Best place to stay?

[fastro]

Hi All. Just wanted to check for recommendations for a good place to stay on Roatan in October. I have read a lot of different threads on AKR, Coconut Tree and Fantasy Island. I had planned on AKR until I read some of the negative reviews and did a bit more price shopping. Is the extra cost worth it? I want a good place to stay but am priomarily concerned with getting numerous quality dives with a good dive shop. Any info would be great!

 

[CODMAN]

I you want to dive your brains out, the best choice in my oppinion would be Fantasy Island or Coco-view. The best places to get 3-4 boat dives daily plus unlimited shore diving on a wreck/reef. For getting lots of diving in, I believe these two are hard to beat! As far as cost goes, FI is quite a bit cheaper. I went in last october and had a blast. Only major complaint was the food, but I'm picky (good food is important to me). That and the tank filling/nitrox was a bit sloppy... I got 3 different boat dives a day, 1 night boat dive and did a drop off dive on the wreck (thank goodness for Nitrox 32! ).

All in all, the value was awesome and so was the diving (they have great deals for october). I'll let others tell you about Coco-view which although more expensive, does seem to be very nice!!!

Hope this helps!

 

[Doc]

The "best place to stay" might well not be the "best place to dive".

You can see common Caribbean diving on the West and North. The shallow breaking walls of the South are lush with the many varieties of soft and hard corals that Roatan is legendary for. It is there that the advanced divers find the microscopic delights. How to be advanced? Work on the buoyancy and go slowly. Follow a good DM. EAN is really not needed for a week on the South side, even at 4+ dives a day.

The rest is user specific.

CCV? Maximum bottom time- without a doubt... but still not enough to require the available EAN- not at the shallow depth profiles at this South side resort. Only real Roatan shore dive, wreck included. Dive Camp for adults.

FIBR? A great Southside place to take a non-diver... at least as good of a place as Roatan has. Quite adequate for a week of sunbathing and dining. They offer a lot of deals. Best and only beach at any dive resort.

AKR? Perfect for families. North & West side. Prices have gone up quite high. Unknown why.

CoCoNut tee? Not an AI in the classical sense, but they do have associated lodging in this well regarded operation that serves the West end.

 

[CODMAN]

R-man, I know it,s not really supposed to, but I've found that EANX really helps me, especially on consecutive dives. It might be psycho-somatic, but I feel much better after consecutive EAN32 or 36 dives, than with normal air. I was glad to have it, despite not neading it for the relatively shallow profiles we did during the week...

Just my 0.02$

 

[Doc]

I was glad to have it, despite not neading it for the relatively shallow profiles we did during the week...

I was making the distinction between needing it for a series of 3x a day on the North side where the profiles would be deeper. On the North, it would be a necessity for a gung-ho schedule. It would be hard to get the 5 a day that you might do easily on the South, but even with three North side dives- it might not be a bad idea. Just watch the 32%/110' depth limits!

EAN on the South side? With those profiles- most dives average 38-43 feet, max at 65fsw (occasional blip to 85)... if it feels good, do it!

 

[HowieDean]

You might give us a look - Inn of Last Resort - Located in the center of the marine reserve on the North West end of the island.....

There is a link at the bottom of the post.....

Feel free to PM me with any specific questions.............