not allow personal cameras/GoPro's in the water is absurd. If you can bring your own mask and a dive watch, then you should be allowed to bring a small camera. This rule clearly has more to do with making $$ than contamination. Lastly, if you don't want to use a day of your park admission, you get escorted out at the end. And be careful! They almost scanned our magic bands without telling us what it was for! We would have lost an entire day if we hadn't asked! Considering Epcot was only open for another two hours after our dive and we spent over $350, you'd think you'd be allowed to go grab a bite to eat in the park! I don't know about you, but diving is exhausting for us. All I wanted to do was walk over to Germany and grab some food and a beer! They would have made more money by letting us stay in the park rather than kicking us out, anyway! We also had family with us who weren't able to watch our dive because we didn't want them to use up a day pass either. It would be nice to have an option for them to tag along just to watch the dive. Something for Disney to think about in the future. read more

Great family and fun experience, get a take home CD of your journey and it's fun to sit around and watch others experience this if you're not certified to dive! I'd recommend doing this if you get the chance! Plan ahead and get certified, call and book it, you won't regret it! read more

Coming from Texas, I'm used to dirty, silty lake water with less than 15 feet of visibility. I dove in the Keys one summer and I would say it was about 40-50 feet on any given day but here, it's easily 200+. You can see everything and I guarantee that you would never be able to see as much marine life in one dive (at least stateside). So what's in there? Rays, sea turtles, sharks, as well as a lot of assorted fish. The sea turtles were a bit elusive during the dive so I didn't see much of them. There are also dolphins BUT they are in a separate section that you are forbidden to even go near (apparently they don't take kindly to people being in their home). The cost is a bit of a deterrent at $179 (+/-) but all of it goes to "marine research". What to expect: You'll meet just outside of the entrance to Epcot (near guest relations). A cast member will ask for all the divers to follow him to the back of the park where they'll get shoe sizes and he will eyeball what size of wetsuit you'll need. After that, you go to the back of the "living seas" building where you'll sign some liability paperwork, then its to the restrooms to change into wetsuits, and onto the dive platform. Total bottom time: 45-60 minutes. After the dive, you'll return to those restrooms, shower, and then meet back to watch the video they made while you were diving. It's an extra $30 but again it all goes to "marine research", be forewarned though about half of it is just a plug for Dive Quest. Despite the expense, I would do this again in a heartbeat. I absolutely loved it and will probably do it every time I visit Disney. Side note: If you are thinking about proposing on this dive, notify the DM. This happens about 3 times a month so it's not an unusual request. read more

What an awesome experience. A bucket list dive. The divemasters and staff were great. If you get a chance at divequesr take it you won't be sorry read more

this dive is done in one of the largest aquariums in the world, and it's at disney?? what more could you ask for? the accommodations are spectacular, the staff is "disney quality" and you get to swim with sharks, eagle rays, sea turtles and over 6000 fish. if you're on the fence, get off. you won't be disappointed! read more

What a fun way to spend your afternoon. Epcot does this dive right. From start to finish they are hospitable and friendly and accommodating. After your tour of the facility you lead to a changing area. Each person is given a locker to store their possessions in an inside that locker is there wet suit and a towel for later. After changing you lock up your locker and give your key to your guide. You are then led through the aquarium out to the dive area To meet your dive Master at the top of the aquarium. You are lined up in the order that your BC's are set up. Where than assisted on getting them on including tank already to go. The dive master explains it will lead you into the water and go over a few skills with you before releasing you to swim also explaining if you have family waiting in the window how to pose with them for the photographer. Once the dive master portion is done you are released to swim around the tank as you wish. There's an amazing amount of animals in this tank from sea turtles to stingrays two amazing fish. You also swing by the window of the aquarium where all the Epcot guess our little kids love to see the divers. Along with that is the restaurant window that you swim past and see all the happy diners and kids that are a static to see divers. You're told you are a Disney cast member for a day and are welcome to wave to the people and have a good time as long as you keep it PG. The drive lasted 40 minutes before we were called back to the meeting spot in the tag by the dive master and told to surface. At the top of the tank we were assisted to get out of our equipment then given a towel and headed back to the locker room. once back in the locker room we are instructed where to put your wetsuit and dirty towel asked to take a shower and meet back with everyone in the main area in 15 to 20 minutes. Then the group goes back upstairs to watch the video footage from the dive and receive a dive card from Epcot along with the T-shirt. You were then able to purchase the video if you wish. If you were in the park previously The guide will scan your card and release you back to the park. However if you were not previously in the park they will take you back to the front of the park and not allow you in Epcot at the end of the day. Everything at dive quest was amazing the only thing that I think is silly is that entrance back in to Epcot is not included after your dive. Our dive didn't start until 515 it was basically 630 when we got out and the park was only open a few more hours. Dive quest was not cheap it was well worth the money but they should let you back into the park for the last few hours. For us they missed out on selling us a meal as we would've went to have dinner and to done maybe one ride before heading home. The only reason I deducted one star was due to this. In previous reviews I read people were allowed back in the park so this is a new enforcement and was confirmed when I asked the guy that took us out of the park. So dive is an amazing experience a simple dive stress-free and just what I needed to get back to diving as a beginner. read more

I did this same dive with my Son and this was one of the best dive experiences we have had. The dive cost goes to the wildlife foundation so you are also helping with the enviornment. The highlight of the dive was watching my son swim in front of the dining room windows and entertain the children walking through the living seas exibit. read more

Dive Quest is an awesome experience. Full service. Great visibility. Perfect weather. Nice showers. Large, unfearful turtles, Rays and sharks. read more