Just off the shores of Ocho Rios lies large patches of coral reef. Filled with colorful fish and surrounded by bright blue waters of the Caribbean.
On our trip to Jamaica with Funjet Vacations, we stayed at Sandals Ochi Resort in Ocho Rios, where Adam got to go under with the Sandal’s dive masters. All of the guests at Sandals Ochi have unlimited diving included in their stay.
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The ride out to the reef was a short couple hundred meters from the dock. The dive looked promising as we rode out to the site, the water was crystal clear and calm. Our local dive master gave us a quick brief as we suited up for the dive.
The captain gave our small dive group the go ahead and with one giant step, we were into the warm waters. The waters were so warm I opted to go without a wetsuit and even at 18 meters deep I was more than comfortable.
We descended down right next to a lively reef and waited for our group to assemble. Looking around the waters reminded me of some of the great diving I had done in El Nido.
The water was remarkably clear and the visibility was some of the best I have dove with. Staring off into the deep in the distance the colors were a deep royal blue telling me the dive was going to be a good clear dive.
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We made our way around the reef watching the fan coral sway in the gentle current. Small reef fish swam in between the pieces of hard corals. The beauty in the dives I did in Ocho Rios was in the details.
The small bright color reef fish kept me entertained was we swam across the reef. We also saw a bunch of lobsters hiding out in the cracks under the larger reefs. I came across one group of three or four lobsters hiding just outside one the local fisherman’s lobster traps. These guys were very interested in my camera and kept investigating it with their spiny antennas. They were fun to play with, but part of me wanted to grab one and take it back for lunch!
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The highlight of the dive for me was the pair of octopus I spotted nestled in a spot in the coral. I caught a slight movement out of the corner of my eye and I swam closer and saw it was an octopus. As I came closer the larger octopus came out to check me out. He pulsed his colors to tell me to ‘back off’, and then as my GoPro got a little closer he took off in protest. The other divers in my group hadn’t seen an octopus up close before so they were more than excited when we returned to the boat.
Back on the boat our captain and crew prepared us a snack for the quick ride back to the resort of fresh fruits and drinks. Diving at Sandals Ochi in Ocho Rios was the perfect way to spend a morning.
Having complimentary diving for dive certified guests is a huge bonus for me. If there weren’t so many things to do in Jamaica I would be on the dive boat every single day!
Our trip to Jamaica was arranged by Funjet Vacations, but as always our opinions are our own.
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