....I guess they had some cancellations, lucky us! I'm told it will end up being more expensive, fewer boat dives, doesn't have a pool or beach & no AI alcoholic beverages, but the 24 hour shore diving, resort location, over the water cabanas & dive boats sound like it's worth the trade off. Any thoughts or advice?
That's our favorite on Roatan. We get in up to 27 dives in a week without much effort. I know where your thought came from in reference to the number of boat dives, but you'll understand the fallacy once you've done CCV for the week.
I think you're prepared for CCV's "downside", the lack of pool, beach and free booze, but that's not what we book our trips for in the first place. It is a resort that is design built out from your room to the shipwreck... Just for divers. You get what you pay for, and in this case, it's really a bargain.
They do often get cancellations, when a large group trims their reservation numbers. It can be worth it to be wait listed or even opt for the Beach Houses. Those other AI resorts I mentioned above are also good options, but for my needs, we always go to CCV, although I have seen and/or dived with all of the others for a look see. Each has its fans, very few have compared them all.
I believe that the food is as good as AKR, but it is not served by waitstaff. You eat whatever you want (always a meat/chicken or fish, usually a shrimp appetizer). Take as much as you want, linger and yack, or hurry to your room for a quick nap.
The mathematics of cost make sense for an AI if you want more than 2 a day. The night dive access at CCV is a big part of it for me, I usually am doing 5 in a week.. It's a quick fin out to the placed wreck, only a fool could get lost.
The other downside to CCV or any other of the AIs is the fact that a cab ride is needed to go off premises for dinner, say, to the inviting West End area. If you really want to miss a night dive, go have fun, but I recommend the West End over the more commonly visited Geos in French Harbour... Meh.
My best suggestion is to truly take advantage of what this specific u/w area has to offer. Fantasy Island and CCV share access to a most unique reef structure. Go very slowly, with good buoyancy, get in close, see the cool little stuff.
In a way, you bring up a key point about the loss of Fantasy Island. CCV is usually booked-up well in advance, so this isn't going to make it any easier.