Blackbird has the potential to be a five star experience. I don't recommend against it, and I even endorse it for hard core divers, but be aware of its limitations.

The points in its favor are many. The location, way out on Turneffe Atoll (far past the barrier reef) puts you on low-traffic islands and reefs with plenty of healthy life. Boat trips to the dive sites were often less than five minutes (really) and the famous Blue Hole was only a bit over an hour away - that's a huge advantage over staying on Ambergris Caye. We saw dolphins, eagle rays, octopi, and strangely what looked like a manta ray (that one, unfortunately, only from the boat) all over. The diving was first class. The rooms were all one-room, spacious beach cabanas that were adequately appointed, kept the bugs out, had nice bathrooms, and had air conditioning that worked. They were spaced far enough apart to afford privacy, but not so far that walking to the main house for meals would be a chore. The setting is picturesque enough (it's basically a desert island - no lush flora) and there were plenty of big iguanas to follow around and a crocodile that visits at night. The food was plentiful and about a 7 on a scale of ten -- not fantastic, but enough to look forward to. Drinks were cheerfully supplied and reasonably priced -- important, since once you are on the island, they have you captive and could charge whatever they wanted.

The demerits are also significant. There's nothing to do but dive, so nondivers don't come -- if you aren't a hard core diver, you may feel out of place. No one there with us had fewer than 100 dives and most had more than 500 or had stopped counting. They supply all necessary gear if you ask, but their gear (particularly the BCs) is no-name, featureless, and worn out -- again, most people bring all their own stuff to this place. If you don't have a dive computer, you should call ahead and inquire whether they'll have a spare (but really, get your own). The boats are tired looking and one had engine trouble on us, making for a very slow trip. The dive master was quite experienced but did not make any attempt to police terrible behavior by his divers, except on the Blue Hole trip (when, to his credit, he cracked down -- that place could be dangerous). And it's a little thing, but they were very late with the boat out to the island from Belize City.

If you are a PADI gonzo with your own gear and not too much concern about being pampered, which describes us, this will be a great place for you, since the ease of diving here is amazing. Some folks were doing six dives a day all week, and the resort was happy to take them. If you need a little more tlc, this won't do it for you.

If these folks fix up their boats, replace their rental equipment, and give a little lecture to their dive operators about running a tight ship, they could deserve the praise that PADI's magazine gives them -- I just don't think they are quite there yet, and the broken-down boats are a big part of that. I got the impression that they were a little short of funds for repairs, which doesn't make any sense (the place is pricey), but that's the impression.

Of the 20 or so guests (full house) when we were there, the happiness of the guest was exactly proportional to the number of lifetime dives. Psycho diver = fully satisfied, casual diver = pretty disappointed. Figure out which one you are, then make your choice.

Blackbird Resort is located on a secluded island on Turneffe Atoll in Belize. The resort consists of 20 or so cabanas, the cafeteria and bar, and a dive operation. This is the ideal vacation for those who love to scuba dive and snorkel. The reef is minutes away in a boat and contains beautiful coral. The famous Belize Blue Hole is approximately an hour away by boat and easily doable on a day drip. The dive operation is top notch. They supply 3 dives a day with PADI certified dive masters. The surface intervals are on the island.

The cabanas are comfortable and relaxing. You can spend the entire time there bare foot. You don't have to go anywhere but diving and to dinner. The food is excellent. The bar is complete. The Chilean wine and Beliken beer are pretty good.

We spent the week without worrying about anything. We didn't even lock our cabana. You don't have to - no one is there except the tourists in the resort and the people that work at the resort. To be there you have to be boated in or flown in by charter airplane from the mainland.

The employees of the resort are wonderful! They accomodate all needs in a respectful efficient manner. The only problem we had the whole time was deciding how much to tip everyone because everyone was wonderful!

This vacation was the best dive vacation I have experienced.

My wife and I visited Blackbird resort earlier this year and I am just getting around to writing the review. We are both avid scuba divers and seasoned travelers. Let me preface this by saying that my wife and I are extremely laid back and really do not complain about anything. But, as you will read below, I felt compelled to write a review.

I would caution scuba divers to be aware of what transpired while we vacationed with Blackbird. On one dive, my wife & I, along with a diver master were separated from the rest of our dive group (typically groups of 8-10 w/ 2 dive masters). Upon surfacing, the dive boat could not locate us in the water. The dive master tried to use a safety tube to alert the boat of our location. The safety tube had not been inspected recently and had a tear in it, thus resulting in the boat not being able to locate us for close to 25-30 minutes.

The next HUGE red-flag came on our trip to the Blackhole (which is an awesome dive site by the way). The Blackbird dive team left a snorkler at the site of the Blackhole. Now, let me preface this by saying how dangerous this situation could have been as the Blackhole is about 1 1/2 hours away from the resort. There is nothing around the Blackhole and sometimes the site could go un-visited for days. How the dive masters could leave the site without an accurate head-count is just unacceptable and dangerous. They did not even learn of leaving a snorkler behind until at the next dive site (30 minutes away) when another dive operation came up besides us to give us the snorkler back. They had no clue they were missing someone?!?!?!

Next, it was unfortunate that their usual dive master was not there the week we visited. They brought in a subsitute which happened to be the brother of the dive master. This brother and the managers of the resort did not get along and openly argued in front of the divers on more than one occation. This left the divers to feeling quite uncomfortable during the heated exchanges that happened on the boat during pre-dive site instructions.

Outside of this the accommodations were quite nice. The food was mediocre at best and the diving left something to be desired. Out of being there a week, there were only a couple of memorable dives. The coral is in healthy shape but the lack of fish is downright depressing.

All in all, though we had a relaxing time, we would not return to Blackbird. 1) in part due to the complications listed above and 2) there are just too many beautiful places in this world to visit.

Take care, dive safe and protect the reefs. If you have any questions feel free to email me.

Staff were first class - kind, helpful, and cheerful. Accomodation was roomy, spacious, and welcoming. Food - excellent, avoid orange juice before a dive in case of choppy seas. Diving was spectacular. Would recommend unreservedly for the diving. Snorkelers would be happier if strong swimmers and with some experience. A memorable experience.