Diving in Belize in early July?

[abloodworth]

Speaking of TIR, they're having a 20% sale right now.

Yep, it's looking like we'll be doing Turneffe Island Resort with the 20% off from July 12 (full moon!) - July 19th. I kinda wanted to do Turneffe Flats or Blackbird as they always do 3 dives a day and there are a couple of days TIR only does two, but they didn't have the right availability. Fred3798 if you have any advice for us, let me know! Will we see you there? I am now wondering if they do night dives at all.

We'll be at TIR for a week and stay one night on Saturday I guess somewhere near the airport so we can do a few land-based activities. Any recommendations on that? TIR is recommending the Radisson Fort George.

 

[Downing]

Nothing wrong with the Radisson, but I prefer The Great House right across the street. With only 12 rooms, it's much smaller than the Rad and has a colonial third world feel to it. No pool, though, and no elevator. The rooms are on the second and third floor. The Smoky Mermaid restaurant in what would be the side yard is in a lovely tropical garden setting. Stick to the basics on the food if you eat there.

Land stuff: there's cave tubing (a blast), zip lining (not so much unless you enjoy defying death), the Zoo (very cool even though it's a zoo), all very close to each other and about 45 minutes from the airport. There's also Altun-Ha, about 30 minutes from the airport in the other direction. Doesn't sound like you'll have enough time to do Lamanai.

TIR does night dives on Thursday night.

Last time I was there, you could buy a couple of extra dives so ask about that when you arrive.

 

[fred3798]

Lots of Scubaboarders at TIR this month. But none of us overlap. Mike is there now. I go on Saturday; so I'll miss you Ablooodworth. The only advice we have is to pack 1/2 of the clothes you normally would pack. The resort is small and casual. If you are not diving, then you are lying around reading or listening to your music. Meal times are very casual. Shorts and a T-shirt is fine. Food is served family style but is plentiful and has a nice home-cooked character. The family sharing encourages friendliness. The rooms are beautiful; the outdoor showers are fun; the beach is calm and pretty. You will give them your diving gear once and not deal with it again until you are ready to go home. So it does not really matter if you have the closest room or the furthest. Nothing is far and its not as if you are carrying anything back and forth. One thing that surprised us was that the boat trip from Belize City to the atoll was a bit wavy. I enjoyed a bumpy ride, but if anyone on your trip is prone to seasickness, there is a real risk of a tough ride. The boat is big and safe. But when we were there last the waves were seriously high. Once you are within the atoll the islands provide protection from the waves so that the dive trips in the smaller dive boats were not an issue.

I will be spending the day at the Radisson. It looks okay. But I would defer to Downing on that one. Finally, when you do the Blue Hole, get ready for the diving at Half Moon Caye. The Blue Hole is cool but it was not that big a deal for us. Half Moon Caye is fantastic. It was the best reef we have ever dived (dove??). The life, large and small was abundant. We didn't have to move. I was just hovering in place conserving air watching an incredible show of marine life swimming by. Sharks (reef, black tip and nearby nurses), rays (eagle and sting rays), different turtles, eels, big groupers, barracudas, school after school of brightly coloured fish of all types. All in the setting of a lush, abundant and unspoiled reef. My wife and I are so looking forward to it.

 

[abloodworth]

Wow, sounds amazing Fred!! I'm so sad to say my husband wasn't able to get off work so our perfectly planned trip was scrapped and I'm headed to Oahu to spend some time with a friend. We're diving with the highly recommended (on Scubaboard & elsewhere) Kaimana Divers (Scuba Diving Oahu with Kaimana Divers | Dive Oahu, Honolulu, Waikiki) on Thursday so hopefully I'll be able to console myself somewhat!! But the trip to Belize and TIR is definitely the next one for us, maybe this winter. Thank you also Downing for all your great advice and recommendations!!

 

[Downing]

I spent two weeks diving Oahu a couple of years ago--we had a great house sitting deal--and dived with Gabe Scotti, who was just getting Kaimana Divers off the ground. Great guy. Great guide. We had a blast diving all over the island, but the best was the North Shore. That's where the surfing competitions are held in the winter but in the summer the ocean was like glass with an abundance of aquatic life.

Have fun!