21st Annual Summer Meeting
UTOPIA VILLAGE – UTOPIA, BAY ISLAND, HONDURAS
July 21-28, 2012 • Limited to 20 Divers –
Utila 2012 Whale Shark Adventure – Whale Sharks are
Present Year Round!
The 2012 Annual Summer Meeting will be held at Utopia Village in Utila in the Bay Islands of Honduras. Utopia Resort is an all inclusive dive resort with spa services located on the South Shore. Utopia Village is the perfect fit for the adventure and sport traveler that is looking for a remote, unique, natural hideaway with a casual style and personal service. Utopia Village is an “ off the beaten path vacation retreat”. It is remote, it is casual, it is friendly, it is beautifully designed and it is adventure set in unchoreographed natural surroundings. The hotel is built on the edge of an abundant reef, a twenty minute boat ride from the nearest and only town on the tiny island of Utila, off the coast of Honduras.
The complex includes 16 casually elegant spacious rooms that enjoy panoramic views of the jungle, ocean, and mountains from every room’s spacious balcony.
The rooms have air conditioning; ceiling fans, wireless Internet and filtered water. The resort offers exquisite cuisine while surrounded by lush tropical jungle and breathtaking views of the Caribbean Sea. Two bars, and a full service dive shop and spa are part of the village. The biggest focus is on personal service at Utopia Village. It was created by seven long time friends from Texas, Canada and the UK who have realized a dream through their love of adventure and travel. Utopia combines the beauty of the Caribbean with the comfort of a small boutique hotel. The pristine surroundings of Utopia Village are enveloped by both sea and jungle providing an ideal location for the unique ambience. If you desire a vacation where you feel like a welcomed guest in someone’s home, then Utopia Village is for you. Many of the owners live on site and oversee the hotel, dive and spa operations. Utopia’s staff is friendly, outgoing and eager to make your stay the best it can be. Utopia’s number one motto is “You arrive as guests and leave as friends!”
Utopia’s greatest, natural asset is the house reef in front of the property. Divers and snorkelers alike will truly appreciate the giant Stag Horn and Elkhorn coral and the waters teaming with colorful Caribbean fish. The goal was to create a dive destination that would offer some pleasant and welcomed surprises. Full service dive amenities are available plus four-star meals served at your table, spacious rooms with custom built furniture and bedding and a spa perfect for a relaxing massage after a long week of diving.
Utila, the smallest of the Bay Islands, offers a wide variety of easily accessible dive sites with varying underwater terrains. Sitting at the edge of the largest barrier reef in the Western Hemisphere, Utila’s waters are teaming with colorful marine life. Utila has over 100 charted dive sites, which include seamounts, shallow fringing reefs and plunging walls that circumnavigate the Cayman Trench.
The shallow fissures with sandy bottoms and beautiful purple coral gardens just off Utopia’s shores will tantalize shore divers. Utila’s crystal blue waters host over 90% of marine inhabitants found in the Caribbean, including schools of Blue Tangs, Southern Sennetes, and scores of other brilliantly colored Tropical fish.
Everything from a myriad of juvenile reef residents to the larger Whale Shark, Manta Rays, Spotted Eagle Rays, and Moray Eels can be sited. With
water temperatures averaging 80 degrees or warmer, gentle currents and 100 feet of underwater visibility, Utile will be a dive destination you will never forget.
ACTIVITIES INCLUDED:
• Snorkeling – Utopia House Reef
• Billiards
• Sea Kayaking at Resort
• Book, DVD, and game selections
• Volleyball
• Horseshoes
• Weekly pirate folklore treasure hunt
Utopia has additional activities available at an additional charge
• Guided snorkeling tours
•Kayaking Excursions
• Freshwater cave adventures
• Day at the Cays
• Whale Shark and Dolphin Excursions
• Circle Island Tour
•U Spa Massage
• Flats Fishing
•Deep Sea Fishing
• Cayos Cochinos Eco Tour
• Pico Bonito Rainforest
• Mainland zipping & white water rafting – take a day trip to La Ceiba and spend the morning rafting the rapids down gorgeous jungle rivers and the afternoon zip lining the canopies
• Copan Trips to the Mayan Ruins Utopia’s philosophy is to combine adventure and relaxation with a casually elegant, secluded atmosphere thatallows every guest to feel at peace and carefree during their stay. So, kick off your shoes, leave any worries on another shore and allow us to treat you to an unforgettable stay at Utopia Village.. We hope you will join us as we celebrate the 21st ISAM Summer Meeting at Utopia Village on the island of Utila!
KEYNOTE SPEAKER:
The scientific sessions will be conducted by Ann Barker- Griffith, MD of SUNY Upstate Medical University and will feature as our keynote speaker Joel Silverstein. He is one of the leading specialists in diver training, explorations
and decompression analysis. Mr. Silverstein is the author of three books, and six training programs, a major contributor of the NOAA Diving Manual, and well over 100 articles on scuba diving training, exploration, and technology. He has conducted almost 5,000 dives all over the world with such noted dives as the USS Monitor ad 12 expeditions to the Andrea Dorea.
CONFERENCE OBJECTIVES:
ISAM is an association of diving physicians dedicated to the promulgation of diving medicine information to physicians in the United States and foreign countries. The conference will include the study of such topics as underwater
physiology, diagnosis and treatment of decompression sickness, physical examinations for divers, and the treatment of injuries caused by poisonous and venomous animals.
COSTS:
Prices per person based on double occupancy
Diver ……………………….. $1995.00
Non-Diver ………………… $1695.00
Single Occupancy ………….. $375.00
ISAM Dues to be current for 2012 …… $100.00
Costs are based on payment by check. Use of a credit card add 3.5 %
Utopia has additional activities
DIVE PACKAGE INCLUDES
7 nights accommodations based on double occupancy
Land/boat transfers to and from airport in Utila
Welcome cocktail
Hotel Tax
Daily breakfast, lunch and three-course dinner designed by a four-star chef
Coffee, tea, filtered water, Fresh juice during breakfast
Diving Sunday- Thursday, two tank morning boat dives (Five days of boat dives with standard seven night pkg)
Weekly scheduled night dive with seven-night package
Complimentary shore diving available with seven-night dive package
Tanks, weights and belts
Gear valet
Refreshments & towels on boat
Private equipment room with oversized lockers
Tips for the dive guides, One ISAM gift`
30 hours of category 2 CME
REQUIRED EQUIPMENT: Certification Card
RESPONSIBILITY:
ISAM, Traveler’s Choice, Utopia Dive Village and U Dive assume no responsibility or liability as to the safety, quality of conditions, nor for the act of any employee or agent of any establishment, firm, or its entity furnishing such services, transportations, equipment substitution or unperformed services, nor assume any responsibility or liability for the safety of any participating individuals while engaged in underwater activities. All trip participants will be required to sign an ISAM /Traveler’s Choice Liability waiver.
HOW TO GET THERE:
There are 3 ways to get to Utila. You can fly to San Pedro Sula and take a commuter flight. You can fly to Roatan and take a commuter flight or a Catamaran. The flights into San Pedro Sula are much less than flights into Roatan. I am working with Alice Hill at worldwide travel to arrange group airfare into San Pedro Sula from various cities and then use the domestic airline SOSA for flights from San Pedro to Utila.