Diving on Roatan (time considerations)

[jaime1]

We're going to be visiting Roatan (Carnival Legend) & will be in port only from 8:00 - 3:00. Would we be cutting it close if we book our diving independently, rather than going through the ship? From reading this board, it appears that the operators will pick us up at the pier. How far are most of the dive sites? At first, I just figured we'd dive this island with the ship's operator (Anthony's Key), given the timeframe we're dealing with. But I really hate cattle boats, and I see that a lot of folks have booked their Roatan diving independently. For those of you that have done this, did you have more than 7 hours in port?

[Bassoonin]

Hi jaime1,

 

When are you going? We're on the Legend from 11/29 to 12/7 and are diving in Roatan. We decided to use the ships excursion because of time factors. My husband and I are hoping that it's not too bad.

[jaime1]

We'll be on the Legend a month after you - from 12/28 through 1/4. I'd love to hear what you think about Anthony's Key, if you get a chance to post when you return.

 

We're planning to dive indendently on Grand Cayman & Cozumel, since we've got more time in those ports. And we're sitting out Belize, since that'll be New Years Day & I know we're not going to be in the mood for a long boat trip...

[nashwl]

Dont forget that Roatan is Central time, so if your ship is Eastern you have a different time.

 

I am on Valor in December and booked with Coconut Tree. They know the cruise ship schedules and they planned a dive that will have me back with plenty of time to spare.

[gmcrow]

We've done both the AK ship excursion and booked on our own with Las Rocas with a short port time, but both were several years ago. I have to admit that the AK trip was not all that bad. They divided the group in half, then even separated out one very inexperienced diver from the rest of our group after the first dive.

 

Our dive with Las Rocas was far better, but it was the closest we have ever come to missing a ship. Is Carnival's new port facility open? If so, is it closer to the west end resorts with dive facilities than the old port? Do some research on that because the travel time to the resort could be your deciding factor.

[reddi]

Our experiences were similar to those of gmcrow. On our first trip to Roatan we booked independently with sueno del mar. We didn't pay for a private charter but due to our arrival time, our family of 5 had a boat to ourselves and we had a great experience. But due to the time change, a road closure and traffic congestion, we were pretty pressed for time, even cutting our 2nd dive a bit short. We had a little time when we got back to walk a couple blocks down the street for some minor shopping.

 

On the second trip we went with the ship tour to AKR and had a group of about 11 divers, pretty much following the leader. Overall though, it was a nice operation and we still had nice dives.

[jaime1]

Thanks for the replies. I've decided not to risk it - I'm going with the ship's excursion for this island. Booked it this morning.

 

Bassoonin - I'm still interested in hearing what you think of the ship's excursion once you return, if you have the time to post. Have a wonderful cruise!