Traveling Abroad with Gear

Chances are you don’t live in a tropical paradise that offers full-time access to amazing diving opportunities, but don’t let that deter you from traveling to such places. I personally don’t live anywhere near half the places I've dreamt of diving so I pack up my gear and go to them.

Living in Piedmont North Carolina has its perks but when it comes to scuba diving there is slim pickings. Unless you enjoy zero visibility diving in muddy lakes then where I live is perfect but otherwise you’ll need to get in a car, train or plane and hightail it elsewhere for that great dive vacation.

In five years of diving I've only dove outside of the United States twice, only transporting gear once. The notion of leaving thousands of dollars of scuba gear in the faithful hands of the airport can seem a bit daunting which is why many people choose to rent gear when traveling abroad. In the case where I dove in Costa Rica I decided it would be best to rent equipment rather than dealing with the hassle of transporting gear. Even though I chose not to bring along all of my gear I did bring the necessities, my mask, snorkel, boots and dive camera.

If you feel comfortable enough to bring all of your gear then there are a few recommendations I have. Obviously, don’t carry on a dive knife or anything that may be deemed as a weapon (spear-gun). I’m sure you can get it cleared but with the cost of specialized equipment I wouldn't want to risk having it confiscated. There is no need to transport your own weights or tank. It just adds extra pounds that you will have to pay for.

What I have determined from traveling by plane is that it is best to bring the bare necessities. Personalized equipment such as a mask and boots are invaluable because when scuba diving you want to be comfortable. If you need to bring along the other stuff then just consider what is worth packing, it may just save you a pretty penny.