Cozumel = "hell on earth?!"

[scubawife]

The only answer I can think of is that your divemaster was mad at you and didn't actually take you to the reef!

How many days did you actually dive? And if you care to share, WHO did you dive with that showed you the worst of Cozumel diving?

Maybe they heard all the "WestPac" talk at check-in and just gave up before they even had her on the boat.

I have a friend who's dived just about all the top spots in the world, many by liveaboard since that's the only way to get to many of them, and I just love going to the Caribbean with him. He's always like a kid in a candy store. I don't think the guy has ever come up from a dive where he isn't beaming about something he saw, encouraging and genuinely excited about another divers first, etc. He is just a pleasure to dive with...even when we've been in some places where there really is just clumps of coral and sand.

 

[mstevens]

If hell is having Camilio's tacos, I'll gladly buy a condo there.

Yep, Camilo's is usually the first meal we have on the island. It's only been a week and a half and last night my family already started talking about wishing we could get some filete de pescado con crema de poblano.

 

[mstevens]

The OP was talking about how he couldn't beleive that anyone didn't just ~LOVE~ Cozumel.

No, he wasn't. He even gave examples of why that might be the case.

I certainly understand why people may not love it. My main point was that "hell on earth" seemed farfetched.

In response to other posts, I'm quite certain the comment was in no way related to temperature. For one thing, it was unseasonably cool that week. For another, this couple go to Thailand, Egypt, etc. frequently.

I'm also quite certain this was not "dry British humour." I'm quite familiar with dry humour. The context was that Cozumel would be the speaker's idea of hell on earth if it weren't surrounded by reefs.

A number of people have commented on the comparison of Cozumel's reefs with other systems elsewhere in the world. All I can say is that I would dearly love to investigate for myself!

 

[Hank49]

A number of people have commented on the comparison of Cozumel's reefs with other systems elsewhere in the world. All I can say is that I would dearly love to investigate for myself!

If you pick up a book on Caribbean Reef Fishes and a book on Indo Pacific Reef Fishes, one will be about 2 inches thick, the other maybe a half inch thick. That's not to say one place is "better" but one place is definitley more species rich than the other. This includes coral, soft corals, nudibranches, crustaceans etc etc.

 

[Diver Kat]

You guys enjoy "Houston South".

Geez ... Houston South???:no Now that's really HELL on earth!!!

 

[cowdog77]

Cozumel may not be what it was 20 years ago...but it's still a fantastic dive destination. Can't wait to get back. And, it's el cheapo for us here in Texas.

 

[mstevens]

Houston South. You want to explain that one?

When I was at A&M and later going to school in Galveston, lots of people referred to Cozumel as "Houston Beach." I also heard reference to "Houston South" at the time. My understanding was that it was a short and inexpensive flight. Unfortunately, I could never afford to get there when I lived near Houston no matter how cheap it may have been.

 

[DiverBeth]

I like Cozumel. With that in mind it isn't nor should it be all things to all people. I think the diving is good. There are some good places to eat and the hotels I've stayed at have been clean.

Some people don't like Coz that's fine with me. I guess I won't go diving with them there. Maybe I'll dive somewhere else in the world with them. Coz is easy to get to and price is reasonable. Oh I'd love to go to WestPac regularly but I can't afford it.

From what little experience I have (about 150 dives) I've found so far that I don't like comparing one region of the world I've been to another Caribbean vs. Hawaii vs. Coral Sea.

If you don't like Cozumel don't go but hell on earth far from it.

 

[deco_martini]

Yep, Camilo's is usually the first meal we have on the island. It's only been a week and a half and last night my family already started talking about wishing we could get some filete de pescado con crema de poblano.

Darnit, now I'm salivating and jonesing for some Camilio's. That's a hard hankering to shake.

 

[Christi]

If you pick up a book on Caribbean Reef Fishes and a book on Indo Pacific Reef Fishes, one will be about 2 inches thick, the other maybe a half inch thick. That's not to say one place is "better" but one place is definitley more species rich than the other. This includes coral, soft corals, nudibranches, crustaceans etc etc.

Well, I have the Humann series here for the Caribbean, and all three of them are more than 1/2 inch thick. I'm proud to say that the Reef Creature and Coral books are each 3/4" to 1" and Reef Fish is right at 2" thick