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Fun Experience

Quality Dive Company. Bruno has a wonderful team of professionals that answered our questions and... read more

Reviewed 15 October 2023
ashlieh2019
,
Clearwater, Florida
Great test dive!

We had a great PADI Discover Scuba Diving at Santa Margherita today. Top instructor and a great... read more

Reviewed 5 August 2023
Joakim F
via mobile
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Reviewed 26 June 2018 via mobile

I booked 2dives in the morning from 9am to 13pm, perfectly on time.
Booking was super easy thanks to a well built website and transparent prices with no surprises.
The equipment is incredibly well kept, with a full set of HALCYON BCDs, the wetsuits were perfectly maintained and looked brand new.
3/4 divers per instructor (Edoardo - fluent in english and knows where to find octopus/muray eels and sunk World War equipment).
The boat is fast and comfortable and NOT a tiny rubber dinghy and well equipped with water and second filled tanks (no nedd to go back to the shop and re-fill).
During surface interval time we also toured Portofino harbour.
I ONLY recommend diving with them, it is more expensive but the experience is unique and worth it.

Date of experience: June 2018
2  Thank bvluca
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 25 May 2018

My wife and I have been diving for the past 3 years in Florida and Hawaii with about 20 dives under our belts. So we felt confident that we could handle the marine park in Portofino. We did OK, but there were some struggles along the way.
First, the Italian guide used signals that were completely different than the ones we have grown accustom to in the US. Not their fault, but if you are planning to dive in Italy, you really should do your homework and learn the signals that will be used on your dive. Also, we are so used to PSI and depth in feet that the switch to meters and Bar of air was disorienting.
We did a two tank dive and we got better throughout our time under the water. This was the coldest diving we have done and that had effects on our breathing and buoyancy that took some time to get used to. If we were going to plan a trip here again I would want to do two full days so that I could really feel comfortable.
The equiptment that we rented and the boat we were on was all very good. I had an issue however with my primary 2nd stage on my first dive and had to use my backup. When I got back on the boat we started to look at the broken regulator and a small piece of metal fell out of the exhaust port. yikes. Later they told me that this was a brand new regulator and even showed me the box that they had just opened to install this into service. That is why we use a backup I guess.
In some of the reviews, the owner Bruno gets some bad wraps for being rude. While not the warmest coat in the closet, Bruno is definitely knowledgeable and I think that is what matters most to me. For example, when we came back from the dive and I told him about the bad regulator he told me it was brand new and then for some reason decided to add that it was made in America. I just smiled and admitted that not all of us can be perfect. LOL. It seems this defensiveness on his part is what irks some folks, but I just let it slide off. All in all they did a great job getting us outfitted and in the water which is what we wanted.
As for the dives themselves, to be honest, we were underwhelmed. The water was pretty clear, with about 20 feet visibility so I was really expecting to see more sea life. We saw some grouper and quite a few small schooling fish but perhaps I have been spoiled by Hawaii and the Keys. The wreck was fun though.
I would recommend Portofino Divers to others and would use them again if I came back. But I would also be better prepared next time as well.

Date of experience: May 2018
1  Thank Warrendad
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 15 March 2018 via mobile

While traveling through Italy I decided to do 2 dives in Portofino. The staff was Amazing. Well knowledgeable & helpful. Franco was my instructor for both dives. He is very comfortable in the water and lead the dives with confidence and ease. The underwater life and topography was really unique, I would definitely dive with this team again!

Date of experience: August 2017
Thank SweetLife483
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 4 November 2017 via mobile

Excllent service overall, worth the premium. Bruno knows his business inside out and knows how to run it smoothly. He is the benchmark in the area.

Date of experience: November 2017
Thank flatoutovercrest
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 15 August 2017 via mobile

We came from Australia to dive here and booked in advanced specifically requesting to do the wreck dive. I paid a deposit and provided our certifications it was confirmed in the email that we would be doing a wreck dive.

On the day when we arrived we were told they had already done the wreck dive that day so would be taking out group on a reef dive and the Christ of the Abyss. When I told the owner that we had booked for a wreck dive he said "if we wanted to see a bunk hunk of metal" then that is the dive we could do. Which is what we confirmed we wanted to do, even though he made us feel as though we were totally inconveniencing him.

While we were preparing to go out and getting geared up we found Bruno and his team to be super unfriendly (except for a nice young girl!). We actually felt really uncomfortable like we were putting Bruno out majorly.

We then went out onto the boat which was a really nice boat! New and big and spacious. The actual boat trip was lovely and it was a beautiful day! Seeing the coastline of Italy from the water made the day for me.

We dived the first site which was the Christ of the Abyss. It was cool to see the statue but nothing really special.

When we were headed to the second site they actually just decided not to go to the wreck and to go to the reef. I was never given an explanation about what happened to wreck dive we booked so decided I wouldn't be diving the second dive on the reef, it was not what I was there for and have been lucky enough to dive many beautiful reefs before.

My partner went on the dive and was disappointed, not seeing anything exciting. He was actually told by Bruno on the boat that the reason we couldn't do the wreck dive was because we didn't have a technical license. However this was never mentioned before we got onto the boat nor was it mentioned when I booked and paid a deposit.

When we got back and went to settle the bill it was astronomical and I was charged for a second dive even though I didn't do it, and that I only booked for the wreck dive which I was never taken on.

To be totally honest this was the worst experience I've ever had with a dive company anywhere in the world. They were not friendly, they deceived me on what I was booking and paying for, it was the most expensive dive experience I've ever seen and I left feeling totally ripped off.

If I could go back in time and cancel I would.

Date of experience: August 2017
2  Thank KylieMcDowell
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BrunoBorelli, Direttore at Portofino Divers, responded to this reviewResponded 20 September 2017

Hi Kylie, your negative comments are a vary bad surprise for me because you didn't look disappointed here.

I invite you to read our email exchange more carefully, unfortunately I cannot publish here, TripAdvisor does not allow me to do. I have never said that we were going to dive a wreck, even if we always do our best to satisfy special requests of our guests. We have only one wreck in the marine park which is not the best place to dive, especially for OWD since it starts at 20 meters. We always try to provide the most professional service in terms of safety and fun to our guests. Unfortunately sometimes we fail or our intentions are not fully understood by the customer, like I guess in this case. We are aware of the fact our guests spend a lot of money to dive with us and we want to do the best to meet or to go over their expectations. Again, sometimes this is not fully understood, especially from divers with few experience, but on the other hand we have to accept the fact that we can not make everybody happy.

Our rates are very clear on the website and we ask the deposit by sending a detailed pro-forma invoice , so you should know how much you are going to spend before you the confirmation of your reservation. The bill should not be a surprise if you read the price list first and the offer afterwards.

Our cancellation policy is also very clear. You can find it in any email we sent you and in the offer you got for paying the deposit.
Moreover, If you order a pizza at the restaurant but you only eat half pizza do you expect to pay just for half of it ? We reserved a spot on board for you, which are very limited, this is what you pay for. If you decided to not make a second dive it is not for our fault in case.

I hope you will be able to explain your disappointment also directly to a person in the future and not just hided behind a screen where you can say whatever you want even if it is not completely true.

All the best,

Bruno

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