Meet the epic team behind Paihia Dive!
Paihia Dive is a family-run scuba diving operation situated in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand. We have a strong team of passionate and experienced dive instructors. Our guests consistently leave us great reviews and give us positive feedback!
Craig grew up in the Bay of Islands and learned to dive when he was 15. He started at Paihia Dive filling tanks and working in the shop on weekends, has worked as a professional dive guide and instructor since he was 18, and has run the dive shop he grew up in since 2010. He is an SSI Instructor Trainer and a freediving instructor, has been a skipper since he was 20, and brings over 35 years and more than 15,000 dives of experience to running Paihia Dive.
Rob has been with Paihia Dive for 10 years as an experienced skipper and instructor, and is also a freediving instructor. He now teaches at Bay of Islands College and comes back to help out on the crew over the summer season.
Toby works in the shop at Paihia Dive. He has recently qualified as a freediving instructor and helps run our freediving and spearfishing trips.
Hamish is a dive instructor. He now works in Australia, but comes home each summer season to help out on the crew.
Sophia has been part of the Paihia Dive crew for more than eight years as an experienced dive instructor, and is also a freediving instructor. She has since gained her skipper’s ticket and has joined the crew as both skipper and instructor.
Byron learned to dive at Paihia Dive and worked the last few summer seasons with us as a divemaster. He joined the crew full time in April 2026, then completed his instructor training, and now works in the shop and as a dive instructor.
Vinnie is training to become a chef and works full time in the kitchen at one of the hotels in town. He still comes back to help out in the shop part-time.
Betty Bluebell is our black Labrador. She loves spending time in the shop and coming out on the boat, and she is the best at top cover, keeping an eye on the divers’ bubbles.
Ted is a terrier and Tibetan spaniel cross. He enjoys his time in the shop and loves meeting new people, but he doesn’t enjoy the boat quite as much as Betty does.
