Details? Ocotal <> Resort Divers <> Rocket Frog <> Costa Rica Diving?

[cephalopod2]

Despite several recent threads, I am not finding detail from anyone who has dove with these ops recently. I am looking at a solo 2 week trip to CR in March 2014. I have dove Cocos (as well as Malpelo and Galapagos) but never land-based CR. I was hoping to spend several days diving the Catalina Isl (I believe March is off season for Bats). I spent a week between Arenal and Monteverdi earlier so intend to focus primarily on diving this trip.

Ocotal
fisheater - I know you dove with them in July + are returning in 2014. Would you consider posting or PMing about your experience?
dolesorchard - Would love to hear what you've heard about them recently. I used to hear so much about this op - I know people who dove with them years ago - but they've fallen completely off the radar which has me worried something has changed.

Advantages: Dive + stay package is very reasonable. Divers still seem to go, suggesting it may have a 'dive resort' feel. I am traveling solo so was hoping to have other divers around.

Resort Divers:
Anyone dove with them recently? I'm concerned they may have fewer divers, i.e. fewer chances to dive Catalina and Bats.
Anyone got recommendations for a midrange hotel nearby? The Hilton is too spendy for me this trip and the hotel my friend stayed at has closed. The dive op hasn't answered my emails.

Rocket Frog:
fisheater and tasada - will you post or PM what you thought about your recent experience with them?
Couldn't find a good accommodation option with them either. I generally avoid AIs and didn't want a package with non-diving activities already structured in.

Costa Rican Diving:
dolesorchard I've been interested in diving Cano for years but a friend building a house in the area said he thought more than 3 days diving there would be too much. With the new flight to Drake Bay the travel time is no longer a deterrent. What do you think? Would 10 days diving there not have enough variety? What did you think of the diving there? Pics on the website suggest excellent vis (a plus for me) but not sure if vis is that good in March.

Many thanks for any info or suggestions,
c2

 

[fisheater]

PM'd my oh in number. Give me a call.


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[dolesorchard]

Costa Rica Diving is in Flamingo, not Drake Bay. We have done quite a bit of diving with Harald and it was all good. We have been there wanting to dive and had him say that it wouldn't be worth it due to terrible vis, rather than take us out just to get paid. He is a quietly funny guy. The diving at the Catalinas can be incredible. Flamingo is the closest approach to the Catalinas and all of the dives from Flamingo go there. Harald also told us he will go to the Bats, but we are farmers and cannot get there when the seas are calm enough.

Last year we were in Drake Bay and they have cut back to only five sites and I would agree that more than three days could be repetitive. We did three days and it was good, but there are all kinds of other cool things to do as well. The divemaster we dove with in Drake Bay said he used to work at El Ocotal resort and he said that they had been bought by new people and their pay was cut and they lost all of the good people they had. My wife got certified there in 2005 and her instructor, Sesinio, was outstanding, we dove with them about four years ago and it was noticeably different then and I have heard nothing good since.

 

[cephalopod2]

dolesorchard thanks very much for sharing your experience + for the name clarification. I had been looking at costraricadiving.net (website of CR Adventure Divers based in Drake Bay) and at costaricadiving.com (another dive op not mentioned), but I see now you were talking about Costa Rica Scuba Diving at Flamingo Beach Resort (totally different url). Their website bills them as a dive resort so I will definitely check them out.

Besides Catalina Islands, do any other dive sites stand out? I read an CR tourism article on Punta Gorda diving but am not sure if it's actually good.

Flamingo is further from Bats than Ocotal, but it may not be realistic to hope to see Bats in March in any case. I've dove with bulls in other locations, mostly I just wanted to see the Bats sites.

Anyone have suggestions for topside wildlife tours when diving is not recommended?

fisheater I will call you.

Thanks again,
c2

 

[dolesorchard]

The Costa Rica Diving we have dealt with is not a resort, it is a small dive operation on the road from Brasilito to Flamingo. This is their email barbaraharaldcostarica@yahoo.de. Harald takes small groups and does a nice job. His wife Barbara is a very unusual person. As I understand it, the Bats will not be available in March, only in summer.

There are lots of cool things to do on land. Rincon De La Vieja NP is cool for hiking, ziplines, white water rafting, horseback riding and a huge water slide. Within the park are Hacienda Guaichipelin with a short, but nice zipline with some interesting additions, a spa, hosreback riding and one of the cooler things we have done there, white water tubing. Buena Vista Lodge is also in the park and has a short zipline, spa and a huge water slide that has to be experienced to be believed. Palo Verde NP has a river trip to view wildlife that is very nice. This is not the best part of the country to see wildlife, but Palo Verde is the exception. Barra Honda NP has Caverns to explore. If you want to see wildlife the Osa takes the prize by far.If you go to Osa there are a lot of other options. The other place to see a lot of wildlife is the southern Caribbean coast, but more often than not you can't dive there due to zero visibility.

My wife and I have started a small business taking people on tours to CR and we have been all over the country. Don't hesitate to contact me directly with any questions you have.

 

[Steve the Baker]

I travel single often to dive this area. Stay in Playa del Coco. Toro Blanco is an inexpensive option. You can walk everywhere with in a mile. Beach is 1 block away and close to pick up dive boats. I use Rich Coast Diving and they have packages.The boat ride from town is an hour to Cat Island. Around that area the site I Love the most is Widow. Small Mount with Hundreds of King Angelfish and Butterfly fish follow you on the bottom during your whole dive. Closer to town Tortuga,Argentina has excellent macro critters and larger fish. I have posted trip reports in the past about this area. Enjoy your Trip

 

[jonnierowe]

Hey OP, I PMed you as well, but Rocket Frog Divers which is located in Playa Ocotal is a top notch operation. They don't have any accommodation options that they actually own or anything, but they do work with any of the local hotels, b and bs, etc to find you a good spot whatever your budget is..
As for the diving at Bats in March, they do offer it. It isnt very often that we manage to get a trip together that time of year because most people want to go see the Bulls, which are still seen occasionally, but not consistently. There are some other great spots at the Bat Islands that are just fantastic. Black Rock is my favourite site in the area with tons of marine life. Huge schools of fish, bigger than I have seen any where in the world, and huge schools of rays if you are lucky. I got crazy lucky on my first dive at Black Rock in February to see a school of several thousand devil rays gliding by. Hasnt happened to me again since, but the possibility is there.

Punta Gorda is just a local diving option when you dive with Rocket Frog. It is a great dive site if the visibility is good.

As for land based tours, TicoToursGuanacaste is awesome. They do all kinds of tours. Bernal is the owner and he regularly is out on the tours with his customers and does an incredible job. Volcanoes, riverboat tours, waterfall tours, dune buggy tours, whatever you are into, he will hook you up. Shoot me a PM or give me a call. I will PM you my number as well.