Aqua Safaris Scuba Center image

Aqua Safaris Scuba Center

Sporting goods store

👍👍 Took PADI classes there and rented the gear. Caitlin, Charlie, and Boomer, are nice and knowledgeable. Would come back for the Advanced Scuba! People often mention dive, shop, battery, gear, great, trip,


Address

6896 Soquel Ave # A, Santa Cruz, CA 95062, United States

Website

aquasafaris.com

Contact

+1 831-479-4386

Rating on Google Maps

4.70 (40 reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Thursday: 11 am to 5 pm
  • Friday: 11 am to 5 pm
  • Saturday: Closed
  • Sunday: 10 am to 4 pm
  • Monday: Closed
  • Tuesday: Closed
  • Wednesday: 11 am to 5 pm

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: dive (11) shop (10) battery (7) gear (6) great (6) trip (6)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 Oleksii M. 5 years ago on Google • 241 reviews
    Took PADI classes there and rented the gear. Caitlin, Charlie, and Boomer, are nice and knowledgeable. Would come back for the Advanced Scuba!
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Roger S. 7 years ago on Google • 14 reviews
    We have been using this dive shop as our "dive shop of record" in Santa Cruz for decades. We go back to the original owners (before their sad ending) and through the transition to full speed ahead these folks are great. I have been diving for over 50 years and the enthusiasm and support of the staff is very rewarding and always reaffirms the sport is alive and well.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Pablo M. 3 years ago on Google • 75 reviews
    Super helpful staff and great shop in general. They went out of their way to help me save money and were very knowledgable about all things scuba. I will be using this shop for all my diving needs in the future

  • 5/5 Natalie R. 5 years ago on Google • 54 reviews
    Went to go get fitted for my wet suit and I'm really excited for class in 4 days. Getting prepared really takes time and energy. The cooler wasn't difficult to complete.

  • 5/5 Kai O. 1 year ago on Google • 10 reviews
    I had no idea that Capitola had a diving shop! Good prices on fills and rental gear + friendly staff. No complaints :)

  • 3/5 No O. 5 years ago on Google • 10 reviews
    The young people in the shop are very friendly, and the gear selection is good. They aren't really great at calling back with information after you've asked for it. Service is okay. I'm a new diver, so I'm not sure what to expect, but here's what I got. I was going on a dive trip, and I requested three things. New (braided) hoses, reg service, and a fresh battery on the computer (Aqua Lung i300C, which I bought from them. Nice computer, btw). The hoses took quite some time to be delivered, and required many followup calls. I finally had to go with a different hose, or miss my trip. When I picked up the reg, they put it on a tank for me to check out. It started to leak some air, and they explained that because they had tuned the primary and octo together, I had to depress the octo slightly to stop it from leaking. Sounded weird, but what do I know? Later, on the dive trip, the problem was correctly identified as a leaking port plug. Luckily, I had a spare in my save-a-dive kit, and we replaced it on the dive. No more problems, and no need to 'slightly depress the octo' when pressurizing. I was told the battery was fine, and didn't need to be replaced, in spite of the fact I'd seen low battery warnings. Sure enough, on day two of the dive trip, the low battery warning went off again. I probably could've finished the trip safely, but the i300C has Bluetooth which won't connect if the battery is low. I would've lost the data for most of the dives. Annoying, because I had asked for the battery to be replaced to avoid this exact issue. Luckily, I had a spare battery, O-ring, and special tab to open the computer in my save-a-dive kit, and the dive shop replaced it (for a nominal fee. So, three out of five stars. I did rent some weights and a wetsuit from them, no issues. But, I had to go to a different shop to get the steel 100 tanks I prefer to dive with.

  • 5/5 Brandon W. 4 months ago on Google • 10 reviews
    I had a great experience getting my scuba cert with Charlie and Boomer. I would give these guys more stars if I could. Both of them very knowledgeable, professional, and there’s no short supply of jokes. I felt very comfortable with their training skills. The shop has great prices on gear as well. Thanks guys!

  • 5/5 Rishi M. 1 year ago on Google • 4 reviews
    I did my open water ocean sessions with Charlie. He was a fantastic, safe, patient teacher who I learned a lot from. I would highly recommend him to anyone looking to learn and get their open water certification.

  • 5/5 Renee G. 4 years ago on Google • 3 reviews
    It had been a couple of decades since my last scuba dive… One of my friends invited me on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the Red Sea for shark breeding season. I called Aqua Safaris to ask if I could re-certify. I was told my certification was good for life, but I could take a refresher course. It was a great class and they use the pool at SLV and Mara helped me feel completely comfortable under water again. Then, I took a Nitrox class at the shop with Caitlyn, it was also very good but not as exciting. Finally, It was recommended I take the advanced course with Boomer. It was a four day class one classroom, one day at the pool, and two days in the ocean in Monterey. I feel so confident and ready to go I can’t thank them enough. I was so nervous to do my deep dive off the boat, but Boomer made me feel relaxed and ready by being super knowledgeable, funny, and confident. Everytime I tried to do things my way, I was wrong, he was right. I would not hesitate to recommend Aqua Safaris for any scuba class or buying dive gear. I might just be going back when I get home to try the dry suit!

  • 5/5 Sam S. 1 year ago on Google • 2 reviews
    Charlie and his staff are absolutely amazing. Got certified and bought a lot of gear here. I highly recommend Charlie as an instructor. He is incredibly knowledgeable, patient, professional, and fun.


Call +1 831-479-4386 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Payments
    • ✓️ Debit cards
    • ✓️ Credit cards
    • ✓️ NFC mobile payments
  • Accessibility
    • ✓️ Wheelchair-accessible car park
    • ✓️ Wheelchair-accessible entrance
  • Service options
    • ✗ Delivery
    • ✓️ In-store shopping
  • From the business
    • ✓️ Small business

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