20 replies to this topic

[Ariesno1]

Hi,
I plan to go on a trip to Belize and have a couple of questions.

When is the best time to dive there?
What is the total dive season?
When is the worst time to dive there?
When is low season?
What did you like best about diving in Belize?

Doris

[Marvel]

Dandydon just got back. Check out his report: Don's trip to Belize

[WreckWench]

Hey I spoke with an instructor friend of mine who has a friend that lives in Belize and this is what he told me:

This is what a friend told me who really knows ;-)

"The best time to go is May 3rd.  You could go now, but it gets very hot.  And later in the fall they get the hurricane season.  Maybe you like it that way.  I think
April and May are the best."


Smiles across the wires,

Roger

Anyone else have any info on Belize? Several of you have asked that we consider it for an SD trip! -ww

[drbill]

I dove there Jan-Mar of this year. Weather was a possible problem during that period. We encountered several storms that made diving difficult, and for five days we couldn't get out beyond the reef to dive the atolls. However there were plenty of good days as well.

Doc

[DandyDon]

Hi,
I plan to go on a trip to Belize and have a couple of questions.
 
When is the best time to dive there?
What is the total dive season?
When is the worst time to dive there?
When is low season?
What did you like best about diving in Belize?

Doris

Springtime brings the threat of Thunderstorms, as they're still getting, along with wind causing waves. Summer & Fall is Hurricane Season, and of course, there's Winter storms. Go anytime. It's always a gamble...

Really, I won't go back unless it's a SD.com trip. Roatan's south walls and Fantasy Island are just so much better, anyway. But I would go with SD.com, as it is a cute town, and the canyons and atolls are different.

If you go without SD.com, and in case you didn't see it on my report....

I'd try to go with Pro Tech, first. Ask for Roni, one of the owners, and tell him I referred you - he would remember me as DandyDon from the other board.

His prices are currently about the same as the others - $1 higher here, $1 cheaper there, on some things, and then you get better prices on Nitrox, free use of computers if you don't have one, etc. He'll go up, I'm sure, after he gets more established and well known, but he's a bargain now.

Amigos del Mar is well regarded, too. Pro Tech is currently referring dives to them for Blue Hole trips.

Hope this helps...

Edited by DandyDon, 25 June 2004 - 11:50 AM.

[JulioJoglar]

Hi Doris!!

I Love Belize!!! I have no clue when is the best or worst season to dive but I can tell you a lot of things I liked about Belize. First, you need to decide where in Belize you are going. I have never been in the south of Belize so I do not know anything about it. When I dive Belize I stay in San Pedro (North). This little town is situated in a key so you need to take a puddle jumper to get there. There is not much to do in the key except to dive and rest. However, my best sugestion is that if you dive from San Pedro, pay a little bit extra and take a boat to the Belize Blue Hole. Too many people have told me that the Blu Hole is over rated. However, for me, it was one of my best dives ever. The boat took us to the Blue Hole a few hours away form San Pedro. After we got there, the Boat Captain Chummed the water. In a few seconds, there were tons of sharks all over the place. After we jumped in the water, we got to see plenty of Nurse Sharks. After the group was together, we initiated our decent to 140 feet. At that point I was narced like never before. But the view was absolutely gorgeous. There were stalactites and stalacmites all over the walls of the hole forming some sort of a cave-like formation. When I looked back, there were about seven or eight sharks following us. They looked like reef sharks altough I think I saw a few tigers.

After the dive was over, the captain took us to another atoll nearby; the Lighthouse Reef. The place was spectacullar and the sealife was plenty. I have some videos and pictures for Belize so if you want more info, let me know. Finally, don't skip Shark-Ray alley. Is only about three minutes in boat form San Pedro and you will be surrounded by Southern Stingrays and Nurse Sharks.

I hope I was able to help you some.

Stay Cool, Stay Wet

Julio

[flatwood]

hi doris, our dive shop has a group of people down there now due to return 6-26-04 late. if you like i can put you in touch with some of them next week, happy diving, bob

[WreckWench]

hi doris, our dive shop has a group of people down there now due to return 6-26-04 late. if you like i can put you in touch with some of them next week, happy diving, bob

Are any of them single or buddyless? Maybe you can tell them about us and let them post what they thought about Belize while they are checking us out??????

[flatwood]

i'm pushing sd as hard as i can in mississippi. I guess they don't like diving as much I do. have a good weekend people and keep it safe, bob

[WreckWench]

i'm pushing sd as hard as i can in mississippi. I guess they don't like diving as much I do. have a good weekend people and keep it safe, bob

One word for you....SWEET!!!

And Thank You!!!

[Ariesno1]

everybody thanks for all the information.

DandyDon, yes, I want to make the trip to Belize with SD.com too. WreckWench/Kamala and I were talking about the trip and I started this thread to help her out with the research.
So hopefully I will see you on the trip next year.

Julio, WOW … what an exciting report … I want to jump on the plane tomorrow to go to San Petro.

Bob, if your friends do not want to give a report about their experience on SD.com, it would be great to put WreckWench or me in contact with them.

Kamala, the way I see it right now, beginning of May is probably a good time to go.



Doris

[chinacat46]

I was there in Feb. and the weather was a bit dicey. Windy and it wanted to rain. The diving however was pretty damn good. I'll go again. Make sure you do half moon caye. Some great wall diving and quite a variety of fish and other creatures. I did a live aboard but I've heard good things about staying at Ambergris Caye too.

[WreckWench]

Kamala, the way I see it right now, beginning of May is probably a good time to go.



Doris

Yep...that is what Roger said too! I think he/you/she/they are and were right! LOL!!! (Too many genders!!!)

[Ariesno1]

Hi Doris!!

I Love Belize!!!  I have no clue when is the best or worst season to dive but I can tell you a lot of things I liked about Belize.  First, you need to decide where in Belize you are going.  I have never been in the south of Belize so I do not know anything about it.  When I dive Belize I stay in San Pedro (North).  This little town is situated in a key so you need to take a puddle jumper to get there.  There is not much to do in the key except to dive and rest.  However, my best sugestion is that if you dive from San Pedro, pay a little bit extra and take a boat to the Belize Blue Hole.  Too many people have told me that the Blu Hole is over rated.  However, for me, it was one of my best dives ever.  The boat took us to the Blue Hole a few hours away form San Pedro.  After we got there, the Boat Captain Chummed the water.  In a few seconds, there were tons of sharks all over the place.  After we jumped in the water, we got to see plenty of Nurse Sharks.  After the group was together, we initiated our decent to 140 feet.  At that point I was narced like never before.  But the view was absolutely gorgeous.  There were stalactites and stalacmites all over the walls of the hole forming some sort of a cave-like formation.  When I looked back, there were about seven or eight sharks following us.  They looked like reef sharks altough I think I saw a few tigers.

After the dive was over, the captain took us to another atoll nearby; the Lighthouse Reef.  The place was spectacullar and the sealife was plenty.  I have some videos and pictures for Belize so if you want more info, let me know.  Finally, don't skip Shark-Ray alley.  Is only about three minutes in boat form San Pedro and you will be surrounded by Southern Stingrays and Nurse Sharks.

I hope I was able to help you some.

Stay Cool, Stay Wet

Julio

Julio, it would be really great if you can post some pictures on the board so everybody can see them.

[DandyDon]

Just in case some may not know, San Pedro is the main town on Ambergris Caye, perhaps the only legal town.

A couple of the non-divers took a golf cart north, across the new cut resulting from a recent hurricane on the hand-pulled ferry, then drove to the next bar, where there was a betting board on what date the next golf cart would fall in the water. Had been only 2 weeks since the last.

BTW, SP/AC is the only place in Belize where one can obtain Nitrox - all produced by Pro Tech, and has the only hyperbaric chamber in the country. They request $1 per tank donations, which we all did. If you do, and you need the H-chamber, then you don't have to pay a $500 deposit and request a refund from DAN; if you don't contribute, you have to pay the deposit, even if you have DAN.

Half Moon Caye - where the Booby Bird Colony can be viewed:

http://www.ambergris...lfmooncaye.html

- is near The Blue Hole - w :dltears: here everyone goes down 140 feet to see the stalegtites & columns from a cave left from the ice ages.

http://www.ambergris...atbluehole.html

It's common to do lunch on HMCaye, then dive Lighthouse Reef wall twice before heading back to SP/AC.

Another good day trip is Turneffe Atoll. We dived The Elbow first, as there was no current that day, with 4 of us dropping down on the wall to 130, 150, and 260 feet respecitvely, then lunch on the Atoll, then 2 more dives on the walls.

http://www.ambergris...veturneffe.html

Aires, I hope to dive with you there, too, but I hope we do it in June.

Edited by DandyDon, 26 June 2004 - 12:06 PM.