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For those of you who do not subscribe to Undercurrent, there is a serious issue you should know about before traveling to the island of Dominica (or probably any dive destination). Undercurrent ran an article in this month's issue, but for details, please email me.
Happy diving!
OK, I'll bite - what is it that we all need to know about Dominica? Or, do I need to take out a paid subscription to UnderCurrents to discover the answer?
And this is valid in just about any destination, but the situation is much worse on Dominica -
Women are targets of the locals. I was ripped off by a local there, who was "helping me" build a house for my retirement! Apparently, I wasn't the only one, and once I started discussing my experience, discovered that the problem is RAMPANT, especially on Dominica!
I'm going to court in September to try to get some of my $20K back. Another woman was ripped off by the same scuba instructor for about $3K. I helped a divemaster there get a new computer, and he even signed a contract for repayment, and has not repaid - that's the next legal action, once I resolve the first one.
The locals are VERY smooth about this. My experience with taking groups is that some of the businesses will try to rip off tourists as well! I always negotiated a price for my groups before I booked the trip, obviously. But very often, the price we were charged when leaving at the end of the trip was not what was quoted. I was always able to get the price we agreed to, because I take copies of the correspondence with me! But there are frequently "extra" charges to beware of. I recommend getting an all-inclusive price when you go, and look over your bill at the end of the trip very carefully.