Trip Report: Caribe Blu/Blue Angel

[tiggy]

We also loved the Rendez-Blu. My husband became a huge fan of their hotcakes for breakfast. If I remember correctly, they also had a breakfast buffet set up in the morning. Way too much food for us to even consider, so I don't remember what was on it.

The food isn't fancy, but it's good and reasonably priced. Plus you can't beat the location and the view!

 

[ggunn]

We also loved the Rendez-Blu. My husband became a huge fan of their hotcakes for breakfast. If I remember correctly, they also had a breakfast buffet set up in the morning. Way too much food for us to even consider, so I don't remember what was on it.

The food isn't fancy, but it's good and reasonably priced. Plus you can't beat the location and the view!

I've never seen a buffet there, but the vew is certainly spectacular.

 

[Cozoholic]

The Rendez-Blu restaurant upstairs from Blue Angel is indeed good for breakfast. Nothing fancy, just omlettes, coffee, juice and such, but absolutely fine for a pre-dive breakfast. They open at about 7.

Ala carte - or buffet ? I only like to eat light before diving anyway, mostly fresh fruit & cereal.

 

[ckofabq]

Thanks for the report. (my wife's laughing at me again for even being ON ScubaBoard)
One thought- that trip via Cancun is such a pain, but we've found a way to make it better:
If booking through Orbitz or the like, I click on the "including airports within 80 miles" option.
Somewhere in the list of flights always seem to come up the arrival through Cancun- but the trip home directly out of Coz.
Thanks again for allowing us to live vicariously for a few, pleasant minutes.
Craig-

 

[tiggy]

Cozoholic,
They had both the buffet and an al a carte menu. I only made it up there one morning since I'm also not a huge breakfast fan. We always ordered off of the menu.

ckofabq,
Thanks for the tip. We'll have to keep that one in mind. And trust me, writing up a trip report is my way of reliving the trip for a little bit longer.

 

[Shepman]

I echo the sentiments, good report.

Is there much damage on the land at this point?

I hope Cedral isn't too torn up. Man, that can be such a fun shallow dive.

I appreciate the comments on the Sonora Grill. I always hear such glowing reports on that place. With me, it's 3 strikes and out. I've gotten shoe leather tough steaks, ordinary service and a big bill (for Coz). I always wanted top slag them, but there seems to be so many SG fans, I didn't feel like starting a flame fest based on restaurants.

There are so many spectaculkar places to eat in Coz, I hate to get in an argument over what is somebodies' favorite.

 

[tiggy]

Shepman,

I'd agree with most of the other assessments I've seen about land damage. Along the waterfront, there are still some building shells. The most notable is the Naval facility. Otherwise most of the damage is to the foliage. Things are really starting to come back, but there is a noticable lack of leaves on some of the trees. We really only noticed this when we drove around the island.

I'm trying to get my "island" photos on-line and will post a link when they're actually up.

Sonora Grill was good, just not outstanding. The previous two nights we'd had great food and great service. It just didn't compare with the other places we visited.

 

[rdharbis1]

Hey Tiggy,
Good report and glad you had such an awesome time.
My wife and are are going in August and it will be our first salt water dive. Are all the dives associated with current and do the DM tell you how to deal with that?

We will be diving from a cruise on one of their excursions, so it may not be the same as with a dive op. We couldn't find a dive op that wanted to work with us because of possible conflicts with the cruise schedule. I understand that that is a big headache for local dive ops. That's ok, we will do a dive resort vacation one day.

Randy

 

[HammerNoMore]

Are all the dives associated with current and do the DM tell you how to deal with that?

Yes, all the dives are current dives. However the current can vary greatly. There was hardly any current on many of my dives last week, I kept giving the DM gruff about actually having to fin in Coz to see the reef. Other times it's been fly by diving.

Any good DM will give a briefing to inform you of the proceedures when you're diving but be sure to ask for more detail on the current. Generally you put in and drift along with the boat following so you never have to swim against the current. Staying closer to the reef means less current, but pay attention you don't get swept into somthing.

Make sure everything is tucked and trim, the more you have dangling off the more there is for the current to catch. If you find yourself getting ahead of the group, descend down behind a coral head to get out of the current until folks catch up.

Most of all, have fun!

We couldn't find a dive op that wanted to work with us because of possible conflicts with the cruise schedule. I understand that that is a big headache for local dive ops. That's ok, we will do a dive resort vacation one day.

It is right now. Since the cruise ship piers are damaged post Wilma, the ships are mooring and passengers are being ferried to the island. It takes time and ops can't really keep their local passengers sitting on a boat waiting for someone on a cruise ship to be ferried in.

James

 

[tiggy]

rdharbis1,

As James has stated, the current really varies by site. For us, Cedral Wall and Paso del Cedral had the strongest current. You may want to find a map of Coz dive sites and see which ones tend to have the stronger currents.

Do ask the DM questions about what to expect. I've found the DMs to be more than helpful and excited to answer questions about the sites. Besides James's suggestions, I have one other. Leave the snorkel on the boat. It can really be dragged around if you're in a moderate current.

They appeared to be docking one cruiseship and tendering the rest while we were there. I'd recommend checking out www.crusiecal.com/dnn to see how many ships will be in port with you. It appeared that the largest ship was docking, regardless of cruise line. Since you're going in August, the number of ships should be quite low.

You may want to see if you can charter a boat instead of going through the cruiseline. I know Dive with Martin will do a charter for 4 or more people. Cruisecritic.com is a great resource to see if there are other people on the same cruise as you who also dive. The "Roll Call" boards is the best place to find them.

Have a wonderful trip! Like us, you'll probably discover one day in Coz just isn't enough.