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Dive Review of Casa Playa Blanca in
Belize/Ambergris Cay

Casa Playa Blanca, Jun, 2005,

by Linda Briggs, Tx, USA . Report 2099.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 3 stars Food 1 stars
Service and Attitude 1 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 1 stars Shore Diving 1 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 1 stars
Advanced 1 stars
Comments I don't think owner Gaz Cooper knows how rude and unaccommodating his staff is. All of my dealings with Gaz prior to the trip were great. His office person is also very service oriented. However, once on the boat, it's a totally different story. Boat captain drove the boat wrecklessly including going way too fast at night in choppy seas. We had to tell him more than once to slow down. He made rude comments about the weight of some of our female divers. On dives there were very few attempts to show us any critters. The divemaster was obviously embarrassed by the actions of the boat captain. He was fairly new as resort staff but was the most friendly and helpful of anyone.
The so-so food at the resort was $20 and no menu. You ate what was there. However, you could take a $10 water taxi into San Pedro and buy food at the grocers or just eat in town. No cooking as the only air conditioning was in the bedrooms. A/C in my room didn't cool much.
We asked to set up our own equipment but boat captain didn't like this as it cut into his off time. Guests who were leaving as we arrived told us the crew had smashed their computer faces due to tanks being thrown about the boat. Crew denied it but we also witnessed a lack of care when crew moved equipment around the boat.
I took a group of 14 people and not one was satisfied with the service we received. We had 2 divers who only got to make 1 dive due to ear problems. They asked if they could be charged for only the dives they made but they were denied and had to pay the full diver package for the week.
I will never go back there and would not recommend it to anyone.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving Fiji, Hawaii, Tahiti, Cozumel, Bahamas, St Lucia, Curacao, BVI, USVI, Turks & Caicos, Honduras Bay Islands, Little Cayman, Puerto Rico, Jamaica
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, windy, rainy, cloudy, dry Seas choppy, surge
Water Temp 81-84°F / 27-29°C Wetsuit Thickness 2
Water Visibility 40-60 Ft/ 12-18 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile no
Enforced diving restrictions Depth and time was restricted, although time restrictions were not really adhered to.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks Lots Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 3 stars Tropical Fish 3 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish 3 stars
Large Pelagics 3 stars

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

Subject Matter 2 stars Boat Facilities 1 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 1 stars Shore Facilities 3 stars
UW Photo Comments Cameras were not handled with care by boat staff. No camera table on boat. Rinse bucket was 5 gallon bucket in which some cameras didn't fit all the way into.
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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