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Dive Review of Utila Aggressor in
Honduras/Utila

Utila Aggressor, Jun, 2006,

by Lorna Weible, Tx, USA . Report 2565.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 3 stars Food 5 stars
Service and Attitude 3 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 4 stars Shore Diving 1 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 4 stars
Advanced 3 stars
Comments We thought we would try a different destination in the Bay Islands, having been to Roatan before, to see if viz and fish life would be better. Found it to be about the same. Not on scale with Caymans or Turks & Caicos. We understood this to be a protected reserve but found the fish life to be lacking. Our hopes of seeing whale sharks were not realized, but in reading the captains log on-line they had only seen one since the boat started charters. There were some different types of juvenile fish we spotted, and the place is not lacking for creole wrasse. Almost every dive you would swim with rivers of them. No real currents and not tough diving at all. Good for beginners. Summer usually has calmer seas. No rain our whole trip.
This was our 4th Aggressor trip and the boat layout was similar to all the others. Same rules- outside towels stay out, inside towels stay in. I have read reports that captains would not let guests in the cabin unless they have changed clothes, however I have never found this on any charter I have been on. As long as you are reasonably dry you can go in. They do ask that you don't sit on a cloth seat in a wet suit, but that should be general manners. The toilets on this boat backed up quite a bit which was a rude wake-up call in the mornings.
A few things I found unusual for an Aggressor boat: the crew all spoke fluent spanish and would use it frequently among themselves. This was done in front of non-spanish speaking guests and more than one commented on the rudness of it. Also, some of the beds in the cabins either did not have full linens or no linens. On Wednesday when they were changed I found only a bottom sheet on our bunk and asked for top sheets. I got one the next day. One guest commented that he had not had ANY sheets since the start of the trip! Unacceptable.
We did not eat out on the deck for any meal except the last coctail party, however it was pretty windy the whole week and this may have been the reason. Also, I have never been on a boat that did not have music to play on the sun deck. The crew said if anyone brought an ipod with us they would be happy to play it but that they had no tunes on the boat.
The food was among the best I have had on a live-aboard. The quality and quantity Candy put out in the small galley was amazing. Fresh home made breads and soups daily, desserts, some of the best salads ever. After the night dives we were served hot chocolate on the dive deck and after the first night the steward, Shane, learned we brought Baileys for just this purpose and never forgot to add it to our hot chocolate after that. Wonderful!
This particular boat has only been sailing since March 06. Despite this newness it lost one engine in the middle of the week and this ended in our being late into dive sites whenever the boat would move. The trip back from Roatan took 6-7 hours.
All in all this was an enjoyable trip. After all, how bad can being on a live-aboard in the carribbean be? But some of the issues I stated could be fixed and it would be an even better trip. At the end of the charter it was suggested by a crew member that tips are "only recommended if you had a good time, and if you did 15-18% would be appreciated".
The Utila trips have several add-on costs that quickly get the price up to the same as their other trips.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving All over carribbean, Hawaii
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, windy Seas choppy, surge
Water Temp 78-82°F / 26-28°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 65-85 Ft/ 20-26 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions 130 feet or your own computer; first drink=last dive
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 2 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish 2 stars
Large Pelagics 1 stars

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 4 stars Boat Facilities 5 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 4 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments Plug-ins for batteries were inside the main salon while the photo table was outside on the dive deck. Lots of going back and forth. Would have been nicer to have the plug-ins on the camera table. Camera table is plenty large and the camera rinse tank was large and filled with fresh water every morning. I brought my first digital camera and the crew was very nice about working with me to help get the best shots and also helped with using Photoshop.
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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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