Dive Review of Fantasy Island in
Honduras/Roatan

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Fantasy Island, Mar, 2008, by Bob DeFeo, CA, USA ( Contributor 19 reports with 7 Helpful votes). Report 3978.
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	Transfer from the airport was as predicted but processing immigration was very lengthy. All bags were taken by handlers to the waiting buses. Check-in was very smooth. We had 23 people and while all rooms were ready there was no greeter. We were told we would get briefed on diving and other things the following morning at 8 am. Breakfast served at 7 am. The resort rooms need some updating with worn furnishings, hot water was mostly available with pressure varying from good to trickle over the week. Tap water is not drinkable but the maid is supposed to keep the pitcher in the room fridge filled with potable water. Rooms rate a 3 and were very clean & passable for the value. Common areas inside and outside were impeccably clean and neat. Two Lobby Computers for use and wireless internet service available in lobby only. I had no problems connecting with my laptop but it is slow and one day had no service available. For the employees, service was great when you asked for it or asked questions. No one volunteers information but they are courteous when asked and helpful. The food is a definite 5! Lobster tails, made to order omelets, wonderful coffee and desserts, delicious and fully ripe mangoes, papayas, pineapple, etc. Fresh vegetables great. No illnesses on our trip. Resort is on an island and the resort shop has very limited selection. No fish ID cards/books there or dive shop, no underwater cameras, very small stock of batteries. Sand fleas (no-see-ums) were present but tolerable with repellent. Mosquitoes often even though the resort fogs the entire complex daily at 630 am---a bit of an irritant noise and fog-wise and if you don't like breathing in some pesticide once a day, avoid the place because they use it very liberally. Hate to see what the no-see-ums and mosquito populations would be without it though. Others from group did Anthony Keys dolphin encounter, and a zip line tour arranged by Yandra at the resort. She was great and all tours were thoroughly enjoyable and rewarding---worth the money and the time. Diving was a bit disappointing except for the underwater topography (Mary's Place and Cathedrals) and the Prince Albert Wreck in the Lagoon close to shore and available by shore or boat dive. 79-81 degree water was great but Jellyfish/Sea Nettles were on the surface four of the six days and some of the group received very nasty stings with red, welting skin reactions on the surface. Use a skin or thin wetsuit, especially at night and get some Sea-Safe to apply to exposed skin before snorkeling anywhere. Gloves are prohibited for divers but not really enforced. There were no pelagics, no large fish except a token grouper. Storms the week before lowered visibility to 40-70 feet. The walls were there, the fish were not. Sponges aplenty, coral relatively healthy, barracudas, some small fish, and occasional eel, lobster, and one sting ray. Dive operation was passable but again you had to ask if you wanted to know anything. Dive Boats were reliable, well-kept and well laid out. They provide dry towels for the first dive, only, everyday. Boat Dives depart at 9 & 11 AM and 2;30 PM. Night dives at 5:30 PM. You return to the dock after every dive. Boat Captain friendly and very helpful. DM we had could of basically cared less when leading the dives. Preferred but did not enforce 50 min dive time, went in, swam the wall, swam back half way, went on top of the reef and got out. Only pointed things out if he inadvertently swam over top of it. Good English, but putting my time in attitude. Nitrox 32 available @ $8USD/fill or $125/week for standard 3 dives over 6 days. Good place to consider Nitrox use as wall dives generally were around 95 to 75 feet---and lengthy. All fills averaged 3000-3300 psi and Nitrox %'s very accurate. Night dive one night (bring your own light and light sticks--$10 light rental fee and no light sticks available), great unlimited shore diving. Nice touch was they brought your equipment to/from the lagoon via boat so no long carries. Wall is right off the Gazebo water entry only look out for boat traffic and occasional wild wave-riders. The main channel must be crossed to see the Prince Albert and the wall. Checkout and departure from resort timely and efficient. Not so at the airport. Took 2 hours to process through the Delta ticket counter, Transfer Tax booth, Immigration, and Security (only one scanning machine.) Each had a separate long and jam-packed serpentine line...Saturday departure was on-time but a bit of an ordeal. The wall diving is better on Little Cayman's Bloody Bay Wall but the food here blows away Little Cayman Beach Resort's. Bring what you need. It is not very easy to get off the Island. I tried once to get to Coxen Hole, the main town on Roatan, but was told there were no cabs or drivers available and that was at 2:30 pm. One Warning: The monkeys bite...don't feed them! One member learned the hard way. If you walk around the front of the building eating a mango, they may mug you for it.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	101-250 dives
Where else diving	Hawaii, Philippines, Caymans, Channel Islands, Monterey, Puget Sound, Texas Lakes
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, rainy	Seas	choppy, no currents
Water Temp	79-81°F / 26-27°C	Wetsuit Thickness	1
Water Visibility	40-70 Ft/ 12-21 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	None
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 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	N/A	Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's	N/A	Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of Fantasy Island in Honduras/Roatan

Fantasy Island, Mar, 2008,

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 Fantasy Island in
Honduras/Roatan