jasonreid50
Registered
- Messages
- 20
- Reaction score
- 31
Hey divers!!
Just returning from a 7-day stay on the Roatan Aggressor liveaboard, my annual father-son dive trip. In summary: great diving, but the diving was completely outshone by the truly superb service by the entire Aggressor crew, led by Alan Roberts. The onboard service was so excellent, that I would return to the Roatan Aggressor for that reason alone.
Getting to the Aggressor is relatively painless. We flew into Roatan directly from Miami on American. The Roatan airport is small, and immigration gets very backed up if there are several international flights arriving at the same time. Be prepared to wait a while to clear immigration! We then took a $25, ~20 minute cab ride from the airport to Roman’s Italian restaurant, which is where the Aggressor docks. Just a tip for your return trip to the airport: get to that airport early! It gets super-crowded and the lines can be very long!
We were met at the boat by Alan Roberts, who runs the Aggressor’s Roatan operation. Upon boarding, Alan’s team gave us damp face towels to refresh ourselves. We were then shown to our cabins. The boat is in very good shape. The cabins are cozy with en-suite shower and toilets. It is clean and attractive. On the walls hang underwater pictures from the various Aggressor destinations. Each cabin has its own air-conditioning system. Hot water is in abundance! Note: there is no onboard wi-fi.
Each diver is given his/her own tank station and a numbered locker for the week. Your dive gear is kept on your tank, in the locker below or drying on the hangers above.
After we got settled, Alan introduced us to the (what proved to be a supremely capable and eminently affable) boat team: Gabi, Gerrardo, Captain Eddie, German, Jana and Janelle. Alan is a very cheerful Englishman who has spent the last 30 years in the Caribbean and has been with the Aggressor fleet since its inception.
The food onboard is delicious and in great abundance! A menu is posted daily, highlighting numerous American, Honduran and international dining choices. We did not have a bad meal once during our stay. Alan went out of his way to ensure that everyone was stuffed and to accommodate numerous dietary restrictions (he was a heck of a lot more patient than I would have been!) The Roatan Aggressor’s culinary tour started with a sundeck barbecue on arrival, and ended with a steak and lobster dinner prior to departure. All meals were simply scrumptious! There was just so much food on offer!
Here is an example of the type of service that was typical on the Roatan Aggressor: Alan, upon hearing that I had never tasted Lionfish (the scourge of Caribbean waters), unbeknownst to me promptly donned his scuba gear, jumped into the sea and swam at very high speed to catch several Lionfish! I was extremely surprised at dinner that evening when Alan presented me with pan-seared Lionfish that he prepared himself! It tasted like a succulent, flaky parrotfish. It was delicious!
Gestures like this were repeated by all of the crew, over and over, throughout the week. The Roatan Aggressor’s service is simply top-notch.
The diving is great. We dived north and south Roatan, Utila and Cayos Cochinos. We were able to dive a maximum of 27 dives (of which I dived 24.) Generally visibility was very good: on several days we had north of 80’ visibility. The marine environment is generally very healthy: corals are thriving and plentiful, algae is uncommon and I did not see much (or any) evidence of significant coral bleaching and damage. The marine life is plentiful, skewing somewhat to macro-critters rather than larger pelagics. That being said, our shark dive witnessed upwards of 12 large gray reef sharks. We saw turtles on a daily basis (including a turtle feeding on a large sponge accompanied by Queen Angelfish scooping up the leftovers), spotted eagle rays frequently, free swimming green morays very often and, on a single night dive, we saw 4 octopi, including one battling an eel! Diving conditions in the mornings tend to be very calm. The wind and currents tend to pick up in the afternoon, which can create challenges for boat re-entry. That being said, on all occasions, Alan, Gabi, Gerrardo or Captain Eddie were in the water assisting with boat re-entry. On every dive, the crew strapped on divers’ fins prior to entry AND removed fins in the water at the end of the dive to facilitate climbing up the ladders!
There are many good dive boats and many excellent dive locations in the world. However it is rare that you find a dive crew that shows such commitment to ensuring that every single diver feels as if he/she is the most important diver on the boat. The dive crew of the Roatan Aggressor behaved as if our set of divers was essential to the very survival of the boat’s operation. Bravo to Alan, Gabi, Gerrardo, Eddie, German, Janelle and Jana! Bravo guys!!
Just returning from a 7-day stay on the Roatan Aggressor liveaboard, my annual father-son dive trip. In summary: great diving, but the diving was completely outshone by the truly superb service by the entire Aggressor crew, led by Alan Roberts. The onboard service was so excellent, that I would return to the Roatan Aggressor for that reason alone.
Getting to the Aggressor is relatively painless. We flew into Roatan directly from Miami on American. The Roatan airport is small, and immigration gets very backed up if there are several international flights arriving at the same time. Be prepared to wait a while to clear immigration! We then took a $25, ~20 minute cab ride from the airport to Roman’s Italian restaurant, which is where the Aggressor docks. Just a tip for your return trip to the airport: get to that airport early! It gets super-crowded and the lines can be very long!
We were met at the boat by Alan Roberts, who runs the Aggressor’s Roatan operation. Upon boarding, Alan’s team gave us damp face towels to refresh ourselves. We were then shown to our cabins. The boat is in very good shape. The cabins are cozy with en-suite shower and toilets. It is clean and attractive. On the walls hang underwater pictures from the various Aggressor destinations. Each cabin has its own air-conditioning system. Hot water is in abundance! Note: there is no onboard wi-fi.
Each diver is given his/her own tank station and a numbered locker for the week. Your dive gear is kept on your tank, in the locker below or drying on the hangers above.
After we got settled, Alan introduced us to the (what proved to be a supremely capable and eminently affable) boat team: Gabi, Gerrardo, Captain Eddie, German, Jana and Janelle. Alan is a very cheerful Englishman who has spent the last 30 years in the Caribbean and has been with the Aggressor fleet since its inception.
The food onboard is delicious and in great abundance! A menu is posted daily, highlighting numerous American, Honduran and international dining choices. We did not have a bad meal once during our stay. Alan went out of his way to ensure that everyone was stuffed and to accommodate numerous dietary restrictions (he was a heck of a lot more patient than I would have been!) The Roatan Aggressor’s culinary tour started with a sundeck barbecue on arrival, and ended with a steak and lobster dinner prior to departure. All meals were simply scrumptious! There was just so much food on offer!
Here is an example of the type of service that was typical on the Roatan Aggressor: Alan, upon hearing that I had never tasted Lionfish (the scourge of Caribbean waters), unbeknownst to me promptly donned his scuba gear, jumped into the sea and swam at very high speed to catch several Lionfish! I was extremely surprised at dinner that evening when Alan presented me with pan-seared Lionfish that he prepared himself! It tasted like a succulent, flaky parrotfish. It was delicious!
Gestures like this were repeated by all of the crew, over and over, throughout the week. The Roatan Aggressor’s service is simply top-notch.
The diving is great. We dived north and south Roatan, Utila and Cayos Cochinos. We were able to dive a maximum of 27 dives (of which I dived 24.) Generally visibility was very good: on several days we had north of 80’ visibility. The marine environment is generally very healthy: corals are thriving and plentiful, algae is uncommon and I did not see much (or any) evidence of significant coral bleaching and damage. The marine life is plentiful, skewing somewhat to macro-critters rather than larger pelagics. That being said, our shark dive witnessed upwards of 12 large gray reef sharks. We saw turtles on a daily basis (including a turtle feeding on a large sponge accompanied by Queen Angelfish scooping up the leftovers), spotted eagle rays frequently, free swimming green morays very often and, on a single night dive, we saw 4 octopi, including one battling an eel! Diving conditions in the mornings tend to be very calm. The wind and currents tend to pick up in the afternoon, which can create challenges for boat re-entry. That being said, on all occasions, Alan, Gabi, Gerrardo or Captain Eddie were in the water assisting with boat re-entry. On every dive, the crew strapped on divers’ fins prior to entry AND removed fins in the water at the end of the dive to facilitate climbing up the ladders!
There are many good dive boats and many excellent dive locations in the world. However it is rare that you find a dive crew that shows such commitment to ensuring that every single diver feels as if he/she is the most important diver on the boat. The dive crew of the Roatan Aggressor behaved as if our set of divers was essential to the very survival of the boat’s operation. Bravo to Alan, Gabi, Gerrardo, Eddie, German, Janelle and Jana! Bravo guys!!
Our experience aboard the Roatan Aggressor encouraged us to book a trip in May on the Red Sea Aggressor II...can't wait!
