SCUBA diving at EPCOT

[JaOdNaM]

My girlfriend and I took our vacation and celebrated our anniversary at the World this passed September. It was her first time at a Disney park as well as flying. She loved it so much we're planning on going back again 2013. We're currently enrolled in an open water scuba diving class and really want to do the scuba experience at The Seas. I was just looking for some input/experiences from other adult couples who have done this before.

Also: how difficult was it traveling with your gear(airplane), how difficult was it bringing your gear from your resort to the Seas Pavillion, did you find the experience worth the price as something to do on every visit to the World or is it more of a one time thing just to do it, is it difficult to actually get signed up/registered to do the scuba diving(do the spots fill up months in advance?

These are just a few of the questions I had; any and all info would be great.
Thanks!!!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

They provide everything.

The ULTIMATE Dive... in a 6 million gallon indoor aquarium with more than 65 species of marine life, including sharks, turtles, eagle rays, and diverse tropical fish. This dive offers guaranteed calm seas, no current, unlimited visibility, incredible marine life, and bright coral structures. It could only happen at The Seas in Epcot®, part of the fabulous Walt Disney World® Resort.
-- Additionally, you become part of the show! Your family members and friends (with Epcot admission) can view your dive through any of the 56 giant acrylic windows at The Seas with Nemo & Friends!

A DVD of your experience can be purchased for an additional $35.00

Equipment Provided: Includes mask, fins, tank, buoyancy compensator, regulator, weightbelt, and a 2.5mm shorty wetsuit.

Additional Information:

Water temperature is in the mid-70s
Guests may not bring their own equipment or cameras of any kind
Personal masks are acceptable
Guest must provide proof of certification: C-card or verification from a certifying agency and a photo identification
Guests in water approximately 1 hour after start for a 40 minute dive experience

So you don't have to worry about bringing any equipment.

 

[Wasre]

They provide everything.


So you don't have to worry about bringing any equipment.

This is a very fun dive. I've done it 6 times so far and plan to do it again. The price seems high per person, however, one thing to keep in mind is that the proceeds go to the World Wildlife Foundation for one of the projects that they are working with that year.

The only thing they'll let you bring in of your own gear is a mask as Cheshire Figment posted. They will also ask you to remove any jewelery and will provide (fish friendly) hair bands for those with long hair who wish to tie their hair back. Other than that, they supply a Shorty wet suit, mask, fins and BC with pressure gauge. They do this mostly so that no wild contaminants are introduced into their closed eco-system.

Make sure to bring your dive log with you as they will be more than happy to put a stamp in your logbook for you and will have all of the pertinent details for the "trip" to enter. Temperature of the water is normally around 72 degrees, depth is only 25 feet.

One of the nice things with this dive is if you suck down your air fairly quickly during the dive, they will give as many tanks as you can use, provided there is enough time left in the dive to swap you out. Their safety margin is 500 psi in the tank. Just find the Dive Master or Safety Diver and give them the signal you are at 500 psi and they'll check the time and escort you back to the ingress point to have your tank swapped. I personally use about 3300 psi of air in total and do have to have my tank swapped out. The swap-out is very quick and you're back in the water.

If you're seriously planning on doing this tour, I'd highly recommend the later of the 2 tour times. There is usually one around 4:00 - 4:30 and the other is around 5:30 PM. In my experience, the 5:30 dive usually has fewer people in it and if you're wanting the DVD that they create, you'll have more on-screen time with fewer people in the tank. One of my dives, I was the only person in the tank besides the videographer and dive master. Another dive it was me and one other person. Both at the later tour time. Be outside of Guest Relations 15 minutes prior to the meeting time. This is one of the few tours that not just anyone gets to be a part of. As far as the other guests are concerned, they tend to think you are a CM.

Enjoy the dive and make sure to have a lot of fun swimming past the people eating in the restaurant and with the kids in the observation deck areas.

 

[afnaechiquita]

I had no idea this existed!!! I definitely want to do it next time I go.

 

[Wasre]

I had no idea this existed!!! I definitely want to do it next time I go.

Just call (407) WDW-TOUR to book it, or you can find out more information here: http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/tours-and-experiences/epcot-dive-quest/

It really is a blast. Of my 8 trips down there I have only missed diving twice. Once while the tour was on a hiatus due to filtration issues and then this last trip in October, I just didn't have time to squeeze it in. I'll be going down again fairly soon (Just renewed my AP this weekend) since I just bought some DVC points on the resale market and I was notified that Disney waived their right of first refusal. It should close in the next week or two.

I highly encourage anyone to do this dive, but it's especially good for new or returning after a long surface interval divers. It's a completely controlled environment, it's only about 25 feet deep, you don't don't have to worry about finding your boat or bucking the tides to get back on shore and the money goes toward wildlife conservation around the world. My last dive there at the beginning of September (yes, I was there twice in one month and I'm from the Left Coast) was with a friend who that was their first official dive post-certification dives.

Check it out. PM me if you have questions I might be able to answer about this tour. My goal is to become one of the tour guides down there.

 

[afnaechiquita]

It certainly sounds awesome. I just got my certification in June. I have a lot of issues equalizing, but hopefully by the time I get back to WDW I'll be more practiced and good to go

 

[Pumbaa7287]

I got this as a surprise gift for my girlfriend in 2011 on our Summer trip and she loved it! We enjoyed watching her walk through the aquarium with the other divers in her wetsuit, and she came up to the glass and interacted with us while they filmed it for the video you can buy afterwards. She also loved following around the sharks and waving to kids at the restaurant connected to the tank! She would definitely recommend it to anyone!

 

[ludari]

As others have mentioned you are only allowed to bring your diving mask and Disney will provide the rest. I completed this diving experience in September and it was amazing. The dive team is awesome and they take care of everything from setting up your gear, helping you put it on (including your fins), changing tanks (if you need it), etc. If you family or friends that are not participating in the scuba experience I would suggest they join you so they can be part of the video (which you have the option to purchase). I look forward to the next time I can dive at Epcot. Enjoy your Epcot dive.

 

[DarkSideRunner]

I did this years ago with my husband. I am a bit of nervous diver - I just got certified because my husband loves it so much. I have to say, Disney made it so easy - I actually enjoyed diving there and might do it again in the future.