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Dive Review of Peter Hughes in
Belize

Peter Hughes, Apr, 2006,

by Jeanette Jackson, NC, United States . Report 3133.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 5 stars Food 4 stars
Service and Attitude 3 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 1 stars Shore Diving 3 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 3 stars
Comments My husband and I have been on a total of ten liveaboards with Peter Hughes and this trip was our last. We have since been on the Aggressor and will be on the Nekton soon. First, let me say the crew on the boat was awesome. The staff at the Florida office was horrible - especially the executive staff (Larry Speaker). This trip was supposed to be a whale shark trip and we paid $1400 extra for it. Then Peter Hughes (without advising us in advance), subcontracting the whale shark encounter to a local dive shop. These people were horrible. They did not care about the divers or their equipment. They damaged many diver's equipment, including mine. They were high most of the time and lacked basic diving knowledge. One of them actually asked us questions about Nitrox because he did not understand it. This was the divemaster for our whale shark encounter!! They were also very rude. Once, one of our fellow divers trying to get on the tiny boat fell back in the water. The help on the boat just laughed at her instead of trying to help. Needless to say, they knew nothing about how to find whale sharks. After our trip was over, everyone we encountered at the hotel, airport, etc.. had seen whale sharks and told of specific techniques used to find the whale sharks. Our guides told us we would use techniques, but we did not. The actual Peter Hughes crew was great and the captain told us all to write the Florida office because we were due compensation for this disaster. We all wrote the Florida office and we emailed each other copies of our letters. Peter Hughes turned it over to Larry Speaker, a VP at the Florida office. This man told us all we had a great week with a well trained company and that there was nothing to refund. He was very rude. He also sent cookie cutter letters to all of us, which is pretty sad. I had also requested reimbursement for my first stage repair. It had been damaged on the boat by being hooked up to a tank that had been emptied previously. The crew took full responsibility, cleaned my first stage out and told me to get it serviced when I got back and let the main office know. It had just been serviced before going on this trip, so this was definitely an extra service. Mr. Speaker refused my ~$50 reimbursement stating that I had to leave the cap off my first stage for this to happen. This was after the crew already took responsibility. It was really pityful. There was also a group of friends on the boat planning on going on a Peter Hughes trip to Galapagos. After we received PH's responses to our letters, the trip was changed to Blue Water.

None of us would be upset if we didn't see whale sharks because of nature. You cannot control nature. However, we did not have a chance in the world with the dive shop Peter Hughes hired to handle this. Peter Hughes also announced they would not be offering the Whale Shark trips any more, which is basically an admission that it is not working. However, they could not see giving any of us any kind of compensation. Like I said previously, we are done with them. They have called me a liar, and I don't take that very well. There are lots of other liveaboard companies that appreciate their customers.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 101-250 dives
Where else diving Galapagos, Bahamas, Caymans, Florida, SC, Tobaggo
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas calm
Water Temp 75-78°F / 24-26°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 60-80 Ft/ 18-24 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions [Unspecified]
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles None Whales None
Corals 3 stars Tropical Fish 3 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish 1 stars
Large Pelagics 1 stars

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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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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