I realize this is a repost, but need Belize help

[shoelessone]

I realize that there are a good many threads out there about belize already, and you can trust that i've spent hours looking through them.

Still, I feel like I need specific help, and some specific advice.

My family (Mother, Father, 2 sisters and myself) will be heading to belize this summer, May 12-22nd. Anyway, for the first 4 days we'll be staying at Caves Branch, the last 6 days are still up in the air.

Which is why we NEED your help - I have gathered a good amount of information on the various forums/etc on the web, and have sort of decided:

1. Not much - mainly that we probabaly want to stay on Ambergris Caye

Ah!!! The issue is there are so many resorts! We would like to do the best diving possible, but we also want to stay in a relativly nice hotel. There are 5 of us however, and so cost is SOMEWHAT of an issue.

Part of me thinks we should stay at the Mayan Princess because they dive with Amigos del Mar, and my mother tells me that doing a package deal will save a LOT of money. At the same time, the reviews for Mayan Princess are not that spectacular - I'm a bit worried as they have no pool. Again, I'll be with my family, so no pool + no beach might = not such a great choice.

So, we are stumped. We dont want to just randomly pick a location because its cheap. but we also dont want to keep spinning out wheels.

We are looking for (in this order):
1. good diving
2. interesting environment
3. a pool, or some place for us "kids" to hang out
4. central location
5. we dont really care about food onsite, air conditioning, etc

If there is a combo hotel/dive shop that you can recommend (remember, there are 5 of us!), that would be awesome.

Sorry for ANOTHER thread - again, i have looked at many many resources out there, and just could really use some personaly opinions on our situation specifically!

 

[Dive-aholic]

We stayed at AquaMarina Suites and dove with Aqua Dives. They do have a package deal.

1. Diving off Ambergris Caye is pretty much the same. The boats go to the same sites. All the sites are within 20 minutes of all the docks.

2. Ambergris Caye is a small island. You can walk San Pedro, the main part of the town, in about 1 hour.

3. It has a pool.

4. It is not central, but Ambergris is a small island. San Pedro is even smaller.

5. They have a restaurant at pool side. Happy hour at the bar every night with free rum punch. Air conditioning, etc.

They have quad occupancy suites. Depending on the age of the sisters, I think you'll be able to get a 5th in them. They also have a kitchenette with stove and regridgerator.

Hope this helps.

 

[dman]

You might also consider Paradise Villas. They are one and two bedroom "condos" toward the north end of San Pedro. They have a full stove, fridge and dishwasher and a/c. Also have a pool for the kids. No bar on site but one right next door. Local supermarket is about 50 yards away and everything is within a 10 to 15 minute walk. The first 5 times we went we stayed there. Two dive shops are on either side of the resort, but no packages to my knowledge. The last time we stayed at the Mayan Princess, mainly because of the dive package. Didn't bring the kids so a pool was no big deal. Loved it, but it ain't a 5 star resort. I'd stay there again because its in the middle of town and the dive shop is right out front.

 

[dougvo]

I just got back from Belize a couple of weeks ago and stayed at Ramon's Village. My trip was paid for (finally!...being an instructor paid off) so I'm not sure about the expense. It's close to everything "downtown" as it's right at the southern end of the main drag. It has a pool and nice beach. Ramon's also has it's own dive operation...walk out your door and down to the dock and you're ready to go. I'll have a more thorough trip report soon, so feel free to contact me if you have more questions.

 

[MOUNTAIN MAN]

Just returned. I would suggest the Yacht Club. A little pricy but you can negotiate. Dive with Protech and if you want to dive the Blue Hole check with Amigos. I would avoid Aqua Divers. Good Luck

 

[HowDidIGetIntoThis?]

We stayed at the Blue Tang Inn, which is beside Paradise Villas, and would be very happy to go back. You can book a specific room through their website, so you will know in advance exactly what you are getting.

We had one morning of diving with Amigos del Mar, and they did a fine job. Most of our diving was with a much smaller operator - Ambergris Caye Diving - and this turned out to be considerably better. Very personalized service, excellent rental equipment, and very professional.

I recommend that you should care about having A/C, unless you come from a much hotter climate than I and are used to heat and humidity. We were glad to have it, even in December.

San Pedro is a delightful town. I can't praise it enough. Not a lot to do if you need to be entertained, but hanging out is an art in itself.

If you need very detailed advice I suggest you ping Chilly at rec.scuba or rec.scuba.locations newsgroups.

 

[Torontonian]

If you need very detailed advice I suggest you ping Chilly at rec.scuba or rec.scuba.locations newsgroups.

How do you get in re.scuba or rec.scuba.locations newsgroups?

Thanks.

 

[Owney]

I'm planning a trip there in April with a few buddies, although we're staying on the cheap.

Might want to check out;

http://www.ambergriscaye.com

they have a great breakdown of places to stay by price-range.

 

[Jeff88]

My wife and I have been to San Padro twice in the last year. Definatly look at http://www.ambergriscaye.com/ there is tons of good info on that site from hotels, dive ops, and restaruants. Don't be afraid to eat at the small hole in the wall places...we found they usually had the best food for the cheapest prices. Definatly make it to BC's beach bar around noon Sunday if your in town. Best BBQ in town..and ice cold belikins. We also dove with Chuck and Robbie @ http://www.ambergriscayediving.com ...very good outfit to do your local dives with. We used Amigos del Mar for our Turniff Trip. Look at my photo gallery for pic's from our trip. There are several decently nice hotel/condo's in San Padro with pool's for around $100-150/nt ...like the Tide's, Banana Beach, Aqua marina suite's. With a group that large you may even want to look into a rental house. We stayed at Casa Caracol (www.casacaracol.com) on our last trip with a group of 5 people. Have a great trip...I can't wait to go back again.

 

[Ecologic Divers]

for what it's worth i would stay at Xanadu or Paridise Villas both have a pool both are very nice.
Diving wise i would use ecologic divers, they are newer so all of there equipmnet is new. there boats are in great shape. the therr owners came from Protech to start this dive center. If you contact them i am sure the will work out a package for you.
they work with all the major hotels on the island so they can help you find the right place.
they only dive in small groups not like some of the other operators.
# 011.501.226.418 Suyapa
another dive center near Paradise villas is "Belize diving adventures"
small than Ecologic divers but very good.
other good resorts, Bananas, the Palm