Roatan Dive Resort for beginners?

[banana]

Hello All,

My husband and I are both NAUI OW certified divers, but aren't terribly experienced (~10 dives each). We are going to Roatan from 6/20-6/28 and would really like this trip to be about the diving because we both have diving issues (me: buoyancy control, him: equalizing) that aren't going to improve when we're only doing 5 or so dives every six months. We'd like a dive resort that has week-long packages and are considering CoCo View (no onsite rooms available, but they do have one of the beachhouses), Anthony's Key (one room left), Barefoot Cay(still haven't heard back), or Bananarama (one room, we'd have to move after the first night).

If anyone has any input on these resorts or any additional resorts/dive shops to recommend, I'd be very grateful. My husband cooks, so good food is a plus. We are early 30's and not ultra picky about rooms. Despite our age, we really don't need to be near "nightlife", we are usually sleeping by 9pm when on vacation and enjoy peace and quiet.

Thanks in advance.

 

[georoc01]

I haven't been to the others, but I dove at Anthony's key when I had about as many dives as you do. They do have a free bouyancy class on Mondays included as part of the package. I found their staff to be very friendly and am going back over Labor Day week this year.

 

[Doc]

considering CoCo View (no onsite rooms available, but they do have one of the beachhouses)

Which means it is a two minute walk down hard flat sand from the dive op. 30 seconds or so on a bicycle. Way closer to the action than anything at AKR which would be my second choice.

Sign up for a Beach House, they will move you to the resort if a room opens up.

Although many people do finally select an ultimate preference among Beach House, Cabana, Bungalow and Ocean Front- there is not much difference between them and even less worth worrying about before you go and see them.

It is the single best place to easily get 5x a day with the least exertion.

You can see the first of the Beach Houses off to the right (East) of the main club house, at the margin...

 

[herman]

Nothing wrong with the beach house at CCV. Depending on your food preference it may be a little less than you like, the food is Ok and plenty of it but it's not 5 star either.
You might want to consider hiring a private DM for a couple of days. Your going to be more or less on your own....buoyancy and decent wise..if you don't. You should also know that many of the lead dives go 60-80 ft, if your not comfortable with those depths, a private DM can help you get use to them as well. For the most part, the boat dives are free accents/descents and you do need to have some amount of control. The DM's are there to help and they do a great job but they can't be everywhere all the time. I'm not trying to paint a bad picture, just trying to give you a clear image of the diving. This is not unique to CCV but most anywhere you dive.
I love CCV, the staff, DM and boat captains are all great but IMO you do need to get a clear picture of the diving your going to. Maybe my prospective is a little biased because I just returned from a week at CCV where I spent half of my week DMing for a new and nervous couple. I'm not complaining, I volunteered and enjoyed seeing them improve greatly but it does give me a somewhat different prospective and an appreciation of what your going to experience. I want it to end well, like theirs did.

 

[Bay Island Diver]

Are you going to take courses while you are there. Peak Performance Buoyancy, AOW? If you are looking to improve your diving skill as efficiently as possible you want to take a course.

If you really don't want to take a course just make sure you dive with an outfit that doesn't just give you a Divemaster to lead your dives, email the dive ops and find out which ones employ Instructors to do the Divemastering, at least you are likely to get an instructor watching you dive and giving you the advice they are trained to give, they won't be able to spend as much time watching you as they would if you were doing a course, but they will still be able to give some advice, especially if you ask for feedback.

HTH Will

 

[leadweight]

A lot of the dive shops in West End use instructors to lead their dives and they also have pretty good prices on instruction.

 

[Doc]

A lot of the dive shops in West End use instructors to lead their dives and they also have pretty good prices on instruction.

This is not uncommon anywhere in the world among small dive operations. If you are out on a boat with your own private group of three and your dive leader is an OWSI, so much the better- if he's willing to work as an OWSI for the pay of a DM. Otherwise, a DM can coach you just as adequately... if you warn them in advance of your needs.

There is no requirement (in most countries that I am aware) for the leader or dive guide to have any certificate from any agency.

The farther afield you get in your travels, the more likely a one man operation will be owned and run by at maximum, only a Certified Diver. (getting quite rare in the Caribbean) Most small ops can support only one or two in-the-water staffers, so an OWSI is a minimum requirement for manpower allocation if any instruction is being offered at all.

The theoretic and practical function of a DM (dive guide) and an Instructor are at odds with each other. The DM tends to the enjoyment and general safety of the entire group, and his main function is to point out cool stuff including the boat at the end of the dive.

An Instructor, by any definition, does not do this as a defined job function. An instructor's attentions are directed toward his students in an effort to improve their diving skills.

Mincing words? Sure. But to say that one dive op is preferable because it has Instructors doing the Dive Guiding is no less so. If a DM makes $5, then an Instructor might make $10. Why would an Instructor take a downgrade?

More to the point- I have seen DM's of all abilities and motivations. Do not count on a DM to do anything more than "lead" a dive. The same thing for an Instructor acting as a Dive Guide. Unless you hire them in advance to provide personalized service to the exclusion of others along for the ride. Neither will be required to engage in high risk behavior to save a diver who is a danger to themselves, although most will do so.

Many DM's will not offer such advice as buoyancy skills in the fear that their tips will be affected negatively. There are few DM's that would not eagerly offer assistance if so requested, and certificates be damned, there isn't one good DM who is less or more qualified than any Instructor to perform this relatively simple task.

Don't underestimate the skills and abilities of a qualified dive leader, paperwork or not.

The key is to confer with your dive leader in advance of the trip. See how they can assist you with your needs and fears, your training issues. Understand how, during the dive, they will be available to assist you if need be. Quite often, at the end of a dive, when they have all of their charges corralled under the dive boat, they will gladly take time with you to work on your buoyancy skills.

My DM's understand this well. If they gently assist, even if not asked- if they can make your dive experience better, they will have "happier customers".

On Roatan (and anywhere else), you can find DM's that are lemons. If you're diving on the South side and they're not finding Sea Horses on half the dives and at least two Pipefish in a week, move along. Watch out for the ones that attract herds of fish by surreptitiously feeding fish, there are those with better skills.

DM or Instructor? It is all but impossible to do both jobs at the same time.

 

[leapfrog]

Personally I would recommend AKR. I think you will find a more personalized attention and will also enjoy your holiday more. Eververything about AKR makes it a fantastic place to go. (Yes, I am a dolphin freak),

The buoyancy class seems to be what you are looking for and his highly recommendable.

Of course, each and every one has their own opinion but note georoc's post speaking as a relatively new diver....

 

[leadweight]

I am not sure exactly what Roatan Man is getting at, other than to say that there is no benefit to using a dive shop where nearly all of the dives are lead by instructors. Does that really make sense? Compensation plans, individuals motivations and the job market are not as simple as he states.

All of this does not change one important thing. There are a lot of instructors in West End, and whether they are leading dives or teaching, the prices are low, and it would be a nice addition to a dive trip to do an AOW if it is needed. By the way, I was not trying to suggest that an instructor leading a dive would be giving out free instruction, although I have run across a few that could not seem to turn it off, so to speak.

By the way, I have been to AKR and Coco View as well. They are both top grade. Fantasy Island is a step down from those two, but is less expensive. West End is a totally different sort of thing from an all inclusive, and may not be for those who want to do a maximum amount of diving.

 

[skynscuba]

Hello All,

My husband and I are both NAUI OW certified divers, but aren't terribly experienced (~10 dives each). We are going to Roatan from 6/20-6/28 and would really like this trip to be about the diving because we both have diving issues (me: buoyancy control, him: equalizing) that aren't going to improve when we're only doing 5 or so dives every six months.

I've only been to CocoView, but I think you could arrange what you want at most places. My girlfriend finished her open water certification at CCV, along with another friend, while we were there. She took a while to complete that, so she only did 3 boat dives with me at the end of the week.

You might like to do a formal course (bouyancy, AOW), or just hire an instructor to make a dive with you to get you tuned up. In any case, at CCV your first dive there will be a led shore dive, where they will verify that you have the basic skills. If at CCV, you could also skip the first afternoon of boat dives, and easily make 3+ shore dives out front with and without the instructor. Boat dives have better visibility than the shore dive (excellent vs. good).

We stayed in a beach house (two couples in a 3Br, worked out about the same price as the cheapest resort rooms), and I thought it was a good setup. We had a clothes washer/dryer, which came in handy. Only a minute or less by bicycle, depending on which house.