Our group stayed at the Fort Young Hotel in Roseau. The boat sported a Single Dives bumper sticker!
Overall, it was a lot of fun. I did only boat diving.
The highlights:
The diving was great, although vis was somewhat reduced the first few days due to rain. Very few lionfish.
The hotel and dive staff were great. Rooms were recently renovated and the food was very good.
On the return flight to San Juan there were six of us on a plane that holds 75!
Dominican people are very friendly!
The lowlights:
Complete PITA to get to. The airport is small, and the only flight options are American Eagle from San Juan, or LIAT from the other Islands. I had to do an overnight layover in San Juan both ways which added to expense, and I had to claim all my baggage and recheck the next day. Once at the airport, the most direct road from the airport to Roseau is closed (being rebuilt at Island pace) and it was almost a 2 hr ride to the airport through winding mountain roads. Of note, Ross Medical school is on the island, and the plane was full of medical students going to start their first semester. AA increases flights around this time.
Weird luggage rules. Be forewarned that they weigh your luggage in aggregate in Dominica, and there is a 70 pound limit (total of all checked bags). They warn that the limit is not enforced in San Juan, so you can bring heavy bags to Dominica, but may face heavy fees or not be allowed to check them all coming back. Be sure to check with your airline (AA or LIAT) ahead of time. Some of the Ross Students have reported trouble in this regard.
