Dive Review of SIDE in
Solomon Islands

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SIDE: "Solomon Islands on SIDE Liveaboard", Aug, 2015, by BRUCE VERSTEEGH, TX, US ( Reviewer 3 reports with 3 Helpful votes). Report 8820.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	We had a mixed experience on the Solomon Star. We had a great group (Americans, Aussies, Brazilians) - 10 divers total. The boat shows her age - and would be crowded if all 16 passengers were on the charter (SIDE recently put a new boat in service - may fix some issues). Camera workspace is limited as well - and dedicated camera rinse tanks were not provided. Food was plentiful and good, and mainly western dishes. Honor system for beverages - could bring your own liquor if so inclined. We booked a 10 day itinerary that was supposed to go from Honaira to Morovo Lagoon and back - but the boat had been damaged a couple weeks earlier; so we spent the first 2 days diving close to Honaira while the boat was repaired. And rough seas prevented the trip to Morovo lagoon - the signature area for the trip. So we spent time in the Florida and Mary Islands. Mirror Pond was the signature dive (incredible lighting), also did some nice wrecks that were very deep (3 100 ft + dives in one day. The cruise director worked hard to keep everyone happy with all the itinerary changes, and overall provided a good experience. She was the only dive guide and not a critter spotter - so if you are going for photography; you were on your own to find the critters. Lots of healthy coral - but not a lot of tropical fish (compared to Indonesia or Philippines). Did see a nice school of barracuda and Jacks on one dive, and a few sharks in the distance. In summary - was an OK cruise; hard to rate the Solomon's overall as we didn't get to signature areas. The areas we dove were not as good as Komodo or Raja Ampat - much less fish quantity and diversity. Also - Solomon Air limits weight in carry ons to 15 lbs and charges for checked bags over 40 pounds. So we had 200 dollars extra cost for camera gear.
Websites	SIDE
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Indonesia (North Sulawesi, Komodo, Raja Ampat), Fiji, Philippines, Cozumel, Bonaire, Grand Turk, Cayman, Flower Gardens, Fl Keys
Closest Airport	Honaira	Getting There	through Brisbane Australia or Nadi Fiji. One of guests bags were lost in Nadi - took a week to catch up with the boat
Dive Conditions
Weather	windy, rainy, cloudy	Seas	choppy, surge
Water Temp	-°F / -°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	40-100 Ft/ 12-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	strictly enforced dive times - 60 minutes max. Did some very deep wreck dives 145 feet max depth
Liveaboard?	yes	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	1 or 2
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	N/A
UW Photo Comments	Overall disappointed with photographic opportunities on the trip. Enjoyed some wreck diving - but depth limited available light so difficult to get nice wide angle shots. Mirror Pond was one of my all time favorite dives - it is a small salt water pond inside the island reached through a swim through. Incredible lighting with well defined sun rays framed by overhead mangroves - highlight of the trip. Also saw a nice school of Jacks and Barracuda in a ripping current - reef hook required to get anything photographed. There were several dives with anthias and anenome fish, but lots of dives with very few tropical fish. Didn't see an abundance of macro life either - a few shrimp/crabs/pipefish and nudis. Lot's of healthy coral; both hard and soft. Based on areas we dove - not worth the difficulty to get to the Solomon's. Komodo, Raja Ampat, and Anilao offer superior photographic destinations.

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Dive Review of SIDE in Solomon Islands

SIDE: "Solomon Islands on SIDE Liveaboard", Aug, 2015,

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):

Dive Review of SIDE in
Solomon Islands