Dive Review of Oasis Divers/Osprey Beach in
Turks and Caicos/grand turk

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Oasis Divers/Osprey Beach, Apr, 2010, by W Glen Kitchens, NM, US ( Contributor 18 reports with 4 Helpful votes). Report 5486.
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	Recently back from Grand Turk in the Turks & Caicos (TCI). Dove for seven days with Oasis Divers which is a well-run operation. Should probably report here that Oasis has two locations & one serves ONLY cruise ship divers. This is an operation at the south end of the island near the dedicated cruise boat pier. The operation my buddies & I dove with is owned by the same people but it's located well north on the beach & they do a very good job of catering to serious divers & photographers. Dale & her husband run both operations & while I can't speak to the 'cruise' operation, she was very accomodating to my dive group. Shortly after we had checked into Osprey Beach Hotel which is a short walk from Oasis, Dale dropped by the bar (intuitive) with the paperwork for diving & answered all our questions about what to expect. She told us we would have the diveboat all to ourselves & while we had all heard that one before, it turned out to be true! While Dale kept things in order on shore, Mackie took charge on the boat. My buds & I never had seen one man work so hard & we've made lots of trips together! Mackie was the boat captain, divemaster, tank changer, tank filler, & fill-in photographer when one of our group left his camera & headed back to the boat early on one dive. Most dives are 5 - 10 minutes from the shore & the flat-bottom boat provides plenty of room for gear as well as fresh water container for cameras. Most sites are bouyed but on a couple of dives Mackie did have to drop the anchor & once the wind picked up, the rope did a bit of reef dragging. But considering Mackie's the only help on the boat, he did a very good job. Water temp in late April was 80-82 F. Currents were generally light which made for good bottom time w/ excellent water clarity. I had to ask Mackie if the boat had ever slipped off the mooring - he said one time it did but it was a short swim back to shore! Since the airlines have started 'nickel & diming' their customers at every turn, I have started renting SCUBA gear I used to carry, to stay under weight restrictions. Oasis gear was very good quality & presented no problems. Considering recent hurricane activity in the area, the reefs are in very good shape. While diving we did not see any large fish, but the reefs were alive w/ activity from all the usual suspects & dolphins ran w/ our boat on one occasion. Whales were spotted passing through while we were on the island. At Osprey Beach Hotel the rooms offered a lot of space to spread out w/ a kitchenette, AC & TV. The hotel also has an excellent white sand beach. We learned quickly to disregard the menu & just ask what was available to eat. The hotel did not offer breakfast & we found the best place for a good breakfast was Salt Raker Inn, just down the road. Considering it was early & the mosquitos were waking up, Salt Raker included a spray can of Off, along w/ the salt & pepper. We also ate dinner at Salt Raker & the food was always good. They even had ice cream, after the waitress at Osprey told us there was none to be found on the island! A car rental is not necessary as taxis are readily available & most amenities are within walking distance from the hotel. There are only three dive operations on Grand Turk & the last week of April, we were virtually the only visiting divers on the island, except for the days the cruise ships landed. The cruise boats only appear on Mondays & Fridays w/ the other five days being pretty quiet (at least when we were there) w/ just the day-to-day goings-on. But when the big boats hit, suddenly all the bars are full & the narrow roads are busy w/ taxis & tour vans. After a week of diving, you don't want to miss the chance to hit the cruise pier when the boats come in for a little 'sightseeing'. Margaritaville alone is worth a visit to watch everyone get crazy! We all met up at Miami International Airport & stayed at the Airport Hotel in Concourse E. The next morning we flew to Providenciales & from there had to puddle-jump to Grand Turk on Air Turks & Caicos. NOTE: Their baggage policy allows only 44 pounds checked without charges. The U.S. dollar is the official currency - bring plenty as the island is a bit more expensive than a typical Belize or Mexico location & some places on Grand Turk don't take credit cards. English is the official language of TCI.
Websites	Oasis Divers
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	throughout Pacific & Carribean
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, dry	Seas	surge
Water Temp	80-82°F / 27-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility	60-100 Ft/ 18-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	500 PSI at the boat;
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	Schools	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics	N/A
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of Oasis Divers/Osprey Beach in Turks and Caicos/grand turk

Oasis Divers/Osprey Beach, Apr, 2010,

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 Oasis Divers/Osprey Beach in
Turks and Caicos/grand turk