Kingston Dive Shops

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Kingston divers who are just starting out may have trouble finding rental equipment. This is mainly because dive shops have limited supplies, and the dive season is fairly short. If you're serious about becoming a diver, then it's probably best to buy your own equipment, because that way you know it fits and you have it with you whenever you want to dive. However, if you're really REALLY serious about diving, you should spend a while testing and learning how to use different brands and types of equipment before making any purchases, and the best way to do that is through renting.

First, I suggest that even if you aren't going to buy your own SCUBA equipment, you should still buy your MFS (mask, fins and snorkel) as well as dive booties. As I said before, try renting these items out a few times before making your purchase, so you know what suits you best. The MFS and botties are essential pieces of equipment, and they're relatively cheap compared to the rest. With them you can still have a good time snorkling or free diving when you can't find or afford the other equipment to go SCUBA diving. Another reason to buy them is because some shops don't rent them out. Also, having your own mask and fins helps when you know your equipment is in good condition, because these two items are the most likely to fail and force you to call the entire dive.

Dolphin SCUBA Club - The Dolphin SCUBA Club is a part of the CFB (Canadian Forces Base) Kingston, and as such is open to all members of the Canadian Forces. Rental prices at Dolphin are very cheap, if you’re a member. Membership fees start at $35.00 for a regular membership, which includes CF members in active duty or reserve, as well as accredited foreign military and dependents of foregoing ($30.00 for people ages 14-21). Ordinary membership is $45.00 ($35.00 for people ages 14-21), and is available for retired military personnel, current DND personnel, NPF employees, and dependants of foregoing. Associate membership is $65.00 ($45.00 for people ages 14-21), and is available for all Kingstonians, which includes students with Kingston addresses. This information is available in a more organized table format on the membership fees page from above.

As soon as you become a member of the Dolphin SCUBA Club, you can rent cheap equipment. The club is only open Tuesdays and Thursdays, so on Tuesday you can rent your MFS, BCD and regulator until Thursday for only $20. On Thursday you can rent the same equipment until the following Tuesday for only $35. For both days full tanks are only $5, with refills also for only $5. You can also rent weight belts, flashlights and compasses, but unfortunately you have to get your dive suit somewhere else. Also, the club is only open for an hour each day.

For dive training, Dolphin provides training courses from PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) basic open water to advanced rescue diver to dive master. While PADI sometimes has a bad reputation for lax training, the Training Coordinator Mike Hill and the Chief Instructor Adam Rushton are both helpful, patient and experienced divers whom I recommend highly. When I took my PADI course for $350, we went through everything slowly and carefully, and Mike made sure everyone understood and passed every procedure—something that Aus says his NAUI (National Association of Underwater Instructors) instructor didn’t do (though NAUI overall has a better reputation, and for good reason, but I won’t get to that here).

If you’re interested in the Dolphin SCUBA Club, here’s their contact information. The main entrance to the club of which they speak is rather tricky to get to. You have to drive around the entire Kingston Military Community Sports Centre to reach it with your car, or else you can just park in the main parking lot and walk along the road to the other side.

Limestone Dive Centre - The Limestone Dive Centre is perhaps, in my limited experience, the least professional of the Kingston dive shops. This is not to say that they aren’t experienced; they’re just laid back and easygoing. They’re also the people I trust when I want to find out the dive conditions in Kingston, because I know they aren’t going to lie in order to rent me equipment. They are in close association with the Dolphin SCUBA Club, though the Dive Centre professes to be a NAUI shop (I mean ‘profess’ in the serious sense, not the sarcastic supposed sense). This is where you can rent wet suits, and it’s where you will get your suit if you take a Dolphin SCUBA Club training course. There is no memberships that I know of, but equipment is cheap both to rent and to buy, as are air refills. Plus, if you don’t have a car but you’re itching to dive, the Limestone Dive Centre is right at Portsmouth Olympic Harbour, where there’s an old wreck and two anchors right offshore (near the Customs building). Limestone is also definitely worth checking out if you are looking for a charter. Their website also has a kickin' colour scheme.

Northern Tech Diver - Northern Tech is easily the best dive shop around, except it isn’t around at all. Northern Tech can be found way down Bath road, which means you’ll need a car if you’re mortal. Their store is very well organized and very well stocked, and you can generally go in anytime you want and leave fifteen minutes later with your equipment. Rental without membership is $60.00 for one day and $100.00 for two, and it includes everything you need except for a mask, a snorkel and a tank. Prices are halved for members, and with membership at only $25.00, you’re saving money the first time you rent! Air refills are only $6.00, and you can also get nitrox 32 and 36, helium, oxygen and argon. The store also provides charters, equipment repair and professional training. The club often goes on group dives as well, which means you can always find someone to dive with.

Source for Sports - The Kingston Source for Sports is my least favorite place to find dive equipment. This is not so much because they’re not any good, but because they’re the most expensive and because they aren’t really a dive shop. I’d much rather support one of the locals who specifically cater to my needs. However, if you have nowhere else to go, and you’re not afraid of spending a bit of money, then Source for Sports has everything you need whenever you need it. Also, they are the only people in Kingston who provide ACUC (Association of Canadian Underwater Councils) instruction, which takes place four times a year. ACUC has a reputation similar to NAUI, except they train you specifically for Canadian diving, which is great if you live in Kingston.

I hope that this has been a fair, accurate and helpful list for you. If you have any questions or comments, please email me at andrew@randomhat.com, and I’ll try to answer them as best I can.

Take care and nobi,

-The Venerable Yank