RCCL Cruise dive excursions

[diversteve]

One other option that could work for both of you no matter what your wife does. Roatan Cruise Ship Beach and Dive Packages Bananarama

They leave from there on pangas and I'm fairly certain return between dives so yo can check in with the "boss". Many north side shops do since the dive sites are so close. Texas just west of there is one of the really good dives - a couple others in the same area also as good.

Read all the fine print though, there's a hefty service charge if you cancel. And they need 4 cruise divers to go. IDK what the snorkeling is like there but I suspect it's not great since it is a nice beach. It's probably better at the west point you can see in the "Beach Packages" website header. I've read that just a little farther north at Gumbalimba park they have issues with weed.

 

[fire_diver]

Will do.... I don't know how things are going to flush out at the present time. My wife (as previously mentioned) is not a diver and she thinks we should do things together on the excursions. Generally, she wants to sit on the beach. Personally I don't see the attraction of sitting on a beach for 4-5 hours, but sometimes go with her to the beach and snorkel. I just have to remember to come in and socialize every now and then before going out snorkeling again. I like to take advantage of the times I have clear water available to me.

Jim

Same boat here. Wife doesn't dive so I have to balance the port excursions; some diving, some family stuff with the wife. Otherwise it would be simple, dive in every port!

As to sitting on beach, I am reminded of a quote.... To sit upon the shore and stare across the water is like going to the circus and staring at the outside of the tent; the real show is inside!

 

[jimbeeler]

As to sitting on beach, I am reminded of a quote.... To sit upon the shore and stare across the water is like going to the circus and staring at the outside of the tent; the real show is inside!

I like it...

Jim

 

[LowVizWiz]

To sit upon the shore and stare across the water is like going to the circus and staring at the outside of the tent; the real show is inside!

That's what I tell people who say they don't need to dive, "Because they have snorkeled!" I also tell them they are window shopping, the real fun is inside the store.

I'm teaching my wife and kids (15 and 10) so they can dive with me in October during our next cruise... What an exercise in patience.

 

[Whodat26]

Well... Now Roatan and Belize sound good... Now if I can get my wife to do the "Discover" dive in Cozumel, I'll be all set... I'd love to get her interested...

Coz is the perfect place to do a discover scuba. We dove with Alexscuba.com me and my wife are certified but my brother & sister in-law are not. We did a drift dive in about 35-40 ft they got to see some good coral and a turtle . They got 40 min on the first tank and 50 on the second. Alex held my sister in-laws hand the whole time. It was perfect they didn't have to fin just drift and enjoy the view. Alex popped a sausage did our safety stop drifting. Surfaced and boat was right there. Alex has over 10,000 dives and loves what he does. But there are a lot of good dive ops in Cozumel.

 

[Dorian]

I did the same itinerary on Carnival Cruises in July. I did all three days of diving and all three were great. A few things that I would point out:

1. I travel with my own dive gear and underwater camera setup. In Roatan I had to carry it the farthest to where the pick-up spot was. We dove Anthony's Key and it was a great experience.

2. In Belize the dive op picked us up at the ship. That made it very easy. However, it was the longest boat dive and we saw the least amount of larger sea life.

3. I love the diving in Cozumel unless I am shooting photos or video. In July it had the best visibility of the three locations and it's a great place to drift dive if that's something you want to experience.

4. My daughter has done discover scuba a few times in Cozumel. They did it n semi protected water without current and she loved it.

5. I have the same issue with my wife, who no longer dives. I would check to see if she has a strong preference for one place versus another for you to be together. You really can't go wrong with any of the choices.

Enjoy the trip.

 

[jimbeeler]

I'm teaching my wife and kids (15 and 10) so they can dive with me in October during our next cruise... What an exercise in patience.

Yea I was with a buddy of mine that was teaching a couple of kids... Out in the water, splashing and pushing each other. It takes a lot of patience to teach a brother and sister.

Jim

 

[jimbeeler]

Update...

My wife was indecisive to the point I missed out on the Roatan dive because it was filled up an hour after I got on the boat. I heard mixed reviews from the other divers.

Whoever recommended the Belize dive was spot on. It was great. Very expensive but great. The crew did about everything for us, they were top notch. The dive was very good. One dive I had a really close encounter with about a 6 foot Moray that was about as big around as my thigh. For some reason he decided to charge after me. I had several other divers around me and he charged full speed at me from about 50 feet away. I had no idea what he was up to, but I had all I could do to pivot a fin to block his charge. After several such charges I was in the back of the group, the divemaster being totally unaware of what was going on. This continued for about 10 minutes into the dive when he finally slithered off into the sunset... Weird... Never have had anything like that happen. I later heard that another group's divemaster had speared and fed a lion fish to the moray. Perhaps he thought I was that divemaster and had some more yummy lion fish. Anyway, outstanding dive. I'd definitely do it again despite the cost.

Cozumel: dove there. Dove a wall first with pretty stiff current and then a reef with somewhat lesser current. It was OK but with a group trying to stay with the divemaster everyone was running into each other because of the current. Saw some of the biggest angel fish I've ever seen, a HUGE cow fish and a very large porcupine fish. Other than the size of the fish there was not too much remarkable to see as we zoomed by. As I said before, drift dives are not my cup of tea. I'd probably go again, given the opportunity.

That's about it... Great cruise and good time diving.

Jim

 

[fire_diver]

Thanks for the update and report!