Differences between dive ops are mostly about the boat ride. Aldora and a couple of others use larger tanks.
I GUESS I NEED TO SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT WITH A LITTLE HISTORY.
I retired in the early 1990s and was certified by the, then, best shop in Cozumel, Scuba Du/Presidente. But even there you could not get what is now called valet diving. I chose to private charter from them as that was the only way to get to the fabled Devil's Throat. As part of the private charter I tipped some people to take care of my gear. Finding Devil's Throat at that time was only a guess from landmarks.
Because of current and poor drops it took me 5 trips to get there, and because of 80cf tanks I came out on the wall with just 500psi. But what a sight to see with a narc going on! Memo Mendoza was my dive master then and still. I then realized that there should be some way for the general dive public to experience this and not spend a fortune to do so. But Memo and I knew that several innovations were needed to make that possible. The biggest hurdle was the air supply and that in our estimation, alum 80 cf tanks would make the dive potential dangerous for the average diver. Fortunately High Capacity steel 120s were just becoming available and we went from there. So you could kinda say, THE DEVIL'S THROAT WAS THE REASON FOR THERE BEING AN ALDORA DIVERS.
With reasonable funds from my retirement, we decided to try to bring that experience to everyone. First off we took delivery of HP 120 tanks, rented a boat from the old Blue Angel and Pam Litton, and instituted care of our divers gear (cleaned in Memo's apartment), and required the use of the recent innovation of dive computers. Also by then I had gotten GPS coordinates for the Devils Throat to make the drops perfect and safe. After we received our first boat Aldora I (still in use) there were lots of other problems to overcome but we did. Our whole goal was to safely replicate the experience a millionaire on private charter.
Part of that was to limit our boats to just six divers of similar experience, and you all may know the rest.
By the turn of the century we were looking for lodging commensurate with the the quality expected of Aldora. I was close to purchasing the La Perla/now Blue Angel, but the road noise and constricted rooms make me look elsewhere. In 2003 I did buy the VILLA ALDORA, which was an abandoned wreck but with great possibilities. I more than doubled the purchase price in renovation and upgrading but the result was what some of you now know to be a beautiful waterfront property, and dive resort in the serene near north of Cozumel. We also put in docks so that our Aldora Boats could pick up guests there. Last year we celebrated our 20th year of operation there. Each of those years we have continued to upgrade every aspect of the service and beauty of the Villa and for our long term guests, I am sure they can say it is a more wonderful experience ever.
As I write this I am celebrating my 78th birthday today and that could explain why I am no longer in charge of Aldora Divers. But my dear friend Memo still is and we coordinate on issues of Aldora Divers and the Villa Aldora. For instance, just last month we worked out a deal to provide free Nitrox to those staying at the Villa. And having given my dear Grandmother's name , she who raised me, I will be doing all in my power and influence to make sure that the dive shop continues to honor here name.
One more thought. I do live in Galveston County south of Houston most of the time (mainly for the access to health care for us old folks) but I do stay at the Villa once a month to check in on the dive shop and Villa. As some others do, I also get great discounts on rooms!
If anyone would like to communicate with me, my email is
dave@aldora.com or 830 460-0667
Dave Dillehay
