Recommendations for 2 island Caribbean Dive + Resort Trip?

[BrettSeattle]

Hello friends and thanks once again for all of your insights, stories, and opinions! Having a qualified crowd chime in for suggestions, pros and cons was very helpful in our search.

We chose Curacao from the recommendations here and will be staying at the Coral Estate Villas (awaiting confirmation). We decided to do a long visit on one island, instead of two, due to some of the excellent intel on this thread, including challenges on flying between two islands even if they are close by (that was such a valuable insight that could have cost us a day just in travel).

After the trip, I'll drop back and provide a trip report - but fair warning it won't be as detailed as @drrich2 's incredible reports (good grief, there is a ton of valuable details in your reports and so appreciative of them!).

 

[DiveProKoko]

We chose Curacao

There ya go! I'm 100% sure you'll love it! Have fun!

 

[BrettSeattle]

OK, now for the fun part that this crowd are experts on. What are the must-do dives for Curacao for us fairly-experienced divers (Advanced Open Water + Enriched Air)? We both love drift dives, big walls, big and small critters, ecology/environmental learning, sharks, octopus, wrecks.

And any recommendations on snorkel trips with the wives or cruises or operators? (boutique/special is better than "jam packed on a booze cruise")

 

[BrettSeattle]

TRIP REPORT:

Hello all, I promised to circle back and share our experiences of Curacao. First off, sincere thanks for this community for your recommendations. Curacao fit our needs and wants perfectly! We look forward to going back someday. Here are some takeaways:

• Unique scuba diving (90% shore) with plenty of room to explore the whole island. Very typical Caribbean Sea life but we did run into some unique friendly green morays, an occasional turtle, and various degrees of healthy coral
• Beautiful beaches and water. Our wives really enjoyed the amenities at the beaches and even though most of them required a paid entry fee, it was nominal and they quickly became accustomed to being able to order fish tacos and tropical drinks from the attached restaurant/bar
• Clarity of the water was consistently great and the natural beauty was delightful. That turquoise blue is the stuff long memories are made of!
• Willemstad is a great town to explore and with 2 half-day excursions, we have only scratched the surface. The locals come out (and the businesses open up) when cruise ships are in port, else the town is very sleepy. As a photographer, there were some excellent opportunities with all of the vibrant colors.
• 1 Island was great for an 8 night, 9 day trip. We are glad (after suggestions from this group) not to tack on another island, like Aruba. Curacao had everything we needed.
• We hit Blue Bay, Playa Kalki, Cas Abao, and our local Karakter Beach. Loved having a dive shop at each of those to rent gear from, especially Coral Divers - we got set up by Liz, got our card with our info, and simply grabbed a full tank whenever we wanted to go out. Loved that flexibility.
• Did an incredible dive at Watamula, which is truly a natural wonder. Tiny little boat trip (could barely gear up before we were there!). Also became evident why Curacao is primarily a shore diving island - serious swells and all the best reefs are right offshore. But we look forward to going back to explore more.
• Great food all around at the beaches, in local restaurants and especially in town. Several large grocery stores were available and we only ate out a few times. Worst food we had was in the airports, no surprise there!
• Coral Estates was an excellent recommendation for lodging - perfect for what we were looking for. Loved waking up to the sunrise to the East, and from the same seat, watching the sunset in the West. Loved having our own pool and outdoor dining room table. Excellent customer service in arrangements with Joy and team there - had a rental car waiting for us at the house.

We all went through the post-vacation blues when we landed in Seattle and it was 39 degrees and raining. Something all of the Dutch, Canadian, and Midwest dive friends can relate to!

Some videos from the trip:

Watamula Dive Trip - Curacao - GoWest Diving

Cas Abao Beach (Drone + Snorkel)

Cas Abao Scuba - Shore Dive

Blue Bay - Aerials, Splashing, and Scuba

Marty the Moray - Booping Noses

Safe and happy diving to all!

 

[ChrisKR]

I have a great recommendation for you all looking for a gem in the Caribbean. The Camp Bay Lodge is a beautiful boutique hotel right on the beach in Roatan Honduras. The hotel has a laid back atmosphere with a tasty onsite restaurant & bar. It is specilized in watersport activites, mainly Diving & Kiteboarding but also Fly Fishing, Deep sea fishing, speed boat excursions, Kayaks, Stand up Paddle boards are all readily available. Stunning dive sites are nearby (Dolphin's Den, Morat Wall, Pigeon Cay). Roatan has an international airport (RTB) and you can easily fly in directly from Houston, Dallas, Miami, Atlanta, Newark, Minnesotta. Roatan Hotel | Kite Surf Honduras Hotel | Camp Bay Roatan

 

[BrettSeattle]

I have a great recommendation for you all looking for a gem in the Caribbean. The Camp Bay Lodge is a beautiful boutique hotel right on the beach in Roatan Honduras. The hotel has a laid back atmosphere with a tasty onsite restaurant & bar. It is specilized in watersport activites, mainly Diving & Kiteboarding but also Fly Fishing, Deep sea fishing, speed boat excursions, Kayaks, Stand up Paddle boards are all readily available. Stunning dive sites are nearby (Dolphin's Den, Morat Wall, Pigeon Cay). Roatan has an international airport (RTB) and you can easily fly in directly from Houston, Dallas, Miami, Atlanta, Newark, Minnesotta. Roatan Hotel | Kite Surf Honduras Hotel | Camp Bay RoatanView attachment 864727View attachment 864728

Thanks!