TruckDiver:
But some people are just workaholics I guess.
There is indeed a reason for ala carte, non AI, (all inclusive) options. Unfortunately this thread was initiated not for the sharing of information, but started for other peculiar reasons. But- if we might debate the
original topic that was used as a mask...
Day Dive Operations and Guest Houses that are thick on Roatan's West End area are a great opportunity for younger, less affluent travelers to enjoy one of the last fronteirs of Caribbean travel at a reasonable cost... but you had better hurry!
When I was 18-28 I travelled the world, skiing (watch the movie "Endless Winter" for the guy in the silver sunglasses) and diving (look at 1970's vintage Skin Diver Mags) and staying up till dawn drinking beer and chatting up the girls. We didn't really know any better about the medical ramifications of dehydration, lack of sleep, residual alcohol and
"other external stimulus" and how they affected our body chemistry when we went diving the next day. We were young, invincible and unaware. This is apparently inherent in that age bracket even today. God bless the youthful.
True enough, many of us divers, old and young, have noodled out that we must stay hydrated, avoid alcohol and get lots of rest, but then again... it's the islands, the beer is cold, and she sure looks good dancing all night in that dress!
The lure of the $5 hammock in the Bay Islands is strong. At the same time, many of this class of customer also is balancing their limited budget between diving and Salva Vida Beer. It's a lot easier to keep partying than it is to think about managing funds for a third dive for the next day.
It's all about what is important. Is it the "total vacation experience"? All hail any college age kid that would rather let it all hang out on the Bay Islands for cheap, rather than to go p*ss away 8x the dollars for a week long drunk at South Padre or Cozumel. The people that I see on West End will have great memories and real tales of adventure to tell. I wouldn't tarde one of the West End backpackers for any 10 of the indulged offspring shown on "
E! Wild-On".
No one thing is for everyone. I was (and am) a self admitted nerd. When I started diving, I saw Mike Nelson and Cousteau on TV. I went and did that. Many of my friends went to New Orleans for Mardis Gras and came back with stories that were much more interesting to the masses. I dove in Incan wells, in rivers with carnivorous fish, into Japaneese submarines with skeletal remains.
We went skiing to world class places and slept in Colorado garages on cardboard or in Swiss cow barns on straw. We learned that if we drank less, we could afford a place that had showers, at least down the hall. Then, we joined the working world where vacations were paid for, and that the
time off itself was the real commodity.
Many Europeans are attracted to the West End, certainly the younger world travellers. I have shared many of the same environments that they today frequent, even in my geezerhood. We prefer the land based options in the Galapagos, and we are usually the oldest in the crowd, and also the only native English speakers.
We absolutely revel in this opportunity to be with young folks and get a glimpse at what is hip in 2005, and to wonder at the world that they have. A true magnet, in miniature, for the European crowd (mostly medium-affluent German) was Pepper's resort on the fabled Barbaretta island of the Islas de la Bahia (Bay Islands). If the original poster wasn't hawking something, that place as well as Bonacca Key (Guanaja) would have been mentioned as well.
Those are the real adventures on the Bay Islands.
The non AI vacation is tough. Sure enough, our Galapagos trips are 1/3 the $ of any live aboard, and having done most all of the live aboards there- you can have them. We pick the ala carte backpacker version because it truly gives you a better view of the total Galapagos experience. There is so very much to see and experience on the Galapagos that warrants more than a live aboard trip. It is not easy, all the way from airport transfers to moving back and forth to the dive-op from lodging. In terms of the Bay Islands, this Galapagos analogy falls apart quickly...
Essentially, the Bay Islands have no real visible cultural heritage. There is a mismatch of disparate cultures, over shadowed by the Marley/Buffet vision of the Caribbean- which these islands, take my word for it, is not. This fantasy is provided as background for the consumption of Salva Vida and Flor de Cana.
One might visit the Garifuna village Punta Gorda, quite distant from the West End (1 hr by cab) and stare at the locals or go to one of the folkloric exhibitions that they put on for the cruise ship passengers who schlepp all the way out to see it. Otherwise, island culture is imported. Most of the land-owner class islanders have cousins in Cayman who share the same accent. The "Spanish" (as they are called) come over from the mainland to work. The "Blacks" come from many places also to work, and finally the Garifuna who are remaining from Caribbean transplantations. Make no mistake, this is a highly class oriented and structured society. Visit the town of Hotasparrow (quite close to West End) and tell me what you learn about island culture. Everybody fits into a place, and the tourist also has a place.
There is essentially nothing to do on the Bay Islands (in 2005) other than SCUBA (limited snorkeling) and drink. Those who are hawking a service or a product dependant upon your coming will paint a picture of miriad diversions. There is, I will agree, a Bojangles Chicken franchise and a miniature golf place that will let you drink beer while you negotiate the non-mechanized course. That's about it.
So either you're coming to dive, or you're coming to be (mildly) disappointed. This is not Cozumel South, it isn't Club Med on the cheap. If you want a great party atmosphere with a dab of diving, the non-AI is a great way- a good thing to pursue on the Bay Islands. The step beyond Roatan is Utila, but know that "laid back" is an understatement.
My nephew, a Junior at UT, goes to Coz and drinks like a pig for spring break, but then joins me in Roatan at an AI and does 5 and 6 dives a day. Balance.
There is no one thing for everyone, but be aware of any given proponent's experience base, resources available, and in the case of this thread: ulterior motivations.
ity_part
