About Us

Ron Hunter has owned and operated the business since 1972; at first we operated as a boat hire and bait sales boatshed. Ron, since he was a kid at Sydney’s beachside suburb Maroubra, (gee! now that is archival!) has always surfed and spearfished and snorkelled in the ocean waters. In 1982 he established the first dive centre in Forster, NSW Australia. Buying a compressor and basically indulging his passion for the ocean, Ron has now owned and operated one of the longest operating Dive Centres on the East Coast

  The dive centre rapidly overtook the boat and bait side of the business, and anyway it was a lot more exciting and fun.We bought our first commercial charter dive boat in 1985, so that we could share the superb diving and sites that we pioneered in the area in the early days.We are now on our fourth boat, each subsequent vessel an improvement over the previous one; and our boat of the last ten years the "Avanti" continues to be the best day dive charter on the East Coast of Australia.  

Why choose us?

Our dive staff


All of our friendly staff have been diving for many years, and have dived here at Forster more times than they can count! No "Zero to Hero" DMs or Instructors here, we're all seasoned PADI professionals. That means we're safe, adaptable, and will always put the needs of our customers first. You'll have a great time, you'll see some amazing creatures, and if you need advice or help, we're here for you!

Our Boat


Yes, our boat is big (we reckon bigger is better). She's our pride and joy, and she's incredibly safe and stable. She's got a fully covered rear deck, an enclosed cabin, a toilet onboard, and best of all, a purpose built dive platform to ensure the best possible experience for our divers. Diving out of a bathtub with a boat motor is NOT the way you should dive the east coast (or anywhere, really), that's why we have the Avanti! You can read more about her below!

Our skipper and shop manager


Spoiler alert - that's generally Ron and Gabby, the owners. Ron is one of Forster's most experienced and knowledgable skippers - you can dive with us in confidence knowing we will choose the best dive site for the conditions, and make sure you have fun doing it! Gabby runs a pretty tight ship in the dive centre, and is always on hand for any enquiries, gear advice, or just a gasbag about diving!

Our Boat - 
The TSMV "Avanti"

- Twin 315 horsepower Yanmar turbo diesel engines
- Onboard Toilet
- 4 exits and 2 boarding ladders
- Large central tank & equipment rack
- Comfortable & spacious seating
- Fully covered rear deck
- Spacious dry cabin including plenty of dry storage
- Modern satellite navigation and depth sounding systems
- Full compliment of regularly maintained safety equipment
- Fully surveyed and licensed to operate commercially
- Fast cruising speed at 21 knots
- She has a capacity of 16 SCUBA Divers plus Crew, or 20 Dolphin Swimmers plus Crew.

Meet The Crew

Ron

Head Honcho

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Ellie

Boat Doggo

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