INSIDE a GUIDED TOUR -- WILD ISLAND EXPEDITIONS   TM COME JOIN The AMOSI FAMILY On their CUSTOMIZED HONDURAS ADVENTURE !

WILD ISLAND EXPEDITIONS offers two types of guided adventure tours overseas:

1. Periodic live-aboard full-vessel charters in the Pacific & Caribbean.

       2. Private Customized Group Tours. Click Here for High Adventures !

You can retain the services of our expert overseas guides for a special customized adventure tour -- to almost any country your imagination desires -- any season of the year. We'll be happy to help you plan the tour from day 1, then assign a qualified adventure-travel pro to direct the overseas day-to-day details of your "Custom-Combi Tour." Click the hot-link above to explore our newest vacation option.

To better show how WILD ISLAND EXPEDITIONS designs & plans customized guided tours for families, dive clubs, private social clubs, office buddies & groups of friends, we've reprinted here below an actual itinerary of a family group whom we guided on a 10-day adventure vacation not long ago. Below our introduction here, we've reprinted the pre-trip planning memo that we mailed out to get everybody revved up & prepared. Their trip to the peaceful Bay Islands of Honduras was a delight and a success in all four ways that matter most:

• Each client's per-capita tab came in at least $200 below normal retail for spring prices on their host island, after WILD ISLAND EXPEDITIONS secured a special group discount at the resort plus wholesale air tickets. As a whole, the family group saved nearly $2,000.
  
  
• Folks all said they had a wonderful time. The diving was superb, aided by good weather.
  
  
• Everybody stayed safe & healthy -- no urchin handshakes, no intestinal cha-chas.
  
  
• The personal dynamics of the group were hassle-free & blessed with good humor.
  

Here's how the Amosi Family's booking process worked, so you can see how smoothly their advance planning, & their trip itself, flowed along from A to Z. We have changed the family names & a few minor details to protect their privacy, but the actual itinerary is copied straight from USDT's group-tour files, verbatim.

The father of the extended family, Dr. Amosi, is a thoughtful & life-positive guy who proved to be a joy to work with. He telephoned U.S. Dive Travel near the first of the year to ask for help in organizing a special family adventure overseas. We talked with him for about an hour as he sifted through various options. There was no rush, we assured him -- "just take your time & highlight your priorities for us." Dr. Amosi asked us to search out 3 or 4 resort options that offered high-quality diving at a fair price, with reasonable airfares from Seattle.

That afternoon we assembled a detailed information portfolio on resorts in Belize, Honduras, Mexico & Hawaii -- with color brochures & in-depth fact sheets -- & mailed it off right away. Dr. Amosi received the packet within 48 hours of his phone call.

About a week later he called us & asked for an appointment. We had time open later that week & set the meeting forthwith. Four members of the family, a kind of "vacation recon" team, drove about 80 miles to visit our former main office in downtown Seattle. It was a fun afternoon, about 2.5 hours together, punctuated with easygoing humor & spirited questions. We gave the family members a thorough presentation with color slides, brochures & maps. The clients relaxed & asked all the questions they needed, in a low-key & low-pressure environment. Then they bid us adieu.

Two weeks later Dr. Amosi called us back & hired WILD ISLAND EXPEDITIONS to provide a guided diving & cultural tour to Honduras. He paid the deposits for 10 divers, picking a great little inn, NAUTILUS DIVE RESORT, on the unspoiled island of Guanaja in the Bay Islands of Honduras. Then 70 days before departure the Amosi family paid in full, as per USDT terms & conditions. USDT's guide flew to Guanaja a few days before their arrival to prep the resort for them. Here's the memo he mailed them just before he left Seattle.

AMOSI FAMILY ITINERARY: HONDURAS TRIP in MAY

Participant Funseekers (each dynamic duo is sharing a room):

• Dr. Almar Amosi & Jayne Amosi (spouses)
  
  
• Martin Amosi & Holly Ann Amosi (spouses)
  
  
• Lance Marshall & Sandra J. Marshall
  
  
• Theodore Amosi & Adam Fowler
  
  
• Joshua Greenbaum & Dr. Lucia Greenbaum (spouses)
  
  
• John Hessburg, tour leader & divemaster (rooming solo).
  

MAJOR FUNSEEKER ALERT:

All scuba divers, please remember to bring your diving certification cards, your passports, your driver's license & greenbacks or US travelers checks for emergency money or side expenses. US currency is readily accepted all over Honduras, but travelers checks are safest. Also remember to carry your regulators, dive computers, plus other fragiles & valuables with you on the plane as you depart Seattle, or Portland. It's safer that way.

Bring mucho bug spray. Also bring American snack foods such as dried fruits, candy bars, fruit tarts, beef jerky -- if you crave such goodies frequently. Avon Skin-So-Soft works great against the no-see-ums & mosquitoes, though some wags suggest it makes you smell like a French cathouse. Call Almar or me to fax you a copy of the trip preparation checklists I gave the family several months ago, just in case you still haven't seen one.

Be sure to get malaria prophylaxis & any other shots your doctor recommends. Ask your doctor about the good old classic chloroquine for malaria prevention. It's safe & you need only one tablet the week before you leave, one each week while you're abroad, & one each week for about 5 weeks after you return. Pack light. Just a few T shirts, shorts & sandals are fine. It will be warm & summery. May is usually the ideal month to be diving in the Bay Islands. You all picked a winner! You're in for Big Fun on de Bayou.

And remember the Hessburg Hat Guarantee. After the trip's over, if you honestly believe that you had a lousy time, speak up & John will fork over a few bucks to buy the hat of your choice in San Pedro. In full view of everybody, camcorders whirring, John will eat one hefty bite of that hat for you, to atone for his sins of earthly imperfection.

(May 6)

• Joshua & Lucia Lv Portland 7:30 am, Ar Houston 2:09 pm, overnight in Houston.
  
  
• Greenbaum's rez @ Houston Airport Doubletree is under their Mastercard. Remember Joshua, please call 800-222-8733 if you haven't secured room yet with card payment.
  
  
• Greenbaum's hotel rez # is 9671-07595. Airport Doubletree has a free shuttle pickup.
  
  

(May 7)

• See separate air itineraries accompanying your tickets for details. Almar & Jayne, Lance & Sandra, Ted & Adam, Joshua & Lucia, Martin & Holly Ann all converge @ Houston International Airport for group departure to San Pedro Sula, 2nd-largest city in Honduras. Continental flight # 1057 Lv Houston 10 am, Ar San Pedro Sula 11:50 am.
  
  
• Upon arrival in San Pedro Sula, all 10 persons proceed immediately to Islena Airlines ticket counter, pay about $80 US cash each person for round-trip commuter flight to island. Check luggage through to Guanaja, NOT just to La Ceiba. Escort your bags to the plane if you feel so inclined, just to be safe. The airport is tiny, it's really easy.
  
  
• Islena Flight # 314 Lv San Pedro Sula 3 pm, Ar La Ceiba (coastal city) about 3:40 pm. Here you pick up a couple sweet old ladies with chickens under their arms & off you go. Then Islena #500 Lv La Ceiba 4 pm, Ar Guanaja about 4:35 pm. Honduran commuter airlines are well-known to be "flexible" with departure & arrival times. Just relax & enjoy the gentle-spirited people & everything will flow smoothly. Hey, it's only the Third World.
  
  
• Lads from Nautilus Dive Resort will meet & greet you at Guanaja's little landing strip. They'll take you right to the resort's dock in a power boat. Service with a smile.
  
  
• Spend a relaxing evening at Nautilus w/ ample time to stroll the plantation estate, enjoy a leisurely supper & hit the hay early to prep for tomorrow's introductory dives.
  
  
• While at Nautilus Resort, all guests receive as part of their package: 3 meals per day, dbl-occup rooms with sweeping views of the estate, one free night dive per week, & 6 days of 3 boat dives per day (assuming weather & currents allow). All other items such as alcoholic beverages & soft drinks, or side trips such as deep-sea fishing & sailing, will be offered at nominal extra charges. Each person also will have to pay about $20 US airport departure tax upon leaving Honduras. This is for your exit visa -- standard stuff.
  
  
• There are no roads on Guanaja Island, & only a few phones, no shopping centers, no nightclubs, no industry & no pollution, only heavenly peace & quiet & a refreshing old-world way of life not much different from what it was five decades ago. You want nighttime action? A Club Med this is not. This is Honduras & that's why we're going! It's old-fashioned & that's great. Anyway, back to the nocturnal jollies issue.
  
  
• Try taking a water taxi (maybe $10 a head round-trip) over to the old Bonacca Cay, where about 2,000 people live in an old-world stilt village atop an island smaller than 100 acres. There are two wonderfully cheesy discos on Bonacca -- like Saturday Night Fever on the Planet Bizarro. You'll love the very retro mirror-faceted revolving globe, the 70s & 80s music, & apple-cheeked young teens gallivanting while their folks pretend to look the other way as the ingenuous mating rituals unfold. It's really high camp & a lot of good clean fun. Cheap too. The local beers are outstanding.
  
  

(May 8)

• Your resort-based underwater guide in charge of daily dive operations will be Denis, a skilled divemaster who is a longtime fixture at Nautilus Resort. Your travel guide, John, will help Denis on the vessel each day, normally sitting out the first dive (deepest dive) to watch the surface & "dry divemaster." John will join you for dives two & three each day.
  
  
• Denis will take all divers out into shallow water to check essential scuba skills & help orient all divers, to ensure a high level of personal safety & awareness for all clients. Denis may decide to lead you on 2-3 moderate or shallow dives, to get the ol' sea legs wet again.
  

(May 9) to (May 13)

• Denis & John will lead you on 3 boat dives per day, 2 in morning, one in afternoon, in an expanding pattern of exploration, to show you the best & brightest of Guanaja's renowned reefs. Get set to be amazed at the pristine purity of these corals, not to mention some of the biggest & healthiest sponges anywhere in the Caribbean.
  
  
• The last day before departure, of course, all divers are strongly advised to not dive in the afternoon, thereby leaving yourselves close to a full 24 hours of safety decompression time before you board the plane back to the mainland. This is vital. Let's be super safe.
  

(May 14)

• John will accompany Almar & Jayne, Ted & Adam, Joshua & Lucia on a 3-day overland tour of the Honduran mainland, starting today. All 10 family team members, plus John, depart Guanaja early morning.
  
  
• All 11 persons Lv Guanaja on Islena # 501 @ 6:45 am, Ar La Ceiba about 7:20 am. Then Islena commuter flight Lv La Ceiba about 8 a.m. & Ar San Pedro Sula at 8:35 am.
  
  
• Martin & Sandra head back to Houston. Lv San Pedro Sula 12:30 pm, Ar Houston 5:50 pm. Overnight in Houston @ Airport Doubletree Hotel. Your confirmation # is 7732-14595. Remember to call (800-222-8733) ASAP to hold room for late arrival with your credit card number. The Doubletree has a free airport shuttle. On May 15, Lance & Sandra Lv Houston 12:10 pm, Ar Seattle 2:46 pm. Lord bless y'all, we'll miss you!
  
  
• Martin & Holly Ann strike out for parts unknown, plucky souls that they are. They may rent a Jeep to tour the back country of highland Honduras. They'll be on their own from May 14-21. On May 21, Martin & Holly Ann Lv San Pedro Sula 12:30 pm, Ar Houston 5:50 pm. Overnight in Houston @ Airport Doubletree. Confirmation #8746-140595. Remember also to call 800-222-8733 w/ your credit card to hold the room for late arrival.
  
  
• John, Joshua & Lucia, Almar & Jayne, Ted & Adam arrive in San Pedro Sula about 8:40 am & will be met by rep's of Mayan & Caribbean Tours. A Honduran native driver & trip valet, accompanied by the owner of MCT, will serve as our Guy Friday for these three days. At the invitation of Almar, John, who is fluent in Spanish & who's lived & traveled for years in Latin America, will serve as an on-the-road translator, troubleshooter, ombudsman & all-round helpin' sorta ramblin' kinda guy.
  
  
• The Magnificent Seven, plus the 2 local men, will saddle up in an air-conditioned van & head for Copan's great Mayan ruins, largest & most colorful of the Mayan centers in Meso-America. It's a colorful ride of about 4+ hours, with several stops for photos, meals, mingling with natives & brief breaks (inspired by ancient biological imperatives.)
  
  
• All meals are provided on this overland tour (snacks are not) up until the third day, when we're all on our own for lunch & supper. Local food is very economical, & delicious. Not to worry. We just won't drink the agua. Bring filters or iodine tabs.
  
  
• We spend the first mainland night in Copan, at the Hotel Marina Copan, a lovely old lodge where birds flit about the flower gardens right outside your door, & you can swim across the pool to lean up on the bar. The inner court smells as fresh as a conservatory.
  
  

(May 15)

• Full day of cavorting about the ruins, & the Sepulturas (catacombs), snapping photos, heeding our driver's informed commentary, plus optional horseback riding near Copan for those with a yen for frontier fun. This should be a wonderfully informative & relaxing day. Once again we stay in the Marina Copan overnight, relishing local cuisine.
  
  

(May 16)

• After breakfast we leisurely hit the road again & meander back to San Pedro Sula by car. It's a charming old colonial city that exudes 19th Century charm. On the road we pay for lunch & dinner ourselves. This evening we spend at the Gran Hotel Sula, in the heart of San Pedro. We'll all be free to split up & sightsee, nap, go on a stroll of local markets, do whatever we please. John will tie up some loose ends with local business folk. We may decide to have a grand going-home celebration supper together, assuming we're all still in love after all these days in close proximity. (Ay caramba, we'll probably do just fine.)
  

(May 17)

• The Magnificent Seven Lv San Pedro Sula @ 1:50 pm on Continental #1057, Ar Houston 5:50 pm. Overnight in Houston @ Airport Doubletree, as usual. Free shuttle available. Please call 800-222-8733 to confirm your rooms w/ credit cards, to ensure they are held for late arrival. Don't forget folks, or your room rezzies will melt into the Miasmal Mists @ precisely 6 p.m. May 17.
  
  
• Almar & Jayne, your confirmation number is 9347-170595.
  
  
• Ted & Adam, your confirmation # is 9348-170595.
  
  
• Joshua & Lucia, yours is 9349-170595.
  
  
• John, you get to sleep in the broom closet next to the ice machine.
  
  
• Josh & Lucia, on American #1318, Lv Houston @ 12:42 pm, via Dallas, & Ar Portland 6:33 pm, refreshed, renewed & ready to roll back to The Big City Life, we hope.
  
  
• The Magnificent 7 departs Houston @ 12:10 pm on Continental #665, Ar Seattle 2:46 pm, thereby reaching the etapa final of another splendid vacation. Farewell hugs, not slugs, will be the preferred order of the day, then we all split to see our loved ones back home. Great to get to know you all. Hope we're blessed to see you again. Ciao & Godspeed to one & all. You are all wonderful people & it's been a joy to serve you. -- John Hessburg

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