First Diving vacation! Any suggestions?

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Markrobert

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Location
Missouri
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We are planning our first diving vacation! We are newly certified divers so we are looking for an enjoyable trip at a beginners level! Would love to hear suggestions on where to go? and of course any advice on what to do or what not to do to make this a great trip! thanks in advance!
 
Well, Cancun and Cozumel are both easy to travel to from much of the US, Coz is renown for diving, and I've read many reports from others who have dived other locations from Cancun to Playa del Carmen. Some reefs on the mainland coast have suffered from land developments but I really don't know which for sure. Coz reefs are more protected, especially with the treatment plant being on the north end, down current I think. Maybe some of the members who like the mainland will still chime in here in time.

For the most from your dollars, I like to shop Orbitz for plane & hotel packages that are often very little more than air, then apply the 100Vacation discount to take another $100 off per room. CheapCaribbean.com also offers good packages and a $50 first time discount, and there are others. Or shop hotels at Kayak.com. I use this site Matrix - ITA Software to shop air fares even tho I may book thru Kayak or at Orbitz - or at the airline site altho those can be devious.

I guess your Instructor explained that DAN dive insurance is important, essential outside of the US? See DAN Insurance : Dive Accident, Trip, Dive Equipment, Camera, Group Term Life and hiring a private DM for the first day of diving is money well spent.

Let us know what looks good and we'll see if we can help you work out the plans.
 
If you are the type that doesn't mind finding your way I would suggest Cozumel and staying anywhere in town or south a mile. Dive with any operation, it's not that big a deal if you can manage your own gear and are confident. Even though this is the Mexico forum, if you want relaxing, easy diving I would suggest CocoView in Roatan, Honduras, or any of the dive resorts in Bonaire. All this assumes you want a dive vacation versus a vacation with diving.
 
Hey Mark, Cabo San Lucas is just what your looking for. Awsome Diving just 10 min.s From the Dock.The Dive sites here start in shallow water from 12 to 30 feet this is great for new Divers.
The sea of Cortez has over 800 species of tropical Marine life and you will see lots of them on any of the dive here.
The Dive groups on Baja Dives Boats are kept small 5 or less per Dive Master so you will get the extra care new Divers need.
There are hotels within blocks of the Dive Shop from $65.00 to $85.00 a night for two persons.
Most of the time theres no current of surge and the water now is 83 Degrees and great Vis.
Theres something for everyone here from world class Bill fishing all land sports wave runners you name it Cabo has it.
See ya Diving,
Dee
 
Hola from Cancun Mark,
This area has the most beautiful, clearest waters in Mexico.
Cancun would be ideal since there are coral reefs that range from 30ft to 55ft, at this depths you may also dive the cancun underwater museum.
you may also begin at the 30ft reefs and work your way to deeper sites like the wrecks 75ft. from cancun you have the choice of going to cozumel island for some wall dives or caverns for fresh water out of this world diving.
If you need any info on this, click on the website and shoot me an email.
HAPPY DIVING!
 
Hey Mark,

First you'll need to decide if you want a Dive Vacation (diving first, up to 4-5 dives per day, then other items come after) or a pleasure vacation with some diving included. Do you want other amenities at your resort or just basic with the focus on diving services? Beach? Swimming pool? Disc? Party crowd? Family style? Basic hotel room, basic food, lots of diving?

We've vacationed and dived Jamaica, Bonaire, Bahamas, Cozumel, FL Keys, Playa Del Carmen (MX) and others. The vibe is different for each and the commitment to diving varies with each resort. I'll try to give you my thoughts on these destinations.

Bahamas and the Florida Keys are good diving destinations but they tend to be more expensive, although you can do Key Largo pretty cheap if you stay at the more basic hotels and use the small, local dive shops.

In Jamaica, diving is just another feature of many at the resort, if offered at all. Many resorts are all-inclusive for rooms, booze, activities, and maybe even diving. They usually offer only 1-2 dives per day to a very nice and safe reef. The diving is beautiful, warm, clear and easy, but not very exciting for experienced divers. Dive masters lead every dive and will help you along. Dive times are closely controlled and you may not dive without a local dive guide. The beaches are generally excellent, the services good, food can be outstanding, and there are plenty of activities on and off the resort. If the resort doesn't offer diving then dive services can be hard to find. Jamaica moves slowly so you'll need to get used to "soon come, mon" while there. (Oh, and you will be offered drugs frequently when on Jamaica, some people love this but I get tired of the constant offers.)

Bonaire is a long, usually expensive flight. The island is south of the hurricane belt so it avoids most bad weather during hurricane season. The island is very dry and there's not much to do when not diving. Many people book a hotel and a small rental pickup then rent tank (sometimes all in a package) then go diving by themselves from many, many marked reefs around the island. You can also stay at resorts that have both shore diving and guided boat dives available. There are only a couple of resorts with nice sand beaches, most have rocky shorelines or rough rock beaches. All-inclusive is unusual here. This is a great place if you want to be on your own to discover the island and dive on your own schedule without others in a group. The water is clear, calm, and the reefs beautiful with lots of fishes.

Mexico has a mix of all-inclusive super-large resorts all the way to little private hotels. On Cozumel, most hotels have diving services on site with several options for dive-included packages. Some are small hotels that will include breakfast and many dives with the on-site operator, or you can choose your own dive op if you want. There are large all-inclusives that have many features, great beaches, lots of activities, and an on-site dive operation. These are available on Cozumel, Cancun, Playa del carmen, and many other areas.

For a totally dive-centric Mexican vacation I would suggest Scuba Club Cozumel as a great place to stay and dive. Nice small resort within walking distance to town, great dive services, nice food if you want it included (optional). They have shore diving and many boats that go out several times per day. They will put you in small groups based on ability and experience. If you need assistance, they'll be happy to help. No real beaches on Coz and the pool at the resort is tiny. The point at SCC is to dive then relax.

For all-inclusive vacation with diving, I really like Iberostar Resorts in both Cozumel and Playa Del Carmen. Great hotels, great pools and beaches, good dining, plenty of activities, and really good dive services with the operator Dressel Divers. Not as many dives per day but they do have dive guides with every group, full instruction, nice boats. The Cozumel resort is only a 5 minute boat ride from the best diving in the world. Easy diving, beautiful formations, bigger fishes, but some days can be challenging if the currents are strong. For a really impressive resort with fabulous features look at Iberostar Paraiso Lindo and its' sister resorts near Playa del Carmen. Huge 5-resort complex with amazing features. The diving near hear is really nice, calm, clear and lots of fish life.

For a family or couples vacation with some diving, IPL is fantastic. For an all-diving vacation, I'd go back to Scuba Club Cozumel anytime. It seems that Mexico is also some of the cheapest options in the Caribbean at the moment.

Choose your preferences and have fun getting wet!!
 
I went to the Florida Keys when I was new and dived off of newbie boats, charters that cater to newbies with DMs in the water, shallow reef dives - all very nice and appropriate for newbies, but the posters wanted to plan a Mexico trip. Such can be done safely enough, with extra cautions I think.
 
I vote for the Keys. Shallow dives - nice reef life - lots of things to see. It's a great way to work on skills at a comfortable pace.
 
Cozumel has the best diving in all of Mexico, it's also one of the safest places in Mexico, if you ask the same question on the Cozumel forum here, you will find many of the regular Cozumel visitors will agree with this. Cozumel caters equally to new divers as well as experienced divers. You will find a wide variety of lodging options as well as dozens of top knotch dive operations.

You can research lots of Cozumel information here:
Isla Cozumel, Cozumel mexico official destination website
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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