Dive Review of Blackbird Resort in
Belize

Other dive reports on Blackbird Resort

Other Belize reports
Subscriber Content Preview
Active subscribers go here

Blackbird Resort: "Great Dive Resort!", Jun, 2024, by KENNETH LABARBERA, CA, US ( Reviewer 3 reports with 5 Helpful votes). Report 13007 has 3 Helpful votes.
Photos Submitted with this Report Click on an image to see an enlarged version and captions
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	In over 60 years of diving, I have been to Belize on two occasions. This recent trip was my third and by far the best. I booked a week of “all inclusive” diving for my grandson and myself at the Blackbird Caye Resort. They concentrate only on scuba diving, which is what I was looking for due to my grandson’s newness to diving. The booking-flights-resort time was a breeze going through Shanon at Maduro Travel. There was not one problem that was not either anticipated or actual that she did not address or fix. We were greeted at the airport by a Blackbird transfer service and taken to a local resort to have lunch, relax and wait for the afternoon boat. The boat leaves once a day around 3pm from the Belize City Harbor, walking distance from the local day resort. The Blackbird Caye resort is a 2-hour bone & back jarring ride from the Belize City Harbor. The vessel is one of the dive boats, so ride comfort was not one of the boat features nor main function. My 80+ year old back felt every wave bump for the entire time. Setting foot on the island was a welcome and refreshing sight. There were only 10 divers at the facility, which normally accommodates up to 30. Needless to say, we were treated like royalty! All divers were upgraded to the beachfront villas, less than 10 yards from the water, close to the dive shack, bar and dining hall. The villas were new or currently remodeled with 2 king size beds. A large bathroom with an 8’x8’ huge, tiled shower and separate toilet room. There was a large screened in porch with a hammock, the screened in porch kept the man-eating bugs at bay. Our luggage/dive bags were brought to our #3 villa, and we were off to the bar for our welcome libations and orientation. This dive resort is a well-run, oiled machine, all aspects of our stay were covered in great detail. The cook, Fredie, could work at any high-end Hyatt like resort. His creations were presented well, creative and flavorful. We were served at the tables covered in white linen tablecloths by waitstaff that were attentive and friendly. Each day we were asked to choose our dinner. The selections were ordered, our choices were fish, steak, pork, or chicken. One night we were treated to a complete turkey dinner with all the trimmings, no problem asking for seconds. The desserts were to die for. I went there hoping to drop a few pounds only to come home weighing more than when I left. Now to the valet diving. Dive sights were varied depending on the winds and weather. We visited Half Man Cay, Elbow, Playground, Aquarium and did our 130’ dive at the Blue Hole (note: helpful to bring a powerful dive light). All dives were full of varied marine life. I saw grouper, blacktip sharks, nurse sharks, eels, reef tangs, lobsters, turtles, rays, jacks, barracuda and triggers, the list of sightings was endless. I even saw a toadfish! Reefs are healthy as are the sponges and other soft corals. The only thing missing for me was lionfish hunting. I can’t recall any warm water dive resort that would not give a qualified diver Hawaiian sling hunting rights on these invasive creatures. The dive master explained that they were speared and fed to the sharks for years. As a result of this practice the sharks got used to the sound of sling and would consider it a “dinner bell”. The end result was the sharks would become overly friendly and anxious towards the divers. I can personally attest to the shark “friendliness”. On one dive, while taking a picture of a large nurse shark, a smaller one swam right through my legs! Dive masters, Simon and Abelito, were very knowledgeable and accommodating to all divers that needed any kind of help or assistance. They went out of their way to help putting on and taking off BCD and fins. I prefer to take my gear off in the water and hand it up to the boat. Over the years I have seen a few people fall back off the dive ladder while trying to climb up in full gear. Even though I did not need help after removing my inflated BC, they would often tow me to the ladder and take my fins off. I got used to the service and learned to enjoy the ride. In short, I cannot give enough kudos to the entire staff at Blackbird Caye Dive Resort! When it was time to depart, I opted to take the air flight off the island, a small 5 seat Cessna run by Mayan Air. They charge $640 for two and the flight took 15 minutes. It was worth every penny as my tired old back screamed at me not to take the 2-hour boat ride back to the Belize Harbor.
Websites	Blackbird Resort
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	Over 1000 dives
Where else diving	Calif. coast, Hawaii, Fiji, Soloman Islands, BWI, Bahamas, Turk/Caicos, Cocos Islands, Truk Lagoon, Guam, Mex. Revillagigedo/Socorro Islands, Sea of Cortez, St. Kitts, Belize, Aruba, Florida Keys, Cancun, Cozumel, Bora Bora, Tahati
Closest Airport	Belize City	Getting There	Orlando to Miami to Belize City
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, windy	Seas	choppy
Water Temp	86-86°F / 30-30°C	Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility	75-100 Ft/ 23-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	No Lionfish Hunting, No Wreck Penetration, Max diving 130'
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	1 or 2
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	N/A
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

Report currently has 3 Helpful votes

Leave a comment (Subscribers only -- 200 words max)
Subscribers can comment here

Subscribers can post comments, ask the reviewer questions, as well as getting immediate and complete access to ALL 503 dive reviews of Belize and all other dive destinations. Complete access to all issues and Chapbooks is also included.

Other dive reports on Blackbird Resort

All Belize Dive Reviews and Reports
Diving Guide to Belize
Diving Reviews for All Dive Destinations

Want to assemble your own collection of Belize reports in one place?
Use the Mini Chapbook Facility to create your personalized collection.

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.

Undercurrent Home

Page computed and displayed in 0.48 seconds

Get more dive info like these and other important scuba updates sent monthly to your email. And a FREE Recent Issue of Undercurrent
Get a free monthly email and a sample issue!

Dive Review of Blackbird Resort in Belize

Blackbird Resort: "Great Dive Resort!", Jun, 2024,

Photos Submitted with this Report

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 Blackbird Resort in
Belize