Dive Op Recommendations - West Bay

[Doc]

Hello again Doc,

I was reading another thread and saw your comment: 'In that category of Caribbean Dive destinations that are "even just fairly easy" to make the trip, Roatan is still in my top 3.
We would love to have more spots to check out.!

OT, but:
Tobago (Speyside), Eastern Bahamas (i.e. SanSal), Los Roques (VZ), more or less.

On Topic:

We are not expecting the DM to do anything out of the ordinary (i.e. just give a good dive briefing and occasionally check that everyone is doing okay). We have found that we enjoy diving in a smaller group.

Make your own group I myself prefer to lag behind and let any crowds point out where I'm going to look next.

Recently in Cozumel we had a couple of dives where we were continually being kicked, fins were hitting sand making visibility bad, coral was being damaged, and the worst of all, two divers using pointers as ski poles to drag themselves across the bottom.

It is all but universal, but I've found a lot less of this in Roatan. There is the Marine Park rule prohibiting gloves- amazing how many divers "require them for medical reasons". You'll easily find them grabbing the reef like an American Ninja contestant.

In Asia, the DMs use the stainless steel Reef Skewers (I'll be using your ski pole reference henceforth). I have, more than once, accidentally tossed several overboard. Whoops, totally by accident.

If you're being kicked, maybe don't follow so closey? I've noticed that will stop 95% of that getting flipped in the face deal.

I would rather pay a little more to go with a smaller group so I can relax and enjoy my dive.

I've heard that often. Let's say this- if you're really wanting that experience, most Roatan dives are moored. Just warn the DM and the Boatsman that you're going off exploring. Ask when they want you back. Not every dive op will let you "dive your tank", most ask you to be back in X minutes, they do have a schedule, some tighter than others.

For many, I recommend hiring a personal DM, it's pretty reasonable and there is simply no better way to see cool stuff.

 

[beluga2]

...
I was hoping to get a little more information than just this. My husband and I did our Discover Scuba with Banarama last year and while they were wonderful, we prefer a max of 6 people vs 8 to a group.
...

If you are in West Bay and like Banarama, just email them and ask if they can provide you with 6 max per group.

 

[Sneeg]

Thank you everyone for all the info. We ended up using Blue Planet Divers and were very happy with our choice. I just finished posting a new thread 'Dive Op Recommendations in West Bay - Blue Planet Divers' to help anyone else looking for info.

 

[Scuba_88]

Does anyone know if Luna Beach Resort is still open in Roatan? We went diving with those guys years ago and had a great experience.

 

[beluga2]

Does anyone know if Luna Beach Resort is still open in Roatan? We went diving with those guys years ago and had a great experience.

The dive shop at Luna Beach Resort is not operating right now.

 

[Scuba_88]

Do you know if the Resort is closed also or is it just the dive shop? Thanks for the info.

 

[beluga2]

The resort is closed too. There is a new owner so it may open anytime.