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Dive Review of Grand Turk Diving Co./Osprey Beach Hotel in
Turks and Caicos/Grand Turk

Grand Turk Diving Co./Osprey Beach Hotel, Apr, 2008,

by Barbara Shively, MD, USA (Sr. Reviewer Sr. Reviewer 7 reports). Report 4109.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 4 stars Food 3 stars
Service and Attitude 4 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 5 stars Shore Diving 3 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 5 stars
Advanced 5 stars
Comments Algrove (Smitty) Smith finally, after many years with Sea Eye Diving, has his own dive shop, Grand Turk Diving Co. in the same building that used to house Sea Eye.

My husband and I have been diving all over the Caribbean for many years and with Smitty for about 12 years. I consider him the best divemaster anywhere! Based on personal experience, he ranks tops as an instructor, a proficient and careful divemaster, a super spotter of 'critters', and a darned nice guy -- this doesn't even cover his frequent equipment repairs to our gear that was messed up during servicing at home!

Everyone I know who has ever dived with Smitty considers him the best. His new operation has all new equipment including great new tanks that allowed us to drop 2 to 4 lbs. each from our weights.

As an underwater photographer I often ask Smitty to look out for some particular 'critter' I want to shoot and more often than not he finds it. In fact he finds things I can't even see like very tiny pipehorses and pipefish!

Don't go expecting to keep to a strict schedule -- almost all of our dives are more than an hour bottom time with many of them going to an hour and a quarter or longer. Repeat customers become friends for life -- it's just that sort of place and that sort of operation.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving Many Caribbean islands, Florida, Hawaii
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas choppy
Water Temp 77-79°F / 25-26°C Wetsuit Thickness 1
Water Visibility 75-100 Ft/ 23-30 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions None for known, repeat divers.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins Schools Whale Sharks None
Turtles 1 or 2 Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 5 stars
Small Critters 5 stars Large Fish 3 stars
Large Pelagics 3 stars

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

Subject Matter 5 stars Boat Facilities 4 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 4 stars Shore Facilities 3 stars
UW Photo Comments Very short boat rides and surface intervals on shore at hotel make on board facilities unimportant. Smitty is great about handling our camera gear.
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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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