Dive Review of Avalon/Tortuga in
Cuba/Jardines de Reina

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Avalon/Tortuga, Feb, 2014, by MB, VA, US ( Reviewer 4 reports with 2 Helpful votes). Report 7543.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Avalon emphatically said in advance emails when I was arranging my trip that they did not feed the sharks. They did. On my boat, they did not, out of respect for my sensibilities, which I had politely made clear before I went. But the other boats fed the sharks, which they readily discussed after each dive, and it was apparent in the shark behavior that they were accustomed to being fed or having chum set out to attract them. (They appeared the minute they heard the boat motor, circled the boat as we descended, and approached divers during most dives, repeatedly and very closely, within 1 meter - facing the diver head on, or approaching from the rear directly, and only turning aside when the diver raised a camera or turned or made other sudden movements.) Many times the only picture I could get was an eyeball or gills, because the shark was so close. This made for great filming, but was clearly a change in behavior of apex predators accomplished by human interaction. I am no marine biologist. It is often said that the existence of sharks indicates the relative health of a reef system. I don't know if that applies when the sharks are fed. Otherwise, the diving was calm, not much current, great vis, lots of fish, lots of lionfish unfortunately, and they were not catching and eating them. (under the idea that this is a marine park, which is the same reason given to me when I was assured that they do not feed the sharks. Since they do feed the sharks, I don't see exactly why they could not eat the lionfish, but there you have it.) Good beginner diving. Not being a biologist, I can't speak to the health of the corals. There were quite a few varieties. Some brittle stars. Lots of Nassau and Goliath grouper. Very interesting mangrove swamps, in which we dove once and that was a very interesting experience. upside down jellies, mangrove roots and the attendant fish nurseries, etc. And lots of birds in the mangroves, for those interested in birding. Tortuga, a converted barge made into a hotel, is lovely, and the staff are wonderful down to the last person. Long trip to get there - 5 plus hour bus ride at 4 am to get to Jucaro, and another 5 hour boat ride (very calm) to get the 40 miles offshore to Tortuga. Theoretically, it would be possible to take a domestic flight on Air Cubana from Havana to Cayo Coco, an then you would only have a short trip south to get to Jucaro. However, Air Cubana is hilariously unreliable in terms of departure times, so this option is not used, as many people would miss the boat departure from Jucaro. (Air Cubana will sell a flight for 10:30 am, for example, then post at the airport that it is departing at 11:40, On Time. Sitting there in Havana, or in Nassau you hear the usual airline announcements that a flight has been delayed. Never on Air Cubana. Their flights are not delayed - the time is simply changed with no mention of the change, and the flight time is posted as the new time and listed as if it were on time. So, abandon hope of shaving the bus ride off the trip. On the other hand, the best roast pork I got the whole time I was there was in a roadside vendor next to the gas station where we stopped to refuel, so the trip was worth it! And the bus was comfortable. The staff from Avalon was very helpful - helped me to arrange a rental car for further Cuba exploration once my diving was over - could not have been nicer or more helpful.
Websites	Avalon
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	51-100 dives
Where else diving	French Polynesia, Saba, Utila, Fla Keys, Central Fla springs and rivers, Tobago, Mexico, BVI, Turks and Caicos
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm
Water Temp	82-°F / 28-°C	Wetsuit Thickness	5
Water Visibility	100- Ft/ 30- M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	Group went down together, surfaced together when anyone was below 10 Bar, unless you used up your air very quickly, in which case you could surface earlier and sit on the boat until the dive was finished.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	While I was there there the guy who wrote the first book on digital underwater photog was there. I don't know if that affected things, but there was a rinse station just for cameras upon return from diving, as well as a fresh water rinse and protected dry tables. The dive staff are interested in photography, and one divemaster would go down with his camera each time.

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Dive Review of Avalon/Tortuga in Cuba/Jardines de Reina

Avalon/Tortuga, Feb, 2014,

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

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

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

Dive Review of Avalon/Tortuga in
Cuba/Jardines de Reina