In the Caribbean, if you have a c card, you're diving.
Roatan is not known for its non-diving spouse (NDS) diversions. With a quick search here or the impending responses, you will hear of what is available. On a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of Caribbean island NDS options, I would give Roatan a 2.5. As for shopping, they'll have to cab over to West End or Coxen Hole or the nearby Mahogany Bay, but I would give that an overall 3.5, largely featuring Guatemalan imports. Not much to buy on Roatan. Here's an interesting thread:
http://www.websitetoolbox.com/mb/ccv?forum=25272
FIBR is a great place to go for diving, and for a Roatan AI resort, it offers the most/best NDS options. It has a nice beach, occasionally a pool,
and any other Roatan island diversion (nature tour, jungle canopy slide, horseback riding. mangrove tour)
is going to require a cab ride from wherever you stay.
So, while you have them work on a regulator, you're going to rent one.
The older regs get and when you get
farther away from brands/models that are worldwide standards, o-rings are still pretty easy- it's the valve seats and diaphragms that get hard to locate. Across the channel at CoCoView's Dockside Dive Center, you will find almost any part you need. FIBR often sends gear over for repair or gets needed parts there. I would make all efforts to have this done back home.
As far as resorts, FIBR is as good a deal as it gets. The fact is, AI (all inclusive) resorts really make sense on Roatan (in terms of money) if you want more than 2.4 dives per day. Less than that, guest houses with ala-carte dive ops make more sense financially but still lage behind in terms of time/activity budgeting. It all depends on what you wanted....
I will speak in terms of a
dive vacation,
not a vacation with some diving. When I sit in an airplane long enough to get to paradise, I am there for diving. I can drink in noisy bars back home, I can swim in pools, get a suntan on the sand, and go shopping back in Chicago. I came to dive, not shop for groceries, cook dinner, or walk more than 100 feet to flop into the water. I speak from that perspective.
With two NDS in tow, you might want to look at the guest house ala carte options in the West End-
if you are willing to give up some diving time.
If momma aint happy, aint no one happy. If they are in need of
shopping diversions,
what little there is would be a short walk from anyplace in the West End.
FIBR (pictured below left) is a workable option if they have a lesser need for diversions.
You may do well to
here, this specific topic is pretty well been beaten to death many times.
