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Dive Review of High Tide Water Sports/All Seasons Resort-Europa in
Barbados/West Coast

High Tide Water Sports/All Seasons Resort-Europa, Sep, 2008,

by Carl McDaniels, Arizona, U.S.A. ( 2 reports). Report 4482.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 3 stars Food 4 stars
Service and Attitude 3 stars Environmental Sensitivity 1 stars
Dive Operation 1 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling 2 stars
Value for $$ 1 stars
Beginners 4 stars
Advanced 1 stars
Comments The resort and diving operation was selected by our local dive shop because we had 20+ divers and it seemed a "moneys worth" deal. What we found when we arrived in Barbados was a resort that had seen better days, a dive operation that was terrible, and the highest prices for food ever experienced. Ever had a chicken breast dinner with frys and two beers for $52.00 USD? This was at a local restaurant, not an upscale, posh resort. Barbados has a reputation for high food prices, and that could possibly be why there is so little fish on the dive sites. The locals eat 'em.

I will concentrate my comments on the dive operation "High Tide Water Sports". It was selected because it had two dive boats capable of accommodating approximately 12 persons each, and we believed we would all be able to dive as a group using both boats. What occured on each of our 5 dive days was our entire group was placed on one boat while the other dive boat was used by High Tide Water Sports to transport 6-10 other divers from other locations or resorts. This made our pre-diving conditions intollerable. Not only was the boat unsafe because of overloading, but one of the two motors was constantly dying due to bad repairs. We were forced to change into gear in shifts due to so many divers on board. This was time consuming and often made our two dive boat trip to close-in local sites into a 4-6 hour day. We were instructed to be at the dive boat by 8:30 a.m. each day, but the boat was rarely loaded and ready to leave before 10:00 a.m. Once aboard and ready to dive we often encountered short fills on the tanks anywhere from 1800 p.s.i. to 2500 p.s.i.

Although we were informed that our gear would be cleaned on a daily basis and stored in a secure facility, we were not informed we would have to carry the gear to the so-called facility over extremely rough terrain due to soft sand and high levels to reach on many occasions. The cleaning by the crew was a joke. All gear was thrown into a pile and watered down by a hose. There was no dunk tank as promised for cleaning.

On a positive note, the dive masters were excellent and attentive and the pre-dive briefings were for the most part well presented.

As a word of caution to any divers considering Barbados as a dive location, be aware that although the island itself is beautiful and the history is such that a visit can be worthwhile, the diving is only so-so, and the overall costs for food and local transportation are prohibitive. Be prepared to spend much more money than what you might expect to spend at other Caribbean locations.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 101-250 dives
Where else diving Through out the Caribean, Indonesia, Australia, Mexico, and Honduras.
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, rainy, cloudy Seas calm, choppy, currents
Water Temp 83-84°F / 28-29°C Wetsuit Thickness 1
Water Visibility 20-75 Ft/ 6-23 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile no
Enforced diving restrictions Expected to follow the divemaster.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 1 stars Tropical Fish 2 stars
Small Critters 1 stars Large Fish 1 stars
Large Pelagics 1 stars

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 2 stars Boat Facilities 1 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 1 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments A fresh water bucket was provided, but was constantly contaminated by masks, etc.
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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