Just Booked Our Air Transportation - Headed to RTB next month

[grantwiscour]

When US Airways and American merged the FF programs recently my combined account total became enough for two tickets to RTB. It didn't take long for me to put together a trip. We got a direct flight in and are routing through MIA coming home.

We'll return to the same rental on Sandy Bay and do our diving with Octopus.

Now I start rounding up gear and counting the days.

Of course, trip report and photos/videos will follow.

 

[breckgirl5]

I will also be there in May with my hubby.. 16th - 23rd.. can't wait! Planned a trip for this same time last year and had to cancel due to a an illness in the family (my mom).. so we've been waiting for over a YEAR! We didn't have travel insurance, but United Airlines allowed us to reschedule with a note from my mom's doctor and EVEN BETTER, the CocoLoco hotel allowed us to defer our deposit. They were SO awesome to work with.. very sympathetic. I love them already.

Granwiscour: done much research on dive shops? I am starting to look for recos here.

 

[grantwiscour]

From what I gather most of the dive shops are top notch. We chose Octopus Dive School at Sandy Bay last year based on group size and location.
It was just my wife, me and our guide for all but one trip. Prices are very competitive across the island...main thing is getting with some folks that you like and are comfortable around. The West End is full of good ops. We prefer small groups with more advanced divers and the ability to dive our tank. Octopus even hooks me up with bigger tanks to keep my big 6'4" 250# body from making the dive short for others.

I came down with an ear infection last Wednesday and am trying to kick it out. On Cefdinir now after upgrading from Amoxicillin. I think it is about to be done...dang it's close though.

Doc generally has the best and most specific info about the dive ops. Doc seems to have used most of the dive ops on RTB and is a wealth of info. I have only used one so my views are skewed. Maybe he can give you some recs based on your lodging.

What type of diving do you prefer? What level of supervision do you need? What do you like to see? What is your experience and qualifications? Most of the dives are just a few minutes from the dock and most of the good stuff is in reasonably shallow water.

Enjoy the trip. Stop at the Petro in town and get some baleadas...cheap and tasty.

 

[breckgirl501]

Thanks for the reply! Can't wait to try the baleadas. Hubby and I will need some hand holding. ..we each have about 20 logged dives total, but haven't been diving since 2010. We have done Coz, Belize and 1 dive on Hawaii so far. We are doing PADI Reactivate right now (course only) and will probably want a private DM to ourselves the first dive until we feel comfortable. I tend to have trouble clearing, so I'm a slow descender...had a reverse block once in Coz so i am EXTREMELY cautious. I have been cleared to dive by an ENT (recently) ...I just have small eustachian tubes (or so i was once told)....so the air is slow to come out.

I love the sound of small groups as i hate holding people up.

I am very sorry you have an ear infection! I had many as a child so i can empathize. When is your trip?

 

[breckgirl5]

Oops.. apologies for posting as a different user above. I'm ust learning to use Tapatalk and it won't let me sign in with my regular user name for some reason... so I posted as a new user. I'm trying to get this fixed so I can post from my mobile phone.

 

[grantwiscour]

We'll be there this Saturday....wooohoooo! The diving is so easy and most or all the shops make it almost effortless for divers. There are a few purpose sunk ships and some interesting terrain @ 100' but most of the stuff you want to see is in the shallower water.

Your thoughts on a DM are right on. Hiring a private DM is always so much better. With the dives as cheap as they are on Roatan adding a DM doesn't hurt the budget at all. We like personalized service when it can happen. At home, we dive just us but on vacation I like someone to show me the best stuff so that I'm not looking at sand twenty feet from the cool things to see.

We don't like the cattle boats that we see so many places. That is fine for some folks...just not us. That's why we dive away from WE and WB.

Keep in mind that you can always change dive shops if you aren't comfortable or don't "click" with that op. Cash out, get your gear and move down the road. Most likely, you'll enjoy the staff and operation regardless who you go with on Roatan. The dive ops are all very highly regarded.

 

[breckgirl5]

Have fun!!! I can't wait!