Jim Abernethy’s Scuba Adventures - Riviera Beach, Florida

Jamie L. (.

Not only did this meet my expectations, it smashed them. First thing, unlimited dives... No time limits, dive as many times (safely) as you want! The sites with the sharks are only 10-12m depth, and with the bigger steel tanks they have I was racking up 2 hour dives with an hour surface interval and back down again constantly. In terms of sightings, we saw tiger sharks, we regularly saw many - 7 together at one time and the great hammer heads, not as easy to see but we got very lucky and had Queen, one of the biggest and friendliest around, along with 4-5 others throughout the 2 days. The wild dolphins were great too, crystal clear water throughout and 26°C water throughout the whole week! The crew - Mike, Ben, gaby and Jim were all great, always going out of their way to make us have the best experience possible. Definitely recommend this outfit and I will be returning back again next year for sure!!!

Nick P.

Amazing trip! Everything was perfect and the whole crew is amazing. Mike is a special captain and an amazing guy! I’d recommend this trip to anyone who loves sharks and a comfortable diver

Deborah B.

This is most definitely a life changing trip. Jim and his crew are amazing, and provide you with an experience like no other. I did the Tiger Beach trip in the Bahamas, and the encounters with the sharks were more amazing than I could ever have hoped for! Sign up now! You have to do this trip!
Deb Bradley
Ohio, USA

Joshua S.

Long review trying to be transparent...
If you look around the internet for ways to dive with Tiger Sharks in the Bahamas you'll find you really only have two proper options. The rest are dangerous or fly by night operations.

One of the two is Jim Abernathy's boat. A Google or scubaboard search for the man finds mixed reviews. Jim is one of those "crazy like a fox" personalities that rubs some wrong apparently. Some people feel like the trip is too much "the Jim show". Others don't feel his boat is nice enough. Too small. Too basic.
The one other well regarded dive trip to Tiger Beach for cageless shark diving offers a bigger boat and nicer accommodations. And yet Jim is routinely booked far out in advance? There must be more...

Why did I choose to dive with Jim Abernathy and why would I do it again and again? This is a serious shark trip for people seriously interested in diving and sharks. Period. You need your own scuba gear. You need a robust diving history that makes the diving part just a secondary trait. Why? Because you need all your bandwidth free as Jim is going to get you up close and personal with sharks again and again and again. He is extremely focused on safety and following the rules that he has developed for decades. He gets guests closer than anyone else while still maintaining safety. He offers nitrox pumped on board and unlimited bottom times as long as conditions permit continued safety.
During our trip weather or water vis prevented dives when Jim felt it was not safe. This is a serious shark trip, but not too cowboy that risk isn't identified and ameliorated.
The other guests know all this. The other guests have become half the trip -- an incredible amount of experience with sharks, marine science, and photography were part of the passengers hivemind.
Boat is clean. Food is good and constant. Crew is helpful and positive.
Downsides? Yeah the boat is smaller. And not every bunk is roomed privately. And the details could be better put on the website. But if you understand a lot of scuba diving world requires some "island time", there's no better experience for sharks sharks sharks.

I like diving, sharks, and people that want to be the very best at whatever they do. That is this trip.

I can't wait to go again.

Jared H.

Excellent operation!!! It is very clear that Jim and his crew are all very passionate about marine life conservation and ocean conservation, and they run their operation with focus on SAFETY. I have reviewed the negative reviews here, and not one of them was consistent with my experience in Jan 2025...the details provided in those negative reviews show that the reviewers fail to take any blame for their own reckless mistakes, so please don't give them any consideration

Emma F.

I have dived with Jim on Shearwater for over 20 years and the most recent 6 day/5 night live aboard to see tiger sharks and great hammerheads was exceptional. We had breathtaking dives with both of these species, along with lemon, nurse, Caribbean reef and bull sharks; and snorkelled with bottle nose and Atlantic spotted dolphins. Jim, Michael the captain and the crew Koy and Gabby ensured that every encounter was safe for us and the animals. Sharks are not the mindless, ferocious predators; diving with them alongside Jim and Michael shows this and instils a sense of admiration for and empathy with these magnificent animals that have way more to fear from us than we do from them. Gabby provided delicious food throughout the day, you can dive as much as the current and via allow and nothing is too much trouble for any of the crew. Thank you again.

T M.

Jim is an amazing expert on all things scuba, sharks, and blue heron bridge diving 🙂

We had a blast with Jim and he was able to guide us to just the right places to see sea horses and many other awesome creatures living in this area.

He even took photos and video for us and did some drone shots of the area!

Can not recommend Jim enough for for knowledge and passion for diving and care of all sea creature!

Jan V.

Its allready a few years ago, since we booked the whole boat for a week and went on the adwenture of our lives all the way from middle Europe. This is national geographic live in first person you wont be able to experience anywhere else. I will definitelly come back and I hope soon to visit Emma and her friends again. A big thank you to Jim and his great crew…