roatan and utila operations

[papanano]

hi all, who has stayed and dove with deep blue on utila and turquoise bay on roatan? we are going there in july and these are the places we are looking at. any info good or bad would be helpful.

thank you, Greg

[laurenceh]

we've only dived with deep blue divers but two thumbs up! well organized, serious about the important stuff but lots of fun, highly recommended.

[Stout]

Deep Blue Divers or Deep blue Resort ?

I don't know about the resort but I spent a month with Deep Blue Divers last Jan/Feb and I was so impressed that I'm planning on heading there again next year.

[Cudabait]

Deep Blue Divers is in town, Deep Blue Resort is their all-inclusive resort accessible by boat. All owned by the Fox family. I have dove with both operations for years. Whichever one you choose you can't go wrong. Tell em Cuda said so. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!! I have dove with a lot of operators on Roatan but not at all familiar with the one you mention. PM me if you have questions. Have fun!

[ApriLL]

I am looking to travel the last week of May. May 24th- June 1st. I hear it is Whale shark season ? This will be my first trip. I will check out the organizations mentioned. Also, my Spanish is Nil. Will this be a problem?

[laurenceh]

english is spoken by the majority of residents on utila. whale shark "season" is difficult to predict, so much is dependent on the luna cycle and what snappers may be spawning. however steve fox owner at deep blue resort is the person to consult with, not too many people know more about whale sharks around utila than him.

[papanano]

thanks to all for the info. after all these posts and my research we are going with the deep blue resort and there house dive operation. CUDABAIT, the dive center for turquoise bay resort is Subway divers, know of them? I have heard good things about them from local divers that have dove there.

[diversteve]

I am looking to travel the last week of May. May 24th- June 1st. I hear it is Whale shark season ? This will be my first trip. I will check out the organizations mentioned. Also, my Spanish is Nil. Will this be a problem?May is considered the last month of Whale Shark High Season.

My Spanish is non-existent. We took the ferries over and it wasn't an issue as everyone we needed to interact with spoke English.

We stayed at Deep Blue Resort a couple years ago in March. It's quiet, away from town on the opposite side of a lagoon channel so all access is via Deep Blue's boats. Captain Swin put us on 6 Whalesharks over two days - then it turned flat calm and hot which seemed to drive them deep. Without asking they also took us to most of the "best" dives on Utila. Pinnacles, Duppy Waters and Black Hills are must dives. Ask Matt. There's also an accessible shore dive from their beach - we dove nearby at a site called Labrynth - it was a good dive at night.

The food is good - Susan customizes the menu to meet your requirements as much as possible and they always offer several choices - the rooms are clean and there's only 10 of them. All the rooms have decks and they're 50' from the Ocean so you get both a breeze and also can hear the waves breaking - it's pretty quiet. Their boat docks on the lagoon side so wear Deet or something - especially late afternoon - the sand flies were bad on that side. And don't leave the doors/windows open unless they're screened. The "lodge" has sofas, wireless internet and a pool table. Plus a nice bar area.

Steve Fox is a whaleshark expert so expect some good conversations. If you do see a whaleshark try to get a shot of the left side behind the gills and send it to Ecocean (http://www.whaleshark.org/) for inclusion in their database. My buddy did and now gets updates when it's spotted. http://www.whaleshark.org/photographing.jsp?langCode=en

[oreocookie]

thanks to all for the info. after all these posts and my research we are going with the deep blue resort and there house dive operation. CUDABAIT, the dive center for turquoise bay resort is Subway divers, know of them? I have heard good things about them from local divers that have dove there.

When are you going to be there? Maybe we'll see you.

[papanano]

we will be there from july 16th thru the 30th. when will you be there?

[oreocookie]

Looking forward to meeting you then, we'll be there the 14th to the 21st.

[papanano]

we will be on utila from the 16th thru the 23rd and then it's on to roatan! what are your names? I'm Greg and my wife is Romana

[oreocookie]

I'm Liz. I'm going with my friend Lisa.

[papanano]

it'll be fun to dive with the both of you and if my wife doesn't feel like diving one day at least I'll know someone so I'll have a buddy or two. my wife is going to get her advanced before we go so she can night dive with me, that'll be a blast.

[Cudabait]

[QUOTE=papanano;5876619]it'll be fun to dive with the both of you and if my wife doesn't feel like diving one day at least I'll know someone so I'll have a buddy or two. my wife is going to get her advanced before we go so she can night dive with me, that'll be a blast.[/QUOTE

Papanano:

LaCuda and I may see ya'll on Roatan. We'll be staying and diving at Splash Inn Resort with another couple from July 22nd until Aug 1st. then we'll be in condo til October 1st. Total: about 2 1/2 months. I'm Paul, LaCuda is Ann. Hope to maybe see ya'll.

[papanano]

hi cuda(paul), is that close to turquoise bay resort

[papanano]

well there has been a change of plans, we will be going to the mango inn on utila and sueno del mar on roatan. know of these ones?

[oreocookie]

what happened? are your original choices full?

[papanano]

yep, if where we are going to be is close to where you are maybe we can still get a dive in together

[laurenceh]

mango inn is in town and not on the water. try to get a cottage or deluxe room, the standard rooms are pretty dark and depressing. the restaurant is nice and the hotel near the treetanic bar if you like to party.
if you want to be on the water and have a beach, i suggest you look at utopia resort, they're running some great special deals this summer (free diving with a room).

[Doctorfish]

We stayed on Utila 2 years ago and dived with Deep Blue and Laguna Beach, IMO both first rate operations.

We were on Roatan a year ago and stayed at Turqoise and dived with Subway. The resort was very nice but the dive operation was spotty at best. Rarely on time, poor boats, inexperienced divemasters and not enough nitrox tanks for a start. Would not dive with them again.

[papanano]

good to know doctorfish although we are not staying there now. we are staying at sueno del mar. when we return i will post a report.

[Cudabait]

well there has been a change of plans, we will be going to the mango inn on utila and sueno del mar on roatan. know of these ones?

Yep, I know them both well. Mango Inn is a walk up the hill on monkey tail road and a ways from Utila Dive Center, with whom they are affliated. Andy Phillips at UDC is an excellent Course Director at UDC. Sueno Del Mar is a small 8 room hotel right on the beach on West End roatan is just a short walk down the beach from where we will be diving at Splash Inn Resort. Enjoy and hope to meet you. Maybe you've been in touch with Ray at Sueno by now.

[papanano]

haven't been in touch with ray yet but i will when it gets closer to going. what kind of boats do UDC run? I prefer the smaller boats with around 6 people.

[Cudabait]

haven't been in touch with ray yet but i will when it gets closer to going. what kind of boats do UDC run? I prefer the smaller boats with around 6 people.

Papa.....UDC has numerous boats. Some used for training, some for fun divers and then again some for people who are doing a package deal with Mango Inn and restaurant included. Email Andy tell him what you would like. He's a great guy and very accomodating. Then again, Deep Blue Divers is right next door to UDC. Smaller op.

[papanano]

thanks Paul, I wonder if they will let me split dive days between the two?

Greg

[dontaskme]

just got back from Roatan, and 16 dives with Coconut tree divers. GREAT DIVE SHOP !!!!! and GREAT STAFF !!!!!

[DEVITA]

I'll see you there papanano! I will be at Deep Blue July 9th through 16 with my scuba buddies!

[oreocookie]

I'll see you there papanano! I will be at Deep Blue July 9th through 16 with my scuba buddies!

Looks like you might be seeing me instead. I'll be getting there July 14th.

[toddthecat]

I'm currently at Turquoise Bay resort, leaving in a few days. Subway currently is powerhousing 8 DM candidates so they have been quite busy with them. The boats are in rough shape, staff hasnt been there the couple of times I've walked down there (regardless of time of day). Service by Turquoise Bay staff is poor to say the very least. We've been diving with the shop at Fantasy Island and highly suggest it to anyone. Huge operation, 9 boats, couple of compressors with over 300 tanks. Two of us went and had Prince Albert to ourselves (only saw two divers on the wreck for a few seconds and they vanished quick). We just posted 10 mins of video from that dive on YouTube here YouTube - ‪Prince Albert Wreck Dive in Roatan, Honduras 06.09.11 Pt. 1‬‏ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuY0I5DAuHY). Will be posting a full report soon...

[Subway Watersports]

I want to respond to the comment about "powerhousing" DM candidates. Subway Watersports has a Course Director and 4 Instructors on staff. Currently we have 7 candidates who are at levels from Advanced to Divemaster. I don't think a 5 to 7 ratio can be described as powerhousing.

Our dive shop is open 7 days a week. We are open at 8 am every day and close at 4 pm if we have an afternoon charter and at 2:30 pm if we don't have an afternoon charter. You arrived on a Thursday and did not come down to the shop until Saturday, which was my day off. You talked to our shop assistant Verlyn and indicated you would dive the next morning. We held the boat for 15 minutes but you never arrived and never called or came down to say you weren't diving. You came to the shop one more time when I was there and I was excited to finally meet you. You expressed your concerns about the conditions in which we were diving and I assured you our boats and crew were more than capable of going out in the rare Northern winds we had last week. The divers we had were happy to go out and had a great week of diving. You told me you were thinking of going on the afternoon dive and I asked you to return at 1:30 pm so I could give you an update on the conditions. You never showed up again. As an owner of your own dive shop I think it is highly unprofessional to make reservations twice and not show up.

You say our boats are in rough condition. Do they need a fresh coat of paint? Yes they do. However, they are well suited for diving and are mechanically in good shape. I do not think looking at the dock from the patio is a fair way to judge dive boats.

You have posted two other times complaining about the resort and about the island. You are posting all of these complaints while you are still on the island, at the resort. Instead of discussing your concerns with the staff onsite you write these posts online. As soon as we read them the manager went to see you and offered you complimentary meals for the remainder of your stay which you accepted. You keep mentioning that you are here for a site inspection yet you have not gone to see any dive resorts except Fantasy Island…and you did not look at any rooms there or eat there.

I completely understand that Roatan is not for everyone. We wish you a safe journey home.