Scuba Diving In Miami - Squalo Divers

First waterproof brand wetsuit dealer I've seen that actually had the suits in the store, and in various models and thicknesses - out on the racks to see and feel!! Small shop, but with well utilized space that's thoughtfully laid out. Pleasant staff - no pushy salespeople here! Have not yet purchased from this store, but plan to return when it's time to buy my Waterproof brand wetsuit ud83dudc4d

I'll start by saying that all the staff on the boat were super friendly. However, it turns out they were actually a part of Ace Diving and not Squalo, so I'm not sure how they are related. We chose Squalo because we wanted to go to Neptune Memorial from Key Largo, but the day before the trip they changed our departure location to Miami. Then the morning of the trip they said the water was too choppy to snorkel but that we could dive instead. We decided to dive, but half the boat got sick and it was not a very pleasant experience. My friend and I are certified divers, but the other 6 divers were on their checkout dive. During the dive, we had to follow one of the guides with the group of checkout divers, which hindered our ability to see as much. We were told to surface when I still had 1600 PSI left, so my dive was definitely cut short to accommodate the others. Additionally, the guide made us stop and gather together for pictures, which wasn't how I wanted to spend my time underwater. I definitely won't be diving with them again.

I really hate to leave a bad review, but I wouldn’t feel right otherwise:nnI paid an extra $110 for the dive guide, which on the website lists would only be with 1 or 2 other people. This is important for divers like myself, that just got their open water certification and need a little extra guidance so they don’t ruin a weekend trip they took just for this.nnI was initially put in a group with 6 other people, I believe getting their open water certification in a class, and one guide. The guide was pulled so thin I could hardly get a question in before he had to jet off to assist someone else. He only had time to provide me with the equipment I was missing (Squalo forgot, I suppose) and then it was time to dive.nnI predictably didn’t feel prepared and had to get out of the water - ruining the trip.nnEveryone on the boat, guides included, were extremely nice. They really did try to make things work. They even encouraged me to get back in the water a second time, but I wasn’t comfortable still being out with a group of 4. I am going to leave them a separate 5 star review because they were just incredible. They were simply pulled too thin because Squalo overscheduled.nnIf you charge someone $110 for the comfort of a more intimate dive experience and don’t provide it, you have not only lied and stolen from your customer - you have potentially ruined their vacation. That is what Squalo did.nnEdit: I see that Squalo's response is just to blatantly lie about the size of the group they put me in and what was being offered on their website. What a great business that everyone should certainly consider when trusting someone with the outcome of their vacation and their lives.

Scuba diving is honestly one of the coolest things you can do on this planet. This last weekend I become open water scuba certified by Tim Yeo at the Scuba Diving Center, and it was one of the best things I have done in a long time. My certification included several boat dives off of Catalina Island, and I highly recommend if you plan on getting certified to go for it and spend the little extra money for the boat ticket. It is so worth it!!

They were so great at setting up all of my dives! Schedules had to be rearranged, but they made sure that communication was open and they were so quick to help make sure I made it to my dives. The guides were incredible and really knowledgeable. Even through this pandemic they made my vacation very memorable. I will definitely be diving with them when I come to Florida again.