Sun Dancer II Belize
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lmorin
Contributor
Your request prompted me to finish the review I started back in June:
We spent the week of June 5-12, 2010, diving from the Peter Hughes liveaboard boat, Sundancer II. Overall, the trip was quite excellent.
The daily schedule was coffee delivered to quarters at 6:30 AM (cold breakfast available in the dining room at that time); hot breakfast, if desired, served at 7 AM; first dive at 8 AM and return about 9 AM; snack, if desired; second dive at 10:30 AM and return around 11:30 AM; lunch at noon; third dive at 1:30 PM and return around 2:30 PM; snack, if desired; fourth dive at 4 PM and return around 5 PM; sit down dinner served at 6 PM; night dive at 8 PM. The Thursday schedule did not include a night dive. On Friday AM, there was only a single, 7 AM for us, although we were told that ordinarily, two dives are done Friday AM.
Special Circumstances on our trip - Three unrelated events altered the normal procedures during our trip. First, one of the two propeller shafts had developed a bearing problem such that the bearing had become somewhat extruded from the hull. This was not dangerous, but prevented the boat from being properly maneuverable. Gradual turning was fine and speeds were normal, but routes requiring turning sharply this way and that were out. Thus, the first thing we were told during the introductory briefing about the boat was that we were not going to the Blue Hole because access required maneuverability that was not available. Simon, our captain, said that in his opinion as a diver, we should be happy.
The second event arose Thursday AM when the captain was told by management that there would be a complete ship safety inspection by Belize officials on Saturday. In order to accomplish everything necessary for the inspection, give the crew the necessary time off and prepare for the next week's trip, it was necessary to eliminate the second Friday AM dive and return to port a few hours earlier than normal.
The third event was the weather. Temperature and skies were perfect, but the wind was 20-25 mph from the east on Sunday and Monday. This prevented us from going to windward dive sites around Lighthouse Reef until Tuesday. Thus, diving was on the leeward side of Lighthouse Reef on Sunday and Monday, on the windward side of Lighthouse Reef on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and the final dive was on the leeward side of Turneffe Island Reef on Friday AM. Your dive plans may differ.
Our trip had 18 of 20 possible berths filled with divers.
Diving - Everybody had the option of diving every dive. Few opted to do all. My wife and I are in our early 60's. My wife did 19 and I did 22 dives. Personally, I felt more tired during the first couple of diving days than the last couple. My wife indulges herself in long reading sessions without night diving.
Our cabin was #9, furthest aft port-side. It was only 4 steps from our door to the dive deck and 6 more steps to our permanent gear station. We used the same tank all week. In our case, we were given green valve covers to indicate nitrox usage. Nitrox levels read 33-34% every measurement. Each side of the dive deck had its own meter and there was never any problem making a timely nitrox measurement. Nitrox cost about $170 for the week ($7.73/dive for me and $8.95/dive for my wife).
Generally, there were 5 possible dives per day, including a night dive. All the dives were guided, but each was informal. If you wanted to do your own thing, you could. The typical dive was a wall dive with the last 10-15 min spent under the boat in 35-50 ft of water. Visibility was about 100 ft+ every dive. Some of the dive sites were outstanding; among the best I have visited. Half Moon Wall was fantastic! We saw all sorts of fish ranging from a goby that had no common name when we photographed it (similar to the neon goby; now called the Caribbean neon goby) to several reef sharks and numerous spotted eagle rays. The overall fish abundance was not equal to some other dive areas (e.g., Florida Keys or Bonaire), but the variety was normal or better than normal. I was less enthusiastic about the night dives in terms of numbers and variety.
There was one phenomenon that we did not expect because we had never seen it mentioned. That was the side-to-side swing of the boat when moored at a site. This was rather alarming during the first dive. The mooring line was fairly long and as a result, the full excursion of the boat as the wind pushed it one way, then the other was an arc of hundreds of feet. In the middle of each swing, the boat was moving too fast to catch by swimming and, if missed, it would quickly disappear out of site in the distance. So, as unnerving as this was the first couple of times, we soon learned to just wait for the boat to return to us. Then, we'd latch on to the safety stop rail 15 ft below the surface and ride the side-to-side swoop for few minutes before exiting. This actually became fun, particularly when you fully realize that the boat does come back every couple of minutes.
On the return, most divers passed up their fins before climbing one of two ladders. The dive deck was always empty except for the DM and possibly a second diver returning simultaneously.
BCDs with regs remained attached to the tank and were never rinsed until after the last dive. There was a camera rinse station adjacent to each set (half) of divers and there was a suit rinse station for each side, also. Rinsed suits were hung directly opposite the divers' stations. There was ample under-seat space for fins, masks, etc.
There was a cameras-only table for each set of half the divers. There were levels below that for such things as dark glasses or eyeglasses. A series of nearby shelves had numerous 110AC current available. This was where battery charging occurred and we were told explicitly not to charge batteries in our rooms.
Food - Overall, B rating. Within each meal, things were variable. A few things were very good to excellent; nothing was ever bad. Each sit down dinner started with a bowl of soup. These were good to excellent. Salads were the weakest part of the meal, with too much utilization of iceberg lettuce, carrot shreds and hard, pale tomatoes. There were always two main course choices for dinner. My wife is allergic to crustaceans and shellfish. Someone else ate no fish or meat. Options were always available for them. The steak one evening was unexpectedly good; the fish was just okay, its flavor covered by sauce and a crust. Vegetables were okay, but uninspired. Desserts were generally good to excellent, the quality related, I suppose, to the combined fat and sugar content. Daytime snacks usually included brownies of some time. Generally quite good. Dry roasted peanuts and cookies (Oreos) were always available in big jars in the dining area. Red and white wine were served with dinner and beer was on tap 24 hr/day. Note that the captain's rule was, "If you drink, you do not dive." (We understand that some French divers thought this was backward and how could anyone eat a meal for dinner without wine?)
What we didn't particularly like - Note that these are truly minor quibbles. (1) Our room had a king size bed when a queen size would have been a much more appropriate fit into available space. (2) There was a compressor of some sort below our cabin. When it turned on (quite often) it would cause a deep rumble which was not a problem. However, it also caused a blower fan to run and rattle in a duct in the ceiling of the deck below. The rattle was higher pitched than the rumble and initially annoying. The annoyance faded to a low level rather rapidly, fortunately. (3) We are used to diving in the Florida Keys where every effort is made to get all divers off the boat as efficiently as possible. On the Sundancer II, there was no attempt to be efficient or have divers fully prepared to enter the water when they reached the dive platform. For 1 or 2 individuals, this made sense because they had to be handed down tank and BC and to don them when already in the water. A number of divers also returned to the dive deck after each entry to receive a camera handed from a DM.
The Crew - The crew was excellent and very easy to get along with. Simon, the Captain, was clearly working to create and maintain a well organized, congenial, capable and knowledgeable group to assist guests, run and maintain the boat.
We spent the week of June 5-12, 2010, diving from the Peter Hughes liveaboard boat, Sundancer II. Overall, the trip was quite excellent.
The daily schedule was coffee delivered to quarters at 6:30 AM (cold breakfast available in the dining room at that time); hot breakfast, if desired, served at 7 AM; first dive at 8 AM and return about 9 AM; snack, if desired; second dive at 10:30 AM and return around 11:30 AM; lunch at noon; third dive at 1:30 PM and return around 2:30 PM; snack, if desired; fourth dive at 4 PM and return around 5 PM; sit down dinner served at 6 PM; night dive at 8 PM. The Thursday schedule did not include a night dive. On Friday AM, there was only a single, 7 AM for us, although we were told that ordinarily, two dives are done Friday AM.
Special Circumstances on our trip - Three unrelated events altered the normal procedures during our trip. First, one of the two propeller shafts had developed a bearing problem such that the bearing had become somewhat extruded from the hull. This was not dangerous, but prevented the boat from being properly maneuverable. Gradual turning was fine and speeds were normal, but routes requiring turning sharply this way and that were out. Thus, the first thing we were told during the introductory briefing about the boat was that we were not going to the Blue Hole because access required maneuverability that was not available. Simon, our captain, said that in his opinion as a diver, we should be happy.
The second event arose Thursday AM when the captain was told by management that there would be a complete ship safety inspection by Belize officials on Saturday. In order to accomplish everything necessary for the inspection, give the crew the necessary time off and prepare for the next week's trip, it was necessary to eliminate the second Friday AM dive and return to port a few hours earlier than normal.
The third event was the weather. Temperature and skies were perfect, but the wind was 20-25 mph from the east on Sunday and Monday. This prevented us from going to windward dive sites around Lighthouse Reef until Tuesday. Thus, diving was on the leeward side of Lighthouse Reef on Sunday and Monday, on the windward side of Lighthouse Reef on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and the final dive was on the leeward side of Turneffe Island Reef on Friday AM. Your dive plans may differ.
Our trip had 18 of 20 possible berths filled with divers.
Diving - Everybody had the option of diving every dive. Few opted to do all. My wife and I are in our early 60's. My wife did 19 and I did 22 dives. Personally, I felt more tired during the first couple of diving days than the last couple. My wife indulges herself in long reading sessions without night diving.
Our cabin was #9, furthest aft port-side. It was only 4 steps from our door to the dive deck and 6 more steps to our permanent gear station. We used the same tank all week. In our case, we were given green valve covers to indicate nitrox usage. Nitrox levels read 33-34% every measurement. Each side of the dive deck had its own meter and there was never any problem making a timely nitrox measurement. Nitrox cost about $170 for the week ($7.73/dive for me and $8.95/dive for my wife).
Generally, there were 5 possible dives per day, including a night dive. All the dives were guided, but each was informal. If you wanted to do your own thing, you could. The typical dive was a wall dive with the last 10-15 min spent under the boat in 35-50 ft of water. Visibility was about 100 ft+ every dive. Some of the dive sites were outstanding; among the best I have visited. Half Moon Wall was fantastic! We saw all sorts of fish ranging from a goby that had no common name when we photographed it (similar to the neon goby; now called the Caribbean neon goby) to several reef sharks and numerous spotted eagle rays. The overall fish abundance was not equal to some other dive areas (e.g., Florida Keys or Bonaire), but the variety was normal or better than normal. I was less enthusiastic about the night dives in terms of numbers and variety.
There was one phenomenon that we did not expect because we had never seen it mentioned. That was the side-to-side swing of the boat when moored at a site. This was rather alarming during the first dive. The mooring line was fairly long and as a result, the full excursion of the boat as the wind pushed it one way, then the other was an arc of hundreds of feet. In the middle of each swing, the boat was moving too fast to catch by swimming and, if missed, it would quickly disappear out of site in the distance. So, as unnerving as this was the first couple of times, we soon learned to just wait for the boat to return to us. Then, we'd latch on to the safety stop rail 15 ft below the surface and ride the side-to-side swoop for few minutes before exiting. This actually became fun, particularly when you fully realize that the boat does come back every couple of minutes.
On the return, most divers passed up their fins before climbing one of two ladders. The dive deck was always empty except for the DM and possibly a second diver returning simultaneously.
BCDs with regs remained attached to the tank and were never rinsed until after the last dive. There was a camera rinse station adjacent to each set (half) of divers and there was a suit rinse station for each side, also. Rinsed suits were hung directly opposite the divers' stations. There was ample under-seat space for fins, masks, etc.
There was a cameras-only table for each set of half the divers. There were levels below that for such things as dark glasses or eyeglasses. A series of nearby shelves had numerous 110AC current available. This was where battery charging occurred and we were told explicitly not to charge batteries in our rooms.
Food - Overall, B rating. Within each meal, things were variable. A few things were very good to excellent; nothing was ever bad. Each sit down dinner started with a bowl of soup. These were good to excellent. Salads were the weakest part of the meal, with too much utilization of iceberg lettuce, carrot shreds and hard, pale tomatoes. There were always two main course choices for dinner. My wife is allergic to crustaceans and shellfish. Someone else ate no fish or meat. Options were always available for them. The steak one evening was unexpectedly good; the fish was just okay, its flavor covered by sauce and a crust. Vegetables were okay, but uninspired. Desserts were generally good to excellent, the quality related, I suppose, to the combined fat and sugar content. Daytime snacks usually included brownies of some time. Generally quite good. Dry roasted peanuts and cookies (Oreos) were always available in big jars in the dining area. Red and white wine were served with dinner and beer was on tap 24 hr/day. Note that the captain's rule was, "If you drink, you do not dive." (We understand that some French divers thought this was backward and how could anyone eat a meal for dinner without wine?)
What we didn't particularly like - Note that these are truly minor quibbles. (1) Our room had a king size bed when a queen size would have been a much more appropriate fit into available space. (2) There was a compressor of some sort below our cabin. When it turned on (quite often) it would cause a deep rumble which was not a problem. However, it also caused a blower fan to run and rattle in a duct in the ceiling of the deck below. The rattle was higher pitched than the rumble and initially annoying. The annoyance faded to a low level rather rapidly, fortunately. (3) We are used to diving in the Florida Keys where every effort is made to get all divers off the boat as efficiently as possible. On the Sundancer II, there was no attempt to be efficient or have divers fully prepared to enter the water when they reached the dive platform. For 1 or 2 individuals, this made sense because they had to be handed down tank and BC and to don them when already in the water. A number of divers also returned to the dive deck after each entry to receive a camera handed from a DM.
The Crew - The crew was excellent and very easy to get along with. Simon, the Captain, was clearly working to create and maintain a well organized, congenial, capable and knowledgeable group to assist guests, run and maintain the boat.
BrianOrange
Contributor
Book now. You will love it. A wrote a very detailed trip report in early July about my trip on the Sun Dancer which was in mid-June. Great diving, very nice boat, clean, lots of good food, relaxing. You will love the trip. Really cannot say anything bad at all.
BrianOrange
Contributor
In short, an absolutely fantastic trip. Great diving, great people, great boat, great weather and great relaxation. So better late than never, he goes my stab at a trip report. I read EVERY single thread/post on Belize diving and the Sun Dancer before my trip so this is my way of "giving back" to the next person looking for some more information.
Departure Day/Belize Arrival
I flew Continental out of Newark, connecting in Houston, to Belize City. I actually had a direct (!) flight from Newark to Belize City when I first booked the trip but Continental discontinued that route in January. I left Newark day of (Saturday) at 5:30 AM and honestly, for the entire trip, this is the only time anything went sort of awry. Long story short is that the Continental gate agent told me my carry on bag was too large and I would have to check it. Now this bag has all my equipment. And when I say "all" I mean it. It had everything. I had a tight connection in Houston and we were leaving port later that day in Belize City. If my bag somehow was lost and got to me any other day besides Saturday, I would have no equipment for the week. I thought the agent would take the bag and that would be hit. Instead she tagged it and told me to bring it down the runway and leave it right outside the door. So I did that ... expect I took it on board with me anyway. Take that gate agent! And of course it fit in the overhead compartment (even vertically) not to mention the flight was half empty. Flew into Houston on time and I think we got there even a few minutes early.
I had a tight connection in Houston (less than an hour) but lucked out when my arriving flight and flight to Belize City were assigned to the same gate. Great luck there. No running or anything. Chilled for about 40 minutes and boarded the plane to Belize. Oh and no issues with anyone bothering me about the size of my bag this time. Got to Belize City with no issues and on time. Arrival in Belize City I had a little trouble finding the Peter Hughes rep but eventually located him. I waited for about a half hour while another boat passenger came in. We then got in the van and headed over to the Radisson. As promised by Peter Hughes, we were given a cold drink and towel for the ride over. At the Radisson a few of us hung by the pool while we were ready to board the boat.
Arrival on the boat
We boarded the boat around 4 pm, maybe earlier. First thing we did was find our room and put our stuff away. A little bit later we set up our equipment on the dive deck. There's a quick orientation in the salon where you meet the crew, then it's dinner and bed.
Dive Deck
Fantastic. You pick your spot and set up. Underneath your area is a plastic basket to put anything you'd like (cameras, mask, etc). Dive deck is on the same deck as all the rooms. Talk about an easy walk. There were two hot showers, big rinse buckets, anti fog spray, they even asked if you wanted some minty spray on your reg. You really get to know the people you are set up around. I really liked that.
The Diving
Just outstanding. Now I am a very new diver -- more on this later -- but I can't imagine many better places to dive.
Water -- 84 degrees. Never got chilled all week in a long sleeve 3mm shorty.
Current -- None
Viz -- 100+ feet on practically all dives. It did seem it would lessen in our late afternoon dives. Not sure why. But still great all week.
Depths -- Average depth was probably 60-70 feet as you followed the wall. I would get down to about 75 to 80 feet for a few moments but pop back up. Just as easily you could spend your time around the boat in 15-30 feet of water. You pick. Great for any type of diver or just picking what type of dive you wanted to do that day.
You spend Sunday-Thursday diving Lighthouse Reef/Half Moon Caye/Long Caye and then move to Turneffe for the final 2 dives as it's on the way back to port. Usually it's just you and the Aggressor boat at the sites, once in a while you'd see a day boat.
Dive sites, in order, were Long Caye Ridge (2 dives here), Julie's Jungle (3), Lighthouse Wall (2). East Cut (3), Tarpon Cave (2), Painted Wall (3), Blue Hole (1), Half Moon Caye Wall (3), Chain Wall (2), Quebrada (2) and Amberhead (2).
Each dive was basically the same. Drop in, usually swim over some nice coral gardens, find the wall, follow the wall, swim back over the gardens, hang on the safety bar (LOVED the safety bar as it was quite fun) and then ascend.
Some favorite sites:
Lighthouse Wall -- ascending up a sandy hill to some grass flats, beautiful sun shining through. Perfect.
Tarpon Cave -- many cave/canyon swim throughs that lead to wall. Lots of "cuts" and "ridges". Tons of fish under boat in and around huge coral heads.
Painted Wall -- This was a freakin' aquarium. Chubs, Sgt. Majors everywhere. They get literally right on top of you or close to it.
Half Moon Caye Wall -- lots of caves, swim throughs. Swim throughs start at wall and take you to sandy area up top. Very cool.
Chain Wall -- wins the award for best site for sightings. In a 5 minute period we saw a shark, Eagle Ray and turtle cruising along the wall.
Notables seen throughout the week were barracudas, lots of sting rays, a few Eagle Rays, grouper, garden eels, tarpon, lionfish on about 5 dives. Only saw one shark (reef shark) and it was pretty far away. Was kind of dissapointed by this. One turtle sighting. One moray eel. A few other spotted eels.
25 dives were offered. 5 dives each day expect for the Blue Hole Day (2 afternoon and a night dive after the BH dive) and Friday (2 dawn/morning dives before return to port). Dives were at approximately 8:15 am, 10:30 am, 1:45pm, 4:15 pm and 7:40 pm.
Always felt safe. DM's were on every dive and you could follow or go on your own. They were great all-around. Always seemed that no matter what you decided we'd all be diving in a big group in the end. DMs were on the platform to grab all your equipment every time as you came up.
Other Boat Stuff
Food was great and plentiful. Post dive snacks and always lots of beverages around to stay hydrated. Nice, working, cool AC everywhere. No issues with water in the shower. Felt like you were at a land based resort. Boat was very clean, modern. Again no issues with anything along those lines.
Summary
Just an unbelievable trip. I can't think of a bad thing to say if I tried. Crew was fantastic and friendly, as were other crew mates. I signed up for this trip as a single traveler with very, very few dives under my belt. I never felt restricted, people would help me with stuff, answer my newbie questions. If anyone else is a newbie, it's true. Go on a liveaboard and you'll be better off. Do not hesitate to try it.
Departure Day/Belize Arrival
I flew Continental out of Newark, connecting in Houston, to Belize City. I actually had a direct (!) flight from Newark to Belize City when I first booked the trip but Continental discontinued that route in January. I left Newark day of (Saturday) at 5:30 AM and honestly, for the entire trip, this is the only time anything went sort of awry. Long story short is that the Continental gate agent told me my carry on bag was too large and I would have to check it. Now this bag has all my equipment. And when I say "all" I mean it. It had everything. I had a tight connection in Houston and we were leaving port later that day in Belize City. If my bag somehow was lost and got to me any other day besides Saturday, I would have no equipment for the week. I thought the agent would take the bag and that would be hit. Instead she tagged it and told me to bring it down the runway and leave it right outside the door. So I did that ... expect I took it on board with me anyway. Take that gate agent! And of course it fit in the overhead compartment (even vertically) not to mention the flight was half empty. Flew into Houston on time and I think we got there even a few minutes early.
I had a tight connection in Houston (less than an hour) but lucked out when my arriving flight and flight to Belize City were assigned to the same gate. Great luck there. No running or anything. Chilled for about 40 minutes and boarded the plane to Belize. Oh and no issues with anyone bothering me about the size of my bag this time. Got to Belize City with no issues and on time. Arrival in Belize City I had a little trouble finding the Peter Hughes rep but eventually located him. I waited for about a half hour while another boat passenger came in. We then got in the van and headed over to the Radisson. As promised by Peter Hughes, we were given a cold drink and towel for the ride over. At the Radisson a few of us hung by the pool while we were ready to board the boat.
Arrival on the boat
We boarded the boat around 4 pm, maybe earlier. First thing we did was find our room and put our stuff away. A little bit later we set up our equipment on the dive deck. There's a quick orientation in the salon where you meet the crew, then it's dinner and bed.
Dive Deck
Fantastic. You pick your spot and set up. Underneath your area is a plastic basket to put anything you'd like (cameras, mask, etc). Dive deck is on the same deck as all the rooms. Talk about an easy walk. There were two hot showers, big rinse buckets, anti fog spray, they even asked if you wanted some minty spray on your reg. You really get to know the people you are set up around. I really liked that.
The Diving
Just outstanding. Now I am a very new diver -- more on this later -- but I can't imagine many better places to dive.
Water -- 84 degrees. Never got chilled all week in a long sleeve 3mm shorty.
Current -- None
Viz -- 100+ feet on practically all dives. It did seem it would lessen in our late afternoon dives. Not sure why. But still great all week.
Depths -- Average depth was probably 60-70 feet as you followed the wall. I would get down to about 75 to 80 feet for a few moments but pop back up. Just as easily you could spend your time around the boat in 15-30 feet of water. You pick. Great for any type of diver or just picking what type of dive you wanted to do that day.
You spend Sunday-Thursday diving Lighthouse Reef/Half Moon Caye/Long Caye and then move to Turneffe for the final 2 dives as it's on the way back to port. Usually it's just you and the Aggressor boat at the sites, once in a while you'd see a day boat.
Dive sites, in order, were Long Caye Ridge (2 dives here), Julie's Jungle (3), Lighthouse Wall (2). East Cut (3), Tarpon Cave (2), Painted Wall (3), Blue Hole (1), Half Moon Caye Wall (3), Chain Wall (2), Quebrada (2) and Amberhead (2).
Each dive was basically the same. Drop in, usually swim over some nice coral gardens, find the wall, follow the wall, swim back over the gardens, hang on the safety bar (LOVED the safety bar as it was quite fun) and then ascend.
Some favorite sites:
Lighthouse Wall -- ascending up a sandy hill to some grass flats, beautiful sun shining through. Perfect.
Tarpon Cave -- many cave/canyon swim throughs that lead to wall. Lots of "cuts" and "ridges". Tons of fish under boat in and around huge coral heads.
Painted Wall -- This was a freakin' aquarium. Chubs, Sgt. Majors everywhere. They get literally right on top of you or close to it.
Half Moon Caye Wall -- lots of caves, swim throughs. Swim throughs start at wall and take you to sandy area up top. Very cool.
Chain Wall -- wins the award for best site for sightings. In a 5 minute period we saw a shark, Eagle Ray and turtle cruising along the wall.
Notables seen throughout the week were barracudas, lots of sting rays, a few Eagle Rays, grouper, garden eels, tarpon, lionfish on about 5 dives. Only saw one shark (reef shark) and it was pretty far away. Was kind of dissapointed by this. One turtle sighting. One moray eel. A few other spotted eels.
25 dives were offered. 5 dives each day expect for the Blue Hole Day (2 afternoon and a night dive after the BH dive) and Friday (2 dawn/morning dives before return to port). Dives were at approximately 8:15 am, 10:30 am, 1:45pm, 4:15 pm and 7:40 pm.
Always felt safe. DM's were on every dive and you could follow or go on your own. They were great all-around. Always seemed that no matter what you decided we'd all be diving in a big group in the end. DMs were on the platform to grab all your equipment every time as you came up.
Other Boat Stuff
Food was great and plentiful. Post dive snacks and always lots of beverages around to stay hydrated. Nice, working, cool AC everywhere. No issues with water in the shower. Felt like you were at a land based resort. Boat was very clean, modern. Again no issues with anything along those lines.
Summary
Just an unbelievable trip. I can't think of a bad thing to say if I tried. Crew was fantastic and friendly, as were other crew mates. I signed up for this trip as a single traveler with very, very few dives under my belt. I never felt restricted, people would help me with stuff, answer my newbie questions. If anyone else is a newbie, it's true. Go on a liveaboard and you'll be better off. Do not hesitate to try it.
divengolf
Contributor
You put your camera in a plastic basket??? Didn't they have a dedicated camera table? Maybe you're talking about the little P&S cameras. Even still, I'd want it to be on a camera table.
lmorin
Contributor
There was indeed a dedicated camera area. One on each side of the dive deck, each serving half the divers. We were strongly admonished not to put anything but optical equipment in that space. Nevertheless, as Brian said, there was a basket under the seat at each diver's station. If you wanted to put your camera in there, you could, although why anyone would, I don't know. There was also a large camera rinse tank (many gallons) next to each camera table. The Captain, Simon, is himself a photographer and he is very protective of everyone's camera gear. Someone with a very expensive rig had a major problem with a lens and Simon spent a lot of time and effort fixing it.
I should add this about the Aggressor Belize--the exact timing of its schedule was a bit different from outs, but for the most part, it was visible about 1/4-1/2 mi away at almost every dive location.
I didn't bother replying to the post. It's pretty much a no brainer dedicated camera bins are provided on ANY dive boat be it a live aboard or a day tripper.
Again, to Imorin and BrianOrange, I much appreciate your posts.
I'll probally be calling within the next few days to book.
Last edited:
Doubler
Contributor
I usually dive the Aggressor boat in Belize but you can't go wrong with either. The Sun Dancer is bigger. I have found that it is much easier to go in the day before and stay at the Radisson. Both the Aggressor and the Sun Dancer berth at the Radisson pier. If your gear is delayed by the airline this gives you a day to get it to the hotel.
We also book a room on the way out. On the trips I have been on, the Aggressor shuts down the AC units when tied up. This is because the bottom is shallow and the pumps get plugged when trash is sucked up. Quite relaxing and easy, Leave the boat on Friday when the boat comes in, check into your room, meet the folks for cocktails and dinner and then avoid the morning "Get off the boat rush" Most flights out, at least for me are at 1000 and 1300, so you have a place to hang besides the departure lounge. Trust me it is worth it. Have a great trip! When are you going?
We also book a room on the way out. On the trips I have been on, the Aggressor shuts down the AC units when tied up. This is because the bottom is shallow and the pumps get plugged when trash is sucked up. Quite relaxing and easy, Leave the boat on Friday when the boat comes in, check into your room, meet the folks for cocktails and dinner and then avoid the morning "Get off the boat rush" Most flights out, at least for me are at 1000 and 1300, so you have a place to hang besides the departure lounge. Trust me it is worth it. Have a great trip! When are you going?
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