neillevans - Bluewater Dive Travel

neillevans

neillevans

neillevans's picture

My Dive Map

Reviews (3)

Crystal Blue Resort

5
5
5
4

I went in 5/2013 and stayed at Crystal Blue Resort. This is the first far east photo workshop I had ever attended and my first time to this part of the world, if that helps with my perspectives.
I landed in Manilla and was promptly greeted by CB staff. I had dressed appropriately as the airplane was cold, but it was hot and humid in Manilla. We waited for other divers to arrive on flights that were close to mine and then got in the van to head to CB. This is a 3 hour ride. I love a good adventure and this was. Once at CB you are off the beaten path and there is no place to go get anything easily. The staff did run out at times during the week, but things you think might be easy to come by like toiletries that you are accustom to are likely not available. The resort does have some things but, BRING WHAT YOU NEED.
The resort staff was VERY friendly and happy to help in any way they can. The resort for lack of a better way to say it is built on a cliff. This means there are stairs involved to go anywhere. If this is an issue, you might want to ask for a room as low as possible. As for me I stayed on the highest level which had spectacular views of the South China Sea.
I know you want to hear about the diving; WOW! I dropped into the water for the first time (84-86 degrees) and saw a hundred creatures I hadn't know existed until they were staring me in the face. During nine days there was opportunity to dive four times daily and I only skipped one dive, however I saw many others taking many more dives off. This was hard work compared to working on you tan. This was advertised as a macro trip, however there is life everywhere and potential for plenty of spectacular wide angle shots too. If you want to know more about variety of photo opportunities make sure you check out Mike Bartick's photos. During the time I was there I saw no large subjects.
The room was very cozy, and after diving all day I probably would have slept anywhere on anything but the bed and room were plenty comfortable. Hot water was spotty some days, however when it's in the 80's or 90's how bad off can you really be.
All food was made there in the kitchen and there was plenty of healthy wonderful food of varying diversity to please all. I heard nothing but rave reviews during my nine days and felt the same.
This trip was a wonderful opportunity to see creatures that I had never seen before and haven't see since. The staff and dive masters (especially Freddy) are amazing and if you are ready for a little adventure this is a great choice and a superb value.

Visited on 05/2013 - Submitted on 02/01/2014
Read all Crystal Blue Resort Dive Resort reviews

Cozumel Diving

5
5
5
5

My dive buddy is my wife and this trip was a great vacation, romantic destination, and dive trip. We went in 6/2012.

We stayed at Fiesta Americana which is further south on the beach than most dive resorts on the island. We were two miles south of downtown which was nice because we had no idea which days were cruise ship days. The resort is closed, however is a nice property and location so when it reopens under a different name it may viable. It was an all inclusive at the time we stayed.

Diving: We have been diving in St. Croix and Roatan in the Caribbean and this is reputed, and in our opinion the best diving in the Caribbean. The majority of the diving is drift diving, and the entire West and South West sides of the island are rocky which makes for varying topography offering reefs, walls, caves, and significant swim throughs, the most notorious being Devil's Throat. As far as marine life we saw everything you would expect to see in the Caribbean, from all the tropical fish, turtles, eels, barracuda, and even a lobster that was 20 pounds.

Dive operation: We dove with Dive House which had a location on property but had other locations on the island and at the time of this writing was still in business. They were nice boats, and the crews were amazingly helpful and hospitable, yet professional. Our favorite dive master was Orlando, with a close second of Victor. As the week went on we were paired with divers of similar abilities and desires, and felt like we could see or go wherever was desired or best suited for us,

Top side: Downtown area at night (after cruise ships are gone) was perfect. Safe, and romantic, with a plethora of shopping and dining choices. Cozumel being an island seems to have a safer feel than any other destination we have been to in Mexico. There are kids playing in the street after dark, and even in the non tourist areas we may have looked out of place but didn't feel that way. Our favorite restaurant was La Mission. The whole downtown area is lit up with little lights and restaurants that aren't packed after cruise ships depart which makes for great competition, thereby value, with a romantic and fun vibe. Lastly we met new diving friends that we still maintain a friendship and diving relationship with,

Want to dive in the Caribbean, Cozumel is hard to beat.

Visited on 06/2012 - Submitted on 02/02/2014
Read all Cozumel Diving Dive Travel reviews

Infiniti Bay Roatan

5
5
3
4

We have traveled several places in the Caribbean, and Roatan is on the list of good dive spots we hadn't been so off we went. My wife who is the queen of research chose Infiniti Bay Beach Resort who's web site has very accurate photos. I think she enjoys the research and reading reviews almost as much as the trip and therefore the results never leave us surprised in a bad way.

Infiniti Bay is condominiums in a resort setting. Some people live in their units, and some seem to be rented and serviced by the resort almost all the time. We stayed in a bottom floor unit (four floors no elevator) that offered a pool view room and was 150' from the sand. The resort is structured in a "V" shape with the top of the "V" pointed to the beach. Any unit on the inside of the "V" you can see the ocean from the patio/balcony. If you are right on the ocean you would be near the bar/restaurant and live entertainment in the evening. We knew we would be drying wetsuits etc. on the patio and the beach is the main conduit of people to and from resorts , shopping, and restaurants, and we didn't want to loose anything therefore we didn't want ocean front. The unit we stayed in was VERY nice for this part of the world. Granite counter tops, teak cabinets, central air, modern kitchen appliances, nicely furnished. We paid extra for buffet breakfast that was good before diving each day. Breakfast had generic offerings, with a few different hot choices each day, custom made omelets, and good coffee, The resort is on the North facing side close to the West End of the island and mixed in with other resorts and restaurants. The resort has beachfront chairs and and outdoor restaurant with "beach food" and a nice pool.

The dive operation is on resort (infinity Divers) After bringing our gear to them we never lifted it the rest of the week. They rinsed and stored our gear after every dive and it was on the boat every morning. Safe, professional, and on schedule. Make sure you ask about the different sites and sign up for what you want to do and see. Diving offered typical Caribbean sea life and rocky topography. My favorite dive was El Aquila wreck which is a 230' long tanker broken in three pieces. Easy penetration and saw a 25' long free swimming eel and other lager marine life than during other dives. The wreck sits at the bottom of a wall that is a nice way to spend your time coming up. My computer shows 110' on the sand. Our favorite dive guide with huge experience on the island is Lindy who seemed to be an independent dive master. We also felt well watched over by Sarah. We booked diving and hotel as a package and had unlimited beach dives which were really impressive although a lot could be enjoyed by snorkel. We also enjoyed a night beach dive that went straight off the pier and North along and in and out of the reef where we saw all the creatures that come out at night and the Bioluminescence.

Top side.
To me the island primarily faces north and south, however where Infinity Bay sits on the very west end you are facing West. Along that part of the shore there are restaurants that are competing for business up and down the beach(picture). You can take a water taxi(picture) east to an area called West End that has more restaurants and shopping. This is all very beach environment. If you are looking for fancy dinner or shopping you will have to go to the south side of the island near where the airport is and the cruise ships come in. The beaches became more full on cruise ship days but I can only imagine what it would be like if we had stayed on the south side of the island.

In conclusion the marine life is not as good as Cozumel. The value is excellent for your dollar compared to many Caribbean countries. We felt safe to explore and dive at will in Roatan, and did all that we could and got everything out of our trip we expected.

Visited on - Submitted on 02/09/2014

BE THE FIRST TO GET NEWS AND SPECIALS

Sign up for the mailing list today