vetdiver
Contributor
Just wanted to post a bit on Laguna Beach Resort - we are just back from a 7-day visit. I simply do not have enough good things to say about this place - it was amazing and picturesque, the staff was wonderful (especially management and the diving staff), and the diving was lovely. Here is the bottom line:
Bugs - yep, they were there. But hey, that's why there's insect repellant...too bad I didn't use it until too late! (Deep Woods Off was OK, but we sprayed our clothing with 100% DEET.) The itching is beginning to subside a bit now... All sand flies...no mosquitoes that I saw. We did not take antimalarial pills due to a physician recommendation that is outlined in another post - though I maybe would have done so if I'd seen a different physician.
Rooms - we had a king-bedded cabana, and it was fine. Not the Ritz, but hey - we didn't imagine it would be. It was comfortable and had a lovely deck and individual dock overlooking the lagoon. We did have a plumbing issue late one night - dripping water from the back of the toilet... it was "fixed" the next morning, then recurred the next night...at which time it was FIXED. No damage done - we were not too concerned.
Food - Again, not the Ritz, but tasty, plentiful, and they did accept special requests. The famed barbeque with lobster tails, chicken, and fish was on Wednesday - I ate enough lobster to feed a small country, ummm. The bar operated on honors system, about $1.50 for a local beer, $1 for soft drink.
Whale sharks - Yes, sirreebob, and plenty of 'em!!! We had 11 encounters, all in all. You are not allowed to get in with them while on scuba, so we snorkeled. I found that the best way to get a great view was to await the captain's command (GET IN NOW!!!), take a deep breath, switch on the digital video function on the camera, and slip into the water...identify shark...record for nonbelievers at home...and marvel at the size, power, and beauty of the biggest fish in the sea... Wow. We did get extraordinarily lucky in the number of encounters we had...and who knows when the ACTUAL season is to see these critters!! I had heard spring and fall...and early April certainly worked for us.
Diving - Macro and beautiful coral, mainly. We also saw eels (some were absolutely HUGE), a stingray, a frogfish, and lots of crabs/lobsters/shrimp. Lots of people saw octopus, as well. Do not expect kazillions of fish or big stuff (other than the aforementioned), rather, spend your time looking in crevices, sponges, etc. Vis was great - at least 75-80 on each dive (the reef off the beach was maybe 40-50, possibly due to proximity to a boat channel). Water temp was high 70's, low 80's - I wore a full 3mm wetsuit the whole time and got a little chilly towards the end of some 60-minute dives (I am a girl on the slim side). Nitrox (EAN32, though it was usually around 30) was available at $8/tank or $135 for the week. We logged 20 dives during our stay, so we were happy we booked unlimited EAN. I (and another diver) managed to get a few nasty jellyfish stings - I recommend taking Benadryl and corticosteroid cream with you.
Transportation - we stayed overnight in Houston, then flew Continental to San Pedro Sula, followed by prop plane flights on Atlantic Airlines to La Cieba, then Utila. No problems - the line at immigration upon arrival to SPS was hellish, and we should have missed our AA flight...but these planes run on "island time", and we had no problems connecting. LBR staff picked us up at the tiny Utila airstrip, then took us into town, where we were transported by boat to LBR. By the way - we booked our entire package, including air from Houston, through Lynn at Roatan Charters, and she/they was/were wonderful.
Town/nightlife - If you want to go to town, LBR will arrange boat transport for you - it is free during the day, but at night, they charge you $10 per person, per direction. We only went to town the afternoon of our last day, and even though it was dark when they picked us up (although it was dinnertime and arguably this side of night), we did not get charged a night pickup fee. Tons of backpackers in town, and it was the huge Easter week beach party when we were there - $1 beers, loud music, fabulous!!! LBR itself is not exactly hopping - not that it mattered, as we were so darned tired that we only made it past 10 pm twice all week!
So - two thumbs up. We will definitely go back and absolutely recommend LBR!!
Bugs - yep, they were there. But hey, that's why there's insect repellant...too bad I didn't use it until too late! (Deep Woods Off was OK, but we sprayed our clothing with 100% DEET.) The itching is beginning to subside a bit now... All sand flies...no mosquitoes that I saw. We did not take antimalarial pills due to a physician recommendation that is outlined in another post - though I maybe would have done so if I'd seen a different physician.
Rooms - we had a king-bedded cabana, and it was fine. Not the Ritz, but hey - we didn't imagine it would be. It was comfortable and had a lovely deck and individual dock overlooking the lagoon. We did have a plumbing issue late one night - dripping water from the back of the toilet... it was "fixed" the next morning, then recurred the next night...at which time it was FIXED. No damage done - we were not too concerned.
Food - Again, not the Ritz, but tasty, plentiful, and they did accept special requests. The famed barbeque with lobster tails, chicken, and fish was on Wednesday - I ate enough lobster to feed a small country, ummm. The bar operated on honors system, about $1.50 for a local beer, $1 for soft drink.
Whale sharks - Yes, sirreebob, and plenty of 'em!!! We had 11 encounters, all in all. You are not allowed to get in with them while on scuba, so we snorkeled. I found that the best way to get a great view was to await the captain's command (GET IN NOW!!!), take a deep breath, switch on the digital video function on the camera, and slip into the water...identify shark...record for nonbelievers at home...and marvel at the size, power, and beauty of the biggest fish in the sea... Wow. We did get extraordinarily lucky in the number of encounters we had...and who knows when the ACTUAL season is to see these critters!! I had heard spring and fall...and early April certainly worked for us.
Diving - Macro and beautiful coral, mainly. We also saw eels (some were absolutely HUGE), a stingray, a frogfish, and lots of crabs/lobsters/shrimp. Lots of people saw octopus, as well. Do not expect kazillions of fish or big stuff (other than the aforementioned), rather, spend your time looking in crevices, sponges, etc. Vis was great - at least 75-80 on each dive (the reef off the beach was maybe 40-50, possibly due to proximity to a boat channel). Water temp was high 70's, low 80's - I wore a full 3mm wetsuit the whole time and got a little chilly towards the end of some 60-minute dives (I am a girl on the slim side). Nitrox (EAN32, though it was usually around 30) was available at $8/tank or $135 for the week. We logged 20 dives during our stay, so we were happy we booked unlimited EAN. I (and another diver) managed to get a few nasty jellyfish stings - I recommend taking Benadryl and corticosteroid cream with you.
Transportation - we stayed overnight in Houston, then flew Continental to San Pedro Sula, followed by prop plane flights on Atlantic Airlines to La Cieba, then Utila. No problems - the line at immigration upon arrival to SPS was hellish, and we should have missed our AA flight...but these planes run on "island time", and we had no problems connecting. LBR staff picked us up at the tiny Utila airstrip, then took us into town, where we were transported by boat to LBR. By the way - we booked our entire package, including air from Houston, through Lynn at Roatan Charters, and she/they was/were wonderful.
Town/nightlife - If you want to go to town, LBR will arrange boat transport for you - it is free during the day, but at night, they charge you $10 per person, per direction. We only went to town the afternoon of our last day, and even though it was dark when they picked us up (although it was dinnertime and arguably this side of night), we did not get charged a night pickup fee. Tons of backpackers in town, and it was the huge Easter week beach party when we were there - $1 beers, loud music, fabulous!!! LBR itself is not exactly hopping - not that it mattered, as we were so darned tired that we only made it past 10 pm twice all week!
So - two thumbs up. We will definitely go back and absolutely recommend LBR!!
