BelikinMan
Guest
7 days in paradise. It's not a matter of if we go back, but when. So let's start from the beginning.
Continental from Houston to Roatan. Got upgraded based on status so upgraded wife. First class to Roatan is a great way to start. Airport in Roatan is tiny. Two gates. Line for incoming passport control can be long (unless you are in 1st class and off the plane first). Wait for bags. There are drivers for the different resorts waving signs and asking if you need a ride. Got bags. Headed for door, got a cab, asked for the price (which is NO LONGER 10 bucks, but rather 15), loaded and was off. No problems. That being said, our neighbors on the trip, PJ and Samantha got to Luna Beach and realized someone had tried to slit PJ's shorts to get his wallet out. Deep cut through shorts and into wallet itself. Keep your eyes open and keep the 3 foot rule in effect.
Drive from airport to West End/Luna Beach takes you down the south side of the island and then up into the mountains and over to the west side of the island. The island is dramatically mountainous and there are basically no laws or common sense for driving. For those renting a car, I would recommend experience prior to driving on Roatan. And again, just like in Cozumel, if you enjoy your life, I would recommend against scooters anywhere else other than on the beach.
Luna Beach Resort (LB)
About 20 minute drive from the airport, again 15 bucks. Luna Beach is situated about a half mile south of the south edge of West End. The location was great because the party escalates as you head south. Perfect for us as we walk home.
The room we were in was facing the ocean and we got to enjoy the sunset (almost) every evening. The rooms were nice. Checkin was fairly simple. Basic accomodations. AC worked too well. Hot and cold water. Maids were great and on time. The common areas were well kept and the place was overall clean and very pleasant.
That being said, the waitstaff and bartenders were horrible. I am a veteran of "island time" and defintely understand the cultural differences involved in customer service but the lack of attention by the waitstaff was absolutely unsatisfactory. Until our final meal - which was handled by Spencer and Chuck's granddaughter and was great - we were sitting for up to 10 minutes as we made eye contact and were even passed by several times by waitstaff before even getting a menu. On one occasion, my wife went in early (2 hours) to order lunch for us prior to me getting back from a dive trip. After 30 minutes of waiting, she finally got up and went and had to force the waiter to pay attention to her. Even after ordering 1.5 hours early, she was told it might not be ready in time. Then, when the food never came out, we were given an excuse that she thought the food was for the dive crew - even though she had personally taken the order from my wife and my wife sat right there by the bar.
Other than that, the food was OK but not great. On rainy days or breakfast, it was fine but I would not recommend eating there unless absolutely necessary.
Luna Beach Dive Shop
So I went in on Sunday and met Joanie, who is the dive shop manager. Got all signed up for the next three days. She checked my creds and my dive log and was very attentive to all my questions. Got me suited up with equipment (yes, I still rent my equipment and don't have any issues with it) and was ready to rumble.
The next morning, I was up early for the 9 am dive. Got the equipment on the boat and ready to go. Got going a bit early to talk a bit and get to know some of my fellow divers, along with just not having to rush prior to my first dive. The LB dive boat is wide and downright comfy. Lots of room and relaxing. If you want to chill out, you can climb on the roof and catch some rays.
Met with Martin the divemaster for the briefing. Meticulous and thourgh to say the least, Martin is one of the best DMs I have experienced. I was singled and this was my first dive of the trip so I got buddied with the DM and off we went. Spent quite a bit of time talking with Martin and really enjoyed his amicable and carefree personality. He seemed to be one of those kinds of people that take what they do very seriously yet can encapsulate that professionalism in a "no worries" feeling that sets the divers at ease.
Dove with Martin most of the time, since he was the true DM of the group and Joanie and Hailee were both instructors, mostly working with specialty students. There were several groups of divers doing specialties, AOW certs, getting their c-cards, find diving and one guy getting his Rescue. I did get to dive with Hailee for the wreck dive and found her to be quite good as well. She is a bit younger than Martin which might make some people nervous, but her demeanor was similar. Was well versed and through in her briefing, especially because it was a wreck and divers tend to do stuid stuff around wrecks.
The actual size of the group tended to stay around 12, including DMs. Most of the time it was split between around 5 or 6 doing certs or specialties and 5 or 6 fun diving. Big boat. No problems.
Frankly, I was a bit worried about the LB dive shop, especially after the unexpected and abrupt farewell to Wolfgang and with the plethora of available choices in town, I was ready to jump ship at the first sign of any questionable behavior. Joanie, Hailee, Martin and Fermin all did a great job and I would definitely dive there again. I might even dive there even if I was not staying there because of the boat. I am not a fan of diving off of skiffs and it looked like most of the other shops were skiff divers except Coconut Tree and the big resorts like AKR.
More to come including:
The Shark Dive
Diving with Coconut Tree
Dives themselves
West End Restuarants and Bars
Other Dive Operations
Rum
Additional Notes and such.
Continental from Houston to Roatan. Got upgraded based on status so upgraded wife. First class to Roatan is a great way to start. Airport in Roatan is tiny. Two gates. Line for incoming passport control can be long (unless you are in 1st class and off the plane first). Wait for bags. There are drivers for the different resorts waving signs and asking if you need a ride. Got bags. Headed for door, got a cab, asked for the price (which is NO LONGER 10 bucks, but rather 15), loaded and was off. No problems. That being said, our neighbors on the trip, PJ and Samantha got to Luna Beach and realized someone had tried to slit PJ's shorts to get his wallet out. Deep cut through shorts and into wallet itself. Keep your eyes open and keep the 3 foot rule in effect.
Drive from airport to West End/Luna Beach takes you down the south side of the island and then up into the mountains and over to the west side of the island. The island is dramatically mountainous and there are basically no laws or common sense for driving. For those renting a car, I would recommend experience prior to driving on Roatan. And again, just like in Cozumel, if you enjoy your life, I would recommend against scooters anywhere else other than on the beach.
Luna Beach Resort (LB)
About 20 minute drive from the airport, again 15 bucks. Luna Beach is situated about a half mile south of the south edge of West End. The location was great because the party escalates as you head south. Perfect for us as we walk home.
The room we were in was facing the ocean and we got to enjoy the sunset (almost) every evening. The rooms were nice. Checkin was fairly simple. Basic accomodations. AC worked too well. Hot and cold water. Maids were great and on time. The common areas were well kept and the place was overall clean and very pleasant.
That being said, the waitstaff and bartenders were horrible. I am a veteran of "island time" and defintely understand the cultural differences involved in customer service but the lack of attention by the waitstaff was absolutely unsatisfactory. Until our final meal - which was handled by Spencer and Chuck's granddaughter and was great - we were sitting for up to 10 minutes as we made eye contact and were even passed by several times by waitstaff before even getting a menu. On one occasion, my wife went in early (2 hours) to order lunch for us prior to me getting back from a dive trip. After 30 minutes of waiting, she finally got up and went and had to force the waiter to pay attention to her. Even after ordering 1.5 hours early, she was told it might not be ready in time. Then, when the food never came out, we were given an excuse that she thought the food was for the dive crew - even though she had personally taken the order from my wife and my wife sat right there by the bar.
Other than that, the food was OK but not great. On rainy days or breakfast, it was fine but I would not recommend eating there unless absolutely necessary.
Luna Beach Dive Shop
So I went in on Sunday and met Joanie, who is the dive shop manager. Got all signed up for the next three days. She checked my creds and my dive log and was very attentive to all my questions. Got me suited up with equipment (yes, I still rent my equipment and don't have any issues with it) and was ready to rumble.
The next morning, I was up early for the 9 am dive. Got the equipment on the boat and ready to go. Got going a bit early to talk a bit and get to know some of my fellow divers, along with just not having to rush prior to my first dive. The LB dive boat is wide and downright comfy. Lots of room and relaxing. If you want to chill out, you can climb on the roof and catch some rays.
Met with Martin the divemaster for the briefing. Meticulous and thourgh to say the least, Martin is one of the best DMs I have experienced. I was singled and this was my first dive of the trip so I got buddied with the DM and off we went. Spent quite a bit of time talking with Martin and really enjoyed his amicable and carefree personality. He seemed to be one of those kinds of people that take what they do very seriously yet can encapsulate that professionalism in a "no worries" feeling that sets the divers at ease.
Dove with Martin most of the time, since he was the true DM of the group and Joanie and Hailee were both instructors, mostly working with specialty students. There were several groups of divers doing specialties, AOW certs, getting their c-cards, find diving and one guy getting his Rescue. I did get to dive with Hailee for the wreck dive and found her to be quite good as well. She is a bit younger than Martin which might make some people nervous, but her demeanor was similar. Was well versed and through in her briefing, especially because it was a wreck and divers tend to do stuid stuff around wrecks.
The actual size of the group tended to stay around 12, including DMs. Most of the time it was split between around 5 or 6 doing certs or specialties and 5 or 6 fun diving. Big boat. No problems.
Frankly, I was a bit worried about the LB dive shop, especially after the unexpected and abrupt farewell to Wolfgang and with the plethora of available choices in town, I was ready to jump ship at the first sign of any questionable behavior. Joanie, Hailee, Martin and Fermin all did a great job and I would definitely dive there again. I might even dive there even if I was not staying there because of the boat. I am not a fan of diving off of skiffs and it looked like most of the other shops were skiff divers except Coconut Tree and the big resorts like AKR.
More to come including:
The Shark Dive
Diving with Coconut Tree
Dives themselves
West End Restuarants and Bars
Other Dive Operations
Rum
Additional Notes and such.
