Dear Fellow Diver:
From a statistical point of view, Amy Slate's Amoray Dive Resort is quite
interesting. The online reviews I read were evenly distributed between excellent
and awful, something I had never seen. So while I was there in July, I tried to
figure out what was causing the spread.
Key Largo dives sites are well-described in Undercurrent reviews posted
online. The area is heavily used, and not all divers are good at avoiding contact
with the reefs, most of which are unhealthy at best. The dives are normally 20 to
30 feet, with many tropicals and imposing barracudas (I also saw a small whitetip
and a turtle) making the location good for beginning divers and for people
who haven't been diving for a while. The water temperature was in the mid-80s; I
was comfortable in just a dive skin. On some dives, there was pretty good current
but mostly the water was calm.
Amoray's main dive boat is the
45-foot Amoray Diver. The Monday crew was
relaxed, friendly and helpful, on a par
with the crew of any dive boat I've been
on. Briefings were a little weak, as the
staff had not been in the area for long,
not uncommon throughout the Keys. Next day,
the first dive was on the Duane, a deep
(for this area) wreck. This captain was
more aggressive, seemly displaying an "I'm
the captain" chip on the shoulder. When he
barked a question at me, I replied, "Aye,
captain," with no irony intended (he lightened
up considerably on the later shallow
dives). Given the wide range of diver
skills in the Keys, and the possibility for
problems to occur on this dive, he was a
"drill instructor" in getting the divers'
attention, and getting it through our heads that we needed to be careful and
aware. His job was to get us there and back safely; I think he approached the
challenge properly.
The other boat is the smaller Just-in Time, a nice six-pack and the personal
property of Justin Minichino, Slate's brother and co-owner. They use it when
there is overflow or when someone purchases "Platinum Service," which runs $100
a person for a two-tank dive (two-person minimum). On this boat, one can visit
deep wrecks other than the Duane and Spiegel Grove with the proper advanced certification
and an OK from Justin. He's knowledgeable about the reefs, and gave
great briefings. On one dive, he took us to a rarely-visited reef with no buoy,
and carefully set and secured the anchor in the sand. The boat has an excellent
sound system. On the first dives, Justin put on the Keys' ubiquitous Jimmy
Buffet (for you Parrotheads, the album sounded like Songs You Know by Heart).
Cruising out to a dive site in the Keys, listening to Jimmy Buffet, hey, it
doesn't get better.
On the downside, Just-in Time's Platinum Service didn't include careful gear
unloading. When the trip was over, Justin unceremoniously threw his customers'
dive gear off the boat onto a communal pile on the dock. Given that some divers
have BCs loaded with solid lead, the chance for a problem should be apparent.
In my case, it was no big deal because I was going to replace my regulator
anyway. To be fair, Amoray's website says that crew will break down your gear, I
just had a different meaning in mind. If you are on the Just-in Time, I suggest
you unload your own gear. Another experience: While hanging on the dragline waiting
to get back on the boat, Justin swam up and asked if I would let him "cut."
He explained he would then help me get on the boat. But after getting aboard,
he simply walked away from the dive platform and went forward, forgetting me. As
this is what I expected to happen, I was amused rather than shocked or outraged.
However, be warned!
At the resort, my spotless room was perfect
for divers. The floors were of a tile
that does not get slippery when wet. Though
sparsely furnished, I had a full refrigerator/
freezer, a small breakfast-nook table,
microwave, toaster oven and coffeepot. For
the meals I ate there -- fruit or yogurt for
breakfast, a quick sandwich between morning
and afternoon dives -- this setup was
ideal. With limited counter space, preparing
a real meal would be tough. Outside were
large grills and picnic tables. The room could
handle sleeping for six, with a queen bed in a separate bedroom and four trundle beds
in the common area. As mine was a waterfront
room, I had a balcony overlooking
the bay and the nearby dive dock.
The balcony had a very comfortable hammock
where I could easily have spent the
rest of the day. My room was connected
to an adjoining room, so the two spaces
could be combined for a large group. The
single door did not block sound well, so
pretty much anything in one room could
be heard in the other. Once a curtain
rod fell by just being brushed, but management
quickly repaired it and painted
the hole in the drywall.
There are plenty of stores, restaurants,
etc., within walking distance.
In the next parking lot over is Jimmy
Johnson's (of NFL Fame), full of football
memorabilia, overpriced bar food
and standard Keys-style drinks. While
it's worth stopping for a drink or listening
to the live band, it's not a place to have a meal. Across from Jimmy's is
Sundowners, which is on the bay, so the sunset view is great. The food was good
and appropriately priced for a resort area. Many also mentioned Hobos, about a
mile up the road; one of the captains stated it was the best steak place in Key
Largo. It's a great place for good volume for a good value.
My wife, having not dived for awhile, took a morning refresher course, then
in the afternoon, she joined the group led by another instructor. On both dives,
he hit the water and took off, never looking back or attempting to "guide" the
people who contracted his services. During the dive, my wife vomited into her
regulator a few times. She is prone to seasickness, and while the fast pace set
by the "guide" may not have had anything to with her distress, it certainly did
not help. Because of that poor experience, she canceled her dives for the rest
of the week. But because the pre-paid guide fees are non-refundable, I decided
to stick with my already-booked guided dives. The one I had for Tuesday (the
Duane dive day)set her pace to mine, showed me interesting spots on the reefs,
and when we wandered pretty far away from the boat, she did the "peek of shame"
and got us back. If you use an Amoray guide, perhaps you should put in writing
what your expectations are for the guide, and have it witnessed by the guide
and management.
I'm sure the turnover rate at Amoray explains some of the wide range of ratings.
If you're lucky to have good guides, you get great service. After all,
the staff was highly qualified during our visit. Everyone, other than the dive
"guide" noted, seemed driven to provide excellent service. As near as I can tell,
the mate on Just-in Time was both a certified captain and divemaster. When he
warmed up to me, he revealed himself to be an intelligent, interesting fellow.
Ok, a last Justin Minichino story, I promise, but it really illustrates
some of the strange things I saw. While going through the channel between the
bay and the ocean, Justin left the wheel to, I think, look for his sunglasses
in one of the boat's storage areas, leaving the wheel unattended. The mate was
sitting near the wheel and fully aware of what was happening. Along with "only
speaking when spoken to," he apparently knew enough to not touch the wheel of
Justin's boat. With nobody steering, the boat changed course, and headed for
the concrete wall of the channel. Boat speed is low in the channel, so there
was no immediate problem, but in roughly ten seconds, things were going to get
interesting. Justin looked up and told the clearly nervous, conflicted mate
that "he should steer a while." The mate leapt to the wheel with appropriate
alacrity and set the boat on a safer course. It made me wonder about the treatment required to turn an accomplished and intelligent fellow into someone
who could sit still during such a situation. "Sit still" is not quite accurate
in this case -- he was clearly fidgeting and trying to figure out if he would
be in more trouble if he touched the wheel without permission or said nothing
and allowed the boat to impact the wall.
At one point, Justin mentioned (or bragged?) that people worked at Amoray
only for a year, pointing out numerous boats with captains who had formerly
worked for him. He gave no indication this might not be ideal for his business.
The apparent "do what you're told, speak when you're spoken to" management style
that I observed leads to some odd situations. It seems that the strength of the
basic business model- affordable rooms set up perfectly for divers, right next
to the dive boat dock - can overcome the brow-beaten staff. Most of the time, I
was so impressed I wondered why Amoray was not franchised all over the world and
known as the best dive resort anywhere. Then there would be the "how on earth do
they stay in business?" moments. If you can overlook the lapses, then this is a
great place. In fact, I have already booked another week.
-- E.R.
Divers Compass: Two people can stay a week here and dive two
tanks daily for six days, for $1,400 to $1,700 total . . . The
resort is about an hour's drive from the Miami airport . . .
I heard "through the grapevine" that if you wish a gratuity to
reach the crew, give it to the crew directly or use the tip jar
. . . Website: www.amoray.com