Providenciales Experience
My friends and I (7 total including 3 teenagers) just returned from our first & last trip to Provo. Four of us are divers with 5-15 years of experience each. We were completely satisfied with our accomodations on the SE corner of the island. We rented a private house... Sunset Point Villa. It was as beautiful as advertised. We stayed at the house most days for meals as the restaurants were we felt were VERY expensive...$12 for a small salad of iceberg lettuce with blue cheese dressing...& not a roll or cracker to be seen to accompany.
We felt the diving from the first day to be disappointing. The coral is mostly brown, the fish few & far between. One turtle, one shark, one lion fish...that about summed up all the days of diving, (5 days...10 dives) all at distant sites. I know the dive operators cannot predict the weather so we forgave the long boat ride each day to West Caicos or NW Point to find clear water, but don't tell us it's a short 40 minute ride when 12 divers are all wearing watches & the trip each time exceeds 100 minutes!
We dove with Dive Provo...all were friendly but didn't care one way or the other if you did your own thing, or followed them. Naturally I thought if I followed the pro I'd be treated to hidden undersea wonders only they could find...not so. I found myself pointing out things to them, sometimes questioning them, with a shrug as the answer.
Apparently we have all been spoiled by the incredibly anxious-to-please Mexican dive operators in Cozumel who actually jump in the water to help remove your gear so you can ascend the ladder without the added weight & save your strength for more important things... MORE DIVES. We have been equally impressed with local dive operators in Belize...Amigos del Mar (Ambergris)... and Bonaire...Sand Dollar Resort...our next RETURN trips. Sorry Provo...you don't get our vote.
My friends and I (7 total including 3 teenagers) just returned from our first & last trip to Provo. Four of us are divers with 5-15 years of experience each. We were completely satisfied with our accomodations on the SE corner of the island. We rented a private house... Sunset Point Villa. It was as beautiful as advertised. We stayed at the house most days for meals as the restaurants were we felt were VERY expensive...$12 for a small salad of iceberg lettuce with blue cheese dressing...& not a roll or cracker to be seen to accompany.
We felt the diving from the first day to be disappointing. The coral is mostly brown, the fish few & far between. One turtle, one shark, one lion fish...that about summed up all the days of diving, (5 days...10 dives) all at distant sites. I know the dive operators cannot predict the weather so we forgave the long boat ride each day to West Caicos or NW Point to find clear water, but don't tell us it's a short 40 minute ride when 12 divers are all wearing watches & the trip each time exceeds 100 minutes!
We dove with Dive Provo...all were friendly but didn't care one way or the other if you did your own thing, or followed them. Naturally I thought if I followed the pro I'd be treated to hidden undersea wonders only they could find...not so. I found myself pointing out things to them, sometimes questioning them, with a shrug as the answer.
Apparently we have all been spoiled by the incredibly anxious-to-please Mexican dive operators in Cozumel who actually jump in the water to help remove your gear so you can ascend the ladder without the added weight & save your strength for more important things... MORE DIVES. We have been equally impressed with local dive operators in Belize...Amigos del Mar (Ambergris)... and Bonaire...Sand Dollar Resort...our next RETURN trips. Sorry Provo...you don't get our vote.
