Where to go: Mexico in July? Isla Mujeres? Baja North or South?

[reefertravel]

Hi everyone,

I want to go and dive in Mexico in July. I have about 25 days. Any tips would be much appreciated.

I was maybe thinking of spending half in Isla Mujeres - I've seen there's whalesharks there then - is there other nice stuff there too?

I was then thinking of going to the Sea of Cortez. I can't quite work it out. One website seemed to think the North of the Sea of Cortez was the best point at this time. Are there significantly different things to see in the North and South? Should I attempt to do both?

I'm a bit lost and any advice would be extremely appreciated!

 

[ManaDoug]

I would suggest skip Isla Mujeres and go to Cozumel for the diving. You can only snorkel with whale sharks in Isla and maybe good for 1 day trip.

Sea of Cortez has lots of sea life, I've only been to the South and enjoyed the dives. Long boat trips but very calm water.

I suggest funbaja.com for Sea of Cortez and bluenotescuba.com for Cozumel dives.

 

[tarponchik]

You can try Isla Mujeres if you'd like to see whale sharks but this is snorkeling with many rules and regulations. One such trip was more than enough for us. This is about 1 hr one way boat ride, so some folks on the boat will puke. And you get 3 or 4 of 5 min shifts with the sharks (groups of 2 take turns).

Diving at IM is marginal, so go to Riviera Maya or Cozumel then.

 

[Chavodel8en]

I dont quite know what you mean by Sea of Cortez "north" or "south". I tend to thing of the best land-based diving locales to be Cabo Pulmo, La Paz and maybe Loreto (all relatively south). Note on La Paz, in July, the sea lion colony at Los Islotes (a very popular site) will be off-limits for breeding purposes.

Re Caribbean Mexico, I wonder if a small island like Isla Mujeres will have enough good dive sites for ~2 weeks, so agree with others re Cozumel or mainland. As suggested, you can do a day trip to do the whaleshark snorkel

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

Unfortunately, the whale shark experience is a bit of a sh*t show. 30 boats searching for two or three fish and then mass scuttling to a reported location as fast as they can. You end up being shoulder to shoulder with every other boat in the area and might get 5 minutes in the water and then you might not see one. The best part of the whale shark trip we made was the mantas on the way back.
Other than that, Isla has turned into an over-crowded tourist trap filled with day-trippers from Cancun. Diving has become laughably expensive and most places will take you to MUSA and Manchones over and over unless you pay a premium for wreck / other reefs.
I still go to Isla but now it is just to visit friends or bring down diving clients. The dives are easy and there's lots of drinking.

 

[reefertravel]

This is fantastic advice. Thanks everyone. It sounds like Cozumel is my better option near Cancun rather than Isla Mujeres.

I dont quite know what you mean by Sea of Cortez "north" or "south". I tend to thing of the best land-based diving locales to be Cabo Pulmo, La Paz and maybe Loreto (all relatively south). Note on La Paz, in July, the sea lion colony at Los Islotes (a very popular site) will be off-limits for breeding purposes.

Re Caribbean Mexico, I wonder if a small island like Isla Mujeres will have enough good dive sites for ~2 weeks, so agree with others re Cozumel or mainland. As suggested, you can do a day trip to do the whaleshark snorkel

I read on a website that for the "north" (Puerto Peñasco and surrounding area) "(July) is the very best time of year for diving in the north, and when most liveaboards offer trips. Divers can expect warm water, with temperatures as high as 26-28°C and stunning visibility topping out at over 30 metres."

Is this just applicable for liveaboards then? Would it be better for me to just cruise around those sites that are relatively south? That sounds pretty nice.

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

I'd stay on land. The LoB's aren't going to go to significantly better sites than from shore based ops. There are plenty of small shops or independent boats (no shop affiliation) that keep the group to six or less. I would recommend Pelagic Ventures but that's just me. Just make sure when you go Palencar is open. That site is about as dramatic as it gets.

And while you're there, maybe check out some of the cenote dives. You don't have to go all the way to douchey Tulum for them. The Maya believed the cenotes were gateways to the underworld and once you're in one, you kind of have to agree. Def hit up Angelita or el Pit.

 

[hilljo88]

If you want diving, I agree that Isla is very limited. Cozumel is the place to go . Lots of options. Primarily drift dives. You might like cenote diving on the mainland, south of Playa del Carmen. You can stay on Coz and take the ferry across to do cenotes as a day trip, or relocate to the mainland.

 

[Scubagolf]

Isla Mujeres is a fun place, but the dive sites are pretty much the same as diving from Cancun, which is so-so. The whale shark trip is a one day, snorkel-only event. We liked it a lot, but we probably won't revisit Isla Mujeres for the whale sharks. OTOH, Cozumel is really quite excellent: diving, accommodations, food, value, you name it. We have been to Loretto twice and La Paz once, all dedicated diving weeks, in August and October. IMHO Summer and Fall are the only times of the year to dive there because otherwise the water can be chilly.

 

[Chavodel8en]

With 25 days total, you may consider splitting your time in the Yucatan between Cozumel (focused on ocean diving) & the mainland (for ocean diving, cenotes, a day trip to whaleshark snorkel and non-scuba activity (ruins, beaches, Maya culture, etc)).
Logistics in the mainland may be tricky, as the whaleshark snorkel is north, while cenotes tend to be south (assuming you're interested in diving them - I myself am not, but I enjoy swimming in them). I would say stay closer to what most interests you.

And then you can fly to Baja California and experience the diving there. Yes, I would say stay south (Cabo Pulmo, La Paz, Loreto) in Baja (Note - Ive never dived the north, but I havent seen many aficionados here). If you can visit different sites that would be great. They all have various logistical challenges and pros and cons.