Cozumel for beginners?

[jawfish]

My first ocean dive was in Coz, only 10 or so dives under my belt at the time. I was also very nervous and afraid of what I had heard, so like you, researched the heck out of it. This is the best stop you will make in your research - advice and opinion from boards. But remember, a lot of people talk about negative experiences, but most don't hype the good ones (but will on these boards - do a search).

Find an operator that does not have a lot of negative feedback. Email them and see how they respond to your questions. Ask whatever you feel is important to you. A good operator will gladly answer them and be very patient. If they aren't, odds are they will be the same way in the water!! I did this and my instincts were right.

I picked an operator that had a slower boat (which is half the fun for me on the boat!) that only accepted 6-10 people, so that my experience was very personal. Although the DMs were very helpful and all went excellent, the best lesson I learned was that I am ultimately reponsible for MY safety and myself.

My trip was great and I learned I needed more work with bouyancy! I did find myslef having trouble at the 15 foot stop, so instead did my stop a little deeper. If that is an area you are unsure about, ask the operator if they would do a bouyancy course with you on the first day. This not only will give you the one on one you may need, but also an excellent specialty that will go a long way in the rest of your diving!

Feel free to PM me for info on who I used, I would recommend them 100% with confidence.

 

[Randy43068]

Hey Don,

You mentioned gluing 2 CDs back to back before. What's the advantage vs. just having one CD to use as a mirror? Does it make 'em stiffer? Incidentally, thanks to you, I now carry a CD in my dive gear so I'll have it handy if I need to take it on a dive with me.

Carry a safety sausage, a storm whistle, and 2 CDs glued back to back for signaling, in case you come up away from the group in the current, and watch out for boats and jet skis.

 

[O.P.]

Cozumel is great. I went there after my certification dives without any other dives under my belt.
I must admit I was a little apprehensive before the first dive while we were going to the site, but I was ready to get my feet wet.
I used Liquid Blue and they were great. They are slightly more expensive than the other shops but they use 120cuft steel tank. The benefits: you can remove at least 5 pound of weight and you have longer bottom time (especially important for new diver since you will suck your air faster than more experienced diver). My first dive was around 60 minutes (90 ft max depth) and after the third dives we were in the water for around 85 minutes (I was able to get those BT thanks to the larger tanks).

Make sure you tell you operator that you are a new diver. Talk to them before booking the trip. Once there listen carefully to the briefing, relax and jump in. For my first dive I tried to stay close to Roberto (the DM/Owner) just to make sure I had someone to alert in case I had a problem.
Everything went perfectly well, since then I'm hooked.

Be careful about one think: Cozumel will spoil you. The people are great, the reefs are awesome, the marine life is phenomenal and drift diving is the best. It is so easy to jump in the water and let the current carry you. You don't have to watch you compass, you don't have to worry about having enough air to get back to the boat.

I would be careful about going to the keys as my first trip. The reefs are not has good. The wrecks are great but usually too deep for OW. I went to Largo a month after my cozumel trip to do some wreck diving. Don't get me wrong, I had a great time but the dives were shorter (much deeper that my dives in cozumel), the water conditions were less than ideal (6 to 7 foot waves: easy to get off the boat, much harder to get back in), longer boat ride (in 6 foot seas, it is not that relaxing) and we almost got blown out.

Sorry for the long message, but as far as I'm concerned Cozumel is as good a beginner destination as other places, as long as you research your operator and you are comfortable with the dive plan.

O.P.

 

[Fly N Dive]

I would be careful about going to the keys as my first trip. The reefs are not has good. The wrecks are great but usually too deep for OW.
O.P.

i did my cert dives in key west, and had a great time. i dont think i went deeper than 45' but saw a great abundance of life. i agree that i like coz better, but i disagree that the keys are more advanced. sure diving deep wrecks is, but there are many shallow reefs that you can explore.

 

[DandyDon]

I would be careful about going to the keys as my first trip. The reefs are not has good. The wrecks are great but usually too deep for OW. I went to Largo a month after my cozumel trip to do some wreck diving. Don't get me wrong, I had a great time but the dives were shorter (much deeper that my dives in cozumel), the water conditions were less than ideal (6 to 7 foot waves: easy to get off the boat, much harder to get back in), longer boat ride (in 6 foot seas, it is not that relaxing) and we almost got blown out.

Diving the reefs at Key Largo with an operator who carters to newbies is a lot safer than diving Cozumel, where most operators are not as careful.

I don't know anything about your training and experience then or now, but it sounds like you were not prepared for the wrecks. There are some operators there who will take newbies to the wrecks, unfortunately.

Getting blown out is always a possibility. I've been blown out in the Florida Keys and in Cozumel.

 

[Upwelling]

I don't think the Keys are that difficult either. Yes there are high waves sometimes but maybe it's better to get that kind of experience on a 30 foot reef dive than on something more challenging, since it's going to happen sooner or later. You just have to be cautious climbing back on the boat. The reefs are a little bit repetitive but if you are brand new that probably won't matter too much to you. There are also plenty of non-diving activities to do in the Keys and So. Fla as well, which I enjoyed.

Diving the reefs at Key Largo with an operator who carters to newbies is a lot safer than diving Cozumel, where most operators are not as careful.

I don't know anything about your training and experience then or now, but it sounds like you were not prepared for the wrecks. There are some operators there who will take newbies to the wrecks, unfortunately.

Getting blown out is always a possibility. I've been blown out in the Florida Keys and in Cozumel.

 

[O.P.]

Diving the reefs at Key Largo with an operator who carters to newbies is a lot safer than diving Cozumel, where most operators are not as careful.

I don't know anything about your training and experience then or now, but it sounds like you were not prepared for the wrecks. There are some operators there who will take newbies to the wrecks, unfortunately.

Getting blown out is always a possibility. I've been blown out in the Florida Keys and in Cozumel.

Nothing went wrong on the wrecks and i was as prepared as needed for the diving we did (we had a DM and an intructor on that trip since i was doing my AOW). I would and will go back to the keys to do the wrecks again. But I will not go diving in Florida for the reefs only. It is a matter of personnal opinion, experience and personal comfort. But our trip to Florida was to do somewhat deep (100ft +) wreck diving so maybe the reef we saw (4th dive of the day, actually night) were not the best out there and I thought that there were more abundant life in cozumel and much more variety. The chances of being blown out in Florida are much higher than in cozumel (even if it is possible to get an El Norte and not be able to go out). Usually the boat rides are longer which means no surface interval on the beach enjoying breakfast.

I get frustrated by people saying newbies should stay in 25-30 ft of water. 25 ft is actually harder to control your buoyancy than 50ft. And there is nothing wrong in going in 80 ft of water if you have the proper mental attitude, the physical ability and are with people you trust.
I will not go past 30ft with somebody who does not know the location or who I don't feel confident can handle an emergency.

Bottom line (in my opinion): Cozumel, with the right operator, low DM/guide per diver ratio, is perfectly fine for newbies. The diving is great, and drift diving shouldn't be a show stopper for beginner. It has its special requirements but it is something almost everyone can handle. I also feel that as a new diver, one should experience great diving (or at least the best they can afford) to justify putting up with the stress of the first "real" dive.
BTW if one is going to Cozumel, I would recommend the cenote diving on the continent. Some are easy (30 ft or less) and a totally different experience.
Op

 

[badger70]

So are most of the dives in Cozumel drift dives? It sounds like from the above posts the waves tend to be lower compared to Keys, is this true?

 

[TheRedHead]

I used Liquid Blue and they were great.

Liquid Blue would be a great choice for a newbie, as would Blue XT and Aldora. Those 3 shops I would trust more than just about any operator in the Florida Keys. I haven't personally dived with Christi, but Blue XT is the number 1 recommended operator on scubaboard.

 

[RV]

never pass on a chance to go to CZM