Utila April 2nd -11th 2010

[keesmon]

I am finally making it over to Utila!
Flying into to San Pedro on the red eye from NY, busing to La Ceiba and taking the ferry over. On the return, We are flying from La Ceiba over SAP and SAN back to JFK. $262.00!
A few Questions:
1. Arriving at SAP at 6.35AM. It should be no problem to make the late ferry to Utila correct?
2. With a 9.35AM departure from La Ceiba on the 11th, can we make it leaving on the first ferry that morning, or do we need to overnight in La Ceiba the night before? Budget recommendation for La Ceiba?
3. Dive operators. Any operators with less of an emphasis on teaching, and more on established divers? Walking distance from town would be good. Can my gear stay there for the week?

Thanks in advance.

 

[GoProHonduras]

I am finally making it over to Utila!
Flying into to San Pedro on the red eye from NY, busing to La Ceiba and taking the ferry over. On the return, We are flying from La Ceiba over SAP and SAN back to JFK. $262.00!
A few Questions:
1. Arriving at SAP at 6.35AM. It should be no problem to make the late ferry to Utila correct?

The ferry leaves La Ceiba at 9.30am and 4pm most days. You should be able to get a connecting flight from SAP to LCE at 8-8.30am, that gets you to La Ceiba at 9am, then 20 minutes by taxi to the ferry terminal, it is tight but doable. If you don't make the ferry, then you could always charter Celine with his Cessna for about $200, and he carries 3 passengers, or wait till the 4pm ferry. For the latest on the SAP-LCE leg I'd e-mail Frank Morgan who is the booking agent on Utila, and his e-mail is utilamorganstravel@yahoo.com (as listed on aboututila.com).

2. With a 9.35AM departure from La Ceiba on the 11th, can we make it leaving on the first ferry that morning, or do we need to overnight in La Ceiba the night before? Budget recommendation for La Ceiba?

The ferry leaves most days at 6.20am and arrives in La Ceiba at 7.20am, so that is highly likely. The only caveat would be weather conditions but shouldn't be an issue at that time of year.

3. Dive operators. Any operators with less of an emphasis on teaching, and more on established divers? Walking distance from town would be good. Can my gear stay there for the week?

Most operators in the town focus on teaching, though some of the more established operators have several boats, and dedicate at least 1 to certified/experienced divers, and dive Northside daily, with extended bottom times. There is storage at most operators.

You can do a search on this board for recommended operators, or your own research, and an impartial website Utila Official Site - Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras - Tropical Island Paradise has a listing of the dive operators in Utila.


Thanks in advance.

Enjoy!
Andy

 

[Robertcrockett]

A few Questions:
1. Arriving at SAP at 6.35AM. It should be no problem to make the late ferry to Utila correct?

I dont see an issue with the bus getting u to LC in time to catch the late ferry but contact Morgan's Travel located in Utila. U can get an inexpensive (about 75.00 US, I recall) direct flight to Utila from San Pedro Sula and it takes about 30 minutes.

2. With a 9.35AM departure from La Ceiba on the 11th, can we make it leaving on the first ferry that morning, or do we need to overnight in La Ceiba the night before? Budget recommendation for La Ceiba?

Same time my flight from LC left. I had to ferry to LC and then fly to SPS because I was departing on a Sunday, which didnt offer outbound flights from Utila. Ferry took a little over an hour to arrive at LC dock. Taxis are right there waiting for you and it was a short 15-20 min ride to the airport. The airport is small (even smaller than SPS) but well maintained and nice and very empty when i was there. I had time to shop a little, get some coffee and still wait for an hour at the terminal.

3. Dive operators. Any operators with less of an emphasis on teaching, and more on established divers? Walking distance from town would be good. Can my gear stay there for the week?

As GoPro stated most dive operators are very teaching focused in Utila, however they will provide a DM to take you and others on dives while someone else takes the students. It can get limiting on dive sites as they have to go somewhere suitable for the training rather than just what would be awesome today. There are many great outfits to dive with but if you want to do less teaching focused then I would suggest Laguna Beach and Utopia. They cater more to the already certified "diver on vacation' type, although they offer wonderful teaching as well. They are outside of town and accessible only by launch but they are full service, valet dive resorts and are well worth the extra you pay.
If you decide to stay in town then I recommend diving with Cross Creek, UDC, BICD. Good boats, good equipment and great people. I also highly recommend Captain Morgan's. Their office is right by the docks in Utila but the actual dive operation is located on Pigeon Cay a few miles offshore and only 5 minutes from the premium North Side. As far as gear goes, I truck everything but weights and tank with me and everyplace had a wash station/gear room that they locked up at the end of the day.
No worries, you will love it regardless where you stay. The townsfolk are pleasant and willing to help. Explore the different homespun eateries, watch some fire dancing at CoCo LoCo, have a Salva in the breeze at TreeTanic. You will never forget Utila!

 

[keesmon]

It seems that Gunters is the only shop that mentions on their site that they separate the certified from the non certified, by using up to 4 boats. Easter week should be busy on the island. Are there other operators that will do the same thing? We are only interested in walking to town based operations, and not interested in all inclusive, resort type of accomodations.
Thanks!

 

[GoProHonduras]

There are several in-town operators, and UDC is one of them, that offer dedicated daily certified diver trips to the Northside. Easter week is a busy week, so I would recommend booking in advance for your fun dives, and choosing an operator with several boats and who offers dedicated fun dive trips.

 

[rob@diveinutila.com]

Andy's advice is very good, as always! You should fire off a few emails to operators that you like the look of, there are really about 3 or 4 operators that have the boats available and the fun diver service to match your requirements. You could also ask for pictures of boats if you have a doubt and how the fun diver service is run.

 

[Robertcrockett]

I agree, UDC was professional and on top of things when I was there. They also have a neat little covered area at the end if their dock, good for a quick cool off dip. They are I believe associated with the Mango Inn and would set you up with divers rates. If the Mango is more than you want to spend, there are plenty of rooms/hostels available for very cheap. Cross Creek is about a 2 minute walk from UDC and they usually have rooms available. I stayed with them awhile in their cabanas and a single room and the acommodations were just fine.... But I don't need much. Both are located in town an easy 10 minute walk to the town center, various shops and eateries.

 

[ScubaInChicago]

I am finally making it over to Utila!
Flying into to San Pedro on the red eye from NY, busing to La Ceiba and taking the ferry over. On the return, We are flying from La Ceiba over SAP and SAN back to JFK. $262.00!

Wow, is that a roundtrip price? If so fill me in on some details, the wife and I are planning on going in Feb if possible.

Thanks,
Dan

 

[keesmon]

Yeah, $262 is round trip. Check the TACA site. Don't know if they fly from Chicago, but I guess mainland Honduras is not an expensive destination. Most connections are tough, but because they have a redeye from NY to SAP it works out perfect for us. The flight back goes through El Salvador, but no long layovers.