Anthony's Key Resort

[sffrenchman]

Hi fellow divers:

We are planning to go to Roatan in September staying at AKR. I have the following questions:

Do you need air conditioning at that time of the year?
What are the advantages of staying on the Key vs. Hillside?
I also read on the board that shore diving at AKR is a mirage. Does it mean that there is no shore diving or it is not worth it?

Thanks for your feedback.

Cheers

[Bazooka Joe]

I have been to AKR three times in the last two years, twice in Nov and once in dec. Although the days were warm, 80'ish. We were on the dive boats, would I have AC, yeah i think I would. I have always dove off the boats, it is a great place to dive from. If you get a chance to Dive with Frank, he is the best....you will know Frank he is about the only guy down there that dives with a baseball cap on.....underwater. The island is okay, but the diving is great. My wife and I have discussions on whether Cozumal or Roatan are better, it always ends up a draw. The Key rooms are cool for the novelty factor, but you have to take a ferry boat the 3-- to 500 feet across the bay to the main resort....I think that could get tiresome.. Have fun at AKR!

Joe

[Rythmmaker]

I'm going to AKR from April 4 - 11. This will be my first trip to Roatan. I will take pictures and write an extensive review, and let you know what I think...

My dive buddy bailed on me! Anyone else planning to be there that week?

[leadweight]

For someone from San Francisco, I would say you will probably need AC. I could stay on Roatan all summer without it, but I am used to the hot, humid Houston climate. Even without AC, the cabins are well ventilated and have fans. Its only real bad in the afternoon. Dive in a skin and let your body cool down. Get Honduran. I stayed on the hill, it was fine, but a long time ago, right after AKR rebuilt from Mitch.

The shore diving is not much, but three boat dives a day is enough to keep me happy. Bring DEET, at lest 25%, not over 40%. The food is good. Take a cab into West End one evening and have a few drinks at Sundowner.

[parrotman]

I was at AKR this past August. Paid a premium price for a single over the water room on the key. Got a crappy room with bad beds over a muck puddle in the mangroves. The bugs will eat you alive so take plenty of DEET. My buddy that stayed in the room next to me was bitten so badly he had to go to the medical clinic on the island and this was with a good coating of DEET every day. The food was so so. The service at the restruant was poor. This was not my first time to Roatan and I have been to Utila many times. I would not waste the money on AKR. You would probably want AC. If for nothing else, so that you could keep your windows closed rather than let even more bugs into your room. While on that trip I stayed another week down the way at a different resort and did not have the problems with the bugs. Maybe it was due to the mangroves I don't know.

J

[leadweight]

Someone did not like AKR...

[MikeSK]

Do the other places offer the same level of Dolphin interaction that AKR does? To be honest..that's the big draw for me for my eventual first trip to Roatan. The interaction, and of course, another C-Card :)

[LynnB]

Parrotman... where else did you stay

[RoatanMan]

Do the other places offer the same level of Dolphin interaction that AKR does? To be honest..that's the big draw for me for my eventual first trip to Roatan. The interaction, and of course, another C-Card :)

Every place offers the same level of interaction. AKR will provide the Dolphin Encounter/Dive for all comers. This is the largest part of AKR's income, what with the volume of cruise ship passengers and all.

The "Encounter" (or snorkel) allows for much greater interaction in terms of time and proximity. The "Dive" may allow you some fleeting passes of the smiley faced critters.

All in all, the interactions you will someday have in the open ocean will far surpass any pay-per-view activity, Canned Dolphin Show or Shark Rodeo, same same. I urge you to "dive more" and keep your eyes open! On Roatan I have seen and snorkeled with wild Dolphins many times at First Bight. Sharks are common enough sights off of the regular reef dives near the "official" Shark Dive at Cara-a-Cara. It's all out there, for free. Nothing beats a wild chance meeting~ but many say that the Dolphin Encounter at AKR is pretty cool in that there's a lot of touchy-feely.

Any resort can arrange this visit to AKR for you.

[MikeSK]

great thx....does AKR give preferential treatment to people staying there or anything?

I definetly plan on taking more trips now that the last kids graduates this may, so wild encounters will occur...however...i do prefer the "structured" type setup when possible. If only because your more likely to have the encounter. Such as Soccoro or Yap for Mantas, ISLA Gaudalupe for Great Whites etc etc.

[CODMAN]

R-man is dead on. Wild encounters are way better, although I do understand why people enjoy the encounters in captivity.

I did the dolphin snorkel in 2006. I had fun, but I now regret it knowing more about the international dolphin trade and exploitation that goes on around the world. And that's what AKR is... they say they do research.... Yeah right...:shakehead: It's a business, no more, no less. this said, the pens were not all that bad from what I've seen in documentaries. Even if they are captive dolphins, the conditions there seemed not too bad.

Anyways, I won't go again... but to each to make his/her own mind up on this!:coffee:
Cheers!

[MemphisDiver]

We have been to AKR 3 times (all in July). Did not have AC the first time and spent the hottest, most miserable night of our lives. It cooled down after that and was OK but we got and used AC for all stays afterward. We have also stayed on the key and on the hill. If you have never stayed there before, I would stay on the key. Especially if there are kids in tow. You get the ocean views and breeze. You are closer to the pool and are more a part of the overall experience. You do have to take the water taxi back and forth but it is fun (unless it is raining). It runs nonstop so you never have a true wait and it only takes a few seconds to get across. Up on the hill, you have extremely limited to no view of the ocean. You are closer to the food/bar but probably aren't physically any closer to the dive shop/boats. It depends on if you would rather ride a boat over to them or go up and down a pretty steep flight of stairs. If you choose to stay on the hill, definately get AC because there is no breeze at all up there. You have a hill behind you and thick trees in front. I would get AC irregardless (our miserable night was on the key). Our experience is that there was no difference in the rooms/cabins or bugs at either place. We found the food to be good and the waiters great. If you like spicy sauce, find the waiter Celase (big guy, not hard to find) and ask him for his sauce. We had it at every meal and then brought some home.
Have fun!