My family of 4 and I did 11 days at Deep Blue over the Xmas Holiday. Here is the real scoop: The resort itself is very nice with a fantastic location if you want quiet and seclusion. You can get a boat ride into town almost any time and then get a taxi from the dock to the "town" itself. The rooms are basic but functional. There are some maintenance needs, but nothing out of the ordinary for a Central American location. The food is OK...sure it is a little repetitive, but you are not paying for a 5 star gourmet meal plan. The place has tons of potential and at one point in the past was probably fantastic.
But where Beep Blue really falls short is ironically is their dive operation....there isn't one. Steve was one of the owners and Shirley's son, who has moved back to Europe due to health issues. That leaves Shirley to try and run the entire place.....which is impossible. There were some questions about the Deep Blue Dive Boat (Wall Nut). That boat is on the dock with no engine and it looks like it has not been sea worthy in a very long time. Shirley contracts out to the Laguna Resort for its boat, captain , and dive masters. There is not a resident one of any of these people at the Deep Blue.
The tanks used by Deep Blue are very old and the ones we had were filled by Laguna as well. When we got them hooked up to BCD's in the morning they were all at 1500psi. Their rental gear is terrible and dangerous as well. My sons 2nd stage reg blew out at 70 feet....there was a hole in the diaphragm you could stick your finger through. I rented our DM's spare reg for the rest of our time there. Of the 5 BCD's rented by my kids and the Canadian crew that was with us, 3 did not hold air. There were also no wet suits to rent. So several divers went to town and bought one at a local dive shop.
Now with that all being said, if you have your own gear it does not really matter. But if you are looking to rent gear,,,,beware.
The Laguna dive crew, Captain Kerry and Josh the DM were 1st rate. We could not be happier with them. They try to help Shirley as much as they can. But the reality is that Shirley is stuck there with a huge operation that she physically can't run by herself. It is also quite evident that Shirley has a cash problem. We found out that her son Steve (not on location any more) gets all the booking money and sends his mom Shirley what ever he wants for her to run the operation.....which I can tell you isn't enough.
It is really sad because as I mentioned, this place has a ton of potential but a cash strapped, 78 year old, non diver just can't run a dive operation. So if you don't mind not having rental gear, or a resident dive master, or boat captain, this place is OK. IF you are a diver who can take care of yourself, this place is OK. What you need to find out before you go is: Who is the DM and what resort is he coming from. Who is the boat captain and what boat will he be driving. What type of rental gear is available from some where else...DO NOT rent equipment from Deep Blue!!!!!!! It is dangerous!!!!!
I really wanted to give this place a great review, but I just can't. As a stand alone resort it is OK. As a dive operation it has to get a grade of D+ at best.
