Though I haven't attended any of the Surges nor Invasions, It seems to me that Dennis and Roxanne do a smashing job of organizing these trips to some great diving locations. They seem to have a sterling reputation on SB from the attendees. Perhaps this particular "adventure" doesn't suit you with it's "unknowns" in your opinion. If it's not for you that's understandable. But, some of your criticisms seem to be harsh. Given Dennis and Roxanne's reputation, they deserve the benefit of doubt, IMHO. And here is another review from TA.
A Diamond in the Ruff
I had the pleasure of visiting Sir Hakimi’s jewel of a resort with 4 dive buddies. We are all very experienced divers with many trips under our belts all over the world. We were a little anxious having read the few reviews posted for this “yet to be opened” resort. We were greeted at the airport and taken to the private marina to begin our 1.5 hour ride to the resort. The trip over was pleasant and when we arrived we were immediately surprised! The grounds were clean and everything was sparkling! The staff was very friendly. Naomi, at the reception office was polite and had our rooms ready. We were escorted to the main hotel building situated behind the enormous pool. Did I say enormous? OMG...its amazing in every detail. More about it later. Our rooms were super clean. The a/c was ice cold and the beds were super soft. After we all freshened up we headed to the bar where Oscar was waiting for us. He was super friendly and very attentive. Dinner is served daily at 7:00 in the main outdoor dining area. The dinning staff was also super friendly and attentive. The food was great and plentiful. The following day we met Cardinal, the dive manager, Max, the dive instructor, and Alberto, the captain (in training). They were eager to take us out for a couple of test dives to asses our abilities (and another couple there as well). Once everyone was comfortable with our abilities the dives became better and better and better and better! Over 6 days we dove 17 times and for me it was one of the very best diving experiences I have had in years. Every dive we saw sharks, Les, tons of fish, turtles, lobster, rays, and lots of little things too. Belize has adopted an aggressive approach to managing the Lion fish problem with hunting. We learned how to spear them and over the week we bagged well over 30. They made for tasty snacks after diving too! Both Max and Cardinal are very experienced divers. They shared their knowledge and experience with us on each dive. From knowing where the Toad fish was to the Elbow experiences in morning and afternoon, they know how to share the beauty of Belize. I took my rescue diver while there and really enjoyed the quality of the instruction from Max along with his patience and willingness to make sure I understood each and every skill I needed to learn to obtain the certificate.
The grounds are still being completed. There is a roof top disco, an inside fine dining room for 200! The main pool is simply enormous! They are putting the finishing touches on yet another pool complete with swim up bar!
The resort is still figuring some things out and it wasn’t 100% open yet. However, for the price it was worth it! It is an island so there are mosquitos and sand fleas. They do a great job of controlling those and they have plenty of spray. I would recommend taking DEET wipes and using them often. There is a 5,000’ runway. If you can afford it fly direct there! I will be back in April and am already looking forward to seeing my new friends and doing more of the best dives in the world!
Cheers,
