Belize Sun Dancer: Schedule ?

[diving4ever]

Hi all,

I have a week free this summer and am considering trying my first live aboard. I've settled on the Sun Dancer. That said, I'm guessing the schedule won't quite match up.
According to the website, the boat arrives back into port after lunch on Friday. Any idea what time that is? I'm asking because I'd need to catch a 3:40 flight that (friday) afternoon.
I have to be Dallas for a Convention Saturday morning, and I can't find any other travel options.

If it doesn't work, I'll just do a land based outing somewhere.
Thanks in advance.
Melissa

 

[gizmo1972]

the turks and caicos aggressor boards 3pm sturday if thats an option?

 

[Damselfish]

I've been on SDII 3 times but I don't recall exactly what time we got in. They'll do 2 dives Friday morning, starting earlier than on other mornings, before cruising back into port while people are eating lunch and cleaning gear. It's a fair distance from the last dive sites to port (couple hours?) but they get back in time to fit in some half day land excursions. Figure at least a half hour to the airport, and you can't count on checkin and stuff being especially snappy. I expect making your flight might be doable but very tight, with no room for anything to go wrong.

Once or twice I've gotten off a liveaboard the last afternoon because I was continuing on to some land based stuff, but never because I was catching a flight so also had to stop diving early - didn't even need to worry about gear being completely dry or well packed. I'm not sure I would do it, personally I'd be stressed from worrying about making the flight and rushing, which seems like a lousy way to end a vacation. You would also basically lose a whole day of the 5.5 days of diving, since you'd have to stop Thursday morning or maybe after the first Thursday afternoon dive at the latest. You'll miss the cocktail party and whatever goings on Friday night, which might disappoint you if you're sociable and have made a bunch of new friends over the week (which is pretty typical.) And you're doing other little out of sync things like cleaning gear before they've changed the camera rinse tanks over to gear rinsing tanks, having them get your bags out of storage early (best to have them put yours away last.) Just not really the ideal way to do it.

 

[tdchandl]

We just returned. Arrival back was ~1. If you have your bags packed ready to jump and a taxi at the dock ready to bolt you'll be cutting it close. Airport run is about 40 minutes. Pending how backup the airport is.

 

[diving4ever]

Thanks all for the insight and advice. As I read your responses...i realized my premise was pretty jacked up. I just really wanted to finally get on a LOB in Belize.
But not only is the flight hard to catch but I'd have to give up the Thursday night and Friday morning dives. Kind of a waste on a LOB. I'll just do a land-based trip.
If any Belize experts have recommendations for resorts near (boat ride) from Belize City please share? I'm mulling over BlackBird Caye but the SS is a *tad* high.
Thanks again.

 

[Stoo]

I think you will find that most "package" deals will turnover on Saturday, so this might limit your choices to mainland locations. For the past five or six years, I've stayed at Turneffe Island Lodge and more recently, at Huracan diving on Long Caye. Both are awesome operations with superb diving. However, both require a lengthy boat trip back in and this typically happens on Saturday AM.

Turneffe had a Wednesday turnover, and I think Huracan might as well (some folks showed up mid-week last year) so one option might be to do either a Wednesday - Wednesday or Saturday - Wednesday and then chill in BC for a day and a half before flying home. There are lots of day-trip options available for non-diving things, so that solves your "no fly" obligation.

Or you could just blow off a day of the conference. Tell them your flight was cancelled... It ain't like that is a rare occurrence these days.

FYI, the liveaboards spend a lot of their time around Turneffe and Huracan... Just sayin'