Just returned from a fab week at AKR! Thanks to everyone who chimed in about what to expect, the schedule and tipping.
Flew AA from ONT to DFW then spent a few hours at the Hyatt at the airport to get a few ZZ's then up and out at 11am arriving RTB in the early afternoon. Immigration was slow but the line moved well. AKR was there right after screening and we loaded the van and were off to the resort. The online entry form which is pretty hidden when you check in for your flight was a must and I'm glad I noticed it and filled it out in advance since AA would not let you board without it done and accepted on line.
AKR is a BEAUTIFUL resort and we were given a nice briefing and a quick sandwich upon arrival. We stayed in room 22 over on the Key and the location was perfect with a shared deck between myself and my daughter, my buddy and two other members of our group in a three room 'pod'. We were hoping to do a quick shore dive/gear check but the ocean was choppy and the dive shop closes at 4pm on non night dive days so we had to wait for Sunday to do our briefing and get out on the boat. The shore dive location is not super convenient and you have to bring your gear over to the key via the small boat and check out a tank from a little hut to do it. We were busy during the week and it never presented itself as an option we had time or interest in personally.
We were traveling with a group of 10 friends so we had a boat to ourselves with the same captain and DM for the week which was AWESOME! DM Nico was so great and we were all really impressed with him as a dive guide but also just as a great human and excellent hang on the boat. Captn Jo Jo was a riot and was always cracking a joke or quoting a song or a movie and kept things running efficiently the whole trip.
The schedule was as described with the first boat going out at 8:30 with a 5-10 minute boat ride to the site. We ended up just getting ready as soon as we left the dock and were splashing in by 8:45 most mornings. The shark dive day we left at 7:30 but the restaurant was open early to accommodate us. You come back to the resort between dives (unless you are on the south side which happened two days while we were there) and have a 2.5 hour break between the 2nd and 3rd dives each day. We did 3 tanks every day with the exception of one day when the weather was bad and they cancelled the afternoon dive. We were over on the south side doing Mary's Place and they took us ashore and bussed us back to the resort so we wouldn't have to brave the high wind, rain and big chop which was very nice. You have to be dry to go eat so that means back to the room for a change of clothes unless you brought something to change into when you came over in the am. This was not a big deal but it would have been nice to have some kind of 'wet' option to grab and go if you didn't want to bother changing.
The shark dive was EXCELLENT and we really enjoyed the experience- had about 15 med to large grey reef sharks around and loved being able to swim freely with them before settling into the sand for the 'dropping of the bucket' when they put a 5 gallon pail with a lid in the sand and let the sharks go crazy trying to get it open and eat what was inside. Other dive highlights included a few turtles, several eagle rays and a hammerhead shark who made an appearance, gave us the eyeball and then split off into the deep. Loved Mary's Place, Spooky Channel (not many fish but great topography), and west end wall. There was good amounts of fish life overall including a few VERY friendly groupers who wanted to hang out with us and would come close enough that you could stick out your hand and they would rub your fingers on the way past. The only big disappointment was the state of the coral which was pretty beat up and dead in general. There were some places where it looked fairly healthy, but huge sections of the reef were dead and covered with algae with only a couple of species of hard coral surviving. This appeared to be a combo of bleaching gone all the way to death, and SCTLD killing off all the large hard corals. Soft corals and sea fans were plentiful which kept if from feeling like a wasteland, and visibility ranged from 'just ok' to a beautiful deep blue and compared well to what I've experienced in Bonaire but not as good as the average day in Cozumel. Most dives had some surge but not too much current and the dives were either a moored boat out and back or 'drift' dives where the captain would meet us one or two moorings down the reef. We didn't get into any currents on the drift dives like Coz, and i found the diving conditions and difficulty to be very mild overall. I liked that the dives were a combo of swimming down the side of the wall, then up to the top of the wall, then into the channels of reef and sand often doing a safety stop over the reef with plenty of things to see while off gassing! We were allowed to pretty much dive our tanks and got 60 minute bottom times with a couple of 70's during our stay. We also saw the ostracods glowing during our two night dives which I'd only ever seen in Bonaire so that was a nice treat to end the night dives both times with our group going dark for the last 10 minutes of the dive. I really loved seeing their version of the toadfish which is much bigger and uglier than the Cozumel variant. We saw lots of lobster, crabs, and a few octopus during the night dives as well. The larger of the two featured wrecks was good (but sitting in over 100') but the smaller one was 'just ok' for me.
The dive shop was run like a well oiled machine and although it's not 'valet' diving (you have to bring your gear to and from the boat from the lockers and do your own rinsing at the end of the day) the boat crew handled all the tanks and were more than willing to set up your gear and change your tank over between dives if you didn't want to do it yourself. Weights were left in your pockets on the boat making the schlep to and from the lockers much lighter. Boat was large and comfy with plenty of shade and a large table for cameras and dry bags in the center. Analyzing the nitrox tanks was easy and we usually did two at a time (you sniff the tank and then put it by a sign with the boat name and it appears on deck like magic).
Food was good to great and there was plenty of it and great choices. Breakfast featured a plate of fruit, a tray of bananas and a basket of fresh pastry PLUS a menu option every day. Lunch was a starter (soup or salad) a main, and dessert. Dinner was the same as lunch and we found the options to be varied enough that there was always something new to try. I never opted for a premium meal ($35+/- extra) as it never seemed worth the money vs the included dishes. Happy hour was daily between 5-6 except on tuesday and thursday when there are night dives. Local beer was $4 but 2 for 1 during happy hour and cocktails were $12 but also 2-1. We didn't get offered the 'always happy hour if you tip the bartender' deal (I tried to no avail) so your mileage may vary on that one. We also went up the hill to the market one day and got beer where it was $.93 per can for Salva Vida or Imperial (both decent local brews). The waiters were the same for breakfast and lunch with the crew changing over for dinner. There were 6 servers total for our table of 10 and they asked nicely that we split the tips evenly and give them directly to the crew if possible vs running it via the front desk (because it takes time for them to get the tips if done that way). We also tipped the DM and boat captain directly as well as 'donating' two 6 packs (from the store) after the 2nd night dive which was appreciated.
Beds were comfy but they def had a little 'dent' in the middle and I imagine would be a bit small if you were sharing a double with two bodies. Housekeeping was top notch with plenty of fresh towels and amazing smelling soap, lotion, shampoo and conditioner. The room had a fridge and a coffee maker (not a keurig but a drip machine with pre packed honduran grounds). Water pitchers were also provided and there were 5 gallon coolers all around the resort for easy access to fresh water. Take a water bottle or buy one of the aluminium ones at the airport for ease of use.
We had a great trip and would not hesitate to recommend AKR. The diving rated below Bonaire and Coz for me personally just because the state of the coral, but it was easy relaxing diving and the short boat rides and top shelf crew made it a very very enjoyable week under the water.
Flew AA from ONT to DFW then spent a few hours at the Hyatt at the airport to get a few ZZ's then up and out at 11am arriving RTB in the early afternoon. Immigration was slow but the line moved well. AKR was there right after screening and we loaded the van and were off to the resort. The online entry form which is pretty hidden when you check in for your flight was a must and I'm glad I noticed it and filled it out in advance since AA would not let you board without it done and accepted on line.
AKR is a BEAUTIFUL resort and we were given a nice briefing and a quick sandwich upon arrival. We stayed in room 22 over on the Key and the location was perfect with a shared deck between myself and my daughter, my buddy and two other members of our group in a three room 'pod'. We were hoping to do a quick shore dive/gear check but the ocean was choppy and the dive shop closes at 4pm on non night dive days so we had to wait for Sunday to do our briefing and get out on the boat. The shore dive location is not super convenient and you have to bring your gear over to the key via the small boat and check out a tank from a little hut to do it. We were busy during the week and it never presented itself as an option we had time or interest in personally.
We were traveling with a group of 10 friends so we had a boat to ourselves with the same captain and DM for the week which was AWESOME! DM Nico was so great and we were all really impressed with him as a dive guide but also just as a great human and excellent hang on the boat. Captn Jo Jo was a riot and was always cracking a joke or quoting a song or a movie and kept things running efficiently the whole trip.
The schedule was as described with the first boat going out at 8:30 with a 5-10 minute boat ride to the site. We ended up just getting ready as soon as we left the dock and were splashing in by 8:45 most mornings. The shark dive day we left at 7:30 but the restaurant was open early to accommodate us. You come back to the resort between dives (unless you are on the south side which happened two days while we were there) and have a 2.5 hour break between the 2nd and 3rd dives each day. We did 3 tanks every day with the exception of one day when the weather was bad and they cancelled the afternoon dive. We were over on the south side doing Mary's Place and they took us ashore and bussed us back to the resort so we wouldn't have to brave the high wind, rain and big chop which was very nice. You have to be dry to go eat so that means back to the room for a change of clothes unless you brought something to change into when you came over in the am. This was not a big deal but it would have been nice to have some kind of 'wet' option to grab and go if you didn't want to bother changing.
The shark dive was EXCELLENT and we really enjoyed the experience- had about 15 med to large grey reef sharks around and loved being able to swim freely with them before settling into the sand for the 'dropping of the bucket' when they put a 5 gallon pail with a lid in the sand and let the sharks go crazy trying to get it open and eat what was inside. Other dive highlights included a few turtles, several eagle rays and a hammerhead shark who made an appearance, gave us the eyeball and then split off into the deep. Loved Mary's Place, Spooky Channel (not many fish but great topography), and west end wall. There was good amounts of fish life overall including a few VERY friendly groupers who wanted to hang out with us and would come close enough that you could stick out your hand and they would rub your fingers on the way past. The only big disappointment was the state of the coral which was pretty beat up and dead in general. There were some places where it looked fairly healthy, but huge sections of the reef were dead and covered with algae with only a couple of species of hard coral surviving. This appeared to be a combo of bleaching gone all the way to death, and SCTLD killing off all the large hard corals. Soft corals and sea fans were plentiful which kept if from feeling like a wasteland, and visibility ranged from 'just ok' to a beautiful deep blue and compared well to what I've experienced in Bonaire but not as good as the average day in Cozumel. Most dives had some surge but not too much current and the dives were either a moored boat out and back or 'drift' dives where the captain would meet us one or two moorings down the reef. We didn't get into any currents on the drift dives like Coz, and i found the diving conditions and difficulty to be very mild overall. I liked that the dives were a combo of swimming down the side of the wall, then up to the top of the wall, then into the channels of reef and sand often doing a safety stop over the reef with plenty of things to see while off gassing! We were allowed to pretty much dive our tanks and got 60 minute bottom times with a couple of 70's during our stay. We also saw the ostracods glowing during our two night dives which I'd only ever seen in Bonaire so that was a nice treat to end the night dives both times with our group going dark for the last 10 minutes of the dive. I really loved seeing their version of the toadfish which is much bigger and uglier than the Cozumel variant. We saw lots of lobster, crabs, and a few octopus during the night dives as well. The larger of the two featured wrecks was good (but sitting in over 100') but the smaller one was 'just ok' for me.
The dive shop was run like a well oiled machine and although it's not 'valet' diving (you have to bring your gear to and from the boat from the lockers and do your own rinsing at the end of the day) the boat crew handled all the tanks and were more than willing to set up your gear and change your tank over between dives if you didn't want to do it yourself. Weights were left in your pockets on the boat making the schlep to and from the lockers much lighter. Boat was large and comfy with plenty of shade and a large table for cameras and dry bags in the center. Analyzing the nitrox tanks was easy and we usually did two at a time (you sniff the tank and then put it by a sign with the boat name and it appears on deck like magic).
Food was good to great and there was plenty of it and great choices. Breakfast featured a plate of fruit, a tray of bananas and a basket of fresh pastry PLUS a menu option every day. Lunch was a starter (soup or salad) a main, and dessert. Dinner was the same as lunch and we found the options to be varied enough that there was always something new to try. I never opted for a premium meal ($35+/- extra) as it never seemed worth the money vs the included dishes. Happy hour was daily between 5-6 except on tuesday and thursday when there are night dives. Local beer was $4 but 2 for 1 during happy hour and cocktails were $12 but also 2-1. We didn't get offered the 'always happy hour if you tip the bartender' deal (I tried to no avail) so your mileage may vary on that one. We also went up the hill to the market one day and got beer where it was $.93 per can for Salva Vida or Imperial (both decent local brews). The waiters were the same for breakfast and lunch with the crew changing over for dinner. There were 6 servers total for our table of 10 and they asked nicely that we split the tips evenly and give them directly to the crew if possible vs running it via the front desk (because it takes time for them to get the tips if done that way). We also tipped the DM and boat captain directly as well as 'donating' two 6 packs (from the store) after the 2nd night dive which was appreciated.
Beds were comfy but they def had a little 'dent' in the middle and I imagine would be a bit small if you were sharing a double with two bodies. Housekeeping was top notch with plenty of fresh towels and amazing smelling soap, lotion, shampoo and conditioner. The room had a fridge and a coffee maker (not a keurig but a drip machine with pre packed honduran grounds). Water pitchers were also provided and there were 5 gallon coolers all around the resort for easy access to fresh water. Take a water bottle or buy one of the aluminium ones at the airport for ease of use.
We had a great trip and would not hesitate to recommend AKR. The diving rated below Bonaire and Coz for me personally just because the state of the coral, but it was easy relaxing diving and the short boat rides and top shelf crew made it a very very enjoyable week under the water.
