Turniffe and Lighthouse Service from Caulker?

[Pat Sharman]

Which dive ops on Caulker tend to go the furthest south and to these atolls?

 

[lthomas132]

Which dive ops on Caulker tend to go the furthest south and to these atolls?

We did our diving last year with Black Durgon on Caye Caulker. We did a day trip to Turneffe Atoll on his great dive boat. Best diving that we did! Simeon is a great dive guide, can't say enough good things about them. Website: Black Durgon Dives || ...for time under water!. Facebook: Black Durgon Dives

 

[Caye Caulker Diver B]

I live on Caye Caulker (moved her 9/30/17) and fully agree on the Black Durgon Dives/Simeon/Cory positive recommendation. However, Simeon mostly does "local" dives around Caye Caulker and San Pedro and does not normally head out to Turneffe and/or the Black Hole (and associated sites). I believe they will do "chartered" trips to Turneffe and other further away sites, but you would need to contact them and discuss this possibility. From my understanding, they "sub" out the 3-tank trips to the Black Hole.

I would recommend contacting him now, via email (found on their website), and seeing if you can arrange something that fits your desires. Simeon also takes his GoPro along on each dive and makes all photos (some very good photography skills) available for free at the end of the trip, a nice bonus that is a "pay for" service at most other shops. Their rates are very reasonable and are some of the lowest on the island, but again, for mostly local trips i.e. Esmeralda, Tackle Box, CC Canyons, Spanish Bay & Turneffe North).

What's nice about Black Durgon DIves is they only do small party trips (2-6 divers), so the trip is "intimate" and you don't feel like "just another bozo on the bus" on a big boat. That being said, for that type of dive touring off Caye Caulker, I recommend you check out Belize Diving Services (BDS) at http://www.belizedivingservices.com/ They do The Black Hole at least 2 times/week and maybe 3. They have the nicest fleet of BIG dive boats (2), and as such, are the more costly (not by much, but more than most other smaller dive shops) services on the island, but they are very professional and do a great job with all the amenities.

Happy Holidays and best wishes for a great visit to our little "Slice Of Paradise" in the Caribbean!!!

Feel free to PM me with specific questions about Caye Caulker, I'll do my best to get you the info.

 

[Pat Sharman]

Thanks! What's your opinion on Frenchies? Are they just as good as Belize Diving services for the Blue hole trip?'

Also, I've seen seen a few ops advertising North Turneffe as a 2 tank dive. are the sites there as good as the rest of Turneffe?

 

[Caye Caulker Diver B]

While I've have no direct personal interaction of any sort with Frenchies, I have read a couple negative reports on them (can't remember where, maybe TripAdvisor) and have spoken to, and even dove with, a couple folks who either were not treated very professionally when trying to book a trip or, in the case of the guy I dove with, actually walked away from a planned trip the morning of, because of very unprofessional behavior by the staff (I believe one of them was the owner too). I'd stick with BDS, might cost you a little extra for peace of mind, safety and very professional service and comfortable crafts (which is important as you travel the hour+ just to get there).

In regards to Turneffe North, I'm not experienced enough yet to know the differences. But the one thing I have learned (maybe because I'm still new here), there are very few, if any, dive sites on this reef that are "disappointing".

 

[lthomas132]

I live on Caye Caulker (moved her 9/30/17) and fully agree on the Black Durgon Dives/Simeon/Cory positive recommendation. However, Simeon mostly does "local" dives around Caye Caulker and San Pedro and does not normally head out to Turneffe and/or the Black Hole (and associated sites). I believe they will do "chartered" trips to Turneffe and other further away sites, but you would need to contact them and discuss this possibility. From my understanding, they "sub" out the 3-tank trips to the Black Hole.

I would recommend contacting him now, via email (found on their website), and seeing if you can arrange something that fits your desires. Simeon also takes his GoPro along on each dive and makes all photos (some very good photography skills) available for free at the end of the trip, a nice bonus that is a "pay for" service at most other shops. Their rates are very reasonable and are some of the lowest on the island, but again, for mostly local trips i.e. Esmeralda, Tackle Box, CC Canyons, Spanish Bay & Turneffe North).

What's nice about Black Durgon DIves is they only do small party trips (2-6 divers), so the trip is "intimate" and you don't feel like "just another bozo on the bus" on a big boat. That being said, for that type of dive touring off Caye Caulker, I recommend you check out Belize Diving Services (BDS) at http://www.belizedivingservices.com/ They do The Black Hole at least 2 times/week and maybe 3. They have the nicest fleet of BIG dive boats (2), and as such, are the more costly (not by much, but more than most other smaller dive shops) services on the island, but they are very professional and do a great job with all the amenities.

Happy Holidays and best wishes for a great visit to our little "Slice Of Paradise" in the Caribbean!!!

Feel free to PM me with specific questions about Caye Caulker, I'll do my best to get you the info.

True, Black Durgon does not do trips to the Blue Hole or any other color hole. They do trips to Turneffe when there are enough divers as any other dive shop does. Done the Blue Hole, looks much more awesome from the air! Lighthouse/Half Moon Caye, which are usually the following dives are incredible.

 

[lthomas132]

Thanks! What's your opinion on Frenchies? Are they just as good as Belize Diving services for the Blue hole trip?'

Also, I've seen seen a few ops advertising North Turneffe as a 2 tank dive. are the sites there as good as the rest of Turneffe?

Frenchies, at least when we were there, did not do Blue Hole Trips. They were my 1st contact for diving but didn't seem too helpful or friendly. Simeon & Cory are as good as they come.