Restrictions on DSD and snorkelling (Age, weight, waistline)
Anyone within the below restrictions and are healthy can join DSD or snorkelling.
*We are unable to accept diving or snorkelling bookings for pregnant women or those who are planning to conceive.
《Weight & Waistline》
- Weight below 100kg or BMI 32, whichever is lower
- Waistline below 42 inches or 107cm
- DSD: Ages 12~16 joining shore DSD must weigh above 40kg. Boat DSD has no minimum weight.
《Age》
Anyone within the ages stated below can book:
- DSD: Shore ages 12~59; Boat ages 10~59. *For shore, each participant must carry the air tank at their back and walk for about 80 steps of stairs, so under 16 must be over 40kg of weight. Boat DSD has no minimum weight restriction.
- Snorkelling: Ages 5~59. **PLEASE read the below notice on WHO must bring with them a doctor's note in order to join our activities.
《Who must bring a doctor's note》
- DSD: for your own safety, all representatives must have ALL participants read THOROUGHLY this medical questionnaire before confirming your booking 【DSD Medical Checklist】 （←CLICK）Any item with an answer "YES" means you must bring a doctor's note indicating "I find no medical conditions that I consider incompatible with scuba diving." and signed and dated by the doctor with the clinic's details or letter head. Please also indicate any medical conditions WHEN you are booking (fill in Remarks).
- Snorkelling: If you are on regular medication OR ages 61~65, or disabled, or has chronic diseases/disorders/history related to the ear canal, respiratory system, and circulatory system (for instance, asthma), you must bring a doctor's note with you to prove that your 'body condition is suitable for snorkelling' in order to join the activity. The doctor's note should show "I find no medical conditions that I consider incompatible with snorkelling." and signed and dated by the doctor with the clinic's details or letter head. Please also indicate any medical conditions WHEN you are booking (Please fill in Remarks).
***If, after reading the above, you find that some group members cannot join, please notify us by email as soon as possible to cancel the number of participants. Feel free to ask on email if you are not sure.
***Before booking, please read thoroughly all the restrictions and medical checklist mentioned above. Anyone who is found with medical conditions and considered unfit to join our activities by our instructors upon arrival at our shop, it is considered same day cancellation, and a cancellation fee equivalent to 100% of activity fee will apply. This is because when a booking is confirmed, we commit by reserving capacity for you, therefore other customers would not be able to join. Any last minute cancellation will only incur loss so customers will still have to pay for the full fee. Thank you for your understanding.***
Deposit and Cancellation Policy (CURRENT)
- 1 month prior: full refuned
- 22~30 days prior: 80% refundable
- 14~21 days prior: 50% refundable and cannot change activity date
- 7~13 days prior: 30% refundable
- 0～6 days prior: no refund
For cancellation, please email us: info@bestdiveokinawa.com
After you have filled in the booking form, we will start processing your booking and arranging instructors for you. If at any point you want to cancel your booking, please inform us AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, even before you receive any emails or deposit notice from us. Thank you.
Will the tour go ahead when it rains or if staircase to shore entry is closed?
- Rainy days do NOT affect activities. Only sea conditions will affect. Before and after typhoon, we may cancel the tours. Please watch out for our announcement by email.
- Blue Cave is a natural place. If the staircase to shore entry is closed by Cape Maeda's management, we will take the tour to boat entry (participants to pay a small boat fee), or to beach entry which also offer same types of tropical fish and coral. Tours will still go ahead and customers must agree to carry on with the tour.
- Under adverse weather conditions where activities are deemed unsafe, we would cancel the tour and refund any deposit paid (excluding any PayPal service fee).
I can't swim. Can I join the tours?
Sure you can! Non-swimmers can join both snorkelling and DSD. You'll wear a wetsuit, a life jacket and will be holding on to a rope to a big buoy when you snorkel. For DSD, we use full face mask so you can breathe with your mouth or your nose. Very easy to adapt to the underwater environment.
What should I know if I book DSD?
For your own safety, all representatives must have ALL participants read THOROUGHLY this medical questionnaire before confirming your booking
【DSD Medical Check】 （←CLICK）Any item with an answer "YES" on page 1 means you have to go through page 2 as well, and arrange for a doctor's sign on page 3 accordingly. Please also indicate any medical conditions WHEN you are booking (fill in Remarks).
Please also read thoroughly also other restrictions in the first FAQ of this page 【Restrictions on DSD and snorkelling (Age, weight, waistline)】
The participants who have medical conditions found upon arrival without presenting a doctor's note (a signed page 3 of the Medical Check) will still have to pay 100% of the activity fee. Therefore, please do read thorough and be prepared if necessary.
What do the fees include?
Activity fee, all gear required (life vest, wetsuit, snorkel set if snorkelling; wetsuit, mask, BCD, regulator, tank, fins if DSD), instructor fee, accident insurance under the shop's watch, instructor's liability insurance.
What is not included in the activity fee?
Photos taking，bath towel, swimwear, and also the facility fess below:
Cape Maeda public facilities:
- Shower: JPY 200 for 100 seconds
- Hair dryer: JPY 100 for 4-5 mins
Boat Entry：Best Dive Facilities
- Shower: Free of charge
- Hair dryer: JPY 200 per person
Can I not wear wetsuit and/or life vest?
For customer's safety, all participants MUST wear wetsuits to protect your body from coral scratch which may lead to infection.
And all snorkellers MUST wear life vests.
Are photos included?
3~5 photos will be taken at sight seeing spots for the participants.
If you would like to record the whole journey with a lot more photos and videos, we recommend GoPro rental, which will be hooked to one participant's life jacket (snorkelling) or BCD ( diving) and can be used whenever you feel like.
VR camera, what is it?
VR 360 camera can record videos in 360°.
We rent out one at JPY 8000.
Customers take VR on their own for first person view.
If you ask the instrcutor to take it for you, please be informed that that the biggest face and closest person in the videos will be the instructor and not you!
*Files are usually big and need to be converted into MP4 by us. Please note that VR's MP4 will be provided 2~7 days after the activity date depending on the total size of all files added together.
How to view VR MP4
1) Upload directly to your Facebook or YouTube account, and view by move your smartphone or swipe your fingers on your screen to move the view around.
2) Window Media Player (Window 10 or above)
3) Use VLC, a free software https://www.videolan.org/vlc/
