Staying at Allegro/Looking for Dive Op

[scubamgb]

Just returned from Cozumel yesterday (Nov 18) and stayed at the Allegro.

I polled the Scuba Board for advice on dive operators. I chose Dive with Martin and did not regret my choice. Small, fast boats with max 6-8 diver and at times less!! Divemasters were all very good and always asked where we wanted to go. On one occassion one of the other divers had already done the Palancar dive sites and asked for somewhere else - no problem!

Weather last week was hit and miss - I actually lost a day of diving because of the Northern winds kicking up the seas. Good news is that the Northern winds only last a few days so I hope the weather has cleared for your trip.

Dive Palancar is on-site at the Allegro but will allow Dive with Martin to pick-up divers at no cost to the diver. I would recommend that when you check in to the hotel, you ask the staff to call Dive Palancar and clear it with them that you are being picked up by another dive operator at their pier. This is what I did and had no problems but everyone has a different experience.

If you have other questions, please feel free to send me a PM and I'll answer your questions as best as I can.

This was my first trip to Cozumel and I am planning on going back next year - lots more dive sites I want to see!!!

 

[PARADISE HUNTER]

Thanks for the input folks. We ended up booking Raul at Bottom Time Divers. I will let you know how it goes when we get back.

 

[thelawgoddess]

we just got back from diving with blue angel, and we were quite happy with them. they are definitely a better choice for divers who are self-sufficient. this is not to say they don't watch out for you; just more that they won't hold your hand or pamper you, so if you're looking for an "AI" type of op, they're probably not the best choice. (please note that we only did the two-tank early morning dives in addition to one two-tank twilight dive with them, so it's possible that their late morning and afternoon boats are entirely different.) on only one dive were we given a time limit and i believe that was our shallow night dive which was limited to 60 minutes. (which we were all fine with since it was our 4th dive of the day anyway.) other than that, we were never given time limits and were allowed to dive our own profiles and just asked to return around 700psi. we loosely dove as a group (sometimes more so the dm could point out creatures or lead the swim-throughs; other times more to maintain proximity in the faster currents for pick up at the end), but were generally given quite a bit of freedom. at first we were hoping for more direction (being our first time in cozumel, first time warm-water diving, first time falling backwards out of a boat, etc.) but for who we are and how we dive, in the end we think it was a very good choice for us. we'd definitely recommend them if this is the kind of op you seek.

 

[steeliejim]

You shouldn't have any problems with pickups at the Allegro dock. Dive Palancar, the on-site operator would be perfect for your wife, since she's a somewhat novice diver. I have gone with them on 4 different occasions previously, and I think they're great for novice to intermediate divers. They're not well suited for more advanced divers, because of their dive time restrictions, and selection of dive sites. They will take you to Santa Rosa and Palancar, but don't expect them to take you out to Punta Sur. Part of it is due to logistics, because they come back to the resort for a surface interval between each tank, so they tend to stay away from sites that are a bit further. On the other hand, it's kind of nice to be able to use a real bathroom during your break. ;-) Also, the last time I went out with them, they set hard time limits for bottom time (35 min. for deep and 40 min. for shallow) and I found myself getting back to the boat with 1100 PSI left in the tank, so I've been diving with Blue XT Sea Diving ever since. That said, I think they'd be a great operator for you to do some dives with your wife, because they tend to stress safety, the divemasters are generally helpful, and the convenience of having them on site can't be beat. Beyond that, you may consider booking some additional dives for yourself through one of the town operators if you want to go out to Punta Sur, or some of the more advanced sites. Any of them should be able to pick you up at the Allegro dock without much difficulty. The Iberostar resort a little further south used to be problematic for pickups by off site dive operators, but supposedly they've gotten better. None of the other resorts seem to cause any problems.

Have fun!

Pretty much dead on, except for the part about Punta Sur. Dive Palancar DOES do Punta Sur, Devils Throat and other southern tip sites. They pre-schedule trips and go if enough divers sign up (6), and do 2-tank dives on those trips (at least did last time I was there--Mar. 06). Usually at least once per week each southern site. One other thing. Used to love the wall at Santa Rosa, but for some reason, it was the only deep dive site that we dove last March that seemed to be really sanded in. We ended up going shallow where we could at least see more plentiful fish. OTOH, Palancar Gardens, Horseshoe, etc. were unaffected by Wilma. These are 80-90 feet max at the beginning and quickly start a gradual move to shallower. It isn't so much the depth that freaks some people, but being on the wall for part of the dive with nothing but abyss below you. Good buoyancy control is a must. Palancar is as spectacular as ever. Maybe more so, since I don't remember seeing so many turtles in the past, and I've been going to Cozumel (Allegro) annually for the past 10 years.

 

[steeliejim]

BTW, we'll be at the Allegro Jan 20-27. How about you?

Jim

 

[tlmainer]

we just stayed at allegro in december and i dove with palancar 4 straight days. they are located at the resort and the boats are right there on their private pier. the dives are $32 each or a 10 dive package (that can be shared) for $290.00. they are so close to the dive sites that they return to drop tanks each dive. that is also good for your wife (as mine) who likes shallow dives in case they wanted to skip deep dive. their schedule is roughly every 1 1/2 hours.. they alternate shallow and deep dives every other dive. i did everything from 40' to 96' on 6 or 7 different spots. they had a videographer on board if requested and also do night dives on mon, wed and fri. very good outfit and no wasted time stopping by other resorts picking up other people or having to go to town (15 minute drive) each way!