Lodging recommendations in Roatan, Utila & Belize

[mihrl]

My husband and I will be going to Roatan, Utila and Belize during early March to mid-April. We plan to spend 1 or 2 weeks at each place. Travel agents have recommended CoCo View Resort or Fantasy Island Beach Resort in Roatan, Utila Lodge or Mango Inn in Utila, and Blackbird Cay Resort in Belize.

We prefer air conditioning, smaller resorts, relaxed diving, smaller groups on boats, good food. The accomodations don't have to be luxurious, but they need to be clean and comfortable. No hard beds, thank you. I know sand fleas are a problem in this area (I have many scars from past trips), but some areas are worse than others. Shore diving is a definite plus.

The December issue of "Scuba Diving" magazine had a reader poll that mentioned that the food is the weakest part of the CoCo View's operation. Less than 80% said they would stay there again. 100% of readers who responded said they would stay at Fantasy Island again. However, Fantasy Island is a much larger resort, and, if I understand it correctly, the best shore diving is in front of CoCo View, which is a long swim from Fantasy Island.

Any recommendations anyone?

 

[drbill]

I leave for Belize and Honduras next week and will be there (probably offshore Belize but possibly Utila or Roatan) until the end of the first week in March. I'm doing the backpacker style accommodations, etc., so my plans probably wouldn't work for the two of you.

Dr. Bill

 

[coberry7]

I was in Roatan in October. I do not reccomend Bay Islands Beach Resort at all. Coco View has an outstanding setup for diving and the place looked very comfortable. (Spent a day there.) I did not eat their food. Fantasy Island is across a boat channel from Coco and is a good swim, but not far. Watch out for dive boats, though. Anthony's Key looked cool, but I would spend my money at Coco before going to Anthony's.

Hope this helps!

Colin Berry

 

[Cudabait]

MIHRL,

Others on this board can probably give you some real time info on Coco View and F.I. CV is quiet,with reputed excellent shore diving. FI is probably a little more upscale. CV had a problem with a local dairy product supplier (as did others) The problem has been correcrted.

Utila does not have much shore diving. There are three all-inclusive operations on Utila: Deep Blue Resort, Utila Lodge and Laguna Beach Resort.

Utila Lodge is located in the village itself and as such is witihin walking distance of everything on the island. Both Deep Blur Resort and Laguna Beach Resort havesome beach and shore diving. Utila Lodge does not have shore diving. All three have several boats. Deep Blue Divers is the newest and may be the most pricey. WAVES2222@aol,COM. Laguna Beach Resort And Deep Blue Resort are accessible only by boat, therefore trips to town will have to be made on their boats.

There are 11 separate dive operations on Utila. All provide walk in dive packages which are very reasonable.

I have only dived Ambergris Cay in Belize. It has been some years ago. We stayed at Victoria House and found it to be great.

And yes, as you already have indicated, take some DEET.

Regards,

 

[parrotheaddiver]

We usually stay at Coco View. They have rooms with a/c or Cabanas over the water that have louvred slats you can open for a nice breeze. It can get a bit breezy so we usually opt for a/c. The resort is very nice and is geared for divers no night life so to speak but the best shore diving 24/7 no one else can compete. The Prince Albert is sunk right out front and there are 2 nice walls to dive on plus the boat dives of course. The food is ok served buffett style. I havent stayed at the other resorts in a long time but when I did food was just so so, but I'm not there to eat just dive food just keeps me going. :burgereat

 

[cxg31s]

but since you specifically mentioned Fantasy Island, I thought I'd chime in. I stayed at FI last Jan/Feb and I'm one of the 100% that would stay there again. It is a little more upscale than the other resorts mentioned--just keep in mind, this IS the tropics so upscale there doesn't mean American standard 5-star. All rooms have AC and a fridge--BIG bonus!

Food is a big concern for me as I eat ALL the time, so I was happy to find out that the food at FI was actually very good, especially for an all-inclusive. All meals were buffet style with lots of choices and every meal had made-to-order stuff from the grill (breakfast--omelets, dinner--fajitas, etc). Fresh fruit, soup and breads were always available, the desserts were to die for, and they had homemade ice cream available at lunch and dinner that was just awesome. And don't miss Friday nights--they have lobster/shrimp night with grilled lobster tails and HUGE shrimp, and even better desserts than the rest of the week. The best part about eating at FI was availability--their meal hours were very liberal, allowing at least 3-4 hours for every meal. Most of the other resorts offer about 1.5 hours for a meal, so if you miss them, you're S.O.L.

There is 24 hour shore diving available at FI--same sites as CocoView. As someone else said, it's a little bit of a swim, but it's not bad at all and there's quite a bit to see on the way out. We also got 3 boat dives a day to 3 different sites, plus we had unlimited shore diving. You just let the dive shop know and they leave the tanks at the gazebo--if you go before they close, they'll run you over there in the skiff--very convenient!

I stayed on Ambergris Caye in Belize--no shore diving there, and the local reefs are only so-so, but the best diving I had was the Turneffe day trip I took.

I hope this helped a little, at least in regard to FI. Let me know if you have any ??!

 

[mihrl]

Your suggestions have been very helpful. We'll be at Blackbird Cay in Belize for a week, then a week each at CoCo View and Fantasy Island in Roatan, and then a week each at Utila Lodge and Mango Inn in Utila. Decided to "sample" the resorts. Thanks for all your suggestions!

 

[Doc]

---then a week each at CoCo View and Fantasy Island in Roatan, and then a week each at Utila Lodge and Mango Inn in Utila. Decided to "sample" the resorts. Thanks for all your suggestions!

A week at both FIBR and CCV? Hot damn, be sure to post your observations!

 

[zana]

I love Roatan and the diving and have been there many times. I really do like staying in the West End though. Some really good restaurants and can walk everywhere you need too. Last time I was there I dove with Tyll's dive shop they were great. The best part is they didn't pack the boat like sardines. The people there are all very personable and after a day of diving we always hung out drank a few beers and learned about the island gossip. I know many of you really like the package deal but its not for me I love to explore when I'm on a vacation and dont like being tied into eating at 1 place for my entire trip.

 

[Lin]

That sounds alot like us, we are going diving eng of July beg Aug. Looking at Roatan and Utila. Any places you recommed in Roatan. It dosen't have to be cheap. We are taking our 18 yr old son so or course we want good diving, but also fun places to eat, see and maybe some nightlife. Have you been to Utila. My husband says I should now research Utila Lodge. Have you been there?