Visit: What to Bring to STX for Scuba Gear

Probably easier to rent than to lug gear back and forth.
Just arrange dive trips with a good company.
Someone on STX can chime in for recommendations.

The dive shops have complete sets of equipment for rental, but of course you would be most comfortable with your own gear that you're used to. Important to keep your dive profiles on your own computer so you'll have them, right? Hopefully your mask is a perfect fit or you wouldn't have bought it, and a mask doesn't take up much room in your luggage. I bring everything, but that's me - depends on how comfortable you are using non-familiar gear.

P.S. - about the wetsuits - none is never a good idea. If you dive much you know there are things that can sting or even just irritate your skin, visible and invisible, anywhere you get in the ocean. May should be around 80 - 81 in the water I would think. Warmish, but way less than body temperature. If you dive the Frederiksted pier (which you definitely should!) you can be in the water a loooong time and there's never any current to speak of, so you won't expend much energy.

When my son came down to STX he brought everything except tanks and weight belt.

3 mil wet suit is perfect. I bring my own computer, regulators, mask, fins, and wing and harness. ST Croix Ultimate Blue water Adventures has complete rental gear and they are the one dive group I use. I prefer my own gear however.

It's always best to use your own gear as your most comfortable with it. I brought all of mine down last october and did 3 dives. Depends if you want to pay for the extra bag. I did 1 at the pier and 2 during the day. All with SCUBA in Christiansted. The night dive was great and I highly recommend it.

Everything or nothing. Shops are well equipped but then it's not your gear. We bring everything but tanks and weights. And warm water gear set fits in our carry-ons. Got tired years ago of airlines misdirecting the luggage with the dive gear, so no more of that. I like to stay warm so 3 mil shorty is fine for me.

Full gear is usually 30-40$. I would bring yours and save the money.

3 mil or nothing. I usually just wear a rash guard but a shorty at night. Pier was 83 at 20ft yesterday 🙂 getting nice! Bring on that Aug wata! Omg north shore was so incredibly flat Monday!! I mean like glass, did anyone dive the wall last two days? Vis has to be rockin! Found a really fab Black Sailfin Benny colony at the pier yesterday! So hilarious to watch them - they all live in like a 2 ft area inside empty whelk and snail shells and are SUPER territorial with massive black fin displays - open mouth battles. They're only about 1/2 total length with the biggest attitudes. Adorable.

Dave where does SCUBA do their night dive?

AandA2VI,
The do it right at the pier, they park just inside the gates, start out on the north side of the pier (there's a little area you can step into the water) then they take you out towards the end of the pier and you wrap around and come back out on the south side of the pier near where the rocks meet the lower section of the pier. It was about 40 minutes, and that was mostly due to me as I'm still working on my breathing. But I've improved on my last dives dramatically. We saw a lot of octopus, some sea horses and other creatures I don't think you would normally see. It was all good and I'll go back for sure 🙂 They also kept my gear, cleaned it for me and had it ready for my dive the next day, which worked out well, so I wouldn't have to keep lugging it around.

dive skin for sure. You can rent BCD, tanks, and weights from the different shops for shore dives and they will also rent them as part of boat dive. It would be cheaper to pay the extra baggage then rent if you are going to dive a lot. Call Cane Bay and ask about their rental packages.

I think most of the boat dive rates include gear. Don't think I got a break using our own gear.

Great info, thanks very much for the responses!

Bang stick

AandA2VI,
The do it right at the pier, they park just inside the gates, start out on the north side of the pier (there's a little area you can step into the water) then they take you out towards the end of the pier and you wrap around and come back out on the south side of the pier near where the rocks meet the lower section of the pier. It was about 40 minutes, and that was mostly due to me as I'm still working on my breathing. But I've improved on my last dives dramatically. We saw a lot of octopus, some sea horses and other creatures I don't think you would normally see. It was all good and I'll go back for sure 🙂 They also kept my gear, cleaned it for me and had it ready for my dive the next day, which worked out well, so I wouldn't have to keep lugging it around.

Oh yea I night dive the pier like once a week. Kinda becoming old hat although I do always see something new. Wanting to try out a few other night spots - the pier is just so convenient, at the end of my road lol.