Diving in Roatan
Roatan has a reputation for being one of the best (if not the best) diving destinations in the Caribbean. The tourist came to Roatan from all over the world, and they come in large numbers all year round. Suffice to say; there are many dive shops and dive operators to choose from.
Noteworthy Dive Sites.
Mary’s Place
Arguably one of the prettiest dive sites on the island, but also one of the most trafficked. Most dive centers will limit divers to one dive at Mary's place per day in efforts to preserve the reef formation and the general area. Mary's Place is a prehistoric area, and reef formation, formed by volcanic activity thousands of years ago. Large fissures were created in the reef forming a wall and a network of labyrinths. This site has rare black coral and is filled with sea fans.
Dolphins Den
The site offers a swim through via a cave-like system that will transport you from one side of the barrier reef to another. The dive site offers a spectacular winding path through an underwater maze of caverns. The site is full of marine life and has interesting formations along the cavern walls. The history of the site is that a pack of dolphins became disoriented in the cave and perished.
Prince Albert
The Prince Albert Wreck sits 85 ft below the surface. The ship measures 140 feet in length, and it is a freighter that sunk in 1987. Albert is relatively intact, and its large hull is home to large numbers of fish and marine life communities. The vessel can be penetrated fairly easily without light and a dive line. However, a dive line and training is standard procedure before entering any wreck. Be sure to ask your divemaster to take you to the DC-3, which sits nearby.
The Odyssey
The Odyssey is Roatan's largest subsurface wreck. The Odyssey sits in 110 feet of water. The center of the wreck has collapsed over the years due to hurricanes coming through the area and also due to natural decay and rust. The bow of the ship is upright, offering phenomenal views of the rest of the ship. There is a sandy bottom patch next and around the wreck and a reef wall as a backdrop.
Spooky Channel
This is one of the most interesting sites to dive. This dive site is better suited for experienced divers. The channel is 10-stories deep with large crevasses where divers can enter a grotto at 60 ft. Natural light dissipates and fades away. The main chamber of the formation is at 95 ft. There are swim-throughs which will take you out to your safety stop.
Pat’s Place.
The mooring for the dive site sits at 15 ft on sandy bottom. But the dive is scheduled for deeper depths ranging from 50 to 100 feet. Pat's place has canyon formations, drop offs, narrow swim-throughs, and shark sightings are frequent. Dive operators feed sharks and can put on a show while divers remain still and observe. Probably a good site to follow all the rules.
Information comes from the Roatan Online Community, In Partnership with Roatan Tourism Bureau.
