timmK379SU
Google
My friend and I enjoyed a great week's guided diving with Xtra Divers, staying at the Speyside Inn. I had visited the Speyside Inn before and everything was as good as it's ever been.||The accommodation is comfortable and clean. Plenty of hot water etc. Mosi nets and coils provided. Clothes pegs and washing line on the balcony were a nice touch.||The dive centre staff are excellent. All worked very well. The diving arrangements are pretty hands on (more like club diving than, say, a liveaboard). On the last day did the local guide not show, but Manager Roberto stepped up and guided that day - he was a great guide on many of our dives.||Roberto and managing partner Debi are doing a fine job. They are into their second year so know lots of the sites and seasonal variations.||The hotel restaurant is very good - we enjoyed good local seafood, freshly prepared. A highlight was curried lionfish with coconut - helping to control these invasive, predatory fish that are now seen on most dives. Indeed, Roberto is keen to make the restaurant sustainable by selecting the menu. So, if you want a lobster, you'll have to go down the road: there are plenty of choices nearby.||The diving was very good - even though recent rain dropped the vis a bit, and then gave rise to some green in the water. The currents were a little less than on previous visits. We dived some amazing sites: the glorious Japanese Garden, Book Ends, Coral Garden, Runaway... to name but a few of the 30+ sites nearby.||We saw rays, turtles, lots of morrays of different kinds, The Biggest Brain Coral, Royal Gramma, octopus, barracuda, tarpon, lobster, shrimps. The reefs and the fishery seem in good shape.||The location is great - easy to get access to the Atlantic and Caribbean sides of the Island and enjoy the beaches, restaurants, forest and bird life, and to lime like a local.||Thanks to Roberto, Debi and their team for an excellent holiday.|