Roatan in July

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squidgy

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Hi, I am sure this has been asked before, but could not find it. My husband and I and friends are thinking of going to Cocoview Resort in Roatan in first week of July. Someone told us that this is the worst time to go.. sand fleas and hurricanes. Has anyone ever been there at that time and if so how was it?
Thanks
 
For the past 6 years we have gone to Roatan, Inn of Last Resort, the first 2 weeks of June and the weather is great. Warm, sunny and maybe 2-3 hours of rain in our 2 week visit. It is the rainy season on the main land, but not the island. We find that the sand fleas are dependent on the wind. If there is a nice wind, then they tend to be less, but always present. Our prevention is Cactus Juice several times a day. In June the seas tend to be fairlycalm on our side of the island. Coco View is on the opposite side and I believe it can be a bit rough in the summer. The diving will still be great.
Enjoy!!
 
squidgy:
Hi, I am sure this has been asked before, but could not find it. My husband and I and friends are thinking of going to Cocoview Resort in Roatan in first week of July. Someone told us that this is the worst time to go.. sand fleas and hurricanes. Has anyone ever been there at that time and if so how was it?
Thanks

July is normally the time we go to CCV (my company shuts down for a week) It is perfect for us. This year we are going in May for the first time. I don't think the sand fleas ever rest. If you sensitve to bug bites just make sure you take cactus juice or something w/ DEET in it.

Yes hurricane season starts up in June and goes thorough November, but it is that way all over the caribbean you pay your money and you take your chances. I have been diving in the caribbean every year for 28 years and have never had a vacation ruined because of a hurricane.
 
I was thinking about starting a new thread, even though it's been addressed in part before, but I figured now I'd just add to this thread.

We too are considering Roatan around July. Essentially we're considering only Cocoview or AKR at this point. Adult couple of experienced divers with no kids.

Could some of you without professional ties to Roatan please describe what you may know of the features of the two, especially in comparisson to one another?

Are they on the side part of the island? If not, does the temperment of the ocean vary much from one to the other?

Are the dive sites considerably closer by boat at one or the other?

Are the number of divers per boat or in the water fewer at one or the other?

What else might make Coco or AKR stand out vs. the other?

Thanks for the input.

Oh, one other thing....how bad are these sand buggies? Are the fleas really killer? If they're particularly intollerable, especially during the summer, then perhaps I should just dive Belize again?
 
I was in Roatan the last week of July 2003. Hot and lots of sand flies...but lower prices, not as crowded as the winter season (I went at Christams this year). My next trip will be in July instead of the winter. Oh...and the sand flies never rest...they were there to bug us in December also.
 
Chaseh:
I was thinking about starting a new thread, even though it's been addressed in part before, but I figured now I'd just add to this thread.

We too are considering Roatan around July. Essentially we're considering only Cocoview or AKR at this point. Adult couple of experienced divers with no kids.

Could some of you without professional ties to Roatan please describe what you may know of the features of the two, especially in comparisson to one another?

Are they on the side part of the island? If not, does the temperment of the ocean vary much from one to the other?

Are the dive sites considerably closer by boat at one or the other?

Are the number of divers per boat or in the water fewer at one or the other?

What else might make Coco or AKR stand out vs. the other?

Thanks for the input.

Oh, one other thing....how bad are these sand buggies? Are the fleas really killer? If they're particularly intollerable, especially during the summer, then perhaps I should just dive Belize again?

Both are great places, but absolutely different.

AKR is on the North side of the island. When storms come in they get pounded. Otherwise, they lie on the lee side of the prevailing breeze, hiding in the still air shadow of the high ridge back of Roatan. They use Pro serries dive boats, have a long term dive staff, are frequently visited by cruise ship divers and dolphin program patrticipants. They have an excellent program for the kids. You may order off of a menu after you climb the 68 (?) steps up to the dining room. It is very close to the "West End" which offers quick access (by cab) for dining and partying. I have been diving with their operation and off of their shore "dive". I have never stayed there but have eaten there and I have seen all of their room types.

CoCoView is on the South side and is fairly bathed in breezes that keep the sand flies at bay. This feature is shared by FIBR which recently enhanced this by considerably hacking out the undergrowth and opening up the air flow. CCV uses custom designed dive boats with twin aft ladders as well as 3' wide cuts in the gunnels amidships to allow egress. They also feature a center cut moon well ladder, directly in the center bottom of the boat- you can climb up a ladder that remains steady in the roughest of conditions. (In 25 trips to CCV I have never bothered to use it, but it's nice to know it's there) For camera users, they have a cameras only 3x5' table and a no-slosh cameras only rinse tank. When pro shooters come to the island, either they stay at CCV or have their E6 processed there. There is no-one else on its private, 10 acre key except guest divers and the long term staff. Children, unless they are divers, are no longer allowed. The entire resort is pretty well handicapped accessable with removable ramps for the two steps into the dining rooms as well as special rooms. You can dive 24/7, meaning that the shore dive is excellent, and it is literaly at the door to your room. The 140' wreck that lies 300' offshore is connected to your room by an anchor chain to show you the way through a living coral garden swimming pool known as the "Front Yard". Your room will be either at the shore or on posts, out and over an acvtive, changing reef.

No one place is for everyone, but you have inquired about the top two resorts on the island. After 25 trips, I have my preferences, but there are people who have my same breadth of knowledge base and select other resorts.

Me? I like easily accessable diving, in the bulk pack, please.
 
One other aspect, the seas. It seems that the dive sites are relatively close for both resorts, but what about the typical conditions in the summer? Are they much calmer on the AKR side than Coco? If so, how hairy is the sea by Coco, are we talking about 1 ft seas vs. 3ft, or does the swell get pretty big by Coco?
 
Chaseh:
One other aspect, the seas. It seems that the dive sites are relatively close for both resorts, but what about the typical conditions in the summer? Are they much calmer on the AKR side than Coco? If so, how hairy is the sea by Coco, are we talking about 1 ft seas vs. 3ft, or does the swell get pretty big by Coco?

It's all a matter of prevailing breezes. They run from the ESE pretty much so all year long. On the S side you can get seas that run from 1-1.5' any day of the week, all year long. On the North side, you can get dead flat calm.

When any weather comes in, the N side is shut down. There are a few resorts on the North side which are equipped to deal with this. They may put you in a boat and thrash around the West end to dive the South, they might cab you over to meet their boats... or not.

In the 52 or so weeks of diving I have done out of the South side, we have been blown out maybe a total of 3 days. My S.O. (aka: "Herself") was down on her own one week getting her OW Cert, dive #3, and she successfuly dove aboard a CCV boat in 8' rollers. I woulda' said, "Fuggedaboutit", but she was on a mission and had no major difficulties what with the most unique 'center moon well' boat access. See one picture of this unusual feature at http://www.cocoviewresort.com/boats.html and here's an underwater view: http://www.allenhost.com/albums/album15/lynn_in_moon_hatch_1.sized.jpg

If it's too rough for me, a 'fair weather diver' (jaded by so many dives?), I do a shore dive and stay within the confines of the 'Front Yard" and Channel. Having been down there as many times as I have, I know that I can see just as much in the Front Yard as on any boat dive. I will start to consider this option in 4+ seas, but just understand, that if it's over 2' on the South side, this is because the North side is absolutely shut down with a "Norther".

I have looked at about everything on these islands, sometimes with two 80's on a tow board behind a boat, looking for new dive sites. There are dive possibilities on this island (way to the unpopulated East) that will someday make travelling diver's eyes pop. But for today, we are largely limited to a range on the South from Oak Ridge- heading W to CCV, FIBR, Mary's Place, West End... up and on the North side now heading back East past AKR FIBR IOLR and further E to Punta Gorda and Paya Bay. That's it. And the further afield you get to the terminus points I mentioned, the less you will find any dive moorings. Lots that most divers will never see in the next ten years of predictable development.

Certainly all different underwater geography and terrain, certainly all different conditions. I laugh when I hear a roatan expert say that this place or that has better marine life for this or that reason. What a load of whale poop. Roatan has the greatest diversity of Caribbean critters of any dive island, and what you can find on one coastline is the same thing you find on another.

The critical issue in Roatan is to find the macro stuff. Most of us travellers can't find anything smaller than a yellow school bus, much less an Arrow Blennie. What do people rave about? Big stuff. Why? Because that's the only thing they can find. Answer? Stick close to your DM, perfect your buoyancy and carry a magnifying glass. That's how I pick out a diver who has "graduated".

To return to your exact question: I would rather "suffer" a continous 1-1.5' sea, along with it's causative breezes, enjoying the effect it has on the State Bird of Roatan, the Sand Fly. On the S side, the effect of this blood sucker is much less felt on the South than on the North Side. The little devils thrive on wet, decaying vegetable matter, which is pretty much so a description of the terrain to the North of the high ridgeline that divides Roatan. Look for a place that has no still standing water, ongoing removal of low hanging vegetation, consistent wood-deck replacement policy, continuous raking of the sand and removal of fallen vegetation. Look for one that is constantly bathed in the prevailing breeze.

For any other discomfort cause by these lovely breezes, I rely on the boats that "have holes in their bottoms". You can get other opinions at http://www.websitetoolbox.com/tool/mb/ccv where you will find many other ScubaBordians yacking it up.

Want to see the weather on the South side, LIVE during daylight hours ? Take a look at http://www.cocoviewresort.com/webcams.html See for yourself.
 
I've been on the Island in every month of the year and July is usually pleasant.
Huricane season in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico runs from June 1 to November 30 with August and September usually being the most active period.

Keeping this in mind July is usually not nearly as hot as you would expect. Actually there is usually always a breeze and as long as there is some shade available it is really quite pleasant. September on the other hand is hotter then 19 hundred hells and there is no breaze and believe me it's just HOT.

This July is going to be very bussy - Probably the biggest year ever for Roatan.

Doc talked about the far EAST end - You might consider Paya Bay they are located on the far East end of the island and dive out where hardly anybody goes. They are also probably one of the nicest resorts on the island. I think they even have some vacancies in July.

AKR goes out to Santa Elena and Morat - "FAR EAST" at least once a week but it's a very long boat ride.

There really is some neat stuff out on the Far East End and like I said hardly anyone dives there.

As always please also check out the Inn of Last Rersort as that's where I hang out two months out of the year.
 

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