great trip we found several megalodon teeth crew was very friendly and dive shop was clean and well stockwd

Don't let any reviews from before last October..... used this center last week and theirs not one thing they could do better. Very professional, knowledgeable and just good people. Out of the 8 divers....at least Six of us found at least one size-able Meg and lots of smaller teeth. read more

Extremely disappointed. I've been on this dive four times and never found a megalodon tooth, which is fine I understand it can take time. My issue is that Ben, the dive master, will be on the boat, dive by himself, and collect for himself, and on my last dive he found multiple megs and almost 40 regular teeth. I don't know why he is diving and hunting for himself while others are paying to be there and finding nothing. Sure he gives advice: cover ground and look for the triangle shapes, that's literally it. He repeats those two pieces of information in different ways for five minutes, but it really is the extent of help he gives. It's just disheartening that I've spent hundreds of dollars doing charters and the dive master is by himself, hunting for himself, and finding more than triple than anyone else on the boat. Meg teeth are not natural resources, they are not unlimited, why am I tipping a guy who is in it for himself and I'm coming home empty handed. The captain is snarky, but he's funny if you have the sense of humor of a 65 year old man. Every dive I've been on has horrible visibility, about 2 feet my first few dives, about 4 feet my last few dives. Just hard to justify spending the money to watch dive masters and instructors come home with treasures and I keep going home empty handed. The people working in the shop have terrible attitudes. They seem annoyed when you show up to pick up or drop off gear, and act like they don't want you to shop. Upon entering the shop you're pretty much met with a, "what do you want." This shop is catered more to locals, their own employees, and employee friends. Terrible people. I voiced my concern on their Instagram and was promptly attacked by an employee named Kaitlyn with her using examples of all the things they did to help me as a way to invalidate my concern that paying customers shouldn't have to compete against 20 year vets. The thousands of dollars in plane tickets, car rentals, hotels, and the charters/gear is not worth the way I have been made to feel by Venice Dive Center employees. They also blocked me on Instagram after Kaitlyn attacked me in her response to my comment. They don't want criticism and when bringing up my concerns they addressed anything except the fact that they put divers in unfair situations. Also, how is the Divemaster ensuring your safety when they are first in and last out of the water. Also, don't come here for your certification. When you get certified you need to go through processes and training that pretty much take up your dives. So I feel like if you spend 1.5 hours of your 2 hours in the water hunting for teeth you are not doing all the training like navigation, emergency ascent, emergency weight drop, etc. These processes are designed to ensure you are a SAFE and competent diver. That should be the focus, not the instructor rushing through so he or she can get to tooth hunting. Kaitlyn was supposed to be instructing on the boat. She was quick to brag how many teeth she found. I spoke to her student after and found out he had not done half the things I was required to do when getting my certification. They literally rob you of important training so that they can personally hunt teeth. This company is a means for local teeth hunters to find more teeth under the guise of being employees. There are multiple charters with better reviews that are run by better people. Don't go here. The only people overlooking the terrible service are people who get lucky right away. I even heard Ben say, "There's nothing worse than seeing a newbie find a tooth on their first trip," and to me, that says it all.​ read more

I attempted a shore dive with some old used gear and had my inflater hose break in half on me, was a fun swim back in. I stopped at venice dive center and they were able to have me water ready again. After talking with the guys there i ended up getting on a charter the next day and found my first Meg. Captain Nick was great and the dive master Ben was awesome. Explained what to look for and all the various types of fossils you can find and then identified everything that was brought up. read more

Venice Dive Center and Charter - My first meg - Scuba Diving Near Me - Nokomis, Florida

I have been onboard many times with Venice Dive/Charter. The most fun on the boat charter on the water? LOL. Yeah. Ben, the divemaster, is, no question, the most experienced and best MEG diver on the planet. I noted some complaints on Yelp that Ben dives for MEGS. That is true. To that end, EVERY DIVE is on the best MEG sea bottom around Venice. Ben will put you on the MEGS. You need to pick them up. You will find huge MEGS with Venice--this is not a tourist cruise out to a sand bed. The boat is big--you have room to move around. Captain Nick helps the divers into and out of the water; safety is a priority in Venice. Thy likes to roll at 7 am and are back at the dock by 11: am--great. The charter is part of Venice Dive Center--the only store in Venice, and they are full-service. Parking and bathrooms, even a restaurants within a few feet of the slip. read more

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Highly recommend Venice dive center... I would give them 10 out of 10 stars for their great accommodations. My husband did a 1 tank dive while our toddlers and I bubble watched from the top with pure joy. The captain and active divers were helpful & fun. They found lots of fossils and most important (according to my 5 year old) they brought up megladon teeth! This is a must stop if you want to go beyond the shark teeth sifting on the beach. read more

Venice Dive Center and Charter - Megladon tooth - Scuba Diving Near Me - Nokomis, Florida

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I enjoyed my many days of diving with Venice Dive Center! DM Ben, Cpt Nick and of course Dave. I will only dive in Venice with VDC when I am in the area again. read more

Venice Dive Center and Charter - Scuba Diving Near Me - Nokomis, Florida

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A first-class dive shop with friendly, knowledgable, and helpful employees. The instructors are excellent and accommodating. Highly recommended! read more

I was so impressed with Venice Dive Center as my 10 year old granddaughter wanted to get certified in scuba diving. Being her age, one of the instructors Mark Filipiak who was teaching the Naui class wanted to interview Gabby first as she was so young and I appreciate that as to not waste my money if he felt she wasn't ready. This place came highly recommended too me by a marine biologist and the on line 10 hour class she did, the learning in the pool first, making sure she knew how to put all her gear on and check it before going out for dives , the technique they use, the ease and comfort they put us both out. She was the youngest student in her class and everybody looked out for her, I'm so excited and so is Gabby that she got certified through Venice Dive Center! I can't thank Mark, Shaun, Kaitlyn and her class enough for the time and effort they put into this Jr. Diver. She can't wait to get on the charter with y'all and start scuba diving! #girlsthatscubarock See y'all in the water! read more

Baby Yoda approved Would definitely do this dive again. It is extremely different than reef diving. Not nearly as pretty, but I "need" more teeth. Great and extremely responsible captain of our boat as well. read more

Venice Dive Center and Charter - Scuba Diving Near Me - Nokomis, Florida

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Excellent service, friendly staff, had a blast on both dives. I will definitely try to go again we this outfit the next time I am in the area. Rental equipment was also in excellent condition. My wife went as a bubble watcher and she had fun too. read more

A stand-up local dive shop. Always friendly, helpful and informative. Excellent rental equipment, talented instructors and a wealth of local dive information. read more

The captain and dive master took a very sarcastic/teasing approach to everything. Putting that aside the dive master explained some info on how to find megs but didn't help at all in the water to find them. A comment was made that if we follow him we won't find anything because he will pick everything up. I would not recommend this dive boat since the overall experience was subpar and I spent the money to go and didn't find much. read more

Booked a trip for a dive to keep my dive certs up but changed my mind because I just did not think I would enjoy the trip. I notified the captain in person at 0645 the morning of the dive and sent Stephanie an email. I returned the gear upon open of the center at 0915 and asked Jerry if they did any other type dives and they did not. I understand paying for the seat on the boat but was disappointed when they refused to refund me for the dive gear that did not get used. It seems like the "relationship" link in companies goals were missed. read more

Big boat with lots of room. These guys are great for a two tank dive when you can't be out all day. Everyone was friendly and helpful.

Stopped in the shop today while shopping for a regulator and we were very happy with all of the info received. Mark and Jerry didn't try to sell us the most expensive gear or something they had on the shelf. They took great time and paid close attention to our requests and explained all of their gear in detail. I truly appreciate their attention to detail and their warm and friendly presentation. I would recommend Venice Dive Center highly. read more

I really think the boat captain was fantastic. I want to start my review with something positive. I also realize that the conditions were less than perfect (being a local I've been out in this part of the water several times), so my impression isn't based on diving conditions. However, a little constructive criticism. A dive master should be less concerned about his own fun or collection of teeth than his customers. When he's the first down and speeds past other divers underwater to get his own teeth it gives the impression that he could care less about the paying customers and their safety and enjoyment of the dive. I really think that this could be a fantastic experience for guests and have high hopes but I do think the mentioned behaviors should be addressed. Customers on your boat can range from recently certified to expert level. Please read the room and help make everyone's experience great. read more

Just like Bonnie's review the Captain and Dive Master Ben were very sarcastic from the first moment on the boat! To boot the Captain smokes while you are in the boat. Ben tells you were to find shark teeth but never actually shows you were to find them. Ben is the first one off the boat to start his search. What kind of dive master doesn't make sure everyone is off the boat safely before he starts diving. I have dove all over the world and never experienced such concerning behaviors from a dive boat. It was clear Ben was more interested in finding his loot of teeth for trade then helping his customers. read more

first I'll say the Captain was awesome!! the divemaster on the other hand, not so great. for someone who's supposed to be helping the paying customers, he was more concerned about hopping in and finding meg teeth, then rubbing it in on how many he found. he didn't act like a divemaster at all. people had trouble with their gear and he just stood by and made snide comments towards them. VERY EXPENSIVE for such a lack lustre dive and poor treatment. basically paying premium price for someone else to find all the teeth. read more