Blue Angel Resort review

[ReefHound]

No, they don't fill themselves. This is why you need to give them a few days heads up if you want Nitrox.

I swear everyone, if you saw this lady cracking all these valves and moving tanks all around every morning you would also say WTF? Reminds me of that animated movie of that squirrel looking for a acorn then trying to find some place to stash it (lol)

It does sound like she is going a little over the top however the way BA just sits dozens of tanks on a mat on the sidewalk, none of them with caps, with no indication of which are full or empty, does not inspire confidence. When I return tanks from a shore dive the guy just says to leave them at the back but maybe the guy is not there when a diver returns and leaves it in the front? They could at least have a different color mat with a sign 'Leave empty tanks on orange mat'

Anyway, it still sounds like her best solution would be to tip the BA guy to find her a well-filled tank and label it for her.

 

[Matt B]

No, they don't fill themselves. This is why you need to give them a few days heads up if you want Nitrox.

I swear everyone, if you saw this lady cracking all these valves and moving tanks all around every morning you would also say WTF? Reminds me of that animated movie of that squirrel looking for a acorn then trying to find some place to stash it (lol)

Funny, ya it cracks me up. Funny how many other folks noticed it as well. I guess she stays there often so the shop lets it fly. I have never got a short tank there before so I guess it's ok.

 

[ggunn]

It does sound like she is going a little over the top however the way BA just sits dozens of tanks on a mat on the sidewalk, none of them with caps, with no indication of which are full or empty, does not inspire confidence. When I return tanks from a shore dive the guy just says to leave them at the back but maybe the guy is not there when a diver returns and leaves it in the front? They could at least have a different color mat with a sign 'Leave empty tanks on orange mat'.

You can easily tell an empty tank from a full one just by bouncing them a little on the concrete. Full tanks ring with a markedly higher tone.

 

[Couv]

You can easily tell an empty tank from a full one just by bouncing them a little on the concrete. Full tanks ring with a markedly higher tone.

 

[gopbroek]

Neat trick, but I wouldn't try bouncing tanks on a boat deck. I don't think the owner would appreciate it.

 

[ggunn]

Neat trick, but I wouldn't try bouncing tanks on a boat deck. I don't think the owner would appreciate it.

It wouldn't work, anyway (the deck isn't hard enough) but if you want to select a tank for a shore dive you can do it on concrete.

 

[Butch Fries]

We were there last week (October 11 through 18) and I don't have much to add; the initial description is pretty accurate. TVs are being replaced with flat screen, although the only English news was HLN, which is pretty much tabloid. We were there for Hogtober, which means 2,000 Harleys riding up and down the Malecon until 3 a.m. every night, so it was loud; but the rooms are clean and spacious if fairly spartan, the restaurant and staff are outstanding, and the dive shop was very good; plus there's now a house kitty named Tavira that somehow can climb up to the fourth-floor balcony. No one has any idea how she gets there, but she's a sweetheart and well cared for. Electronics stay home when I travel so I can't speak about the wifi.

 

[ChrisM]

Cat is actually named Bagheera (after the panther in the Jungle Book), and yeah if you "accidentally" leave the door cracked open at night, you may get a visit We're cat people so we welcome her in. She'll also guard your dive gear.

OP's review is pretty spot on, we've been going for probably 7 years or so, we wouldn't want to stay anywhere else. Someone mentioned the water on every floor which is great. Rooms are functional (my only complaint is floors 2-4 get slippery when the concrete is wet).

Wi fi, meh. I like to stay connected too, but reception is really only good in the looby/restaraunt and the first row or so of rooms on that side. SO rarely in the room i haven't found it to be an issue. Just go to the hammock and surf away. We've been on every floor, last time we were on the ground floor for the first time. It's a little less private, but super convenient and nice having the lawn/pool just out the front door. Also, there is no traffic noise on that level (although you can sometimes hear staff in the hallway behind the bathroom)

Not flushing TP, been on enough boats and enough remote locations, not an issue. Traffic sounds, drowned out by the AC usually. TV, watch it maybe 2 times in a whole week.

Still have not tried the onsite dive op, and doubt I will. If you use someone else the shore tanks are $5, free if you dive with them.

Bonus fact (at least as of last nov and the last two times we've been), if you pay off the hotel tab and for us last 50% of room in cash, it's 10% off. That's a few margaritas and shore dives right there.

 

[Illini_Fan]

Thanks for the review. I'm heading to BA in Jan '18 for the first time in six years and it sounds like it is exactly the same as it was six years ago. That is both good and bad I guess. I'm glad that the core things I us BA for are still done well, but sad that they haven't fixed the wi-fi issue.

But like many others have said, I do work around it, but there really is no valid excuse for a hotel to not fix this.

 

[Hatul]

We just stayed there and concur with most of the opinions about Blue Angel. I’ll just add that what I liked about the dive operator is they had boats going out at 8am, 9am, 10am and 11 am which is really nice if you want to take your time to enjoy your breakfast or want to sleep in. The 8 am boat was the small fast boat that went to Punta Sur and the later boats typically were larger and slower, but more comfortable.

Also while I really like Blue Angel as a divers’ resort, we were there with a toddler and it’s not the best choice for such a child as the balconies are not child safe nor is the beach sandy with easy bottom for exploring by a child.