Can't decide where to dive in Belize!

[drbill]

When I was in Belize, I was working as a marine biologist/underwater videographer for a Lindblad eco-cruise ship. We were able to stop almost anywhere along our route to dive. A number of dives were on Lighthouse Reef and Long Caye. After that I spent two weeks on Caye Caulker, but we couldn't get out past the reef due to strong winds. Depending on where you've dived before (I prefer Asia and the South Pacific), I'm sure you'll enjoy your experience in Belize.

 

[GStew]

I must add... Amigos Del Mar is terrible in my opinion (sorry Helen!). They are a very dangerous operation. As an instructor, I was just shocked at what I saw and what I experienced this week. Blatant disregard for basic dive safety standards. They've been expelled by PADI, and now I totally see why. It's just a matter of time before someone is very seriously injured or loses their life. Try EcoDivers or Ramon's.

 

[chillyinCanada]

I've been diving with Amigos del Mar for 20 years. And have lots of other operations experience to compare them against. I'm not a fan of Ramon's. Also, it should be noted that the previous poster has never made a post before on this board and first post is a negative.
My other recommendations for dive ops in San Pedro are Island Divers, Chuck and Robbie's and Reef Adventures

 

[Edward3c]

When I’ve used Amigos del Mar I found them competent.

 

[lthomas132]

Pretty sure that Amigo Del Mar's expulsion from PADI was more about the attack of a DM on a client who was immediately fired. Read: Troubling incident in San Pedro

 

[mcohen1021]

We were on the Amigos boat to blue hole in 2012. While I do like how safety oriented they were, they were also a bit over the top. I was on the surface, getting ready to get out of the water when one of their DMs ripped my fin off one of my feet… I immediately went into panic mode as I thought I’d lost it. I did not appreciate that at all.

 

[Downing]

Lol. That's just something the dive guides like to do, take your fins off for you when you're ready to come up the ladder. From their perspective, it's probably a bit of a safety issue since some divers could struggle with it. At least at Splash, they only offer to do it so you know it's coming.

But I've never cared for it. Something kind of creepy and a little demeaning about messing with my feet. So I always tell them no thanks, I'll do it myself. And they let me opt out with no problem. It helps that I have spring straps so the fins are pretty easy to pop off.

 

[Trailboss123]

I've been diving with Amigos del Mar for 20 years. And have lots of other operations experience to compare them against. I'm not a fan of Ramon's. Also, it should be noted that the previous poster has never made a post before on this board and first post is a negative.
My other recommendations for dive ops in San Pedro are Island Divers, Chuck and Robbie's and Reef Adventures

@chillyinCanada - I am not sure how the fact that someone who has never posted before on the board validates or invalidates their experience, posting or opinion? Which is what you seem to be implying. Everybody has to start someday and make their first post. My guess is that something causes or stimulates most of us to make that initial post. You have clearly had a different experience with Amigos del Mar and were correct to post about your own longstanding experience with them in order to bring another perspective to the OP or future prospective readers of this post. However, implying that the credibility of another person might want to be called into question due to their activity or lack thereof on this forum is probably not a good practice. I wouldn't have even noticed or taken the time to respond, except for the fact that I am going to Belize in a couple months and have been monitoring this post for any relevant info and then happened to notice the post from @GStew today and recognized her as someone that I have become acquainted with over the last year and have been on many dives with here in the Channel Islands and consider her to be a credible and safety conscious person. It might help if she were to be more specific about the concerns and experiences that caused her to take the risk of posting here.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Trailboss, it is very common around here to look askance at a first post that's negative. It's good that you can vouch for the poster.

 

[Trailboss123]

Trailboss, it is very common around here to look askance at a first post that's negative. It's good that you can vouch for the poster.

All good and understood!