Dive company recommendation for Cozumel in August

[djanni]

If you had not implied that my not caring that much about about being able to have a longer safety stop (or whatever; my air consumption is pretty good and I nearly always come up to the safety stop in the yellow on an AL80) was due to some sort of shortcoming on my part it would not have come across as condescending and I would not have taken offense. The thing is, the math of $/minute of bottom time is not a universal measure of dive quality and in my case does not justify the expense, etc. of diving with an op that offers steel tanks. It's not that I cannot "handle" longer bottom times.

Peace,

I'm sorry you took it that way. Yet, I guess I can see how someone could.

The whole discussion in my mind is if someone enjoys longer dives a higher capacity tank facilitates it. It's great you like diving with al80's. I like Steel 100's, some like steel 120's while others like al63's.

 

[DandyDon]

I think we're going to hit a hundred posts on a topic that generally leads to unqualified cheerleading, and the guy who asked the question hasn't been on SB since.

 

[David McGlamery]

It has been a few years since we dove Cozumel. Looking for a dive outfit that caters to once a year divers, does not cater to Cruise ships. We would prefer to not dive with outfits scheduling dives around cruise ships. Its me and my 19 year old son. We have been diving for the last 6-7 years. Have dove Cozumel twice, Belize, Honduras, Panama, Tahiti, Red sea..... We have our Advance Certs as well..

We are there 8/14 - thru 8/19.

Thanks for the advice.

P.S. Any hotel recommendations welcomed too.

The thing you need to know about Cozumel is that most of the hotels and dive operations are on the north west side on the island and that the dive sites on on the southwest side. If your boat picks you up at 0800 and it takes you and hour to get to the dive sites, then a 45 min dive, 1 hour surface interval, another 45 min dive then a 1 hour trip back, is 1300hr. If you are an experienced diver, try to find a dive operation with faster boats. There are not too many bad operators on Cozumel....They would not stay in business very long once word got out.

 

[MMM]

The thing you need to know about Cozumel is that most of the hotels and dive operations are on the north west side on the island and that the dive sites on on the southwest side. If your boat picks you up at 0800 and it takes you and hour to get to the dive sites, then a 45 min dive, 1 hour surface interval, another 45 min dive then a 1 hour trip back, is 1300hr.

I am not so sure I agree with you. There are a ton of hotels south of town! A handful of dive ops pick up in town. Most leave from the caleta south of town and pick up south of there.. 1 hour trips up and back are unusual for most Coz divers. But there are also some great dive sites north of town if you are a half-decent diver and you are diving wtih an op that goes north. 45 minute dives for most of the ops regularly recommended on this forum would be unusually brief.

 

[DandyDon]

If your boat picks you up at 0800 and it takes you and hour to get to the dive sites, then a 45 min dive, 1 hour surface interval, another 45 min dive then a 1 hour trip back, is 1300hr. If you are an experienced diver, try to find a dive operation with faster boats. There are not too many bad operators on Cozumel....They would not stay in business very long once word got out.

Some of us drive/ride to the marina and leave from there at 8am. Saves a lot of time riding a boat.

 

[cbm32]

45 minute dives would have me switching to a different dive op in a hurry.

There is at least one dive op that does a ton of business, and is often held up as a great go to op on here, that I found to be very substandard. Artificially short dives, slow boats, different DM's every day and none of them particularly good (at least in my opinion). But, they are strategically located to load up on cruise ship divers....which is what I saw a lot of the three days I dove with them.

Now, I am not automatically bashing divers off cruise ships, as I dove four different islands while on a cruise through the southern Caribbean, but the majority of divers on the boat with me those three days were not exactly stellar.

So, I think it is possible for a not so good dive op to stay in business on Coz for a very long period of time if they position and market themselves correctly. The op I am alluding to has been there a LONG time.

 

[deepsea21]

45 minute dives would have me switching to a different dive op in a hurry.

There is at least one dive op that does a ton of business, and is often held up as a great go to op on here, that I found to be very substandard. Artificially short dives, slow boats, different DM's every day and none of them particularly good (at least in my opinion). But, they are strategically located to load up on cruise ship divers....which is what I saw a lot of the three days I dove with them.

Now, I am not automatically bashing divers off cruise ships, as I dove four different islands while on a cruise through the southern Caribbean, but the majority of divers on the boat with me those three days were not exactly stellar.

So, I think it is possible for a not so good dive op to stay in business on Coz for a very long period of time if they position and market themselves correctly. The op I am alluding to has been there a LONG time.

Is the op you are referring to contained in this list? Here is the list of Dive Ops in alphabetical order that were the first 10 to be mentioned here over the first several days this thread went active:
Aldora
Blue Angel
Blue Magic
Blue XT Sea
Bottom Time Divers
Dive with Allison
Dive with Martin
Liquid Blue
Living Underwater
Tres Pelicanos

 

[cbm32]

Is the op you are referring to contained in this list? Here is the list of Dive Ops in alphabetical order that were the first 10 to be mentioned here over the first several days this thread went active:
Aldora
Blue Angel
Blue Magic
Blue XT Sea
Bottom Time Divers
Dive with Allison
Dive with Martin
Liquid Blue
Living Underwater
Tres Pelicanos

Yes, it is.

 

[deepsea21]

Yes, it is.

Interesting. Without a name I can't pin it down but I think I know which op you are speaking of. Perhaps your experience with that op had to do with where you were staying and the times you were diving? Were you staying close to the southern cruise port and were you diving trips that would cater to the cruise ship divers instead of the early and late times the cruise ship divers usually can't make?

I guess I'd say try another on the list!

BTW.. Feel free to comment on the "typical" cruise ship diver based on your experience just as I comment on the "typical" Cozumel Palace diver based on my experience. All you are doing is posting on your personal experience and observations... It doesn't mean they are all not the type of diver you prefer to have on your boat... It's just that the majority of them tend to be the type of diver some would prefer not to have on their boat.

And of course let's all remember, "There's an a-hole on every boat and if you can't tell who it is... It could be you!" ; )

 

[cbm32]

Interesting. Without a name I can't pin it down but I think I know which op you are speaking of. Perhaps your experience with that op had to do with where you were staying and the times you were diving? Were you staying close to the southern cruise port and were you diving trips that would cater to the cruise ship divers instead of the early and late times the cruise ship divers usually can't make?

I was staying at El Cid and diving early...same time I dove with the two other ops I dove with that trip.

I dont have to try another op on the list as I now dive exclusively with Tres Pelicanos and will continue to do so as long as they provide the quality service they do now. The exception may be if I get the itch to try some of the dive sites North or on the opposite side of the island that Tres doesnt typically go to. In that case I will give Aldora a try for those dives.