diver 85
Contributor
Check with Ray(Lopez---from L.A.) @ Sueno del Mar---on West End......WAS the place 'long ago' on the West End, have no idea about now---might be worth a look......
Roatan Dive Academy Internship
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Check with Ray(Lopez---from L.A.) @ Sueno del Mar---on West End......WAS the place 'long ago' on the West End, have no idea about now---might be worth a look......
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Unless I'm missing something Sueno Del Mar doesn't offer your son anything he won't already have on arrival since their shop - RDC only offers:
Coconut Tree Divers otoh offers courses thru IDC and MSDT at their facility 2 blocks away - even basic PADI tech diving - Coconut Tree Divers - Go Pro/Tec
They also had a multi-bedroom student-only house thru which they rent rooms reasonably within walking distance nearby - shared main area plus a pool. In their dive shop building is also one of the two small markets in the West End - the other being Woody's Market about a block farther east. Everybody walks around the West End - no need for a car. Cabs are cheap if you need to go to French Harbor for the larger food stores or Coxen Hole for food, the hospital etc. - or the airport.
Another factor to consider is how busy is the affiliated dive operation in terms of gaining experience working with clients. CTD runs 3-4 dives/day so their students get more experience dealing with various situations/customers. So do the AI dive resorts like Cocoview or Anthony's Key - actually AKR has their own Instructor program as well - Go Pro Anthony's Key | Go Pro Anthony's Key
Also in case something happens, the recompression chamber is also at AKR - and the Dr. lives about 10mins. away - one night we needed both. It also seemed to function as a day clinic.
I agree with Shawnda also - during down-time Subway is a little too far east w/o reliable transportation.
Coconut Tree Divers otoh offers courses thru IDC and MSDT at their facility 2 blocks away - even basic PADI tech diving - Coconut Tree Divers - Go Pro/Tec
They also had a multi-bedroom student-only house thru which they rent rooms reasonably within walking distance nearby - shared main area plus a pool. In their dive shop building is also one of the two small markets in the West End - the other being Woody's Market about a block farther east. Everybody walks around the West End - no need for a car. Cabs are cheap if you need to go to French Harbor for the larger food stores or Coxen Hole for food, the hospital etc. - or the airport.
Another factor to consider is how busy is the affiliated dive operation in terms of gaining experience working with clients. CTD runs 3-4 dives/day so their students get more experience dealing with various situations/customers. So do the AI dive resorts like Cocoview or Anthony's Key - actually AKR has their own Instructor program as well - Go Pro Anthony's Key | Go Pro Anthony's Key
Also in case something happens, the recompression chamber is also at AKR - and the Dr. lives about 10mins. away - one night we needed both. It also seemed to function as a day clinic.
I agree with Shawnda also - during down-time Subway is a little too far east w/o reliable transportation.
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Bratface
Contributor
I lived on Roatan some years ago and dove with Coconut Tree Divers on the West End. I can say that they have a very good program and there will be people his age. West End is a great little part of the island. There are plenty of places to eat and there is a laundry and a grocery store.
diver 85
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It was when we ate there a few years ago plus they have a 2nd one in West Bay also now.
roatanposadasgrills.com
roatanposadasgrills.com
diver 85
Contributor
Remember when that young couple moved to the island & opened it-----must have been around (???)'00--maybe earlier??........Our daughter lived right across from Woody's for about a year or so & our son sold the couple(the man anyway---lol) his 17' CC boat when he moved from the island---- he named it The Irie(meaning 'the wind' in local 'talk'......)..We went one nite to eat there & saw it parked across from the restaurant @(in) Half Moon Bay(after he had left out as a watersports director on the Windstar).....Next time I talked to him I told him where I saw it & he said oh yea, forgot to tell you who I sold it to.......
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Everyone's comments and insights have been most helpful. It has helped to consider various options and also solidly some things as well.
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So- this is an "internship style" IDC after getting a DM cert back home? I think that's what we're talking about.
I've been to all three and more. Any DMT/IDC is absolutely dependent upon the instructors and leadership present at the time. Thus, inherently, they are all the same. The transient nature of Staff Instructors in the current environment is why. Was it any different? Yes, read on....
Gone are the days of reliable 100% consistent never-disappoint IDC "mills" that, although they just "grinded them out", it was a conveyor belt of quality product. There simply is no volume in the market to support that efficient and reliable model. Staff Instructors held permanent and desirable jobs. These schools were often looked askance upon, but usually by competitors and those who went elsewhere. No different than selecting an IDC on Roatan. (mine was bestest, nana nana booboo)
Something hidden to consider: I would lean towards doing an IDC internship at an operation that relies heavily upon daily business from cruise ship traffic (or very casual dive vacationers). There you will learn much from "the herding of cats". Coconut (CCTD) and the West End day dive ops (and also DiverSteve's offering of AKR) cater to cruise ships, a big plus for an Intern style residence, not so much for a visiting dive-centric guest. There is some minor day traffic at TBR (Turquoise) but the bulk of their dive business is a fairly casual dive clientele, read: lots of cats there.
The sheer volume of cats on Utila are quite low by comparison to West End Roatan, but most visitors meow (and purr) with a predictable resonance.
The contrasting method of IDC is rarely discussed here (on the Roatan forum), and that is: show up, do the work, complete the test, graduate, 10 days- done. Most of the "extended stay/internship" students I have seen are paying handsomely to carry tanks and actually learn to dive (beyond their basic certs and skill sets). That may sound all-high-and-mighty, but if you see that occurring from your perspective of already having, say, 1,000+ dives, it is undeniably true.
So- it really boils down to how or if you need to acquire (professional level) dive skills or simply mastering the specific teaching skills for an activity that you have already mastered. A fine distinction.
Would money be better spent by paying for 6 dives a day as a guest, building experience base and skills sets? Depends upon the "student".
The horrible truth: An IDC will teach you nothing about scuba diving.
At least, not a "real IDC", versus an "internship". The IDC model has absolutely nothing to educate you with in regards to the activity itself. It is merely a methodology for "teaching you to teach", developing instructor level, professional quality demonstration skills.
And, you do get the cool Polo Shirt, so there's that.
What is "isolated" depends on perspective. Their location might have been considered isolated 7 years ago, now it's looked at as what is the next big thing. Whatever- it is not "on the East end of the island". See it on the map: How to Get Here | Subway Watersports
And I'm not so sure that would be my criteria for a 19 year old. It wasn't on the checklist for myself when I did it in my retirement years.
Surprised no one has broached this, but his prior exposure to world culture might grow nebulous when confronted with the reality of associating with that specific age bracket in the Bay Islands as well as the "not in Kansas anymore" distinction of Honduras. Hang on, Toto.
Most IDC candidates are young, the majority show up with ideas of hammocks and umbrella drinks dancing in their heads. A good IDC will disabuse them of these distracting thoughts immediately, but I'm leery when I see the standard Bay Islands graduation ceremony that includes the "beer snorkel". OK, I was a seasoned diver when I did it, I had no time for foolishness. The IDC day was 10 to 12 hours. Bing bang boom, done in 10 days. If you need to learn to dive, I'm thinking you'll learn more, more quickly by diving and not fiddling with "an internship".
True enough. Slim and none versus highly unlikely.
The inarguable fact: What used to be work opportunity for a DM is now eagerly snapped up by an OWSI. A big plus for applicants who "look the part".....
I've been to all three and more. Any DMT/IDC is absolutely dependent upon the instructors and leadership present at the time. Thus, inherently, they are all the same. The transient nature of Staff Instructors in the current environment is why. Was it any different? Yes, read on....
Gone are the days of reliable 100% consistent never-disappoint IDC "mills" that, although they just "grinded them out", it was a conveyor belt of quality product. There simply is no volume in the market to support that efficient and reliable model. Staff Instructors held permanent and desirable jobs. These schools were often looked askance upon, but usually by competitors and those who went elsewhere. No different than selecting an IDC on Roatan. (mine was bestest, nana nana booboo)
Something hidden to consider: I would lean towards doing an IDC internship at an operation that relies heavily upon daily business from cruise ship traffic (or very casual dive vacationers). There you will learn much from "the herding of cats". Coconut (CCTD) and the West End day dive ops (and also DiverSteve's offering of AKR) cater to cruise ships, a big plus for an Intern style residence, not so much for a visiting dive-centric guest. There is some minor day traffic at TBR (Turquoise) but the bulk of their dive business is a fairly casual dive clientele, read: lots of cats there.
The sheer volume of cats on Utila are quite low by comparison to West End Roatan, but most visitors meow (and purr) with a predictable resonance.
The contrasting method of IDC is rarely discussed here (on the Roatan forum), and that is: show up, do the work, complete the test, graduate, 10 days- done. Most of the "extended stay/internship" students I have seen are paying handsomely to carry tanks and actually learn to dive (beyond their basic certs and skill sets). That may sound all-high-and-mighty, but if you see that occurring from your perspective of already having, say, 1,000+ dives, it is undeniably true.
So- it really boils down to how or if you need to acquire (professional level) dive skills or simply mastering the specific teaching skills for an activity that you have already mastered. A fine distinction.
Would money be better spent by paying for 6 dives a day as a guest, building experience base and skills sets? Depends upon the "student".
The horrible truth: An IDC will teach you nothing about scuba diving.
At least, not a "real IDC", versus an "internship". The IDC model has absolutely nothing to educate you with in regards to the activity itself. It is merely a methodology for "teaching you to teach", developing instructor level, professional quality demonstration skills.
And, you do get the cool Polo Shirt, so there's that.
What is "isolated" depends on perspective. Their location might have been considered isolated 7 years ago, now it's looked at as what is the next big thing. Whatever- it is not "on the East end of the island". See it on the map: How to Get Here | Subway Watersports
And I'm not so sure that would be my criteria for a 19 year old. It wasn't on the checklist for myself when I did it in my retirement years.
Surprised no one has broached this, but his prior exposure to world culture might grow nebulous when confronted with the reality of associating with that specific age bracket in the Bay Islands as well as the "not in Kansas anymore" distinction of Honduras. Hang on, Toto.
Most IDC candidates are young, the majority show up with ideas of hammocks and umbrella drinks dancing in their heads. A good IDC will disabuse them of these distracting thoughts immediately, but I'm leery when I see the standard Bay Islands graduation ceremony that includes the "beer snorkel". OK, I was a seasoned diver when I did it, I had no time for foolishness. The IDC day was 10 to 12 hours. Bing bang boom, done in 10 days. If you need to learn to dive, I'm thinking you'll learn more, more quickly by diving and not fiddling with "an internship".
True enough. Slim and none versus highly unlikely.
The inarguable fact: What used to be work opportunity for a DM is now eagerly snapped up by an OWSI. A big plus for applicants who "look the part".....
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Everyone makes excellent points! I am new the dive community. This was in fact my first post to Scuba Board and I am so glad! One thing I have become aware of is that housing areas for interns are not always close to the business. The housing area for Subway interns is in Brick Bay. So closer to activity, but still a distance from the dive business. In the end my son will have to make his own choice. But since he is relatively new to diving and drives 4 hours on weekends to dive in non-ocean environments, an extended stay internship working with professionals for two months is perfect for him. Thanks everyone, this forum rocks! 
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