We started our trip on Saturday, April 18. For some reason, the Charlotte airport had one of the large parking lots closed so it took a while to find a parking spot. We were running just a tad late so we rushed to the shuttle without really checking that we had everything. I left the camera in the car. No pictures.
The flight leaving Houston was delayed with rain so we got to Roatan about an hour late. I had forgotten the messes up signage at the airport so we waited in one of 4 immigration lines only to find that only 3 agents were on duty. You couldn't tell until you rounded the corner. All went well however and it just took a little longer. Mike, the new partner, in the Reef House was there to pick us up. It's nice to meet the live in owner right off the bat. Not many resorts have live in owners let alone those that personally greet you.
My wife and I were the only guests arriving on this flight and we had a fun trip to the resort which is about 15 miles east of the airport. We asked to stop at Eldon's new store and we did. The new store is about as nice as any American market though a little smaller. We picked up a couple of bottles of wine even though Reef House sells it at reasonable prices. Grocery stores in Roatan do not sell beer though this one sells wine and hard liqueur.
We arrived at Reef House about 2:30pm and just missed the boat for the afternoon dive. Divers that arrive before the afternoon dive departs are welcome to dive that day on the boat at no extra charge. They did provide us with a welcome lunch and orientation even though we were late. The other divers had already eaten and were out diving.
I've been to Reef House before and only a few changes had been made. A new roof was installed and the rooms now had a small dresser and flat screen TV with about 50 cable channels. We only watched CNN about 5 minutes a day just to catch up on the news. We never used the newer air conditioning as we found the sea breeze sufficient to keep us comfortable.
The wind was blowing pretty good for the first two days but we had no problem getting out 3 boat dives in. You don't have to worry about drop off dives here. All 3 dives are from the boat with the boat waiting to pick you up. Every dive is at at a new dive site. We did do Reef House wall twice as might be expected. We did an morning dive there followed by a night dive. This dive site was rated by all guests as the 3rd best of the trip. Only Spong Garden and Henry Morgan Wall were rated higher.
We found that 3 dives suited us just fine but Reef House Wall is easily accessable via a nice pier and short swim right in front of the resort. You could get drop offs there or dive it at any time. Again, it was rated very highly by the 8 guests we had off an on during the week.
As I mentioned in a previous post, we never dove on a sight with other boats. We did see boats from two of the larger resorts using Calvins Crack site twice during the week. They tie a rope between the boats since there is only one buoy. I have read the comments from several people indicating this rarely happens but my discussions with one of the DM's from one of these resorts indicated this is common practice on this dive site. A long term visiting scientist also confirmed this happened regularly. Many people have reported these larger boats only having a few guests but we saw at least 2 a day when we headed west and never saw a boat with less than 15 people. I understand these are large boats that easily acccomodate even more people. The main Reef House boat holds 12 comfortably but the most we had was 8 divers. I personally prefer smaller numbers. Every guest on the resort selected Reef House at least in part due to the smaller numbers of divers.
We had a couple join us for just one day of diving that was staying at Paya Bay. They no longer do there own diving and Tropical Island Divers over at Marble Hill was having engine problems. This couple dove with 3 different operators and indicated they wish they had chosen Reef House from the start. They did one dive on the wreck near Fantasy Island and said vis was really bad and they didn't enjoy it or the way they were treated as non staying guests.
The diving was some of the best I've had on Roatan in 7 vacations on Roatan and 4 months of living there. Maybe the timing was just right but I felt like there were more reef fish than I'd seen lately. I was there 20 years ago and that was special.
On just one dive site we spotted the following:
Toad Fish
Seahorse
Green Moray
Spotted Moray
Lobsters
Crabs
Slender File Fish
Anemone
Hogfish
Lots of Fairy Bassets and dozens of other smaller reef fish.
All of these things were found and pointed out by the very experienced Davit. He has been with the Reef House a very long time. He also pointed out a few things too small for me to identify at my age and eyesight. I know there was several Goby varieties however.
Other things we saw during the week included:
Golden Tail Moray
Chain Moray
Spotted Drum
Trumpet Fish
Trunk Fish
Queen, French and Grey Angels
Scorpian Fish
Large Grouper
Spadefish
Huge schools of Blue Tangs
Several varieties of Butterfly Fish
Rock Beauties
Sergeant Majors
Blue Chromis
Parrot Fish including some huge ones
Squirrel Fish
Flounder
Turtle
Seahorses on about 1/2 the dives
and lots more
We did not see any Spotted Rays but the other guests that were there for a week before we arrived saw them virtually daily. Visibility was probably 75 feet or less during most of the week and I've seen much better.
Breakfast was varied and included pancakes, eggs, and french toast on various days of the week. There was always yogurt and cereal available along with at least 2 different juices. Fresh fruit was served at every breakfast. The lunches and dinners varied a lot and as simple as a hamberger and fries to steak and lobster. A veggitarian turtle research biologist had special requests during the week and was well fed also. Deserts were served after dinner each night and all were excellent. A sweet snack was also served daily after the afternoon dive. I would personally prefer buffet style meals but everyone else liked the dinner plate service one would expect at nice resort.
All meals were well presented and served by 3 very nice ladies. Seconds were always available but I never saw anyone ask since the portions were good sized.
The entire staff at Reef House has been around for a long time and were very friendly and professional. Reef House is on a small Keye only 100 yards or so from the main land. They are in the heart of a village called Oak Ridge and the daily trip to the dive sites was really a treat slowing motoring through the village. Getting a water taxi to the main island was no problem and we did that on Friday so we could go visit old friends at Marble Hill. The water taxi is 20 limps or $1. Mangrove tours are also available and fun to do.
My favorite spot on all of Roatan is on a hill just above Oak Ridge where scenic views of the ocean and town abound. You actually pass this spot when going to or leaving Reef House.
As I mentioned before the boat we used could hold 12 divers and 24 tanks. It is an older boat but runs great with a diesel inboard. It is totally covered but you could sit on top to soak up the sun if that's your thing. Rather than use a ladder, they have a floating platform at the rear that is extremely easy to use even in rough water. They asked you to remove your BCD which they lifted onto the boat. You left your fins on to make it easy to get onto the platform. Entries were all backward rolls. We actually did a very rare real drift dive one day and the boat kept up with us and picked up divers as needed without any issues.
Most dive sites were about 15 minutes away though some were probably 25 minutes. We never dove at an occupied site. Since the only boats visiting this area are Fantasy Island and Coco View and it's a long hall for them, we just stopped at an alternate site if another boat was there. It was easy for use to stop for the second morning dive or the afternoon dive when we never saw another boat.
The dive lockers are within 15 feet of the boats and things dried almost completely each night. The staff typically set up your BCD each day unless you requested they not do that.
The Reef House has a true turtle research center monitored by a California University. A biologist was there and intended to stay until June. Only one turtle was brought in during the week but 15 were tagged and released the week before. Apparantly some people have complained about this research but it saves many turtles from the dinner table since the resort pays the locals that bring them in. The University is pleased with the process thus far. She was fun to talk with and new a great deal about many sea creatures.
I suppose you can tell that I like this place a lot. You'll not find many resorts with live in owners that eat every meal with you. They personally make sure you are being taken care of. Mike was only able to find time to dive with us on 4 occasions during our week. As a disclosure, I will admit I've only stayed at Anthony's and Bay Island Beach Resort. I lived at Paya Bay (also live in owners) for a few months and I've stopped by to see several resorts for only a few minutes. I've been to West End many times but it's not my thing.
The flight leaving Houston was delayed with rain so we got to Roatan about an hour late. I had forgotten the messes up signage at the airport so we waited in one of 4 immigration lines only to find that only 3 agents were on duty. You couldn't tell until you rounded the corner. All went well however and it just took a little longer. Mike, the new partner, in the Reef House was there to pick us up. It's nice to meet the live in owner right off the bat. Not many resorts have live in owners let alone those that personally greet you.
My wife and I were the only guests arriving on this flight and we had a fun trip to the resort which is about 15 miles east of the airport. We asked to stop at Eldon's new store and we did. The new store is about as nice as any American market though a little smaller. We picked up a couple of bottles of wine even though Reef House sells it at reasonable prices. Grocery stores in Roatan do not sell beer though this one sells wine and hard liqueur.
We arrived at Reef House about 2:30pm and just missed the boat for the afternoon dive. Divers that arrive before the afternoon dive departs are welcome to dive that day on the boat at no extra charge. They did provide us with a welcome lunch and orientation even though we were late. The other divers had already eaten and were out diving.
I've been to Reef House before and only a few changes had been made. A new roof was installed and the rooms now had a small dresser and flat screen TV with about 50 cable channels. We only watched CNN about 5 minutes a day just to catch up on the news. We never used the newer air conditioning as we found the sea breeze sufficient to keep us comfortable.
The wind was blowing pretty good for the first two days but we had no problem getting out 3 boat dives in. You don't have to worry about drop off dives here. All 3 dives are from the boat with the boat waiting to pick you up. Every dive is at at a new dive site. We did do Reef House wall twice as might be expected. We did an morning dive there followed by a night dive. This dive site was rated by all guests as the 3rd best of the trip. Only Spong Garden and Henry Morgan Wall were rated higher.
We found that 3 dives suited us just fine but Reef House Wall is easily accessable via a nice pier and short swim right in front of the resort. You could get drop offs there or dive it at any time. Again, it was rated very highly by the 8 guests we had off an on during the week.
As I mentioned in a previous post, we never dove on a sight with other boats. We did see boats from two of the larger resorts using Calvins Crack site twice during the week. They tie a rope between the boats since there is only one buoy. I have read the comments from several people indicating this rarely happens but my discussions with one of the DM's from one of these resorts indicated this is common practice on this dive site. A long term visiting scientist also confirmed this happened regularly. Many people have reported these larger boats only having a few guests but we saw at least 2 a day when we headed west and never saw a boat with less than 15 people. I understand these are large boats that easily acccomodate even more people. The main Reef House boat holds 12 comfortably but the most we had was 8 divers. I personally prefer smaller numbers. Every guest on the resort selected Reef House at least in part due to the smaller numbers of divers.
We had a couple join us for just one day of diving that was staying at Paya Bay. They no longer do there own diving and Tropical Island Divers over at Marble Hill was having engine problems. This couple dove with 3 different operators and indicated they wish they had chosen Reef House from the start. They did one dive on the wreck near Fantasy Island and said vis was really bad and they didn't enjoy it or the way they were treated as non staying guests.
The diving was some of the best I've had on Roatan in 7 vacations on Roatan and 4 months of living there. Maybe the timing was just right but I felt like there were more reef fish than I'd seen lately. I was there 20 years ago and that was special.
On just one dive site we spotted the following:
Toad Fish
Seahorse
Green Moray
Spotted Moray
Lobsters
Crabs
Slender File Fish
Anemone
Hogfish
Lots of Fairy Bassets and dozens of other smaller reef fish.
All of these things were found and pointed out by the very experienced Davit. He has been with the Reef House a very long time. He also pointed out a few things too small for me to identify at my age and eyesight. I know there was several Goby varieties however.
Other things we saw during the week included:
Golden Tail Moray
Chain Moray
Spotted Drum
Trumpet Fish
Trunk Fish
Queen, French and Grey Angels
Scorpian Fish
Large Grouper
Spadefish
Huge schools of Blue Tangs
Several varieties of Butterfly Fish
Rock Beauties
Sergeant Majors
Blue Chromis
Parrot Fish including some huge ones
Squirrel Fish
Flounder
Turtle
Seahorses on about 1/2 the dives
and lots more
We did not see any Spotted Rays but the other guests that were there for a week before we arrived saw them virtually daily. Visibility was probably 75 feet or less during most of the week and I've seen much better.
Breakfast was varied and included pancakes, eggs, and french toast on various days of the week. There was always yogurt and cereal available along with at least 2 different juices. Fresh fruit was served at every breakfast. The lunches and dinners varied a lot and as simple as a hamberger and fries to steak and lobster. A veggitarian turtle research biologist had special requests during the week and was well fed also. Deserts were served after dinner each night and all were excellent. A sweet snack was also served daily after the afternoon dive. I would personally prefer buffet style meals but everyone else liked the dinner plate service one would expect at nice resort.
All meals were well presented and served by 3 very nice ladies. Seconds were always available but I never saw anyone ask since the portions were good sized.
The entire staff at Reef House has been around for a long time and were very friendly and professional. Reef House is on a small Keye only 100 yards or so from the main land. They are in the heart of a village called Oak Ridge and the daily trip to the dive sites was really a treat slowing motoring through the village. Getting a water taxi to the main island was no problem and we did that on Friday so we could go visit old friends at Marble Hill. The water taxi is 20 limps or $1. Mangrove tours are also available and fun to do.
My favorite spot on all of Roatan is on a hill just above Oak Ridge where scenic views of the ocean and town abound. You actually pass this spot when going to or leaving Reef House.
As I mentioned before the boat we used could hold 12 divers and 24 tanks. It is an older boat but runs great with a diesel inboard. It is totally covered but you could sit on top to soak up the sun if that's your thing. Rather than use a ladder, they have a floating platform at the rear that is extremely easy to use even in rough water. They asked you to remove your BCD which they lifted onto the boat. You left your fins on to make it easy to get onto the platform. Entries were all backward rolls. We actually did a very rare real drift dive one day and the boat kept up with us and picked up divers as needed without any issues.
Most dive sites were about 15 minutes away though some were probably 25 minutes. We never dove at an occupied site. Since the only boats visiting this area are Fantasy Island and Coco View and it's a long hall for them, we just stopped at an alternate site if another boat was there. It was easy for use to stop for the second morning dive or the afternoon dive when we never saw another boat.
The dive lockers are within 15 feet of the boats and things dried almost completely each night. The staff typically set up your BCD each day unless you requested they not do that.
The Reef House has a true turtle research center monitored by a California University. A biologist was there and intended to stay until June. Only one turtle was brought in during the week but 15 were tagged and released the week before. Apparantly some people have complained about this research but it saves many turtles from the dinner table since the resort pays the locals that bring them in. The University is pleased with the process thus far. She was fun to talk with and new a great deal about many sea creatures.
I suppose you can tell that I like this place a lot. You'll not find many resorts with live in owners that eat every meal with you. They personally make sure you are being taken care of. Mike was only able to find time to dive with us on 4 occasions during our week. As a disclosure, I will admit I've only stayed at Anthony's and Bay Island Beach Resort. I lived at Paya Bay (also live in owners) for a few months and I've stopped by to see several resorts for only a few minutes. I've been to West End many times but it's not my thing.
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