- Messages
- 20,612
- Reaction score
- 20,130
- Location
- Philadelphia and Boynton Beach
- # of dives
- 1000 - 2499
Belize on the Aggressor IV April 9-16, 2022
Reservations: I reserved my spot ton the Belize Aggressor IV directly with Aggressor. I made my reservations during last fall’s sale and got 25% off. I made my airline reservations directly with American Airlines, a flight from Philadelphia to Miami and then on to Belize City. I went to Belize two days early and did a tour of the New Belize River and Mayan ruins at Lamanai. I made these through Aggressor Detour, their travel agency. They included transfer to Lamanai, hotel nights, the tour, and then transfer to the Aggressor for boarding. I have used them previously, excursions have always worked perfectly, this one included. Well worth the extra time and money.
Travel: Belize dropped the Covid testing requirement about a month before my visit. Full vaccination is required or testing is still needed. Belize health insurance is required, $18, online. A Covid antigen test is still required to return to the US. The test was performed on the boat, the day prior to departure and results were emailed to the boat and printed for us within a couple hours. The cost was $80, added to the final bill. Other items added to the final bill were a $130 port fee and a $150 fuel surcharge (just implemented April 1).
I used Verifly both to and back from Belize. It made check in at both airports fast and easy, no additional forms to fill out or documents to show. Plane flights were perfect. My Miami airport return was awful, as usual. Despite Global Entry and TSA Precheck, it took me an hour and a half to clear immigration, claim and recheck my one bag, get through security, and get to my departure gate. I ended up boarding just 15 minutes before my departure. My bag missed the flight and was delivered to my home the next day.
Boat and Crew: The Belize Aggressor IV is a big boat, 138 feet in length, with a 26 foot beam. It is also quite stable. Our entire week was windy with swells and whitecaps. The boat rarely had much more than a gentle roll.
The boat takes up to 20 divers in 10 double cabins. We had 19 divers, 10 from the US and a family of 9 from Mexico City. Nine of the 10 cabins are on the main deck, along with the dive deck. The main entry/exit for the cabins was from the dive deck. There was a full size emergency hatch exit at the other end of the hall. The dive deck was well laid out and easy to use. Tanks were filled in place and there was a storage area and bin below each station. There were two large camera tables with compressed air. Fins were down on the dive platform and donned before diving
The open air lounge, restaurant, galley, and bridge were on the upper deck. There was also a sundeck with chairs, and a bar with the beer taps for the Belikin, “The Beer of Belize”.
I chose a room next to the dive deck exit, #10. I believe the room was the most spacious and had the most storage space of any liveaboard cabin I have had. Each person had under bed storage, an under bed drawer, a nightstand with 2 drawers and a cubby, and an above bed cabinet. There was also a good sized, shared closet. I couldn’t have possibly used all the space, a real luxury. The room A/C was fantastic, cooling to the set temperature. It made for very comfortable nights and days.
Safety was a major consideration. We had a detailed briefing the evening we boarded the boat. We did not leave the dock until the next morning. There was a dedicated charging station with plenty of outlets outside on the dive deck that was turned off in the middle of the night. There was a dedicated crew member who did roving night watch duties, I saw him every morning.
We had 8 crew members, all very nice, communicative, and hard working. This was true for Captain Shea, dive guide and photographer Daniel, dive guide Rocke, dive guide and engineer Simon, chef Carlos, sous chef Zander, steward Elia, and night watch Sterlyn. All the crew pitched in to accomplish all chores.
Food was not gourmet but was consistently very good. All meals came to the tables plated. Several of us had food requests, it was always perfect, without a word. Belikin beer and red and white wines were available, included in the food service.
Reservations: I reserved my spot ton the Belize Aggressor IV directly with Aggressor. I made my reservations during last fall’s sale and got 25% off. I made my airline reservations directly with American Airlines, a flight from Philadelphia to Miami and then on to Belize City. I went to Belize two days early and did a tour of the New Belize River and Mayan ruins at Lamanai. I made these through Aggressor Detour, their travel agency. They included transfer to Lamanai, hotel nights, the tour, and then transfer to the Aggressor for boarding. I have used them previously, excursions have always worked perfectly, this one included. Well worth the extra time and money.
Travel: Belize dropped the Covid testing requirement about a month before my visit. Full vaccination is required or testing is still needed. Belize health insurance is required, $18, online. A Covid antigen test is still required to return to the US. The test was performed on the boat, the day prior to departure and results were emailed to the boat and printed for us within a couple hours. The cost was $80, added to the final bill. Other items added to the final bill were a $130 port fee and a $150 fuel surcharge (just implemented April 1).
I used Verifly both to and back from Belize. It made check in at both airports fast and easy, no additional forms to fill out or documents to show. Plane flights were perfect. My Miami airport return was awful, as usual. Despite Global Entry and TSA Precheck, it took me an hour and a half to clear immigration, claim and recheck my one bag, get through security, and get to my departure gate. I ended up boarding just 15 minutes before my departure. My bag missed the flight and was delivered to my home the next day.
Boat and Crew: The Belize Aggressor IV is a big boat, 138 feet in length, with a 26 foot beam. It is also quite stable. Our entire week was windy with swells and whitecaps. The boat rarely had much more than a gentle roll.
The boat takes up to 20 divers in 10 double cabins. We had 19 divers, 10 from the US and a family of 9 from Mexico City. Nine of the 10 cabins are on the main deck, along with the dive deck. The main entry/exit for the cabins was from the dive deck. There was a full size emergency hatch exit at the other end of the hall. The dive deck was well laid out and easy to use. Tanks were filled in place and there was a storage area and bin below each station. There were two large camera tables with compressed air. Fins were down on the dive platform and donned before diving
The open air lounge, restaurant, galley, and bridge were on the upper deck. There was also a sundeck with chairs, and a bar with the beer taps for the Belikin, “The Beer of Belize”.
I chose a room next to the dive deck exit, #10. I believe the room was the most spacious and had the most storage space of any liveaboard cabin I have had. Each person had under bed storage, an under bed drawer, a nightstand with 2 drawers and a cubby, and an above bed cabinet. There was also a good sized, shared closet. I couldn’t have possibly used all the space, a real luxury. The room A/C was fantastic, cooling to the set temperature. It made for very comfortable nights and days.
Safety was a major consideration. We had a detailed briefing the evening we boarded the boat. We did not leave the dock until the next morning. There was a dedicated charging station with plenty of outlets outside on the dive deck that was turned off in the middle of the night. There was a dedicated crew member who did roving night watch duties, I saw him every morning.
We had 8 crew members, all very nice, communicative, and hard working. This was true for Captain Shea, dive guide and photographer Daniel, dive guide Rocke, dive guide and engineer Simon, chef Carlos, sous chef Zander, steward Elia, and night watch Sterlyn. All the crew pitched in to accomplish all chores.
Food was not gourmet but was consistently very good. All meals came to the tables plated. Several of us had food requests, it was always perfect, without a word. Belikin beer and red and white wines were available, included in the food service.
