Socorro on Cassiopeia?

[DazedAndConfuzed]

Updated status from Cantamar: The trip is cancelled as they are unable to fix the engines. There are problems with overheating according to the latest info, but it's impossible to believe anything they say. This isn't caused by a random engine failure but rather an organizational issue with several problems in how they run their business. Cassiopeia has been out of operation since November, and a serious operator should have focused on getting things ready a long time ago.

Cantamar = stay away.

The worst thing is that they strung you along, letting you think it was still sailing, when they don't even know if the engine part will fix the issue (they've been fixing the engine since Nov, so how do they know this is the final fix?).

If the whole boat is chartered by the agency, hopefully they will have more leverage than individuals, especially if the individual booked directly with Cantamar.

I suppose there are reasons why Agressor cancelled their contract with them. I had a trip booked back in Jan. of 2022 and when the Omicron variant surged in the weeks previous I cancelled. (At that time you still had to test negative to get back into the U.S.) I later heard that so many people got ill on that trip that they had to cancel the following one. Their attitude when I asked for a credit--"Too bad".

Did you deal with them directly or through a travel agent? I think the agent will fight hard to get you credit or even refund, especially if they have booked a significant portion of the passengers.

I feel Cantamar's requirement of having trip insurance allows them to offer only credits (or none at all), so that the traveler will just go claim the loss through the insurance, allowing Cantamar to pocket the deposit.

 

[rongoodman]

I dealt with them directly.

 

[hawthorne]

The worst thing is that they strung you along, letting you think it was still sailing, when they don't even know if the engine part will fix the issue (they've been fixing the engine since Nov, so how do they know this is the final fix?).

Exactly! We had to spend 5-6 additional days in Cabo, just waiting. Every day brought new promises, and when they finally cancelled the trip, our travel agent had a lot of work re-booking all flights back to Europe.

 

[runsongas]

that boat has had reported issues pretty much since 2019. my guess is that overhaul in 2018 didn't go well and it pretty much needs a thorough rebuild that would be too costly to make sense at this point.

 

[NoBadDives]

The Cassiopeia has been a disaster in slow motion since it arrived in Baja. I have many friends in the dive industry in Cabo/Revillagigedo and the reputation of the boat and management is beyond horrible. I have never recommended it to anyone. This latest failure of a season is emblematic of the failures of the management of Cantamar Liveaboards.

 

[DazedAndConfuzed]

I am wondering if the decrepit state also applies to their other ship Southern Sport. I am heading out to that boat and want to set my expectation. I presume the way the operation is run would be the same

 

[hawthorne]

Looks like Southern Sport has been operating on Socorro regularly, latest I found was March 10th. Dive masters onboard most liveboards are freelancers, so they should be good hopefully.

We did local diving organized by Cantamar around La Paz (Isla Los Islotes/Sea Lion Colony), and that worked flawlessly.

Fingers crossed.

 

[DazedAndConfuzed]

Looks like Southern Sport has been operating on Socorro regularly, latest I found was March 10th. Dive masters onboard most liveboards are freelancers, so they should be good hopefully.

We did local diving organized by Cantamar around La Paz (Isla Los Islotes/Sea Lion Colony), and that worked flawlessly.

Fingers crossed.

Actaully, that video was from 2023. Their facebook page was posting regular updates once every week or two, then went silent on Feb 27. I hope its not due to routine operational mishaps where the guest refused to get together for a groupie selfie.

 

[hawthorne]

Actaully, that video was from 2023. Their facebook page was posting regular updates once every week or two, then went silent on Feb 27. I hope its not due to routine operational mishaps where the guest refused to get together for a groupie selfie.

Ah, 2023! Sorry for that. Yes, looks like they stopped posting. But I can assure you that everything (except for Cassiopeia...) was operating 1 week ago at Club Hotel Cantamar, even though we didn't observed Southern Sport in La Paz or Cabo.

Hopefully you guys will get an awesome experience at Socorro!! We will try again later for sure.

 

[NoBadDives]

I saw the Southern Sport at El Cañyon over the New Year ('24) but did not see her on either of my March trips. We docked along side her in San Jose Del Cabo on March 23rd, but I could not tell if she was getting ready to head out or just sitting there. I have never been on board her, so I cannot speak to the conditions inside, but the outside looks pretty rough. Amongst my group of regulars to Socorro she has been given the nick name "The Prison Ship" due to her industrial grey color and lack of windows.