Wir haben die Spezialkurse Wrack- und Tieftauchen absolviert. Die gesamte Organisation von Boris - von der Absprache vorab, über die beiden Tauchtage und die Zertifizierung - war perfekt. Das geliehene Equipment und das Boot waren in einem top Zustand. Bei Tauchlehrer Rik haben wir uns jederzeit professionell betreut gefühlt. Sowohl bei der Einweisung als auch unter Wasser und dem anschließenden Feedback. Er ist individuell auf unsere Erfahrung und Bedürfnisse eingegangen. Außerdem waren die ausgewählten Tauchspots abwechslungsreich, spannend und einfach wunderschön. Wenn es dann auch noch menschlich passt, können wir unterm Strich sagen: wir hatten eine tolle Zeit an Bord und kommen sehr gerne wieder.
Vom ersten Augenblick hatten wir das Gefühl, uns in guten Händen zu befinden. Die Divemaster sind sehr kompetent und verfügen zugleich noch über einen gesunden Humor ;-) Wir hatten viel Spass und würden es jedem weiterempfehlen.
The day started at 9am where we were warmly welcomed and met with the instructors, we completed the necessary paperwork in about 5 minutes and was kitted out with wet-suits and fins to fit our sizes. We quickly moved down to the dock to board the boat. There was myself and my wife along with a gentleman from Slovenia who was an experienced diver and a lady from Germany who like us was a complete beginner.
We had bought food and drink with us as it was going to be a long day returning around 4pm.
The boat is pretty big and could easily have accommodated a further 4 or 5 divers, the sea was calm and it is so clear as to be almost unbelievable.
The journey to the first dive site took about 35-40 minutes, and to be honest just spending this time cruising across the bay towards Krk island, fantastic weather, amazing scenery, crystal clear blue water and a Dolphin jumping out of the water about 20 yards from the boat, was worth the money on its own.
On arrival at the first dive site the instructors daughter (Mia who is about 15 and is also a fully qualified diver) moored the boat to an anchor line and the diving could begin.
The rookies all took to the water for snorkelling whilst the instructor and the experienced diver went off for about 45 minutes. I would highly recommend the snorkelling beforehand as it will help you to regulate your breathing and get used to the sensation of breathing underwater. long slow deep breaths are an absolute necessity for a dive and this will certainly help.
The water is incredibly clear even when you are on top looking down and there is plenty of fish and other seafaring animals to keep you interested.
Once the instructor arrived back on the boat it was our turn to go for a dive. Now unlike many dive schools this is a personal one on one experience with your instructor, this isn't 30 people in a pool with one instructor, this is you and an extremely experienced and skilled diver in open water. Dive City certainly want you to get the most out of the experience and they want to make "Divers", this is not a money making sausage machine.They do it because they love it and they want you to feel the excitement they do.
This passion is very evident as you get your final briefing before entering the water, factual, humorous and engaging, but serious enough as you are about to enter an alien world and you need to do the right things at the right time.
Before going on the dive Dive City will send you a link to the SSI (Scuba Schools International) app and ask you to download the material and take the "Try Scuba" test. Both myself and my wife did this before the day and it certainly enhanced our understanding of what we were doing the next day and our understanding of the instructions we were given.
So after the briefing we kitted up with a weight belt, buoyancy vest, fins and the all important tank and regulators (there are two just in case one fails... Belt and braces! Safety first!). I decided to go first (Male bravado I would imagine) and was shown the correct entry method into the water, once in I was amazed at how buoyant I was considering I had a Tank, wet-suit, 50kg weight belt, but this is the point, it is as close to being and astronaut in outer space floating effortlessly.
So breathing through the regulator is easy and the air is pure and very dry. All felt very natural at this point.
So this is where the personal instructor experience really comes in, he at no stage left my side whilst we were in the water, he swam just above me and slightly behind controlling the buoyancy vest to control depth. Starting with effectively snorkelling so as to get used to the experience of breathing underwater. After about 2 minutes of acclimatisation it was time to dive.
So at this point the instructor swam below me and showed me by hand signals that we were going to dive. Now you have to use pressure equalisation techniques so that your inner ear doesn't suffer any damage and they are at pains to point this out in the briefing, so make sure you pay attention to this (Just swallowing, flexing your Jaw, or pinching your nose through the mask and blowing will get it done so not rocket science but important that you know what to do).
So we started our descent and I used all of the techniques above and was able to work out what worked for me (Swallowing was best for me). The instructor at all times was controlling the buoyancy vest so as to ensure I was not rising or falling too quickly.
And boy what a journey, now the water is incredibly clear when you are on the surface, but I couldn't believe how clear it was when I got under the water. We swam for about 200m away from the boat, the instructor guiding from above, you can't see him when you are swimming along so it feels like you are on a dive on your own and it doesn't feel like you are being nursemaided.
At one stage on the way out I was joined by a shoal of about 200 fish, all going about there own business and I was just in the middle of them, truly magical experience, floating in mid air (sic).
After about 15 minutes underwater we returned to the boat and my first dive was over! At no stage was there any pressure to do more than I was comfortable with and they were just so professional, making me feel at ease with this very new experience.
After all the rookies had had their turn we then moved on to the second dive site were the instructor took the experienced diver off for another 45 minute dive. This allowed us another opportunity to Snorkel but in another place which had even more marine life to see.
After the return of the instructor we boarded the boat for a 20 minute ride back to the dock, back to the offices to change, debrief and say our goodbyes to the great people at Dive City.
Both myself and my wife had a marvellous day with true professionals who want you to enjoy the experience, but also want to keep the tuition very personal and practical.
If you are going to dive in Croatia then without hesitation I recommend that you do it with Dive City Crikvenica. I will be going back to Croatia soon and will definitely sign up for one of the more advanced courses. Just a brilliant experience.