Dive Review of Go West Diving in
Curaçao/Northwest

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Go West Diving: "Very good diving, great crew!", Jun, 2018, by ann mcgrath, VA, US ( Sr. Contributor 26 reports with 19 Helpful votes). Report 10459 has 1 Helpful vote.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food	N/A
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	We booked Curacao because our trip to Dominica was cancelled, and it turned out to be an excellent choice! This was our first trip to Curacao (three female divers). We chose All West Apartments and Go West Diving based on the reviews, and were not disappointed. The apartments are perfect. Priced right, roomy with nice decks right on the water. They are clean and well maintained. A pickup truck came with the apartment, so we didn't have to spend extra time or money renting a vehicle, which is a HUGE benefit. The three of us had two apartments - one junior apartment and a studio. Both were larger than I expected! The kitchen in the junior apartment is where we made most of our meals. There are minimarts close by, but I recommend the larger grocery stores for a good selection, which are at least a half hour drive. We only had to make two grocery runs for the week, and ate out a few times - the restaurants are also excellent in Westpunt! If you choose, you can shore dive from the apartments at no extra cost! We did not, because of the steep steps to and from the water, but at least one couple did all their diving this way. There is a room at All West dedicated to shore diving, with weights, tanks, BCs (not sure if fins or masks are supplied). The dive shop is well equipped, and efficiently run. There is ample space to gear up before diving and to rinse and pack after diving. There are separate rinse tanks for wet suits, BCs, cameras and everything else. The staff will take your gear to the boat, and unload it after the dives. You may hang your gear out to dry at the dive shop, and the staff will lock it up for the evening. The boat we used is HUGE, and we never had more than four divers, so we had TONS of space to get ready and lounge between dives. They bring water and juice, fresh oranges and raisin bread for the surface interval. Often, we were close enough to the dive shop to do our surface interval back at the dock. The diving is better than I expected for the Caribbean (I'm spoiled by South Pacific diving). Hardly any current, and hardly any lionfish. The lettuce leaf slugs are beautiful whites, purples and blues. We got to dive in a huge bait ball one dive, which was a treat! The green morays are monstrous and laid back, good video or photo subjects. Turtles everywhere - in fact, the turtles swim back and forth just off the beach in front of the apartments, and you can snorkel with them every day! The snorkeling from the apartments or the dive shop pier is also excellent - locals and tourists show up every day to take advantage of that. The water temps were between 79 and 81. Initially, it was COOL, even with a 3mm wetsuit and a hooded vest. But we got used to it. Cameras: the staff will carry your camera equipment to and from the boat for you, and will put it in a small rinse bucket before/between/after dives for you. We had no issues with cameras being mishandled. Dive staff: Everyone is friendly and knowledgeable. Because we were staying in a small community, frequenting the restaurants close to the dive shop and apartments, we would run into the dive staff at some restaurants as well. They are helpful and cheerful at all times, making the entire experience that much better. It is worth diving with them to spend time with their crew! The boat captains are excellent, and even though each divemaster has his/her own personality, they are all excellent. (Some very chatty, some as quiet as monks.)
Websites	Go West Diving
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Caribbean, Thailand, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Indonesia (Lembeh, Komodo), Galapagos, Raja Ampat
Closest Airport		Getting There	DCA to Miami to Curacao. Missed my connection in Miami, so give yourself enough time!
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, rainy	Seas	calm
Water Temp	79-81°F / 26-27°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	30-80 Ft/ 9-24 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Depth (nitrox) and time (roughly 60 minutes, depending on depth)
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 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	The staff will carry your camera equipment to and from the boat if you wish. Your camera will soak in a fresh water bucket before and after diving, and there is another fresh water tank at the dive shop.

Report currently has 1 Helpful vote

Subscriber's Comments

By craig whitaker in OH, US at Nov 20, 2018 10:28 EST

Going to Curacao, staying at All West Apartments and diving with Go West in March, 2019. Your report was excellent, and I look forward to my trip, staying for two weeks. Please email me with any other tips you may have at info@craigskeyboards.com. Craig W.

By report author: ann mcgrath in VA, US at Nov 20, 2018 15:20 EST

you'll absolutely love it! Check out the local restaurants in West Punt - they are all excellent. And if you like fresh tamarind, there's a tamarind tree literally across the street from the apartments - just walk out the door and you'll see it.

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Dive Review of Go West Diving in Curaçao/Northwest

Go West Diving: "Very good diving, great crew!", Jun, 2018,

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):

Subscriber's Comments

Dive Review of Go West Diving in
Curaçao/Northwest