Certifcations in Cozumel

[Winterpeg]

I am a new member but have been reading the Cozumel board for the last couple of months doing research for next years' vacation, which brings me to ask a question I have not seen addressed (and hopefully that's good news because it's not an issue in Cozumel). First a bit of background:
I did my PADI OW dives last year on referral in Puerto Vallarta through a dive op I booked on the internet, and the dive instructor there did not complete all the elements of the test. It was a busy time of year (Xmas break week) and he had a boat full of vacationing divers so I guess he just cut corners. I had 4 really great dives; the staff were very helpful and the equipment was all safe, so it wasn't all bad, but the guy just signed off my test without actually testing me and there were quite a few required skills that I did not do at all. I left there feeling insecure and like I had not really passed fairly.
When I returned home I told the staff at my local dive centre and they said "I told you so" - apparently this is not the first instance they have heard of this type of thing happening. I did report it to PADI when I got my post-test survey via email. But in order to feel more secure, I ended up redoing my OW dives at home in Canada, in frigid (4 deg C or 39 deg F), murky water. The dive instructors here are awesome but I do not plan to ever dive here again.
Which brings me to my question: I am planning a fabulous vacation in Cozumel next Feb (09) for 2 weeks and plan to do lots of fun diving. I would like to do my AOW there and my husband also would like to take a couple of short course offerings. Is anyone aware of problems like this occurring with any of the dive ops in Cozumel? It seems from what I have read both here and on TripAdvisor, that most are reputable, but I would sure hate to run into anything like this again. I have narrowed down where we want to stay and who we want to dive with to a few main choices, but don't want to state them here yet as I am mainly interested in an overall opinion.
Thanks so much for any info and hopefully reassurance you all have.

 

[georoc01]

Anywhere you go, you can have instructors that can cut corners. I know that when I find a good instructor in anything I tend to latch on to them and take whatever they are teaching.

That said, for the advanced open water (at least the PADI version), basically you are doing five dives with an instructor to expose you to different types of diving. Navigation and Deep are required, the others are between you and your instructor.

You do have to do the knowledge reviews in the PADI manual as part of the class. So I would try and determine which of the specialties in the Adventures in Diving manual you and your instructor want to do and have those done prior to going to Cozumel.

I did see some people doing theirs with Dive Paradise back in March and were happy with the course. I'd see if I can find an email address for the dive shops you are considering for your trip and find out as much as you can prior to the trip. That may help you figure out who you are most comfortable using.

 

[deborahdelamar]

One thing about AOW, especially in Coz: Think out of the box. All too often I see students take boat, drift and night diving as their other segments. That's a shame and a waste of the opportunity to have an instructor -- probably -- all to yourself! And there are some great instructors...

Read the chapters on boat and drift and the DM's will help you improve your drift techniques. Use the instructor to improve bouyancy, learn how to plan multi-level dives, use a computer, understand the fishes and habitat, do more deep diving or to introduce you to photography. You can still do the night dive! Have fun!

 

[MMM]

There are lots of awesome instructors on the island, so it's difficult to list them all. A more expeditious approach would be to identify who you plan to dive with for the balance of your non-instruction dives. It may turn out that they also have some great instructors and folks can identify WHICH of those ops they prefer for AOW and/or the circumstances you identify. Certainly that would be the most convenient option.

BTW, I don't envy you re-doing your OW dives in Manitoba! I won't dive up here!

 

[H20Bubbles]

We did our AOW with Christi and her team at BlueXTSea, and I have to say that I was thrilled with the detail and attention we were given. Like others said, we didn't do boat diving and drift diving - hell you learn that just by diving in Coz.

We did deep diving, photography (me), Fish ID (my wife), Navigation (in current), Peak Bouyancy Control (probably the best thing I have learned from my diving instruction). As a pretty new diver I tried to focus on things that would make me a better core diver.

On our last trip, we met two women on the airport shuttle and referred them to BlueXTSea as well, and they were very happy with the instruction.

 

[halocline]

A big difference between Cozumel and Puerta Vallarta is that Coz is primarily a dive destination, and there are several high quality dive ops and instructors on the island. You will be able to communicate with several before you choose, and I would suggest that. I've had a great experience diving with blue bubble divers, aka Roberta's Dive-eco cozumel. One of their instructors is a guy named Juan who taught a friend of mine his OW class; he was thorough and professional but also enjoyable.

There are lots of good ones, though, and many people will chime in with recommendations.

 

[Zman96]

I just returned from Coz after doing my open water dives there. I dove with Aqua Safari, they were patient, detailed and very informative in helping me get my certification. Any question I had they would take the time to explain or show my throughly. I have heard on this site and other that there are lots of reputable shops on the island, I would tell them your past experiences and tell them you are a little nervous.

Brian

 

[krbailey]

I did my AOW with Dive with Martin in April. I was very pleased with the level of instruction (Lucio was my instructor). I was fortunate to be one-on-one with him for each dive. I thought the prices were very reasonable, especially if you get one of the packages through their website (Averaged under $30 US per dive, including the AOW).

Good luck with your cert!

 

[don Francisco]

Winterpeg- I still dive with Aqua Safari, who introduced me to diving on a resort dive in 1999. They are a well organized operation with good instructors, who have good English. Their AOW classes are ususally very small, 1 on 1, or 1 on 2 with couples. AS is one of many good ops in Coz, so you won't have trouble finding good intructors.

Between, now and your trip, do as much reading and studying as possible and write down all your questions. You and the wife will have hours of private time with the instructor and what you get out of your course will depend what you bring into it. In a small AOW class the instructor will have the time and lattitude to tailor the course to your needs and preferences.

The course has required modules and electives. Choose well, for example you don't have to use the electives for boat & drift diving, since that's what you'll be doing anyway. Focus on fundemental skills like bouyancy, trim, air management, and advanced navigation. Then choose stuff like underwater naturalist, or photography according to your taste.

Remember to ask lots of questions. Instructors love to teach, and interested, curious students makes their job far more enjoyable. Lastly, AOW isn't mainly a book course. It's 5 dives, so plan on great dives and having fun.

 

[Martha]

My husband and I did our AOW and Nitrox with Christi at Blue XT~Sea. She was awesome! She made sure everything was covered and that we understood it completely before she signed off.