Turneffe Flats –Belize Dive Report June- 2013
Turneffe Flats is called a resort, but it is not a “Resort” that most people think of when they hear the “R” word. My wife and I are not drawn to large crowds, high rise hotels, fancy swimming pools with water parks, jet skis, parasailing, dive boats that hold 30 divers and have what they call a dive package of 1 or 2 tanks a day. We went to the Flats because it is not all that. It is located on a windward picturesque private point of the Turneffe Atoll which is surrounded by a protective reef. There are only 4 coral atolls in the Western Hemisphere, and diving here is your chance to hit 3 of them. This location not only offers quality diving opportunities, but also affords the serious minded angling community the opportunity to hit the skinny water of the atolls with a primary goal of hooking up Tarpon, Permit, and Bonefish on the fly. It is a purely catch and release program. There were even a few anglers who took a day off from the rod, and joined us underwater. If you are into a diving vacation where you only want to concentrate on eating, sleeping, and diving then this may be a consideration for you. There is no secondary entertainment, unless someone chooses to bring over a guitar, there is no TV. If you want internet, (But why? Seriously why?) then you can hit it in the lodge. Personally, the only thing I want to think about is slow and continuous controlled breathing with several atmospheres of water over my head.
We flew into Belize airport and in relatively short time and squeezed through customs. Of note when entering this fair country make sure you are accurate with stating the time you will spend there as we found out by a reliable source that (Officials are apparently NOT telling anyone this) if you stay in the country any longer than your initial claimed time frame they will charge you a $1,000.00 fee per day for each day. This has just apparently come about, and I don’t know how long it will be like that so just be aware. We picked up our bags and immediately a gentleman approached us and asked where we were going and we told him. He placed our bags on a cart and ran it 10 yards to the outside and handed it over to the driver of the Radisson Fort George van who was waiting to take us to the Marina. This little move cost an unnecessary tip so unless you like tossing tips in the air, carry your luggage the few feet out the door yourself. One thing to remember though, the US dollar is twice the Belize so tipping with US goes a long way there. In twenty minutes we were at the marina meeting our boat to the flats. We were lucky to leave at that point because they require you to be there no later than 3:30pm and our flight was late. The good thing about that was a handful of other folks were also late so they held the boat for everyone. If you’re going, consider getting there as early as possible or perhaps even the night before to avoid possible delays which may interfere with your diving schedule. We made the hour and a half boat ride to the flats in a center console 25 foot skiff that was packed head to toe in luggage and passengers, and slowly bounced through heavy swells the majority of the trip. By the time we got there I was joking about fracturing my tail bone. It wasn’t fractured, but it was a pain in the rear for a few days. However, no worries as I was just glad to be there.
We were met by the staff who were all extremely warm, inviting, and pleasant; and a small crowd of hungry fishermen and divers. Apparently everyone was kind enough to wait for dinner until us late comers finally got there. Our luggage was taken to the room while we ate, and one thing you should remember, once you arrive at the flats, unless you really want to, you don’t have to touch a thing. Rest assured it’s all done for you.
DINING:
Breakfast consisted of a moderate list of choices, but the food was always good!
Lunch was always served on the water! Some liked it and others didn’t. I suppose because it wasn’t fancy. My wife and I loved it simply because we were there to be under or on the water so we were delighted. Every night at dinner they would approach you with a list items for you to pick out for lunch on the boat the next day. Typical- Sandwich and chips was our choice. Regardless, I never heard anyone complaining about being hungry. Dinner was not much of a choice. You would arrive at the dining hall and read on the wall what was being served, and after some hors d’oeuvres and lively conversation you pick a seat, and completely enjoy every single bite of dinner that was ever served. The food was so good we came home with a Turneffe Flats cook book if that tells you anything. The only disappointment on our stay was the lack of seafood offered.
ACCOMODATIONS:
There are only a handful of beach front cabanas in duplex style configuration. When I mention beach front I mean it. The water was 15 feet from our porch. Rooms were air conditioned and spacious as well as the bathroom. Our room had two double beds which were quite comfortable. Of course almost anything is comfortable after a day of diving. Most importantly it was quiet and peaceful which is always a plus. The only deficiency I can report on the rooms is the shower. This is a remote location and everything depends on stored water and generators. Because of this you should never expect to take a shower without completely loosing water pressure several times as well and continued variances in temperature. Electricity day or night can fade in or out at any given time but usually only for a short duration. This is important to remember that it’s not you slipping into DCS. It’s just something you will have to live with in paradise. Although you do feel safe and secure there, lockboxes are in the room to store those personal things. There also two 3-room villas if you travel with a group.
DIVING OPERATIONS:
When the crowds are small you typically go out in the small boats, but in our case there were a total of 18 divers so we took the Pro48 custom dive boat out each day. The Mrs. Ellie was clean, well equipped, and spacious. Each morning, except for blue hole day, departure was at 8am sharp. You would find all of your gear on board including your first of three tanks of the day already geared up. All you have to do is turn on the air and suit up. Most days our travel time would be between 30 to 45 minutes. This was largely due to the fact that we were working leeward to get out of prevailing wind. This was a welcome tactic as fighting waves can become a bit of a hassle. The craft was well stocked with snacks, your lunch, fresh water, and even a shower. I can’t say enough about the Captain. Known indiscriminately as “Cap” he was well seasoned, and knew the waters and the boat well. The number of divers we had going in was a bit of a concern to us as we were spread from numerous years of experience to, “Hey we’ve only had 6 dives.” Never the less the logistics was well controlled. The boat was split into 3 groups and each hand their own DM. We would stager entry into the water to the respect that you rarely became an underwater “Crowd”. We were in group one, and therefore the first ones in the water, and typically the last one’s to come up. We hit 18 sights in 6 days of diving with visibility ranging from 150’ to 50’. I believe most of these sites were churned by the ever present winds. We were there the third week in May 2013, not quite into the rainy season yet. Ambient temperatures were mid 80’s in daylight and upper 70’s at night. Most days, again largely because of the wind, did require extra cover such as a long sleeve T-shirt, to keep off a chill during top-time. Water temperature hovered around 79 depending on your depth. If you’re diving all day, this time of year I would recommend at least a 1mil. Our weather was awesome the whole trip. We only had one downpour at sea, but after 10 minutes it was gone.
Pre-dive briefings were a bit dreadful. Now believe me when I say there is absolutely nothing wrong with being prepared and planning a dive out. The DM’s were knowledgeable and skilled, plus every one of them sported a really great sense of humor. However, it did get old quick when they told everyone to suit up, and then you’re sitting there ready to go only to have to sit through a 20 minute briefing. They could seriously use some adjustment on timing. That though is the only complaint except for the fact that we weren’t there a week longer. In addition, with the exception a few boats at the Blue Hole and Lighthouse Atoll diving, we were the only boat and every other dive site we hit. So becoming interlaced with other operations was never a factor!
THE DIVING:
There is no bad time diving in Central America. Some days are better than others….But none of it is bad!
Diving the Atolls was …..well just plain awesome. The reefs were in remarkably good shape. The one thing missing, at least on this visit, was the presence of large numbers of schooling fish. We did not see vast numbers of anything small to large, but it’s the ocean and conditions change, and as you know the next day may have been completely different. What made the experience worthwhile was the quality of what we saw. On the list was: huge lobsters, large numbers of conch, sharks, several free swimming moray eels, tarpon, rays, and turtles. The health and diverse nature of the reef was impressive including the large numbers of proifera, and add in the experience of the Blue Hole. Most will tell you that the hole isn’t much of a dive and they would not be too far off. It’s a deep water dive to get to the stalactites so the bottom time is short and the visibility sucks! But, what would you expect in a 400 foot hole with no current? However, it is an exceptional dive largely because of the landmark and its history. This makes it a “Must Do” dive. Not to mention that nearby diving on the Lighthouse Atoll was fantastic! We pulled a total of 3 deep dives. The day before blue hole was a deep check off at 120’. The Blue hole dive my wife and I hit 135’, and the day after we hit an extended 116’ foot dive that required a 6 minute decompression. All –in- all we got everything we wanted out of the entire experience and on a rating of 1-10 I’d give the operation and Turneffe Flats a healthy 9. You be the judge when you see the video. In short if you haven’t been there, and you can get there……go there. Anything short of a hurricane you should not be disappointed! Hope this report is benificial... Peace~ out!
THE VIDEO:
[video=youtube;25oFFtVKU68]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25oFFtVKU68[/video]
Turneffe Flats is called a resort, but it is not a “Resort” that most people think of when they hear the “R” word. My wife and I are not drawn to large crowds, high rise hotels, fancy swimming pools with water parks, jet skis, parasailing, dive boats that hold 30 divers and have what they call a dive package of 1 or 2 tanks a day. We went to the Flats because it is not all that. It is located on a windward picturesque private point of the Turneffe Atoll which is surrounded by a protective reef. There are only 4 coral atolls in the Western Hemisphere, and diving here is your chance to hit 3 of them. This location not only offers quality diving opportunities, but also affords the serious minded angling community the opportunity to hit the skinny water of the atolls with a primary goal of hooking up Tarpon, Permit, and Bonefish on the fly. It is a purely catch and release program. There were even a few anglers who took a day off from the rod, and joined us underwater. If you are into a diving vacation where you only want to concentrate on eating, sleeping, and diving then this may be a consideration for you. There is no secondary entertainment, unless someone chooses to bring over a guitar, there is no TV. If you want internet, (But why? Seriously why?) then you can hit it in the lodge. Personally, the only thing I want to think about is slow and continuous controlled breathing with several atmospheres of water over my head.
We flew into Belize airport and in relatively short time and squeezed through customs. Of note when entering this fair country make sure you are accurate with stating the time you will spend there as we found out by a reliable source that (Officials are apparently NOT telling anyone this) if you stay in the country any longer than your initial claimed time frame they will charge you a $1,000.00 fee per day for each day. This has just apparently come about, and I don’t know how long it will be like that so just be aware. We picked up our bags and immediately a gentleman approached us and asked where we were going and we told him. He placed our bags on a cart and ran it 10 yards to the outside and handed it over to the driver of the Radisson Fort George van who was waiting to take us to the Marina. This little move cost an unnecessary tip so unless you like tossing tips in the air, carry your luggage the few feet out the door yourself. One thing to remember though, the US dollar is twice the Belize so tipping with US goes a long way there. In twenty minutes we were at the marina meeting our boat to the flats. We were lucky to leave at that point because they require you to be there no later than 3:30pm and our flight was late. The good thing about that was a handful of other folks were also late so they held the boat for everyone. If you’re going, consider getting there as early as possible or perhaps even the night before to avoid possible delays which may interfere with your diving schedule. We made the hour and a half boat ride to the flats in a center console 25 foot skiff that was packed head to toe in luggage and passengers, and slowly bounced through heavy swells the majority of the trip. By the time we got there I was joking about fracturing my tail bone. It wasn’t fractured, but it was a pain in the rear for a few days. However, no worries as I was just glad to be there.
We were met by the staff who were all extremely warm, inviting, and pleasant; and a small crowd of hungry fishermen and divers. Apparently everyone was kind enough to wait for dinner until us late comers finally got there. Our luggage was taken to the room while we ate, and one thing you should remember, once you arrive at the flats, unless you really want to, you don’t have to touch a thing. Rest assured it’s all done for you.
DINING:
Breakfast consisted of a moderate list of choices, but the food was always good!
Lunch was always served on the water! Some liked it and others didn’t. I suppose because it wasn’t fancy. My wife and I loved it simply because we were there to be under or on the water so we were delighted. Every night at dinner they would approach you with a list items for you to pick out for lunch on the boat the next day. Typical- Sandwich and chips was our choice. Regardless, I never heard anyone complaining about being hungry. Dinner was not much of a choice. You would arrive at the dining hall and read on the wall what was being served, and after some hors d’oeuvres and lively conversation you pick a seat, and completely enjoy every single bite of dinner that was ever served. The food was so good we came home with a Turneffe Flats cook book if that tells you anything. The only disappointment on our stay was the lack of seafood offered.
ACCOMODATIONS:
There are only a handful of beach front cabanas in duplex style configuration. When I mention beach front I mean it. The water was 15 feet from our porch. Rooms were air conditioned and spacious as well as the bathroom. Our room had two double beds which were quite comfortable. Of course almost anything is comfortable after a day of diving. Most importantly it was quiet and peaceful which is always a plus. The only deficiency I can report on the rooms is the shower. This is a remote location and everything depends on stored water and generators. Because of this you should never expect to take a shower without completely loosing water pressure several times as well and continued variances in temperature. Electricity day or night can fade in or out at any given time but usually only for a short duration. This is important to remember that it’s not you slipping into DCS. It’s just something you will have to live with in paradise. Although you do feel safe and secure there, lockboxes are in the room to store those personal things. There also two 3-room villas if you travel with a group.
DIVING OPERATIONS:
When the crowds are small you typically go out in the small boats, but in our case there were a total of 18 divers so we took the Pro48 custom dive boat out each day. The Mrs. Ellie was clean, well equipped, and spacious. Each morning, except for blue hole day, departure was at 8am sharp. You would find all of your gear on board including your first of three tanks of the day already geared up. All you have to do is turn on the air and suit up. Most days our travel time would be between 30 to 45 minutes. This was largely due to the fact that we were working leeward to get out of prevailing wind. This was a welcome tactic as fighting waves can become a bit of a hassle. The craft was well stocked with snacks, your lunch, fresh water, and even a shower. I can’t say enough about the Captain. Known indiscriminately as “Cap” he was well seasoned, and knew the waters and the boat well. The number of divers we had going in was a bit of a concern to us as we were spread from numerous years of experience to, “Hey we’ve only had 6 dives.” Never the less the logistics was well controlled. The boat was split into 3 groups and each hand their own DM. We would stager entry into the water to the respect that you rarely became an underwater “Crowd”. We were in group one, and therefore the first ones in the water, and typically the last one’s to come up. We hit 18 sights in 6 days of diving with visibility ranging from 150’ to 50’. I believe most of these sites were churned by the ever present winds. We were there the third week in May 2013, not quite into the rainy season yet. Ambient temperatures were mid 80’s in daylight and upper 70’s at night. Most days, again largely because of the wind, did require extra cover such as a long sleeve T-shirt, to keep off a chill during top-time. Water temperature hovered around 79 depending on your depth. If you’re diving all day, this time of year I would recommend at least a 1mil. Our weather was awesome the whole trip. We only had one downpour at sea, but after 10 minutes it was gone.
Pre-dive briefings were a bit dreadful. Now believe me when I say there is absolutely nothing wrong with being prepared and planning a dive out. The DM’s were knowledgeable and skilled, plus every one of them sported a really great sense of humor. However, it did get old quick when they told everyone to suit up, and then you’re sitting there ready to go only to have to sit through a 20 minute briefing. They could seriously use some adjustment on timing. That though is the only complaint except for the fact that we weren’t there a week longer. In addition, with the exception a few boats at the Blue Hole and Lighthouse Atoll diving, we were the only boat and every other dive site we hit. So becoming interlaced with other operations was never a factor!
THE DIVING:
There is no bad time diving in Central America. Some days are better than others….But none of it is bad!
Diving the Atolls was …..well just plain awesome. The reefs were in remarkably good shape. The one thing missing, at least on this visit, was the presence of large numbers of schooling fish. We did not see vast numbers of anything small to large, but it’s the ocean and conditions change, and as you know the next day may have been completely different. What made the experience worthwhile was the quality of what we saw. On the list was: huge lobsters, large numbers of conch, sharks, several free swimming moray eels, tarpon, rays, and turtles. The health and diverse nature of the reef was impressive including the large numbers of proifera, and add in the experience of the Blue Hole. Most will tell you that the hole isn’t much of a dive and they would not be too far off. It’s a deep water dive to get to the stalactites so the bottom time is short and the visibility sucks! But, what would you expect in a 400 foot hole with no current? However, it is an exceptional dive largely because of the landmark and its history. This makes it a “Must Do” dive. Not to mention that nearby diving on the Lighthouse Atoll was fantastic! We pulled a total of 3 deep dives. The day before blue hole was a deep check off at 120’. The Blue hole dive my wife and I hit 135’, and the day after we hit an extended 116’ foot dive that required a 6 minute decompression. All –in- all we got everything we wanted out of the entire experience and on a rating of 1-10 I’d give the operation and Turneffe Flats a healthy 9. You be the judge when you see the video. In short if you haven’t been there, and you can get there……go there. Anything short of a hurricane you should not be disappointed! Hope this report is benificial... Peace~ out!
THE VIDEO:
[video=youtube;25oFFtVKU68]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25oFFtVKU68[/video]
