Fantasy Island Trip Report

[CODMAN]

I wouldn't drive in Honduras if you paid me... Along with Manila and Paris, it's one of the rare places I wouldn't feel good being behind the wheel! :shocked2:

 

[Sirto]

Hi ScubaBoard Friends! We are just back from our latest trip to Roatan...

We will be leaving for our fourth trip to FI at the end of July and wanted to see if they ever did get the new engines that they'd been talking about forever. I know they got a new boat but I understand that it's not used for daily dive trips.

Are they still getting large groups of families with kids on the weekends? Last year it got rather crowded on the weekend.

I could wait a few weeks and find out for myself but I want to know NOW!

 

[Doc]

I suspect it would have been a long wait for an ambulance.

Yes, considering we sent a critical part for the ambulance by CCV mule- it arrived there on Saturday 7/3, and the ambulance was under repair immediately.

At the risk of being redundant, I also urge you: do not drive in the Bay Islands.

The roads absolutely suck, the drivers are worse. There are fewer vehicles on the road than there are multiple, other targets. Ever seen a $500 dog or a $100 prized chicken? You will if you hit it.

Speed bumps appear out of nowhere, along with all-but camouflaged potholes that could destroy your rental vehicle or send it off-roading. Donkeys, horses and the jackasses that should have tied them up~ but are wobbling down the middle of the road~ all make for a fun and entertaining day.

If it rains at night, and it will, give up all hope. Wipers will smear, headlights are likely askew, and there are no reflectors, much less guardrails.

Your liability is complete and absolute. If some local is injured, you may well not be released from the island for your return flight until judicial disposition. Whatever you think you will be at fault.

Hire an English speaking driver for the day. Drink like fools and have a ball. Let him take you to the fun places around the island. Be on vacation.

 

[CajunDiva]

We will be leaving for our fourth trip to FI at the end of July and wanted to see if they ever did get the new engines that they'd been talking about forever. I know they got a new boat but I understand that it's not used for daily dive trips.

Are they still getting large groups of families with kids on the weekends? Last year it got rather crowded on the weekend.

I could wait a few weeks and find out for myself but I want to know NOW!

It's all still the same

 

[georoc01]

And if you do rent a car, be sure you can get to the gas tank before you take it off the lot. They will charge you for a full tank no matter whether you can actually refill the vehicle or not, even though we had used less than a 1/4 of a tank for our errands.

 

[LynnB]

I never even considered renting a car. We did use someones scooter last year to run out to the airport. That was when TACA shut down their island hoppers and we had to to take care of finding a way back. That was a joke going out there and nobody knowing what we were saying. But we took the ferry and everything worked out. And we had no problems with driving scooter but I don't care to push my luck.
Getting close our trip. Hit the dive shop in Macon today to pick up a few things so I am ready!
Lynn

 

[vfox]

1 week from Saturday for us also - gives us time to make our 3rd trip to ScubaToys this Saturday - just in case, don't ya' know...

ThanX again for sharing your info with us all.

 

[RTBDiver]

I never even considered renting a car.

I have never visited, even before buying a place, and Not had a car but to each thier own, i guess we are more adventerous and not content with the basic tourist stuff

 

[LynnB]

I have never visited, even before buying a place, and Not had a car but to each thier own, i guess we are more adventerous and not content with the basic tourist stuff

We are going to dive not drive around in a car. We have been all around the island before and yes to each their own.
It seems this board sometimes it more about about being critical than helpful.
But to all the helpful people thank you for taking thetime to answer my question about a taxi.
Lynn

 

[DandyDon]

So with PH losing the contract, I don't guess anything is going to be improved until November? I think the replacement engines were bought and purchased months ago, by the owner I presume, but installing them, fixing the fiberglass and painting needs, etc would be expensive enough. It'd be nice if the owner would go ahead and do that, but I do like the old, slow boats. Comfortable but with a different feel.

Lynn, we still managed to gain a couple of pounds Breakfast is really good. You can get them to whip you up an omelette with all kinds of good fixins. But I can't do that because I'm the poster child for seasickness...I have to stick to peanut butter toast in the morning Lunch was always a disappointment, but they've got burgers if you don't like anything else. Dinner was acceptable, but barely. The bright spot was that they made chocolate ice cream for me EVERY DAY...hence the weight gain

Yeah, the food was nothing to look forward to, just adequate. For the price of the week, it delivers, but it would be nice if it was fun. I suppose that's a difficult challenge with so many of us shopping by prices first and I am bad about that for sure. It might help to ask the dining room staff to change the water in the ice cream scoops much more often.

Lynn -

Talk to the divemasters...they will help you out

And/or the skippers. Pedro kept asking me if he could do anything more for me, i.e. bring me cigars, fill my thermos with homemade coffee, etc. They know the island and people well, got the contacts, altho there might be a risk they'd hook you up with a cousin who owned something resembling a car - but always a good source of opinions.

Yeah I was thinking on the last day Friday of making a trip after our dives. Did you dive on Friday?
What time did your flight leave Roatan? How many dives did you do a day?

Standard routine there is 3 boat trips a day for location dives, and you can take an extra tank to be dropped on the CCV wall or the wreck on the way in anytime if you'd like. Wasn't there a phone at the gazebo to call for boat pickup? Some went back to the gazebo for shore dives in the evening but 3/day is really good for me.

DAN recommends 18 hours after the last of all no-deco dives to fly time and their studies show no real reason for returning to the old 24 hour wait. Do work at hydration tho, drinking as much non-diuretic beverages as you can. There are two heads at the dive shop, you return after each dive, and besides - most just pee in their suits. It's accepted.

We were there from Monday to Monday. Yes, we did dive on Sunday morning since our flight out on Monday wasn't until 1:00 pm. Even with 26 hours before flying, hubby ended up with a case of "Skin Bends". He just took a 5 hour ride in our local hyperbaric chamber - no fun

We did three dives a day with the exception of Sunday, when we only did the two morning dives. Oops - we only got to do two dives on Saturday courtesy of Tropical Storm (now hurricane) Alex.

Now that's awful news! Glad it was a light case, but no fun! Y'all are such experienced divers that I got to wonder how that happened. No criticisms; just want to learn here. One guess is that y'all get so comfortable in your second home there that maybe you forgot something, like maybe not hydrating more than thirst requires - but who knows?

We were at FIBR at the end of April. I inquired about a taxi to and from West End. They told me it was about $50.00. So I rented a little 5 speed car. The rental was about $40.00. It's been a couple of years since I drove a stick, but it did not take long to remember how to drive it. Kind of like riding a bike. I did have fun on the winding roads with all the hills. We ended up staying in West End a little longer than we planned, so the ride back to the resort in the dark was a little scary. Since we had use of the car we drove around a little more and got to see more of the island. I would not hesitate to do it again.

Get the cab! Walk out to the road if you want to save money as I think anyone who is picked up on resort pays more to compensate for the fees paid by the taxi to the resort, haggle over rates, or don't go. Driving there comes with way too many risks...!

If anything goes wrong, the international tourist is in the wrong until proven otherwise, in local courts, everything done in Spanish, at a much later date, and you still don't have a chance. You're wrong!

You will pay before you leave the country! No my Visa card says they will reimburse me for collision losses (not sure about liabilities?) if I decline the CDW, but supplying the contract that was filled out correctly in Spanish could be a major challenge. I have to wonder if JJ even had a contract?

Driving those roads in the dark or rain would be a nightmare!

And if there is any damages or injuries to anything or anyone else, be prepared to pay pay pay! You don't want to sit in the local excuse for a jail waiting on the Consulate to try to help. There is a section on "Traffic Safety and Road Conditions" at Honduras and it's prudent to read that page anyway even tho much of it does not apply directly to the island. Consulate contact info is there, if he's not busy elsewhere.

And this applies to driving too: "Scuba diving is popular in the Bay Islands, but the limited medical facilities there pose a special risk in the event of an emergency. There is a decompression chamber on Roatan and Utila for divers, but no advanced medical care on either island for diving related accidents."

The only thing worse would be getting on a scooter. :shocked2:​

I have never visited, even before buying a place, and Not had a car but to each thier own, i guess we are more adventerous and not content with the basic tourist stuff

Yeah yeah, and your favorite hobbies are jaywalking on hiways, playing with rattlesnakes, and anything else foolhardy enough to be called adventure to some. :silly:

Scubaboard requires that diving be discussed with safety in mind, of course; maybe we need a rule about travel discussions.