Dive op at Banyan Bay?

[sks700]

Can anyone tell me the name of the dive operator on the pier at the Villas at Banyan Bay? Are they independent or is it just a booking service?

Thanks!
Rob

 

[peterbj7]

It's called Bottom Time, and they're one of the longest established dive ops here. They have two locations, at Banyan Bay and in the centre of town (on a dock). There is an ownership connection between the dive op and the hotel, though as the hotel is now in receivership that link may be more tenuous than previously.

 

[sks700]

Peterbj7,

Thanks for the reply. I should have looked a bit closer at some of the other postings. Does Bottomtime have a good reputation? We'll be at Banyan Bay, so it would be very convenient.
Thanks!
Rob

 

[diverrex]

Stayed at Banyan Bay twice, really liked it. But we didn't use the dive shop. We walked to Ramone's each morning. We enjoyed the walk along the water each morning and left our gear in Ramone's lockers, actually it turned out to be very convenient. The boats came back to the dock between dives. Ramone's was probably a more fun place to be between dives. Banyan Bay is great to stay at because they have such nice units, a great pool and one of the best sand beaches in AC, but it and its restaurant, Ricos, are a little staid and boring. And after the morning dives at Ramone's we were close to town to get a bite of lunch at Tackle Box or Fido's.

 

[diverrex]

It's called Bottom Time, and they're one of the longest established dive ops here. They have two locations, at Banyan Bay and in the centre of town (on a dock). There is an ownership connection between the dive op and the hotel, though as the hotel is now in receivership that link may be more tenuous than previously.

What's the story on the receivership?

 

[peterbj7]

Bottom Time has a good low-key reputation. You rarely hear much about it. One of their best and longest serving DMs left a year or so ago and is now an instructor with his own dive center in town.

I don't know any detail about the receivership. Belize Bank were owed a lot of money in connection with BB and at around the start of this year took over running it. I believe all normal hotel-type operations are continuing unchanged, although it seems that trade in condo ownership has temporarily ceased. None of this affects guests considering coming to Banyan Bay and it remains an attractive place to stay.

 

[Debnlyn]

We have a time share at Banyan Bay and are VERY concerned about the situation. We did not use their dive shop instead have used Ecologic Divers 2 years running...best dive op we have ever worked with!