SCUBA DIVING VACATIONS

CAYE RESORTS Turneffe Atoll, Blackbird Caye Belize www.cayeresorts.com
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Overview

Blackbird is one of Belize's premier, best-established offshore dive and snorkel resorts, located on a delightful 167-acre island on Turneffe Atoll. It's personal, private and relaxing: only 18 air-conditioned cabanas, all with front porches facing the water. Perfect for kicking back with a Belikin beer after a long day of diving, snorkeling, kayaking or beachcombing.

Your vacation begins when you are met by resort staff at the Belize International Airport for a short ride to the resort’s dock. There you will board the fast, 50-foot vessel, Big Bird, for the spectacular 32-mile trip to Blackbird Caye Resort. Sip on complimentary sodas and Belizean beer as you weave through coconut palm-dotted mangrove islands, to the great Belize Barrier Reef, the second largest in the world. The short hour and a half trip is both exciting and scenic. When you arrive, toss the shoes, dig your toes in the sand, meet the resort’s friendly staff and learn about what you can do during your stay.

There is something at Blackbird Caye Resort for everyone: scuba diving, snorkeling, kayaking, and more. You can be as busy as you like, or slow down and read a book, or put in some serious hammock time under a coconut tree. You'll wonder why you don't indulge in trips like this more often!

Scuba Diving
Blackbird Caye Resort offers true world class diving. The diving sites are considered some of the best in the Western Caribbean. Turneffe Atoll is the only Caribbean atoll made up of dozens of mangrove islands which are the juvenile nurseries for coral reefs. It also means many schools of fish. More than 70 dive sites near the caye offer spectacular diving and are no more than an average time of 12 minutes away from the resort. Some of the popular dive spots you will visit are "The Elbow", "Calabash Cut", "West Side Story", "CoCo Point", "Al's Hideout", and "Oasis". One night dive is included for the seven-night and four-night packages.

Each day begins with an early breakfast, followed by two single-tank morning dives and a single-tank afternoon dive. Except for the Blue Hole Day & the Elbow dive, you’ll return to shore between each dive. The captain pilots the boat to you upon your ascent so there is no tiring swim back to the boat. The divemasters rinse your gear each evening and set it up for you after breakfast. No need to worry about it once you arrive on the island!

Scuba Training
As a PADI (Professional Association of Dive Instructors) facility, Blackbird Caye Resort offers all PADI training courses, from Open Water Certification to Divemaster. One of their most popular programs is the PADI Discover Scuba Diving. This offers non-divers the truly exciting first time experience of scuba diving in a safe but beautiful environment. Many guests who have experienced this have gone on to complete the full Open Water Course. If you have ever wondered what it would be like to swim with the fishes, this is the opportunity of a lifetime!

The dive shop has a selection of BCDs and regulators for rental, along with mask, fins and snorkels. They also rent short wet suits in a few common sizes if you need one. Although the year-round average water temperature is 82 degrees F, it is advisable to have a dive skin or a thin short suit if you are completing three dives a day. It is recommended that you bring your own mask, fins, snorkel and wet suit, as these are more personal items. Fit and comfort are very important and sometimes this can be hard to achieve with rental equipment. The resort provides weight belts, weights, and tanks as part of your package.

Location
Belize is located in Central America on the western edge of the Caribbean, immediately south of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. Formerly called British Honduras, it is the only English-speaking country in Central America. Its British Colonial-era legacy is reflected in the exquisitely charming 19th Century architecture of Belize City and a solid, democratic society based on British common law. In fact, it is still a member of the British Commonwealth of Nations, whose head of state is none other than Queen Elizabeth II of England.

About Belize
Belizeans are a true melting pot of cultures: Mayan Indians (the original inhabitants), Hispanic, Creole, Garifuna, European and more recently, Asian. Easy mixing of ethnic backgrounds is common and everyone refers to themselves as 'Belizean', regardless of ethnicity. It all makes for a very friendly, open people.

Getting There
Belize is a short 2- 2.5 hour flight from Houston, Dallas, or Miami. Slightly longer, but direct flights are available from Atlanta and Newark.

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