Trip Report-LONG-Ambergris Caye, Sunbreeze Hotel, Ambergris Divers, Blue Hole, Food

[chillyinCanada]

Yes, same place. I think it's Ambergris Divers' shop now.

 

[Jayfarmlaw]

We stayed at Sunbreeze in Feb 2015 and used the on site shop but it was named something else then....somebody's name as I recall. Did it change hands?

This was the view from the dive shop. Same place?
View attachment 461148

No idea about changing hands but Same place, no chairs. Ramon's is a resort and dive op a few hotels down.

Jay

 

[lthomas132]

We stayed at Sunbreeze in Feb 2015 and used the on site shop but it was named something else then....somebody's name as I recall. Did it change hands?

This was the view from the dive shop. Same place?
View attachment 461148

It was Hugh Parkeys. They opened for a while there but their base was Belize City. A British couple ran the shop in San Pedro. Dove with them a couple of times then they pulled out.

 

[Saltyhawg]

That was it! The head DM was named Isreal. Good guy, never forget him picking up algae off the bottom to clean his mask during dives. Haven't seen that since.

 

[lthomas132]

We were hesitant when we saw their huge cattle-boat type dive boat but they assured us that there would only be 4 of us diving with 1 DM. Turned out that they had 6-8 newbie certs. with an instructor on board. It was rough outside the reef & half the kids getting certified got sick before getting in! Kind of a fiasco so next trip we went back to using Ramon's. They were gone by then. They're still in Belize City I believe.

 

[scubahawk27]

Lol, I don't have a condo there but certainly hope to retire in the area in a few more years. I do go to Placencia a lot and love it there. My dream property in Hopkins was for sale last year, but I couldn't get my wife to see past the house that was on it that we would knock down. I would recommend Coco Plum as a good spot to check out for a condo. Right on the beach and fairly secluded. Guarded entrance. They also have property for sale on the lagoon side across the highway but as of last year no one had started building. I know there are condos in Maya Beach, but I don't know anything them. And maybe check out the village of Hopkins, which is just to the north of Placencia. Lots of condos there.

As far as diving, you certainly don't have to go north. Depending on where you stay in Placencia, like Roberts Grove or Turtle Inn, you may have an in-house dive op. I always use Splash Dive Center. It's the largest dive operator in southern Belize, but there are several other independent dive shops to choose from as well. Because it's the largest, Splash would give you the most options because they have the most boats as well as the nicest dive shop I've ever seen. It's here where I like to stick in the usual disclaimer, especially if Katz is around, that I've become very good friends with Ralph and Patty, the owner/operators of Splash. If you dive with them, you'll become friends, too. They're great people.

Expect warmer temperatures but not as many fish as the action-packed water around Maui. And the turtles will be smaller. And instead of volcanic boulders and formations you'll see reefs. Although the diving around Maui and the rest of Hawaii is pretty great, I prefer Placencia for a more Third World relaxed atmosphere, warmer water and reef biology.

If you're into jungle trekking at all, Placencia and Hopkins are both great jumping off points to do that sort of stuff.

I'll be in Placencia for three weeks starting June 1st, diving the first and third weeks and jungle trekking in the middle. If you're there during that time and dive with Splash, we're sure to bump into each other. If you dive with someone else, we may still see each other at lunch on one of the cayes.

Wow thanks for the great info. Our trip is set for July 12th-19th but we may end up there so we will probably bump into each other some day.

 

[nodakdive]

Oh, exceeding the max depth for nitrox is no big deal. On single tank recreational scuba diving there has never, ever been one cited instance of an 02 hit on Nitrox, regardless of the blend or the P02 levels obtained during the dive. The whole thing is completely overrated. I set my dive computer for 1.6 which is the max and have no issues going past it.

On the chance that you're not joking Norrm, it sounds like you didn't understand what happened. The gas on his back when he did the dive was air. His computer was set for nitrox, 32% as he stated. So, when he went below 112 feet, his computer set off the alarm to alert him that he'd gone beyond the max operating depth for 32% nitrox. Since he was diving air, not nitrox, the alarm was not an issue.

Nice report Jayfarmlaw.