Best Dive Shops near Sandy Bay or West End?

[mwmerrill]

My wife and I are avid snorkelers, but have decided to get certified and start diving. We just started the PADI eLearning and signed up to do our pool classes in a couple weeks at a local dive shop in MN.

We have a trip planned for mid-March to stay at a house on Sandy Bay. We hope to do our Open Water dives through a small, personal, thorough PADI dive shop on Roatan near Sandy Bay or West End.

We hope to schedule ASAP in the week, so we can take advantage of our time in the water diving. Any referrals would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Mark

 

[georoc01]

I'd look into Coconut Tree Divers, but they aren't a small shop. But they have a solid group of instructors that teach everything from Open Water through instructor as well as tech. My gf and I both took different classes with them and were very impressed. They are at the entrance to the West End.

 

[jrankney1]

I would echo Georc01's comment. Coconut tree is-simply put-one of the best dive operations period. Gaynor and PJ run a friendly, safe, and fun shop where there is always something going on. I did my AOW with them and have been back twice since. This summer my wife and I are going to be there for six weeks doing technical courses with Monty-one of the great instructors there. While Coconut Tree isn't "small" they are personal and you never feel like you're in a crowd. From the helpful DM interns to Carl-who captains the boat you really are taken care of in a special way. Go for it and tell them that J.R. will see them in June! Good luck with whatever shop you choose!

 

[godive19]

Again. I concur with the above posts. I have been diving with them for 10 years. My son brought a friend of his last year that did his pool and class in minnesota as well and they took great care of him. I will be back there in 5 weeks.

 

[tejasdiver]

I used Coconut Tree for my first trip to Roatan last year. They are great. Nice boats, Carl is a great captain, and George was our DM all week, who was also great.
They also gave our group a discount for having are own gear.

 

[mcgosler]

I dove with Atlantic Sea Divers last year and I'm going back to them this year. They are a small and very personal operation. They're having a bit of grief with their website designer, so that doesn't look so good. They have a facebook presence and have solid reviews on trip advisor.

 

[mwmerrill]

I have exchanged emails with PJ from Coconut Tree Divers. He said that they have many instructors that will get us trained promptly so we can get out diving with them. Can anyone tell me what dive site is in front of their shop? I'm trying to get a feel for the distance from our place of stay on Sandy Bay.

West End Divers was another shop that was recommended to me in another forum. Has anyone had any experiences (good or bad) with them? They, too, are very accommodating to get us trained ASAP. Gary was willing to answer all my newbie questions and offer me good advice.

Thanks for the feedback,
Mark

 

[godive19]

Coconut Tree divers is on half moon bay. Sandy Bay is a big area. Where are you staying?

 

[mwmerrill]

We are staying at Spooky Channel Beach Villa. On Google Earth, it looks like it's near the former BIBR. (We were originally going to Roatan to relax, snorkel and hangout.) Now that we decided to get PADI Certified and dive, it's changed a bunch...

I've seen many positive reviews of Atlantic Sea Divers, as well. But I feel that the overwhelming reviews for Coconut Tree Divers, here and on TripAdvisor, make them the winners!

Of all the dive sites that are listed on CTD's website, how do they choose between the 27+ Open Water sites when they do fun dives?

Any advice, that anyone can offer a couple newbies taking their OW training, is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Mark

 

[jrankney1]

Mark,
I did my AOW with Coconut Tree several years ago and they are superb. Most dive sites for open water training and AOW training are a short boat ride away. (20 minutes max) For training they usually take OW divers to a site right off Half moon bay which is a sandy patch 40 meters diameter about 10 meters deep which is great for training purposes.
Having 50 + dives with CTD, they really mix it up when it comes to dive sites. The morning dives are generally AOW dives (deep) with the second tank of the morning being shallower (o.k. for OW). The afternoon dives are always OW dives-shallow and fun. Yes, there is repetition in sites but hey, the scenery is always changing! New critters every day!
One final comment- Coconut tree is stellar when it comes to safety. They never cut corners in this regard, and I always felt secure and well taken care of. You really can't find a classier operation than PJ and Gaynor!
Go for it! You won't be sorry!