San Padro Trip

[SStrecker]

I booked my in-country Tropic Air flights, yesterday, via their online reservation system. This is a small part of a long trip. Transportation & accomodation have been fully arranged. How risky is it to wait one or more days, before actually booking a night dive and a Blue Hole dive excursion, for the 29th & 30th of this month, with a local dive operator? It seems strange that I would delay but I think I have good reasons. However, I am concerned about it being their busy season. Please advise.

 

[South4Scuba]

I can only speak from my experience in Belize. We dove with Amigos Del Mar both times. A quality dive operation I might add. Remember, San Pedro, Ambergris Caye is a very laid back place. Belize me, chillin' is the order of the day.

They usually don't confirm a Blue Hole trip until early in the week of the trip. It is very expensive for them to run an all day trip like that so they wait until they have at least 10 to 12 divers confirmed. Go ahead and contact your dive operator via email if you can and tell them you want to be confirmed for a Blue Hole and night trip. Another point of interest is that the dive operators sometimes combine trips to make one economical. Again, if you get the chance to do Blue Hole with Amigos Del Mar you will be pleased.

Do the Blue Hole on your last dive day!! They throw quite a rum punch party on the way home. I will spare you the details, but it was a fun trip!!

Night dives are much less formal than Blue Hole trips. They are a short run out to the reef cut and run any time there are a few divers wanting to go. If you haven't done a night dive in Belize it's nothing to write home about. Our experience was very shallow water and "extreme" currents near the cut in the reef. I do my night diving in Cozumel where you can fly a wall at night.

Enjoy your diving,
South 4 Scuba
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[CFL]

I think you may have had bad luck with your night dive or dove somewhere other than Hol Chan. After four to five night dives there, I don't think I've ever seen more marine life so densely packed in one area.

Looks like my pix from my last night dive there are too big to post, but we saw tarpons, huge morays being cleaned by banded shrimp, a sea turtle with a shell at least five feet long, carribean king crabs, slipper lobsters, scores of stingrays, squid, groupers hunting other fish. I could go on, but the list seems nearly endless.

I would never pass up a night dive at Hol Chan if I were in Belize. In fact, I hope to go again in February.

Otherwise, I think we agree, diving in Belize is great. The coral formations do not compare to Cozumel and many other places, but they're not bad and the marine life is without comparison to Cozumel.

Cary

 

[South4Scuba]

CFL,

You are probably correct about us having one bad experience on our night dive. The divemaster grossly underestimated the current. We had a PADI Master Instructor get lost and nearly run out of air. I spent most of my time anchored to the bottom with my dive knife.

We'll do another night dive if the conditions are good for it.


S4S

 

[joecad]

I'm traveling to Belize (Ambergris Caye) in February with my wife and son. It sounds like you've spent quite a bit of time there. What would you consider to be the best or most overrated dive sites? Good/ bad restaurants? Bars?

 

[Pamdiv]

How safe and reliable was Tropic Air, for the flight to Ambergris Cay? (I saw their terminal shack in background of your first photo.) Considering price, convenience, safety and reliability; would you recommend going by Tropic Air or by boat from the harbor? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

Tropic Air is a great small airline. When we went to Ambregis Caye in July '02, I had a horrible experience with TACA air. Tropic Air (who was not involved in the problem at all) helped us sort out the problem with TACA - totally beyond any required service. They were wonderful.

 

[South4Scuba]

joecad,

This information assumes you will be staying near town. If you are on the far north end there are just a few restaurants and I understand they are all pretty good.

Most of the night life in San Pedro is along the two or three main streets and the beach. We like Fido's (pronounced Fee-do's). It's an open air bar/restaurant with a band sometimes. There is also a casino that's open sometimes.

Restaurants are really divided into lunch type and dinner type:
Lunch - Blue Water Grill (fish and chips and more . . . great view), Lily's (stewed chicken and rice . . . a local favorite). Walk into most any cafe . . . they're all pretty good.
Dinner - Fido's (light dinner, burger/fries, booz), Elvi's Kitchen is not to be missed (various food and a great atmosphere), Caliente (mostly mexican food . . . good), Blue Water Grill is an excellent choice for dinner. Again, there are many good restaurants along the beach and in town.

As far as dive sites, here is a list of some good ones:
Boca Chica, Pillar Canyon, Tackle Box Canyon, Victoria Cavern and the Blue Hole. If you get a chance, take the all day trip to Half Moon Caye, Lighthouse Reef and the Blue Hole. The price seems high, but it is well worth it for the adventure. Lunch is provided and it is a fun day of diving.

Hope you have a good trip and remember that part of the fun of San Pedro is wandering around and exploring.

Look up http://ambergriscaye.com for more information on everything.

S4S
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