Beginner/inexperienced diver advice Roatan

[dmoore19]

Ah.......


Roatan where the diving is easy. My second dive trip was to Roatan, different resort though. Roatan is a great place for all kinds of divers, especially those who just long to be wet and dive. My experience there has been that the deeper dives are later on in the week. It is also that if you don't want to go deeper you don't need to. Express your concerns either during the dive briefing or do it in private with the DM. You will have a great experience.

I wanted to do the Mary's Place dive but when we got there I had reservations on the depth. It wasn't a problem as my buddy and I stopped at around 60' and watched the bubbled from others and caught up with them at a depth I was comfortable with. The dive ops there are in tune with your needs. They won't push you and you decide what you want to do or your depth.

Go there and enjoy it is a wonderful experience. I have been back twice and will go again.

 

[Mike]

I've dived with Mayan Divers multiple times, and when it was time, of all the places in the world I could have gotten my rescue diver certificate, I chose a trip there just to take the course with them because I knew I'd get a great education and a certificate that would mean something to me. When we first started diving with them Anja and her husband (the owners) lead all the dives, since then they've grown some and as all businesses evolve unfortunately they weren't leading dives anymore the last time we were with them, that's not such a bad thing, we just miss the fun of diving with the owners and the special experience that always is, but they hire very good people, a lot of female dive masters with European roots.

As you've been told, for the most part the diving on the north side of the island is very tame, I really don't think you need a private dive master, but follow your own feelings on that. Mayan Divers has always seemed to us to be very conservative in their diving compared to other operations I've used over the years in other destinations. In fact, we actually will not be diving with Mayan Divers next time in Roatan because their conservative diving is actually gotten a bit boring for us and we want a more challenging set of dives and will book with another operation that can offer a more catered dive experience for us, but obviously their conservative diving is exactly what you should be seeking out.

If you made it through Cozumel, you should have absolutely no issues in Roatan as the diving is more tame in two ways, very little current, and shallower diving.

They have a nice little dive shop toward the front of the Mayan Princess grounds, where you will meet in the mornings to get your gear arranged, then they will load everything up into wheel barrows and take it down to the beach where their dive boats are sitting anchored in a couple of feet of water where you will wade to the boat. Most of the time surface intervals will be on the boat between dives with fresh fruit where you can get to know your fellow divers, the captain and crew and your dive master better. The rides to the dive sites are quite a bit shorter than what you experienced in Cozumel, usually 5-10 minutes.

 

[jennfl]

Hi Mike! Thank you for your reply! I am acutally really glad to hear that you feel they are a bit boring and conservative. That's exactly what we are looking for. I know one day, we will be more like you and wanting more exciting, deeper dives, but for now, boring is good for us. Thanks for that description!

Do they do all of their surface intervals in the boat? I like the idea of going on land for that. I get woozy on the boat.

In Cozumel, as brand new certified divers, we were taken to do a wall dive. It started at 80' ! It scared my husband quite a bit because we could not see a bottom. Luckily, we had hired a private DM and he was able to get him up to the top of the wall and help him slow his breathing and calm down. I won't say they were a bad dive shop, but they definitely didn't prepare us for that dive, which was clearly for more experienced divers. Now, we are going to be more vigilant in letting the dive operation know our comfort level and our limits. We really want to stay shallow until we are able to really practice our skills. Unfortunately, we only get to dive on vacation 1-2 times a year, and so far, have only been on the one dive trip in Cozumel. And you are right, the diving in Cozumel is definitely a bit more adventurous. The current is seriously strong. However, our last dive of that trip was totally amazing. We flew over a mountain of reef and coral and fish and turtles, going pretty swift. It was awesome to be able to use our breathing to hover up and down and over things. It really felt like we were flying. Like helicopters. Truly a totally mind blowing experience for us!

Thanks again for your replies.

 

[cmneus]

This is exactly what I sounded like before I went! I had the time of my life. It was amaaaazing....you will love it! I'm so excited for you that I am practically squealing!

I will surely post a trip report! After reading dozens on this board, it will be great to finally write my own. No more living vicariously through everyone anymore! It has been torture for me to read the dive reports on here, but somehow, I haven't been able to stop myself!

I'm feeling much more at ease after reading all of the posts here. Thank you everyone! I'm literally so excited to get there I can't see straight.

 

[ratchet04]

Don't worry. You are going to be just fine. Roatan is a great dive destination for new divers (and experienced divers too). You are going to love it, especially if the weather is in your favor.

Seconded. Roatan is a great dive destination for experienced and inexperienced alike. You will love it and odds are the weather will be favorable. If you survived the currents of Cozumel the waters of Roatan will be more than welcoming. My wife and I have been all over and decided after our first trip (just this June) that Roatan is now home base for our dive trips. An unsolicited suggestion: stick to the operators that run smaller skiffs for their boats. You are guaranteed a small group and more personal experience. Plus, nothing like a back-roll entry to get a dive started right!

---------- Post added June 28th, 2014 at 04:05 PM ----------

Do they do all of their surface intervals in the boat? I like the idea of going on land for that. I get woozy on the boat.

It will depend on where the first dive is in relation to the dock/resort. We stayed at Bananarama (highly recommended) and every SI was onshore. This wouldn't be the case everytime, but in West Bay there are so many dive spots just a hundred yards or so off shore that there is little need for alot of boat time.

 

[chillyinCanada]

I only recall one trip out of at least a hundred dives out of West End that didn't return to shoreduring the SI. This was because we went far up island to dive Dolphins den or cave orcsome name like that.

The reef is so close to shore that you barely have time to gear up before it's time to roll.

This convo is making me jones for the island again but I've made myself a promise to try two new destinations before returning.