I just made my 1st visit to Roatan, Honduras. I wanted to dive some where besides Anthony's Key, which I know nothing about other then it is a busy resort. I was looking for a place that provided personal service with small dive boats. I also wanted to dive different parts of the island. I decided to stay at 2 different resorts near Oak Ridge as well as spend time in West End. The first resort was Reef House Resort and the 2nd was Port Royal Resort. Both of these resorts are owned by Americans with locals doing the cooking, cleaning, boat caption and Dive masters. Both resorts provided airport pick up and then you are shuttled by launch. Both resorts were very timely per our schedule.
The Reef House is set on a small cay with no where to go but 600 ft on either side of the resort. The back was looking toward the main island where the boats were kept in a covered dock. The Dive locker was located here as well just steps away with rinse tank and secure drying room. The front of the resort faced the sea with a dock you can snorkel or dive off of. It is not an easy entry, but we did a nice night dive and saw plenty.
The rooms had air conditioning, fan, and satellite TV. They were solid and I had no bug problems. I needed only fan as we had wonderful breezes most days. Kitchen facilities were in the main room where a long table was set for each meal that began with the ringing of the bell. There were 3 cooks that traded days off and did house keeping. The food was the best on the island. It was prepared well and I never left feeling even a little hungry. They offered different sauces for each dish and lets not forget the homemade fresh bread and deserts. There was a honor bar where you could get a beer $2 or soda $1. Tea and juices came with meals. Drinking water was provided in each room. The dive master said he has worked at reef house for 16 years. He comes to work each day in a small canoe from across the way. He was knowledgeable, showing us sea horses and other nice finds. We got a good briefing before each dive and were told to meet the dive master in his office near the mooring line. I never felt hurried or pressured during our dives. We were allowed to wonder and take are time with cameras checking out all the wonderful plant and fish life. This side of the island had the most amazing soft sponge and corral. The colors were in every hue with walls that hung over you full of floral and fish life. We did no scheduled drift dives but on one occasion the current was strong and exhausting on the way back. The dive master pulled us together and we surfaced. The boat was there in moments as if the captain was radioed ahead. This is a good operation. It is a dive resort. Not fancy, but comfortable and accommodating. If you are not a diver this is not a place you should go. There is one other thing to mention and that is the resorts involvement in TAPS, Turtle awareness and protective studies. They have constructed a small screened in lagoon in the front of the resort that holds captured turtles and conch. At night we saw octopus, crabs and other animals in the holding area. The turtles are actually bought from fishermen who used to sell them to locals as food. They are studied, tagged and then released. Dr Steve Dunbar, of Loma Linda University heads up the study and is being considered to run Honduras turtle project if funds are awarded. You can sponsor a turtle @ [-]. Having a marine biologist on site was a great benefit and we were personally involved in catching and releasing turtles during my stay. Students also come down and the resort is their base camp.
I went to West end next for 4 days staying at a locals home. Nothing descriptive other then it was in Half moon bay which provided a great snorkel and plenty of local flavor. West end toward Sandy bay has great breezes and views away from the busy dusty streets of main town. Yet it is easy to walk to all the restaurants and shops. So we are talking about lands end resort and a couple other including the Seagrape resort and dive shop. This resort is family owned and has a small pool. Cabanas with hammocks are next to it . No TV in these 8 units, but who needs them. If you must there are regular family style rooms available in hotel type settings. Very quit and clean. The dive shop is located in a protected lagoon. There is a gear room you can leave your stuff in after rinsing. Packages for diving and lodging are available at affordable rates. I enjoyed the people who ran the operation even when they left me behind as I was finishing my safety stop. I thought they were just joking with me. One of the other divers saw me pop up. It was just one of those days. West end / west bay is full of dive boats and great dive sites. A bit busy after Oakridge area where I only saw one other dive boat. Kind of reminded me of palacar reef in cozumel, but I still go there too. Make sure you visit West bay wall, turtle crossing, and Spooky Channel. This area is good for divers and non divers as there is plenty to do our not do and room to do a walk about. The cruise ships are invading and with the new dock being built it is only going to get crazier. The dirt road is supposed to get pavers starting after Easter. I took a drive and walk about on the west bay area south of west end and found the area a little more developed with slightly higher prices for lodging and diving. Those from west bay take water taxis to west end for shopping, eating and... well the party is at west end.
The last place I stayed was Port Royal resort. This is on the mainland but you got to have boat to get to the resort. So you have a little room to walk around on nice enough grounds and there is a well protected reef giving a nice lagoon setting. The bugs were meaner here. The cabanas were simple with large beds draped by mosquito nets. Bring a reading light or better a headlight for getting around at night. They are off the grid so a generator runs till around 8:30pm to charge batteries for night and provide lighting. There is no TV here and the internet is only fast enough to send email. The food here is smaller portion and ... well lacking in flavor. Matt said the water came from a good drinking spring in his backyard. Cokes and a few beers were provided. They have some canoes and a hobie craft to play in the lagoon, but the sail needed mending when I was there. The dive boats are smaller and the caption 23 and dive master 22 were local self taught divers. When I asked about the dive plan Tyran said, "Mark go as deep as you like and come up when your computer says go". I had a logged 80 min dive here. Again I can not tell you how amazing the floral was here and farther east we went the more better. We piled into a small boat on a calm day with cooler and traveled almost to the farthest island Granida. After diving we had a break on a small cay on the reef. Although The caption and dive master were not as professional in many ways including counting tanks for our trip, (one of our divers could use one tank for two 60 min dives), you just have to love their good nature. Only once did any of us need assistance and then I was pleased with the young dive masters quick response. They always had a fierce game of Island checkers going during lunch. So port royal has something to offer including little Archer who is about two. At first I thought a little crying kid in paradise, but before long you find yourself hugging him and playing this little piggy on his toes. Matt’s Dad, Tom lives here too and plays a good game of cribbage. I think he let me win. Keep the customers happy. The place just needs something more to make it a resort.
A great dive adventure all and all though followed by 3 days on mainland. Get out of La Ceiba and enjoy the jungle. It is beautiful. The people are warm and gracious.
