Isla de Roatán Travel Forum

I am going for a joint PADI certification/vacation in Sept. 2005. Does anyone suggest a hotel that offers comfy lodging and PADI certification?

Anthoney's key resort

Anthony's Key is by far the most popular and I would not try to steer anyone away yet depending on your budget and what exactly you are looking for I would just say that there are many dive shops around the Island and especially in West End that offer Padi certifications as well as lodging. Some of these are hostels with shared facilities starting around 10 dollars a night. Also, in West End is a nice place named Arco Iris, It does not have diving but within a minute walk there are a few places one in particular I have used is Native Sons , they are a good operation. and the also have Hostel type rooms. It seems that there are a lot of people these days inquiring about the BEST of places and what is best for some may not be best for others.
Good luck, Have fun, and happy diving
Eric
You can see some of my pictures of Underwater Roatan here if you are intersted http://home.comcast.net/~uwcaver2/wsb/html/view.cgi-photos.html-.html

I have to agree… AKR is the best place on the island to get a PADI cert and great accommodations.
AKR is a 5 star PADI dive center and the Master dive instructor is a friend of mine. You just can not go wrong there.
I have loads of info about AKR on my pages here or if you need more just drop me an email.

Keith (aka TinKan)

There are tons of inexpensive places that have dive and hotel packages in West End & West Bay. If you are looking into an all inclusive such as Anthony's Key, check out Coco View. http://www.cocoviewresort.com/ I dove with them on my last visit and liked the vibe there more than Anthoney's Key, more laid back and casual, and if I remember correctly, quite a bit cheaper. They are the most organized diving operation I've ever seen. They even have unlimited shore diving with a shipwreck in the "front yard"! If you don't need luxury of any sort, check out Chilis in the west end (west Bay? I get them confused) if it's still there - nice people with nice, but very simple rooms and cabins. The Youth hostel is a pit. Even for a youth Hostel!