Utila Dive Operations?

[CAPTAIN SINBAD]

Good to read all this info as my friend and I are planning a trip for early March and haven't decided where to go yet but Utila is one of the places we are seriouly considering.
We would be renting a vacation rental and then finding our own dive op. We are NOT interested in any AI.
So , not to steal the thread but I have many questions too. Some have been answered -kind of
What dive op to use. We prefer a small one to cattle boat type but do like the social life that goes with meeting new folks.
What area is best to try to get a place to stay if we were to go with Altons (are they a small op or cattle boat type?)
What are the water temps in March?
Who do we contact to find flights from Roatan to Utila?

Hmmm .... Alton has three boats if I remember correctly. They also have the best boats on the island and that is why they make more frequent trips to the North side than most operators I have seen. As to them being Cattle, it really depends. The week that I was there, on some days we would have a full load while on some days we would have half the boat to ourselves. Afternoon trips were less loaded than morning ones. Yet there were more whale shark sightings in the morning ones. If your goal is to snorkel with whale sharks in between your dives then I would choose the loaded boat. The reason? Every time a whale shark is sighted, you tip the skipper. With fully loaded boats there is greater financial incentive for the skipper to pursue a sighting. Nevertheless the skippers and the crew there are really professional and they will try to get you a whale shark sighting if they can.

At Altons I would not shy away from a loaded boat. Since people are hanging out together and living and eating together "dorm style" you make friends and a "cattle-boat" feels like a boat full of your school buddies.

As for accommodations, you can stay at Altons for 10 USD a night. The accommodation is very basic, bed in a room with no AC so you cant have very high expectations of luxury if you stay at Altons but it is still a very nice place to stay.

As for getting to Utila, I strongly recommend these guys:

Brandi Vines
ISLAND AIR
1138 N. Germantown Pkwy
Suite 101, Box 242
Cordova, Tn. 38016
info@guanajaair.com
901-490-2624

The Captain is an awesome dude and the plane ride is as much fun as the diving.

 

[laurenceh]

saltyksue. if you're looking for a great rental home i'd suggest you take a look here:- www.facebook.com/utilabeach
lovely rental homes, on a private beach with a reef just feet from shore and utila cays diving (small highly rated dive co) will pick you up right from your beach. away from utila town and a very "desert island" vibe.

 

[SaltyKSue]

Thanks for all the info. I'm sure I will still have more questions as the time arrives.
One question for laurenceh though - If it's a private beach then how close to town are these rentals? I would like to be close to town as to go to restaurants and see some of the sites. Plus I would probably like to go dancing and such IF there is any to be done!

CAPTAIN SINBAD- You have a point about diving the cattle boats~ not only will there be a better chance of the crew working with us to see the whale sharks but more of a chance to meet new and hopefully fun and interesting people!

 

[laurenceh]

treasure beach is 3 miles from town on the south/southwest shore and can only be accessed by boat. no dancing except on the beach under the stars and the sites are just miles of empty beach, coral reefs all to yourself, uninhabited cays and palm trees. probably not what you're looking for.

 

[SaltyKSue]

Yeah, If I had a B/F and we were on a romantic trip then that would be great but that isn't the case here!
So, with that being said....Where should I look for a place? North, South, East or West?
Where is Alton located on the Island? Are there places close by them and are they located close to town so we could go get a taste of the local flavor?

Captain Sinbad I will be contacting Island Air to get costs and schedules of flights from Roatan to Utila? Do you know if there is more than one airport in Roatan?

 

[CAPTAIN SINBAD]

Yeah, If I had a B/F and we were on a romantic trip then that would be great but that isn't the case here!
So, with that being said....Where should I look for a place? North, South, East or West?
Where is Alton located on the Island? Are there places close by them and are they located close to town so we could go get a taste of the local flavor?

Captain Sinbad I will be contacting Island Air to get costs and schedules of flights from Roatan to Utila? Do you know if there is more than one airport in Roatan?

Roatan has an airstrip which they call "airport" and your little plane from Utila will take off right besides where your big plane from USA lands. You are basically getting down on the tarmac clearing customs in a hall and your pilot Angelo will then find you. You will be loading your gear into the little blue plane which is parked right next to the big one. This is how it is in Roatan. Now Utila does not even have an airstrip. The plane lands in the middle of Banana plants. I am attaching a picture I took before landing. You will be landing on that gravel strip between the banana trees.



Just to give you some perspective, the town of Utila is built around a single road. All else is a jungle as you can see above! There are only 3 - 4 cars on the island including a coke truck. Rest of the population drives golf carts and mopeds. You cant be very far from anything on the island since all the population shares a single road. Everyone is walking distance from everyone. You can walk to the bank in less than 10 minutes from Altons and all the restaurants are there as well.

Enjoy the flight! Say hi to Angelo.

 

[laurenceh]

if you're young and single its best to stay in town, you will have a blast at night, its a party town.

however, as someone who lived on utila for four years i would encourage you to take at least a day to explore the rest of the island. boat skippers can be hired reasonably, have one take you out to the south shore, the southwestern shore and the cays, maybe even your own desert island for a day. grab a cooler with some drinks and a picnic, get dropped off and have the skipper come back for you later in the day.

town (east harbor) and its roads covers only about 20% of the island, (as its name suggests) its on the eastern edge of utila.
so when people say you can walk or bike around the island and visit all the bars in a few minutes you know that they have been a tourist and have only visited the tiny portion of the island that most tourists see.

the other 80% of the island is the beautiful part, rarely visited by tourists, with only a handful of bars/restaurants, mostly owned by locals.

ask any local or expat that lives in town where they like to go for a special day out and they'll all tell you the same thing : they go to the south shore, southwest shore, turtle harbor and/or the cays for the day.

these photos show the area i'm talking about. have a great trip

 

[SaltyKSue]

AWESOME Thanks so much! I'm looking at rental condos and houses right now and it's good to know that no matter WHERE I get it should be fairly close to everything and that a day trip to other areas is a MUST!

 

[laurenceh]

my favorite in town accommodations are the lighthouse and the gardens, highly recommended

 

[SaltyKSue]

Good to know! The Gardens is actually one of the places I have requested more info on- one of the other ones that I thought looked good and I sent an inquiry about is the Carribean Condos at the Palms!
I will have to look into the Lighthouse now too!