Inspection of diving centres on the Colombian Caribbean Coast

A few days ago Christopher and I (Jasmin) came back from a trip to Santa Marta. During our inspection we went diving and gathered information about the local diving centres in Santa Marta. Especially three centres caught our attention, one in Santa Marta and two in Taganga, a village just 15 minutes by car. All three diving centres convinced us with a good standard of their equipment and service and all three of them count with a pool to practice with beginner students. Neptuno is working on developing a product with the above mentioned diving centres, to be able to offer its’ clients an appropriate option for diving in the future. The big advantage of the diving centre in the centre of Santa Marta is that their head office is located close to the port and that the dive excursions start from there as well - this makes a trip to Taganga in the morning unnecessary.

Many comfortable hotels are located in walking distance and clients can enjoy the comfort of staying in Santa Marta with the luxury of having all amenities close by. Also the service stood out: all our equipment was fully arranged and prepared when we got to the boat, so we could relax when you usually have to concentrate. Chris did his very first dive in his life, our instructor was professional and made us feel comfortable from the first minute. Chris conducted the ‘Minicurso’ excursion, where either the day before or in the morning you get introduced to the theory of diving and learn about the basics you need to know to be able to dive. Later you get to do two dives with an instructor in shallow waters, which cost aprox. 70 USD and include apart from all the equipment, the instructor and the transport also a snack and water. Unfortunately due to the tropical storm Harvey we weren’t allowed by the authorities to dive in the waters of Tayrona National Park, which is where all dive centres usually take their clients – yet, we got to enjoy the underwater world close to Santa Marta at a dive sight called Morro.

Also the dive centres in Taganga offer great service: usually, several languages are spoken, also German, which is a great asset. Most staff have a high command of English.

We absolutely recommend trying Scuba Diving in this area – it will be an unforgettable experience for a great price. Certified divers also get to enjoy the great service the diving centres offer and all standard PADI courses are available. As already mentioned, Promotora Neptuno is working on designing a product with diving in the focus to offer its’ clients in the future.