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#65
 Manta Village from SHORE? (Kona, the big island, Hawaii)
yohnis - 9/21/2009 1:33 PM
Category: Travel
Replies: 3
Has anyone dove Manta village from SHORE? (near Sheraton hotel in Kona, popular Manta ray BOAT night dive site)
Where is entry & exit?

When I was watching Manta from Shearton, divers came from shore. I would like to try from shore myself.

maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=ja&q=19.559719,+-155.966442&vps=2&jsv=173b&sll=19.565856,-155.973845&sspn=0.008825,0.010557&ie=UTF8&geocode= FSd1KgEdFiS09g&split=0
#21085
LatitudeAdjustment - 9/22/2009 8:08 PM
ShoreDiving.com list 21 sites for the big island but none called Manta however maybe the site is known by another name, many are.
#120
konasteve - 9/23/2009 5:32 PM


aloha,


 i live in captain cook on the west side of the big island. i am familiar with the manta site you have asked about. It is a difficult dive with entry at the nearby harbor and a surface swim of over 100yds.


unless you are an expert diver i wouldnt recommend it.


also the folks at the hotel really discourage diving at night with the mantas.


they are afraid of behaviour modification of the mantas presence there and because it is a night dive and the currents are hazardous here they would be the ones to call for rescue.


that being said, it is a doable dive. i wouldnt do it because there are so many other easy places to dive from shore.


if you are in the are and need a buddy for shore diving let me know. i live within 5 miles of some of the best shore divin in the state.


reply if you are interested in more info or need a buddy.
#148
Easydiver2 - 10/06/2009 4:30 PM
Where did the diver you saw enter and exit from?


I went there 2 times last week and checked out the site from the observation area of the Sheraton but the waves were smashing up against the shoreline/hotel so we didn’t go in since none of us had experienced the divesite before. The swim from the boat ramp is too far of an effort! I would NOT try it. The Manta night boat dive is around $120-145 for a 2 tanker. Seems to be a no-brainer to just go off shore but that’ll be a mistake if you don’t know the currents and the terrain on how to get to the manta’s.



Went to the Old Kona Airport area and got 2 Mantas to buzz us for 10 mins at 40-60ft depth so as the other divers have said, there’s easier access dive sites to use to get to Mantas at night.