cleung
Contributor
Thanks to everyone here for their input in my planning for my April trip to the Bay Islands. Just come back so I thought that I would contribute my trip report - it will be in two sections as I already posted one on Utila and this one is about our Roatan part.
Arrival
My comments about the Roatan airport are already mentioned in my Utila post since that island was our first part of our Bay Islands trip. For those coming from Utila and who do not want to pay for a quick flight, the water options are;
- two ferries via the mainland
- Utila Dream direct to Roatan but only on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Lady Julia private boat but they need 5 passengers minimum - $45 per person
- Bushes Charters private boat - very fast boat at $45 per person
We used the Bushes Charters boat which was a fast, bumpy but fun ride to Roatan. It also dropped us off at West End in Roatan very close to our hotel, Chillies. So we eliminated a cab fare.
Chillies Hotel
Chillies was walking distance from the dock the Bushes boat arrived at and it is close to the roundabout at the far end of West End.
Positives
- location was great with very easy access to the dock, cabs, beach right across the road and minimal noise from bars since it is at the end of West End
- on site dive shop Native Sons was right out in front making things easy for divers
- my private cabin with bathroom was very cheap and had nice deck out in front
- email communications with Mish were great in advance of our trip
- hot water was provided for the shower
- free wifi but one had to walk beside the main building for access
Negatives
- no pool nor free breakfast available
- no free drinking water provided
- pathways out to back cabins were very dark at night
- holes in screens on cabins
- too close to local residential houses with noisy dogs at night
- no safe provided in rooms
- high surcharge for credit card payments
- deposit via PayPal required for reservations
Native Sons Dive Shop
This dive shop is owned by Chillies and reservations/payments were through Chillies.
Positives
- divemasters were good at finding interesting things to see
- nice dive shop facilities just out in front of Chilles
- dive rates were reasonable especially for those staying at Chillies
- advance communications all through same contact at Chillies
- nice service in bringing dive gear to boat
Negatives
- boat was small outboard type with no head and no cover from sun
- no dock as we used beach access to boat
- no drinks nor food offered during surface intervals
- same credit card surcharges required so cash was needed for payments
Overall, I was satisfied with the diving with Native Sons and staying at Chillies given the prices. We saw some interesting things in the water like turtles, groupers, etc., that we did not see in Utila.
Arrival
My comments about the Roatan airport are already mentioned in my Utila post since that island was our first part of our Bay Islands trip. For those coming from Utila and who do not want to pay for a quick flight, the water options are;
- two ferries via the mainland
- Utila Dream direct to Roatan but only on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Lady Julia private boat but they need 5 passengers minimum - $45 per person
- Bushes Charters private boat - very fast boat at $45 per person
We used the Bushes Charters boat which was a fast, bumpy but fun ride to Roatan. It also dropped us off at West End in Roatan very close to our hotel, Chillies. So we eliminated a cab fare.
Chillies Hotel
Chillies was walking distance from the dock the Bushes boat arrived at and it is close to the roundabout at the far end of West End.
Positives
- location was great with very easy access to the dock, cabs, beach right across the road and minimal noise from bars since it is at the end of West End
- on site dive shop Native Sons was right out in front making things easy for divers
- my private cabin with bathroom was very cheap and had nice deck out in front
- email communications with Mish were great in advance of our trip
- hot water was provided for the shower
- free wifi but one had to walk beside the main building for access
Negatives
- no pool nor free breakfast available
- no free drinking water provided
- pathways out to back cabins were very dark at night
- holes in screens on cabins
- too close to local residential houses with noisy dogs at night
- no safe provided in rooms
- high surcharge for credit card payments
- deposit via PayPal required for reservations
Native Sons Dive Shop
This dive shop is owned by Chillies and reservations/payments were through Chillies.
Positives
- divemasters were good at finding interesting things to see
- nice dive shop facilities just out in front of Chilles
- dive rates were reasonable especially for those staying at Chillies
- advance communications all through same contact at Chillies
- nice service in bringing dive gear to boat
Negatives
- boat was small outboard type with no head and no cover from sun
- no dock as we used beach access to boat
- no drinks nor food offered during surface intervals
- same credit card surcharges required so cash was needed for payments
Overall, I was satisfied with the diving with Native Sons and staying at Chillies given the prices. We saw some interesting things in the water like turtles, groupers, etc., that we did not see in Utila.
