What you should know about Scuba Diving and Flying

A simple rule that is sometimes overlooked even by experienced scuba divers. It is mentioned in almost all the scuba diving courses that it is not a good idea to scuba dive after flying or the opposite, fly right after scuba dive.

It does not matter if you took a two hour flight to a Caribbean island or a 20-hour flight to Phuket, Thailand; during flights your body suffers dehydration and it is affected by changes in pressure. To get a sense on how pressure works on your body, next time you are in an airplane try this: before the airplane takes off remove your shoes, then after a while (typically when the seatbelt sign goes off), try to wear your shoes again…sometimes you can’t.

NOAA’s Scuba Diving Manual has tables showing a ‘rough’ recommendation in terms of length of time that you will have to wait to dive or fly. As a general rule, most of the instructors and scuba related institutions recommend a 24-hour waiting period after flying. There are more accurate calculations based on some key elements of scuba diving (mix, time and depth), but I have never tried to do an accurate calculation.

The Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS) has very interesting books and publications related to this topic, I think anyone interested in become a scuba diver should read the book titled “Diving Physiology in Plain English” by Dr. Jolie Bookspan. I am sure this book will help you to answer any simple or complex question related to diving physiology (The study of how the body works underwater).

Some divers and instructors say that if you do not wait for certain period before diving you increase your risk for decompression sickness. I think that statement makes sense, I am not a doctor but I try to be informed, according to Divers Alert Network most of the accidents occur in the first day of a multi day dive trip, is that a coincidence? Of course not!

Sometimes we (me included) are so obsessed and tempted to jump into the water on the very first day of our dive trip that we try to convince ourselves that there is no risk involved by doing that. The bad thing is that in case of emergency we do not have many choices underwater.

Remember, as soon as you arrive to your destination: rehydrate, get some rest and wait 24 hours prior to enjoy your scuba diving time!

Scuba Diving Exotic Place – Phi Phi Leh Island, Thailand

If you are planning to travel to Thailand for your next scuba diving vacation, the movie “The Beach” will give you a sneak peak of what you will see. A combination of beautiful ocean views and exotic islands is the perfect place for a relaxing scuba diving adventure.
Some of the best spots for scuba diving in the Phi Phi Leh Island are:

Sea Lake, Maya Bay, Camel Rock, Hin Klang and Hin Phae. Hin Phae is one of the best places to see sharks; there is a large group of Blacktip reef sharks in that area. The only thing is that if you are scuba diving you won’t see these sharks closely, since they don’t like the noise from your regulator (bubbles). My recommendation, practice snorkeling at this spot and enjoy the experience of diving with (friendly) sharks.

To get to the Phi Phi Islands you can take boats from Phuket or Krabi. It is very advisable to book you hotel or lodging in advance since it is more likely that you will have to stay overnight.