Roatan - 2013 - choosing a dive resort??

[Doc]

Please forgive me if I missed this. What rough time frame do you mean when you say "winter 2013?"

As JLevine's post intimates- "Winter": can be a major factor in your choices.

During the months of August>November, Roatan sees occasional effects from Tropical Storms (and occasional Hurricanes) that track past to the North. This can cause very sporadic issues in sea & wind conditions along that North coast as well as West End. November is the month that is the rainiest of all in the Bay Islands, no matter which side of the island you might be. During this Caribbean Tropical Storm season, the Bay Islands are about as out of the picture as the ABC islands are... pretty safe.

During the actual Winter months (Dec thru Feb), another weather factor comes into play, locally known as a "Norther". These are (relative) "cold fronts" that descend from... you guessed it, the North. Any kind of sinking weather system from Texas to Louisiana can cause this, but be sure that if a freeze line pushes Southward into Texas>Arknasas, this is going to push down and cause major bad weather in points South: Cancun, Cozumel, Belize and the Bay Islands. The Northern coast and West End will be come untenable for sport diving operations.

AKR, CTD, and Subway have the infrastructure and wherewithal to move their daily diving operations to the South shore. Maybe some other day-dive ops too, but to ascertain a true day-to-day reliability of that product might be difficult. If possible, it is best to meet the boat on the South side via cab, you do not want to ride back home around the Western tip when there's a Norther. South side dive operations (from the three working AIs: BFK, CCV, RHR) are comparatively unaffected.

Does rain, in and of itself, affect diving? Well, sure it does. The best diving is always in calm, warm weather. Does rain affect the visibility? I suppose it does, but then you get into the never ending discussion about "the value" of visibility. On Roatan, it's 60 to 80' on a good day, but the treasure Roatan- it's unique offering- is the close-up macro stuff. You don't need much viz to enjoy that ! If your level of is affected by 150' + visibility, wait a while in your diving career before going to Roatan.

It's all survivable, so if that's your vacation time, go for it and hope for the best weather.

 

[Canyondreamer]

Me and my family of 5 just came back from a week of diving in Roatan and dove with "Subway Watersport" located on the North Coast and who we can enthusiastically and Highly recommend. Very safe diving outfit. Great people. We had a week of great fun and great dives (16 dives total).

You can read my full review of "Subway Watersport" on TripAdvisor here: Subway Watersports - Roatan - Reviews of Subway Watersports - TripAdvisor

My review of the Island's only Shark Dive here: Roatan Shark Dive - Roatan - Reviews of Roatan Shark Dive - TripAdvisor

and a general review of our stay on the island here:

Private Villas on Roatan - Roatan Forum - TripAdvisor

 

[JohnN]

+1 on Cocolobo and +1 on Coconut Tree Divers. Spent two wonderful weeks there in early October. Would definitely go back.

Unless all you want to do is dive, the West End is hard to beat. There is a real feeling of a community there with enough variety in restaurants to keep things from getting boring. Three dives a day is plenty for me, YMMV of course.

 

[large_diver]

I've been to Roatan once (March 2012)...so take my advice with a grain of salt. I took my newly certified daughter to Coco View.

As others have said, if you want local flavor for your diving options, CCV is not the choice for you. If you want maximum diving volume/opportunities, I think it is hard to beat CCV other than booking a liveaboard. Boat diving, shore diving, a wreck on the house reef, a house reef with 2 significant walls just offshore, large comfortable boats, a fantastic staff with a high degree of staff continuity, hammocks on the deck of every room...a completely relaxed vibe...truly dive camp for adults.

We loved it so much we are going back again for March 2013.

Trip report from March 2012:
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ba...ew-resort-17-24-march-2012-a.html#post6280392

Video from March 2012:
Coco View - March 2012 - Zurich-Diver's Photos | SmugMug

Chris

 

[cruiser]

CocoView is ALL about the diving, and there is no better shore diving on the island.

It's far removed from night life, restaurants and shopping. If you want those things, take a short boat ride to the dock, where you catch a cab and head for the west end.

 

[Scaramanga]

AKR is a good option, You can also save on food by shopping at Eldons supermarkets, at CCV You will be too isolated.

 

[jlevine]

Calvin007 (the original poster),

Do you have any more thoughts on what specifically you mean by winter 2013? Please let us know what you decide to do and post a trip report!

 

[Doc]

Calvin007 (the original poster),

Do you have any more thoughts on what specifically you mean by winter 2013? Please let us know what you decide to do and post a trip report!

Check his profile- the last time he visited Scuba Board was October 25th.

 

[vcblklion]

We've been to AKR a couple of times, pretty hard to beat the bang-for-the-buck diving. 3 dives/day and 2 night dives/wk, most all dives sites are close, boats are nice, and shore diving on the north side of the key. The food at AKR is great in my opinion, most as good as the other restaurants we sampled around the island. It depends on what your interests are but the west end stuff is way over rated as far as I'm concerned. If you stay at AKR you can get there easily and cheap but you can stay at AKR and and come and go as you please. We don't really have any allegiance to AKR, we are going to Belize this winter, but I'd go back to AKR in a heart beat.

I'm going to double down on this comment. I went to Roatan in May and stayed at AKR. It was my first warm water experience and one I will cherish all my life. I did just about everything I could do. I traveled by cab all over the island, ate in town, ate at the resort, went to clubs in the West End and even went to a locals club in town. The food at AKR was SUPERB! It was just as good if not better than any place in town (and I ate both places). I had no trouble getting a cab to town even got one of them to come pick me up on a regular basis. I stayed out til way past bedtime and only missed one dive being naughty....

I have not been to CCV, but from the description would only consider that if I had no interest in seeing the rest of the island. AKR was the best bang for my buck and I'm looking forward to going back......

Any room in your little group for another diver.....??

 

[Glenn01]

Roatan is a good choice - you won't be disappointed with the diving. Good cost / quality ratio. I've been there three times at various times of the year (April, November, Christmas) and always been "lucky" with good weather and good visibility. I stayed at different places in West Bay each time but dove with Bananarama all three times. I was impressed by their personal care and attention. They run an efficient operation and their equipment... boats, air / nitrox, rental gear seems to be in very good condition. They run three boats (x 8 divers) three dives per day. Depending on the number of dives you do, the cost can be very reasonable. This past holiday period, my dives came to $28 / dive. West Bay offers a number of reasonably priced hotels too. Infinity Bay being a more "North American" style resort experience. All good.