Dive Review of Blackbird Caye Resort in
Belize

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Blackbird Caye Resort, Dec, 2003, by Peter Vantine, GA, USA . Report 912.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	The Blackbird Caye Resort is on a small island 30 miles off the coast, on the Turneffe Atoll. The resort is blessed with excellent diving, very attentive support staff, clean accommodations, and excellent rental equipment. However, the facilities show signs of neglected maintenance. The neglected maintenance produced a (thankfully) minor accident on the first day of our visit, and the way the resort handled it really brings into doubt about how they would repond to a serious event. On our first day my wife and I were walking around the island, getting acquainted with the property, and we walked out onto one of the resort's four docks. About halfway out, a floorboard collapsed, sending my wife pitching into the shallows. She suffered minor bruising to one of her thighs and our digital camera and digital binoculars went completely into the water, damaging them beyond repair. Also, her glasses were ripped off her face, and we spent 15-20 minutes looking for them in the shallows, to no avail. In total, there was almost $1300 in damages. We reported the accident to the resort manager and he said that that particular dock was the "fuel dock" and was off limits to guests. I pointed out that nobody had told us that it was off limits and there was no sign to that effect. He told me that it probably would be wise for them to post a sign. Two days later it occurred to me that the resort might have liability insurance to cover our loss. I again approached the manager and asked him if the resort had insurance. He said that he had only been at the resort for a few weeks and was not sure. He gave me the email address of the owner and told me to take the issue up with the owner via email upon my return to the U.S. Upon my return, I sent the owner several emails, which were not responded-to. After several follow-ups, I was sent an email from the resort's Florida office that advised me that (a) the resort had no liability insurance to cover such an event, (b) the owner had decided not to entertain any kind of compensation "as we do not have the equipment nor have we seen it" and (c) she attached an email in which the resort manager blamed us for being on the dock and, further, made several comments that cast doubt on whether he believed that the accident had even taken place. The general tone was that we were fabricating the accident and were trying to collect for damages that never occurred. If we had suffered such an accident at any U.S. resort and any reputable non-U.S. resort, the resort would have been falling all over itself trying to make amends for inadequate maintenance and inadequate signage. Instead, we were stonewalled, given the runaround, and made to feel like criminals. So a warning: Turneffe Atoll and Blackbird Caye Resort is a great place to visit. However, if anything untoward happens, you're on your own. Either they don't have liability insurance, unconscionable for a dive resort, or they DO have liability insurance and were merely trying to avoid a claim.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	101-250 dives
Where else diving	Philippines, Caribbean
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, windy	Seas	choppy, currents
Water Temp	70-75°F / 21-24°C	Wetsuit Thickness	0
Water Visibility	80-100 Ft/ 24-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of Blackbird Caye Resort in Belize

Blackbird Caye Resort, Dec, 2003,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Blackbird Caye Resort in
Belize