Diving from Placencia Belize

[bsieloff]

Just wondering if anyone has stayed in Placencia and dove from there. I'm looking at going there at the end of May. I would like to get a chance to see the whale sharks along with reef dives and the blue hole. My girlfriend is coming with me and she recently became open water (PADI) certified. The issue is the huge cost. I contacted a dive shop down there and for four days of diving I'm looking at an invoice at about $1400. 1 day local reefs, 1 day at whale shark location, 1 day glovers reef and 1 day at the blue hole. Who knows, this might be a good price??... Seeing the whale sharks is high on my list and I asked if they could make a bundle for us that would allow us to dive 4 times to any of the sites of our choosing. Thus if we see the whales sharks the first day, great!, we will move on to diving the reefs/walls. If not, then perhaps we would try a second day for the whale sharks. The dive shop would have nothing to do with a-la-cart though.

Therefore, I'm wondering if it is just best to risk going and hoping to find a dive shop that will bring us whale shark diving on the days we would like to go and picking up reef/wall dives as we would like. I read some other posts that suggested this may be the best way, but the post was from years ago and I'm not sure if it is still the same for good 'ol end of May through Early June 2013.

If you've been recently, can you give me a heads up on the availabilty of boats willing to go out and not booked to capacity along with average prices that you may have paid? What were the best reefs/walls visited?

Thanks,
-Bob

 

[jlevine]

I've never dove out of Placencia but hope to some day. In terms of cost, I see a few factors that come into play. First, the distances. Glovers Reef and The Blue Hole are not close. You need to have a well-equipped boat and crew to make that trip. Fuel is expensive as well. When I went to the Blue Hole (albeit from San Pedro) that was approximately $300 per person including three dives and a picnic. So that trip alone could be a big chunk of your cost, especially for two. Also, those long distance trips often require a minimum number of people. When I went to the Blue Hole, we needed six divers.

It would be good to prioritize your items and communicate that to the shop you select. When it comes down to it, it really helps to be flexible in a place like Belize. You may get to do one, two, or all of the things you want. The weather, number of divers, and sea conditions all come into play. If you only get to do one of the things you wanted, you'll have a reason to go back. Belize is a great place but flexibility is key.

 

[diversteve]

In Placencia itself there are 3 options afaik. Splash Divers, Avadon or Seahorse. Whale Shark season is their "high" season so I wouldn't take a chance on just showing up - you may get shut out. It's a longer ride out to Gladden Spit from there so they all only go once per day afaik. The other options are the better resorts up north - Hamanasi, Inn at Roberts Grove, Turtle Inn - but $1400 won't scratch the surface there.

Or there's the atoll resorts - some of them make the trip down for Whale Sharks - BlackBird Cay is one that did afaik. I think probably Turneffe Island Resort does also but check with them. When we looked they were an extra $2-300/dive day due to the distance. IDK if it's true or not but someone once mentioned there's a schedule for operators at Gladden Spit during the spawn - resorts/operators have slots reserved in advance to be on-site. Obviously the ones closest to the full moon/snapper spawn probably have the best chance.

My friends went with Splash last spring, saw 8 Whalesharks over two days of diving. Splash also has a "Grand Slam" package, 12 dives including all the ones on your list, plus accommodations, r/t Air from Belize City (can be expensive) and transfers for $1825PP+ depending on where you stay. Whale Shark dives are a $100 add-on but you trade one day of other dives for those. They also include a day inland, my friends went to the Howler Monkey reserve. They also include the Blue Hole but overnight along the way since it's so far from Placencia.

You also really want to go on these dates - from Splash's website:

2013 Belize Whale Shark diving package dates:

March 27th to April 5th
April 25th to May 4th
May 25th to June 4th

In case you're wondering - my avatar - Utila...

 

[Downing]

I don't know about the other shops, but Splash won't go looking for Whale Sharks unless the fishermen are reporting the conditions are right (snapper sightings). In other words, just because you're there during the "season,"it still doesn't mean you're guaranteed to go out looking for them. If the conditions aren't right, they'll take you for a reef dive instead, which is cheaper. It's a day to day thing, so you won't necessarily know until the morning before you go out.

While this may seem to be limiting your options, it only makes sense to do the WS dives if the odds are in your favor.

I don't know which shop you contacted before, but Ralph Capeling with Splash just posted a Whale Shark thread. I'm sure he'd be happy to answer any questions.

 

[LandscaperLovesBelize]

I prefer Splash and Avadon. For informational purposes here is a link to information on dive sites in Placencia, along with a map, from the Chabil Mar web site: Scuba Diving Vacations - Placencia Belize Just scroll down for information on sites and to see the map.