Diving Belize or Honduras in late october?? bad idea??

[Sara Linderman]

I'm considering heading to Belize or Honduras in late Oct (the 20th-27th to be exact). I realize this is the rainy season. But some research seems to indicate that the rain is often quick and confined to certain hours - so it's not necessarily a bad time to go (and the rates are good).

That said, I don't want to get down there and discover that diving is actually not an option during this time.

Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Also -- if it IS an ok time -- Belize v. Honduras...thoughts?

Thanks,
Sara

 

[Ayisha]

Hi Sara, October is usually fine. January and February typically have much more rain in Central America. Having been to both Belize and Roatan, I would vote for Belize hands down.

If you dive near the atolls of Belize, such as Lighthouse, Turneffe by the elbow, and Glovers, the reefs are very colourful and healthy and there is an abundance of sea life, including lots of large critters.

Roatan looks pretty healthy and pretty colourful in areas, but doesn't seem to attract as much sea life. If you are into macro photography, the south side of Roatan has quite a lot of little critters.

 

[diversteve]

You might buy trip insurance:

Hurricane Season in the Caribbean: Different Areas

...some say that the eastern Caribbean and US East Coast are most at risk from mid-August to mid-September, while in the western Caribbean (which includes Mexico and Belize), the season intensifies from mid-September into early November.

More than you probably want to know about it: http://hurricane.atmos.colostate.edu/Forecasts/2012/aug2012/aug2012.pdf

 

[DivemasterDennis]

It's all about the weather. Statistics for the past 160 years show that September has had the most tropical storms (555), followed by August with 362. October is in third place with 323, then June with 114. November had had 87. Not all make landfall, and not all that make landfall affect Belize or Roatan. But October can be really "iffy." Since 2000, there have been an average of 2.4 Atlantic/Gulf hurricanes each November. In 2010 there were 5. In 2005 there were none. The average the last 5 years was 2.6. I just wanted to share those numbers. While hurricane season is officially June 1 through November 30, we do not shy away from Caribbean trips until after July 15, and we have had good luck booking for November. But October? Too risky for my dollar.
DivemasterDennis