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Dive Review of Lion's Dive Beach Resort in
Curaçao

Lion's Dive Beach Resort: "Pleasant but not spectacular diving.", Aug, 2021,

by Carol Sommers, IL, US (Sr. Reviewer Sr. Reviewer 8 reports with 6 Helpful votes). Report 11770 has 1 Helpful vote.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 4 stars Food N/A
Service and Attitude 3 stars Environmental Sensitivity 5 stars
Dive Operation 4 stars Shore Diving 3 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 4 stars
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 3 stars
Comments Lion’s Dive Resort was clean and very safety conscious as far as Covid. One had to be tested 3 days before arriving, 3 days after arriving and 3 days before returning to the US. The testing was done at the resort. No one was masked on the resort part of the island. We had only breakfast included in the dive package and were glad for that because the service was very poor at the restaurant in the evening. The breakfast had a lot of variety and was self-serve. A five-minute walk down the beach there were many restaurants and our favorite was a Lebanese one. We had an unpleasant experience at a large Dutch-run restaurant when we arrived late because of a transportation emergency and the owner said of course we could eat there, but then the orders were taken late and while we were waiting for the bill the owner came back and scolded us for still being there because she would be in trouble if the business was open past a certain hour. This was in spite of the fact that the slow service was at fault. We never went back. At the resort, the customer always being wrong came up again where there was an electronic display at the entrance saying that there were daily free shuttles into town at 10 am. We showed up at that time the next day and the time had been changed to 9 am without prior notice. The employee said we had to take a cab and was not apologetic at all. There was no written information in the rooms as to this information and we were not notified when we checked in. On the other hand, we were well taken care of when my roommate had a serious fall while in town and the hotel had a doctor come to us within minutes and was very kind besides being competent.
The dive shop told us that we would receive a list of the dive sites and when I asked for it at the end of the week, the employee said she gave it to one person but could no longer find it. Other than that, the diving was very well-run. There were lockers and you set up your first tank on the boat and they would change your gear to the second tank. The large dive boats had a bar in the middle that one could hold onto as you lined up for the giant stride in. Older divers were accommodated with front rolls in, taking off the gear in the water or a divemaster helping lift up the tank as you came up the ladder. There was a divemaster in the water to take off everyone’s fins coming out and to pass you your camera going in which was a real help. Free tanks of air were available for diving on your own after the boat dives and you were given the key to the locker area. Diving was very relaxing and not rushed. The pillar and staghorn corals were magnificent and covered large areas. We were using Nitrox but the reef was so shallow that it wasn’t really necessary. Lighting for photos was excellent because of the sun, but one should be over rather than underweighted because of the near-surface dives. Because we were so close to the mainland, there were literally no large fish. A French Angelfish and a Porcupinefish were the largest ones seen---no barracuda or sharks. In a week, we saw only 3 moray eels and one lobster. There is shore diving and night-diving is possible by following a heavy cord attached to the seafloor which starts from the dive boat dock. At night, one must either swim against the current or pull oneself forward by the cord. Not very much was visible on the dive.
Some of the divers rented cars, but it was very expensive. We saw a dive bus advertised. After an hour’s drive, one can reach the end of the island where there also is a dive shop and the reef is quite different and beautiful. In summary, despite some small problems, it was a very nice dive trip.


Websites Lion's Dive Beach Resort   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 501-1000 dives
Where else diving Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Grenada, Cozumel, Belize, Florida, North Carolina, Curacao, Lake Michigan, Philippines, Sea of Cortez, Palau, Yap, Bali, Komodo, Dominica, Hornby Island in British Columbia, Bonne Terre Mine, Red Sea, Roatan
Closest Airport Curacao Hato International Airport Getting There major airlines

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas calm
Water Temp 80-82°F / 27-28°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 50-80 Ft/ 15-24 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions [Unspecified]
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 4 stars
Small Critters 1 stars Large Fish 1 stars
Large Pelagics 2 stars

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

Subject Matter 4 stars Boat Facilities N/A
Overall rating for UWP's N/A Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments [None]
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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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