Keys Bound II

[TJDiver]

We're heading out in the morning for a week in the Keys...waterfront in Conch Key to be exact...small patch of ground just above Marathon. Supposed to be some fair snorkeling right out front...no reef of course, but some interesting critters to hear the owners tell it. The missus isn't a diver, so that should be fun for her. My 13-year old son and I have some dive trips booked, and we'll cart ourselves down to Key West for at least one eve of entertainment at Mallory Square and the Key West Sunset Celebration. Ya'll hold down the fort.

[rayaa3]

<sigh> my dive gear is lonely, hanging in the closet. I'm envious.

[TJDiver]

Well, we're back from our trip to the Florida Keys. We had near perfect weather for diving...hot, but calm seas and 86+ water temps. We made three boat trips out, for a total of six dives with Abyss Dive Center in Marathon, FL. Abyss operates a six-pack boat, and will go out with as few as two divers, so we had that covered with just me and my 13-year old son...and, that's exactly what we got on our first day of diving on Monday...a boat all to ourselves. The boat is a nice 34-ft. sport fishing style boat, but outfitted strictly for diving...the Vitamin Sea. Abyss was aware it was my son's first ocean dive, and did everything to put him at ease and make it a great dive for him. By the end of our first day, it was like diving with family. I just can't say enough good things about them...they're great and I highly recommend them!

Our first dive (my son's first ocean dive) was on Samantha's Reef...a nice shallow reef (20 ft. max I think) with plenty of sea life. My son was also lucky enough to see his first shark on this dive. Our second dive of the day was on Tropic Rocks, which was kind of bland compared to Samantha's, but my son didn't seem to notice. Captain Wade put us on these particular reefs because they're easy to navigate, leaving me free to concentrate on my son's safety and making sure he had a good first ocean dive. He also took the time to teach my son proper dive boat etiquette on a number of things in a very professional, but relaxed, intructor type fashion. If it was up to my son, Captain Wade would captain all our dive trips.

Our second day of diving was with Captain Lance of Abyss. He was a little more business like, but still very personable and made our diving a pleasure. This time we hit Sombrero Reef, which is a fantastic spur and groove reef with plenty of "canyons" to explore. About as soon as we made it to the bottom of a sand spur, we were graced with the presence of two large eagle rays cruising by...two days of diving, and two highlight sightings for my son...just couldn't get much better. We liked Sombrero so much, we decided to stay there for our second dive of the day...and, we got no objections from the two snorkelers that came along. BTW, this is not an operation where snorkeling and snuba get in the way of diving. The snorkelers are treated fantastic, but diving comes first with this group.

Our third day of diving was with Captain Wade again, and we talked him and the other two divers into another visit to Sombrero. This time, because of our excited description of Sombrero the day before, my wife decided to join us for a bit of snorkeling while we were down below. There is so much life on Sombrero, it's almost like snorkeling in a well stocked marine aquarium. Again, the day went off without a hitch, and Captain Wade was very attentive to all passengers.

I will say that Abyss' trips are just a wee bit more expensive than most other operators in the area, but you will not be stuck on a cattleboat, and the service is excellent. When I say more expensive, their rates are about the same as other operators, but don't include tanks, which is $10 extra...per trip, not per tank. However, after our experience with Silent World, I'll gladly pay the extra ten bucks.

BTW, I know some here on the forum have expressed good experiences with Silent World, but my two cents is buyer beware with them. We had booked a trip with them for our second day (Tuesday), and were scheduled to depart on their primary boat(s) from their primary location. We checked in with them on our way thru on arrival to take care of waivers and make payment. When I asked how many others had booked, their response was a measured, "Not many." We would later find out this meant only the two of us...still not sure why they found it necessary to "hide" that fact from us, as Abyss was straight up with us when we asked them the same question. Anyways, had we not called Monday night, we would not have known they had switched us to a different boat at a different location. I wrote it off as an oversight, and we showed up at the alternate location about ten minutes early Tuesday morning...only to find a small boat with an awkward entrance layout (they knew this was my son's first ocean dives)...a dive (swim) platform missing one mounting bracket and a bolt out of another bracket, leaving it with only two mounting brackets...tanks scattered about in disarray...and just a generally sloppy appearance and obvious lack of upkeep. My son took one look, and muttered, "If this is the boat, I'm not going out on it." Sure enough, the captain showed up and it WAS the boat. We blew off the dive and drove to the shop, only to be treated rudely by the one staff member on duty. Apparently, he contacted the owner who was out of town, and the owner left me a lengthy message on my voice mail...a rambling ten minute message about how much it cost to operate a dive trip, and how lucky we were they even opened the shop because he could have left the doors closed on such a light day. I'm not sure how that applied since we had already taken care of business, and just went straight to the boat. Not one word of apology...just how he was a "top operator" and how "lucky" we were. They may keep my money, but they won't keep my business like that.

Anyways, overall it was a very good trip, and my son had a very nice first ocean/boat diving experience...thanks to Abyss Dive Center.

[DMWiz]

I'm sorry to hear you had a bad experience with Silent World. I'm surprised they didn't call you to give you the option to cancel or switch. Did you at least get a refund? It's not clear from your report.

Anyhow, I'm glad you and your family had a good time despite the switch.
Thanks for the report.

[TJDiver]

Originally Posted by DMWiz

I'm sorry to hear you had a bad experience with Silent World. I'm surprised they didn't call you to give you the option to cancel or switch. Did you at least get a refund? It's not clear from your report.

Anyhow, I'm glad you and your family had a good time despite the switch.
Thanks for the report.

No, they didn't give us any options. Like I said, had we not called the night before (wanted to verify departure time), we would not have even known of the switch. They claimed they would have eventually called us that night, but that sounds like a CYA statement for someone caught in such a situation? And no, they refused to give a refund. I know most ops have that strict policy, but we did not get what we paid for...a kind of bait and switch thing in my opinion, reinforced by their reluctance to reveal how many/few had booked for that particular day. I can understand an op not wanting to run their bigger boat for only two divers, but we should have received a phone call and the choice should have been ours. Personally, I would have been embarrassed to admit association with the boat they switched us to, had it been my shop. Also, the owner was very arrogant in his message on my voice mail, and had the balls to suggest we call the shop and re-schedule another trip. Sorry, but I'm a "fool me once..." kind of guy.

But yes, we had a very good trip. Thanks.

[DMWiz]

I agree with you, the choice should have been yours. Highly unusual. You don't get a refund if you cancel within less than 24 hrs., but they canceled on you it seems.

[TJDiver]

Almost forgot...I picked up a SeaLife DC-800 before our trip. Here's a couple shots of my son on a dive.

[rayaa3]

that looks awesome, and despite some issues, sounds like a great trip...thanks very much for sharing with us.

[Chris at Silent World]

For those of you who didnt see my reply on the other thread that TJDiver is complaining about us on. here is my response. Its a shame people cant just talk to you about why they may be unhappy and instead prefer to try and damage your reputation on internet forums.

"Hi TJ Diver,

Im Sorry if we didnt meet your expectations on this occasion.

I called you from my cell phone in Miami airport as I was getting on a plane as soon as the shop informed me of your dissatisfaction. I apologize if the message seemed rambled and it in no way was meant to come across as sounding arrogant. I was simply trying to explain why I thought you were offered an exceptional experience and I was keen to understand your dissatisfaction more. Unfortunately you didnt call me back and didnt give me the opportunity to resolve your complaint.

Please let me explain a bit about the rationale behind the operation of my commercial dive vessels. In the slow periods between holidays it is my policy to still run all dive trips as promised regardless. This means that on occasions where I may only have 1 or 2 people, I will run the trip where many other shops would simply cancel it and inform you when you checked in. I also minimize any 'boarding passing' of divers to other operators wherever possible. I feel that my policies are in the best interests of customer satisfaction and will hopefully drive enough repeat business and recommendations required to cover the cost of implementing them

You paid 2 x $75 = $150 (plus any gear rental you may of had) for you and your son to dive. That simply does not cover the cost of running a commercial dive trip when you consider the cost of crews wages & insurance, fuel, professional liability insurance and the USGC vessel inspections & maintenance. I need 4 customers to cover the cost of running a boat trip.

Nevertheless, I paid Joe to open the shop and AJ to run the trip for just the two of you at a loss to avoid any disappointment. I thought this would be preferable to a boarding pass or cancellation.

Regarding the boat, it is a fantastic custom dive platform. The 25' Delta is a very popular and successful commercial dive vessel. Its the same one that Quiescence Diving Services have been using for years with much satisfaction from their customers. I often get customers that request to be on the 'Get Wet' Delta specifically because they like it. It is inexpensive to charter privately and many customers know that if they book 1 or 2 spaces, they will either get the boat to themselves or will be in the company of only 2 or 3 others. Captain AJ was available to you exclusively on the day and would have ensured that you and your son were comfortable and had a good time. Its hard to imagine a more passionate and dedicated mariner than AJ. His dad ran a dive shop in Mobile AL, and as such he has been diving all his life and has 11 years experience in running commercial dive vessels. (He is one of the few captains in the Keys that is still actively diving, teaching and taking continued education classes.)

I understand that it was to be your sons first ocean dive and I sympathize with his anxiety, however this in no way reflects badly on us as an operation. We could have easily provided you with a guide if you had asked, at worst you would only have needed to postpone to the afternoon.

To summarize, we were ready to deliver more than promised - a private charter worth $500 at no additional cost to you to dive 2 reefs in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary on a professional commercial vessel with a fantastic captain.

I accept that your son wasnt ready to dive and can understand you 'blowing off the dive' at the last minute but please dont make out that it was due to us not meeting the standard of professional dive charters to be expected in the Keys.

My offer I left on your VM still stands, you are welcome to take your dive trips at your convenience without prejudice any time in the future. If there is any aspect of your experience you would like to discuss, please call me on my cell (305)395-1194 or email me at silentworldscuba@hotmail.com

Regards"

[Chris at Silent World]

Originally Posted by DMWiz

I'm sorry to hear you had a bad experience with Silent World. I'm surprised they didn't call you to give you the option to cancel or switch. Did you at least get a refund? It's not clear from your report.

Anyhow, I'm glad you and your family had a good time despite the switch.
Thanks for the report.

Just to clarify, there was no need to cancel or switch anything. They booked 2 spaces for Key Largo diving and I put them on my 6 pack boat I use for private / custom charters for when I have less than 6 customers.