Fins an Flippers Island

[marluvs2go]

From what I am reading the beach is not really a swimming beach, lots of grass? and coral? Also, if you are not a very experienced snorkler can you get cut very easy?...seems everyone is saying keep your legs up..so if your interest really is not in seeing the marine life but just getting wet and relaxing is a good bet for us? thanks

[marluvs2go]

Some time ago I came across a resort I believe was in Isla Roatan that looked beautiful..pool, waterfall swim up bar but I can't find it now nor mention of it on this forum???????????? any help appreciated...thanks

[TxLnghrnz]

Some time ago I came across a resort I believe was in Isla Roatan that looked beautiful..pool, waterfall swim up bar but I can't find it now nor mention of it on this forum???????????? any help appreciated...thanks

Maybe the Mayan Princess resort on West Bay Beach? www.mayanprincess.com We've stayed there serveral times and I know they do offer cruisers day pass (access to the pool, beach loungers, umbrellas, etc.) I have no idea of the cost, but it's one of the few resorts with pools that I know of...

[qkslvr]

We just got back from our cruise yesterday. We spent last Wednesday at Fins and Flippers.

I filmed a video of the ride from the cruise ship to show how short a ride it was. It truly is less than three minutes away.

The gift shop/reception area is closest to the pier. After paying your fee/renting gear, you can go up some steps or use the wheelchair accessible ramp to the pool/restaurant area, or follow the sandy trails to the beach and snorkel pier. The beach area has plenty of sand 20-40 yards out into the water before you get to the sea grass. The beach was extremely well groomed (clean and raked), lots of lounge chairs shaded by palm trees. Weather was perfect, water a tad cool. The snorkeling pier is about 50-100 yards long, you climb down a ladder at the end, stand up in the sand and put on your flippers, then snorkel toward the red ball/buoy. There is a trail thru the coral next to the buoy to follow out to deeper water. Snorkeling gear is $8, a snorkel vest was $5 ( a great investment for my age/lack of physical condition and weight!). The 1st time out, I did not swim to the buoy ,and found the coral extremely close to the surface. 2nd time, I went along the buoy and it was much more enjoyable. The water drops off to over 30-50 feet deep very quickly, so you can see the coral walls as you head deeper. Umberto rides along in a kayak to make sure no one gets in trouble.

 

Pool area was very nice, restrooms/changing area large and spotless. There were plent of tables with umbrellas as well as lounge chairs throughout the pool and restaurant area. We ate fundidos and Port Royal Shrimp, and drank some Port Royal Beer. Beer was $2, Fundidos $6,Shrimp $6. The food was excellent. We used OFF bug spray, and I got one bite later in the day, but it was before I re-sprayed after swimming. Most of the guests had bug spray. They had 64 reservations that day, but you only saw 15-20 people at a time, some on the beach, some at the pool, some at the restaurant. Cindy is the manager and everyone was very friendly.

 

You will notice from the website's aerial pictures that they used to have dolphin enocunters there. I was told by the staff that the proximity to the airport caused the dolphins to be distracted during their routines, so they moved them back to Anthony Key Resort. They are now building an enclosure for Sea lions, as well as a replica of the mayan ruins on the site.

 

We had a wonderful experience here. We wanted a place to go that was not crowded, low key, and not too noisy from partying groups, etc. and this placed filled the bill!

[sandgrand]

We have about 6 people going to F&F's at the end of February and plan on snorkeling while there. My question is: What do you do with your stuff if everyone goes snorkeling at the same time? We will have towels, lotion, cameras, beach bags.... just wondering. Any suggestions.

 

Also ~ people talk about a guide snorkeling with you - is this person in the water with you or in a small boat around the area? Thanks.

[sptrout]

We have about 6 people going to F&F's at the end of February and plan on snorkeling while there. My question is: What do you do with your stuff if everyone goes snorkeling at the same time? We will have towels, lotion, cameras, beach bags.... just wondering. Any suggestions.

 

Also ~ people talk about a guide snorkeling with you - is this person in the water with you or in a small boat around the area? Thanks.

 

I did not see any lockers, but I may have missed them since we had no need for one. That said, I would not worry too much about security at F&F since access is very restricted. Security never came to my mind anytime while we were at F&F. However, like any other place else, I would leave most valuables on the ship.

 

We did not snorkel, so I cannot comment for sure, but I did see someone in a small boat near the snorkelers all the time.

[qkslvr]

Umberto is assigned to the snorkeling area. If the water is warm, he leads the way in the water. If it is cool, he rides along in a kayak. He points out areas of interest and makes sure everyone is safe. When I was there last week, he was coming out of the water from leading a few snorkelers. When I got in the water, he got in his kayak and kept tabs on us. I wasn't worried about our belongings. Just put them on a chair in the bar/pool area. There is always someone there, either staff or guests. If something came up missing, I imagine they would hold up the shuttle boat until it is found.

[sher'ssis]

I second everything qkslvr said about F&F. It was a terrific day, very relaxing, incredible food. I was happy with the shade available on the beach under the trees (I sizzle in the sun!), and my kids were loving just hanging out in the water (no waves, just fun to play in). We were there last week and there were maybe 10 people on the whole island. I was originally worried about the whole family snorkeling together (who would watch our stuff?) but was not concerned at all leaving it on the beach.

 

We brought our own snorkeling gear. My only regret was not having a vest -- I could have used the "help" to float a bit. My flipper came off and I started scrambling around in the water to find myself cut up on the coral. Parts of the water are extremely shallow. I cut my legs, palm of my hands, wrists, ankles. I was a mess when I got out! Glad to have some neosporin in my bag along with the bug spray. Umberto was in a kayak that day. I unfortunately missed the part where he told my husband to head straight out to the buoy in the water, then float around. The line out to the buoy marks a channel of sorts where it is a little deeper.

 

Enjoy!

 

Oh, and they have a great giftshop. I wish I had bought more stuff there. Don't hesitate.

[Flip2cruise]

im already booked for Jan 2010 :p Cant wait.

[CMJFamily]

sounds great! by chance, do they have a children's play area (other than the pool)?

Thanks

[qkslvr]

No childrens area that I saw, you might email Cindy/Manager to see if they have one.

[gargoyle999]

I don't really have much to add to the descriptions already given here, other than to say I just went last week and it was my favorite snorkeling spot of my cruise (also snorkeled in Cozumel and Belize).

 

Very nice place, food was good, very clean and kept up. Freshwater pool was nice for taking a dip after snorkeling (it was warm too). Went out snorkeling twice and stayed out as long as I wanted (about 45 minutes each time).

 

Water was a little cool but it was really a lot of fun. Was told there were 30 reservations but since you don't prepay at all, I don't think that many ever showed up.

 

Very nice spot to relax and snorkel!

[ariansun72]

My DH and I were at F&F last week, and I thought it was a beautiful island. The worst part is just walking through the "gauntlet" of locals trying to sell tours. We just ignored them, and kept walking the short distance to the boat.

Once we made it from the short boat ride to the island, we immediately set out to rent some flippers, since we had brought our own mask and snorkels. This was our first time snorkeling, and it was very easy to do here. The coral formations were amazingly beautiful, and the channels were easy to swim through. The water was tad bit chilly, but we got used to it pretty quickly.

I tried the conch and the funditos. Both were pretty good. (the funditos really kicked in the digestion... if you know what I mean:o) The pool area was really nice, and not crowded at all.

F&F made our trip to Roatan memorable and worry-free, and I'd recommend it to everyone.

[cruisinterp]

Just got back from our cruise today and went to F&F when we were in Roatan. It was a very enjoyable day, there were less than 30 people there and with people spread out between the beach and the pool it did not seem crowded at all. The snorkeling was very nice, you swim between two "cliffs" of coral and it is really cool. Umberto was in his kayak and was very helpful in pointing out the best way to navigate the area. It is very helpful to have flippers as getting out to the reef (only about 20 feet off the pier) is very shallow. We had our own mask/snorkel, so they rented us flippers for $3 a piece.

 

A few negatives I would note was that you can't really swim off the beach. The water is only about two feet deep and there looked to be a lot of grass and whatnot. You can snorkel off the pier though so this wasn't really a big deal. Another issue is the bugs. I had read about the sand fleas so I put bug spray on my feet and assumed if I was on a lounge chair I would be okay. I ended up with about 25 bites on my back. They didn't hurt at all until 3 days later, itched for a day, and then went away. Definitely make sure you bring bug spray and spray all over. Last, we went pretty much first thing in the morning, and at that point there were not very many passengers out on the main street. Be prepared for multiple people trying to sell you things and stray dogs as you walk to fins and flippers. There were multiple fins and flippers people as we walked to the f&F pier and we were pretty much left alone once we were with them. To get there you just go out the main entrance of the cruise ship terminal and turn right. It is about a 3 minute walk from there.

[cpmom]

We were at Fins and Flippers two weeks ago. The walk from the cruise ship dock to FnF pier was much shorter than I expected and we were not bothered at all by merchants. On the way back some of us did a little shopping in the stalls and found the stuff cheaper there than in Belize the next day.

 

Overall Fins and Flippers was a great way to spend the day. I would return in a heartbeat. Food, drinks and the pool were all fabulous! A beautiful place and a relaxed day.

 

Another voice for bug spray, use it even if you do not feel bugs, trust me you will feel the bites later in the evening.

[sptrout]

I had read previous to our F&F visit a couple weeks ago about the sand flea problems. Therefore, before we left home I purchased a small box of "Off" brand insect wipes. There are 12 wipes per box so we only packed a few. Advantages over packing a spray include; no leak worries (each wipe individually packed in small foil packets), and very easy to pack - just throw in your luggage anywhere.

 

We took four wipes each, two to use when we first arrived, and two more if we needed any after being in the water. We never got in the water so two @ were all we needed. BTW - - We did not have any sand flea problems at all and we stayed on the beach/chairs all day.

[alkotik]

We took four wipes each, two to use when we first arrived, and two more if we needed any after being in the water.

This may a stupid question. I suppose you also use a sunblock. How do you apply both of them? Which one goes first?

[qkslvr]

Manufacturer recommends sunscreen first, then bug spray.

[ma_in_ak]

One of the posts said that this is also where the cruise ship books it's dolphin encounters so wouldn't there be a lot of people on the island? Seems like tons more than 20-30 people would be there.

[AllyGirl13]

One of the posts said that this is also where the cruise ship books it's dolphin encounters so wouldn't there be a lot of people on the island? Seems like tons more than 20-30 people would be there.

We were there last Apr. & they didn't do the dolphins (there) anymore. Very nice place though.

[ms8654]

I was there last week. No dolphins. There were probably 30-40 people including some children. However, you could easily get a chair anywhere since there are more than 40 chairs.

[jacksmom09]

Can someone tell me how the water from the beach area is? I have heard "grassy"! Just wondering??:confused: I would like a nice sandy wading/swimming area! Will it be this way or no??? :rolleyes: Grassy sounds kind of gross!:eek:

[ms8654]

I waded into the water below my knees only. It was not a beach IMHO to wade in and let the surf carry you back into the beach. There was A LOT of grass, which I do not like. Now with this said, there were definitely some people splashing around. Mainly kids who do not care. Perhaps if I had water shoes I made have made an exception. I didn't want to step on anything icky. I'd be curious to hear what others think. There were a couple of ladies pretty far out towards the end of the pier near the snorkling area and the water was only up to their waists. I would have loved to have gone that far out, but the grass was a deterrent to this wimp.

[rasta]

Shore is nice soft sand. In the water it is grassy but not slimmy.

[qkslvr]

Dolphin encounters are now at Anthony Key Resort on the main island. FinsnFlippers is changing their dolphin area to a sea lion enclosure. I was told the dolphins were moved because of the proximity of the airport, jets distracted the dolphins.

 

The water is grassy about 15-20 yards out from the beach. The end of the snorkeling pier is sand and coral, and it is about chest deep there. If you swim beyond the red buoy, the water begins to drop off, from 4-6 feet deep, down to 35-50 feet deep.