A couple Questions RE: FIBR and Diving Roatan in general..

[BTravlin]

I consider Fantasy Island a good buy for what you get for your money, but you need to remember that you are still getting what you pay for. I do alot with all-inclusive resorts and don't consider this to be "all-inclusive". They are a 109 room resort with 3 meals and 3 dives included in the package. Right now the spring special has both divers and non-divers at the same price.

Sounds like a great deal for the divers!

 

[Bay Island Diver]

FIBR and Cocoview are quite a way from West End. Don't go there thinking you can pop in to the west end any old time. It is at least a $20 taxi ride of about 30 minutes.

If food is as an important part of your holiday vacation as it is mine, then West Bay and West End are were the majority of the restaurants are!

For me the food is MORE important than the diving, sailing skiing, whatever it may be, for that reason i always take the 'a la carte' holiday approach of booking a hotel, then finding out about the diving and dining when I arrive. Paying for all my food and diving before i even get to check out the facilities is too dicey for me! Having said that, when you take that risk you can often get better prices. The old addage, you get what you pay for tends to hold true.

You have to decide whether you want LOADS of bottom time and adequate fuel/food or want to go for a more varied holiday mixing a blend of cultural experiences with varied food but less access to diving ANY time you want it, you have to stick to a schedule if you want to dive with a West Edn op.

I must admit, i am getting tempted to buy a boat and offer diving whenever you want it for a week be it 1 or 5 dives a day. I wonder what people would pay to have a boat and tanks at their beck and call for 6 days? Watch this space!

 

[frankthomson]

I have been to FIBR twice and I would never return. We are going to Anthonys Key Resort from March 28 until April 5 for my second time, the diving is much better. Plus you get to dive both sides of the island.

 

[torontoscubagirl]

Just got back from FIBR and would do it again. The food is okay, the service is sometimes good, sometimes not, and the hot water in the shower was there some days - but I paid 789+taxes and another $300 for 3 boat dives and unlimited shore diving (purchased from travela agent)....and the diving was great ! We never had more than 12 divers in the water, the boat captain was very responsible, and Robert who heads the diveshop is very responsible = safe diving. Roatan is beautiful, and you can't beat snorkelling off the gazebo : )
Check out redtagvacations.com or lastminuteclub.com for departures from Toronto. They have some amazing deals if you can book last minute. Oooh, also the shark dive is amazing ! We had about 15-20 6-10 foot black tip reef sharks there !

 

[BTravlin]

I have been to FIBR twice and I would never return. We are going to Anthonys Key Resort from March 28 until April 5 for my second time, the diving is much better. Plus you get to dive both sides of the island.

Just curious, why did you go back a second time then?

 

[smokey braden]

frankthomson,
welcome to this board.
on my only trip so far to roatan, we stayed at akr.
i was the only diver in our group.
it was a very pleasent holiday with 0 complaints.
regards,

 

[Doc]

Just curious, why did you go back a second time then?

Some people get dragged back to places they didn't like by traveling companions- a club from a shop for instance. Momentum if you will.

Some people just join SCUBABoard, throw a bomb- then leave forever. At the same time, I do hope he checks back in with a well reasoned post comparing these two popular AI choices.

the diving is much better. Plus you get to dive both sides of the island

At the same time, I do hope he checks back in with a well reasoned post comparing these two AI choices.

That above OP posted statement alone kinda made me start to wonder, although I do agree- AKR has a nicer dive op, and a more stable and predictable resort product. FIBR sits on the side of the island that offers more cool little critters. FIBR is a resort with diving, AKR is a dive resort.

Many divers are vastly disappointed in the South side versus their joy over the North side. The North provides all of the common Caribbean critters in their adult (larger) state, usually in a deepr setting with a more stark environment. The South is where you find the more delicate creatures, including the juveniles- due to the protected reef structure which allows for camouflage. Inherently the lush South side is favored by slower more observant divers with long term dive experience. The North side is the favorite of those who like to see the recognizable larger fish like Barracuda or Lobsters.

To compare AKR and FIBR, well- that has been done before, but in short:

FIBR has a European three boat a day dive schedule, real 24/7 shore diving (very shallow and beautifully encrusted shipwreck as well as a DC3 aircraft), buffet meals, not many stairs, a nice breezy (topless option) beach on its own semi-private island. You are dependent upon the abilities & desire of your DM to show you the cool stuff like Pipefish, SeaHorses, etc. Weaker dive infrastructure including gear room and boat appearance maintenance. It is in the model of a European island retreat, as many visitors are from Spain and South America. They do Mary's Place plus many of the other local South side dive sites with round bottom boats best suited for those conditions. It is noted as the least expensive AI option among the top 5.

AKR has ProDive boats (Deep Vee), a nice gear room set up, an Americanized dive system, Dolphin show that attracts a lot of visitors, deeper diving and a huge deep wreck, larger familiar critters (so you may wander off and still have a good time), kid (very) friendly, calmer seas (unless there's a frequent Norther), a whole lot of stairs up to your sit-down meals, not a lot of breezes, a shuttle boat is required to anywhere from your room, it's closer to the West end bars. They do bring a boat around to Mary's Place once a week for their one weekly South side excursion, but that is the totality. It is likely the most expensive AI option on the island.

It's really a hard decision between the two... if those were the only two you were looking at... vastly different products. For systematic reliability (AKR wins), versus easy access to advanced diving 24/7 (FIBR wins) ... that makes it a difficult choice.

Fortunately there are a few other options in the mix.

Hey, Frank Thomson... are you back on line yet after your second trip to AKR (and 4th to Roatan)? How'd it go?

 

[JillGadget]

11 days and counting. Just dying to see who's reports I agree with and who I do not FIBR is our destination with East Coast Diving - South Jersey!!! I do want to do the shark dive (yeah, I know all the boohoo about it but did it in Nassau and loved it) and want to do the Zipline during our last day SI. AND yes I am death-defying. If it is your time, it's you're time. God is with me so I should wear the "no-fear" shirt.

Will send a trip report out to ya'll when we return!! whoooooo hoooo. These work days are just toooooo long.
Jill

 

[NDH]

Hi JillGadget
We will be across the channel from ya'll at CCV. Race ya'll to the price albert.
Have a great time.

 

[Dee]

NDH....We'll be starting our second week at CCV when you get there. See ya the 19th!