Belize or Roatan/Utila

[reneezd]

Hello.
I have read so many articles and such on diving in Belize and Roatan that it is making my head hurt so I thought I would see what peeps who have been there say. If I have two weeks or a month, should I do Roatan and Utila or Belize Roatan and Utila? The diving is so pricy in Amergris Caye due to the time it takes to get to the dive spots, but i know once you get to the dive spot it is awesome.
The diving in Roatan/Utila supposedly doesn't have the sea life but has better corals?

Planning to go in June and if anyone else is a laid back traveler with time off and want to join me, let me know!

Renee

 

[DeputyDan]

What is your budget and do you want to do more than just dive.

Belize is a great location for a mix of diving and land based activities.
You don't have to stay on Amergris Caye - diving is probably better in the southern part of the country.

I have only stayed at COCO View on Roatan and if you only care about diving and can skip land based activities - COCO View is a good choice.

 

[georoc01]

You have lots of options, and without any budget its hard to know what exactly you are looking for. As far as distance to diving, Ambrigis Caye doesn't have to be a long distance, although the better diving is out on the Atolls, which are a long boat ride. Probably the best way to dive Belize is on a liveaboard. Belize also has many land based activities and if you wanted to split your time between diving one week and a week inland, its a great option for that.

Roatan has a mix of All Inclusive Resorts and ala carte dive shops. Which one is better depends on how much diving you want to do. Deputy Dan mentioned CocoView. Its one of the few places outside of a liveaboard where 5 dives a day can be done.

This year I am going back to Roatan, stay in the west end and take a class with Coconut Tree Divers. the B&B I am staying at is $400 and also includes free wifi.

Utila is a little harder to get to, and is smaller with similar options to Roatan.

 

[TBresortBelize]

The diving in Belize is great. From Ambergris Cayethere is a mix of local dives (5 mins on boat) to day long trips like Blue Hole or Turneffe.Or you could chose to stay out on one of the atolls. The diving is nice and easy with no strong currents and mostly lots of marine life to see.

Megan