Cruising and Diving

I have searched the board for over a week and though I have found plenty of information on cruising and diving, all of them are old post and I am sure things have change. We will be in Cozumel on the 26th of January and here are some questions:

1. Here is my biggest concern in finding someone who will take us to some place within our limits. We are new divers with under 10 dives under our belt and not only will this be our first ocean dive, but will also be our first boat dive as well. I hear the currents can be bad in Cozumel

2. Should I take my own gear? (I have everything except tanks). I heard some of the rental equipment is sub-par. Water temp around January? we have 5 mm wet suits but that will probably be too much.

3. Is take the cruise excursions still a bad idea? I believe that we will have more than enough time to do an afternoon dive as the ship gets in port at 11 am and depart at 8 pm.

4. I read that Dive with Martin is good, but if you are coming off a cruise ship they want a deposit of $375 or you will have to go standby (Home Page). My cruise ticket doesn't even come out to that much...

Thanks....
Kenny

I am not a fan of diving on cruise ship excursions, but hey, any diving is better than no diving. The water will be comfortable in 3 mil full or shorty, but you won't "cook" in your 5 mil. I always take my own gear on dive trips, but those are trips where we are diving 5 or more days in a row with multiple dives daily. If you dive with a reputable company, the gear will be fine for a couple of DM led "trail dives." You will be taken to a dive site(s) within your competence, but let your concerns be made known to the dive operator. For more options on who to dive with, follow this thread. I am sure lots of folks will have input for you. Have a great trip!
DivemasterDennis

Which cruise line are you using? If it's Carnival, I'm not a fan of the op they use. There are plenty of other ops to use, that will cater to your needs (as long as you let the know you are new divers, never been off a boat, etc). I did my OW and AOW in Cozumel, so you should be okay. Bring your gear (except weights)!. It is gear you are familiar with, that you know fits, etc. In January, you might start to get chilled during the second dive in a 3 mil. Bring your own suit if you can fit it. Again, you know it fits, and nobody besides you, has peed in it.
I dove off of cruise ships for almost 2 years straight (working on one). If I can fit my gear into a crew cabin to dry, a guest cabin shouldn't be an issue. Give everything a really good rinse in the shower, and hang it up.
I used Scuba Mau quite a bit in Coz. I've heard good things about dive with Martin, Scuba with Alison, Aldora, etc.
You will have plenty of time to do a 2 tank dive in that time frame. My last ship I was on, docked in Cozumel from 1-10pm. Boat left around 2, back around 6, plenty of time for dinner and drinks on the island before heading back to the ship.
Hope that helps.
Again: take your own gear!

Thanks definitely will take my gear....

I dove one day in Cozumel January 2011, at a port stop while cruising with Royal Caribbean, and I'll share this.

1.) Privately booked with Jeremy Anschel/Living Underwater. Excellent op., only 6 of us in the group, big steel 120 cf tanks for a nice, long dive (I'm an air hog & I got over an hour and 15 minutes on one dive). Would definitely do again. Palancar Garden was okay, but really enjoyed Santa Rosa more (one dive each).

2.) Water was 76 degrees. Fine for me, as I've got some 'bioprene' (chubby), but some people would want a wet suit.

3.) Be sure you give the op. the time you arrive & need to be back to the ship by, in local time (Central standard there, if memory serves).

Richard.

I dove once via Carnival's dive op. Can't remember the name, but it certainly wasn't bad. We've been to coz for full week trips several times and found the cruise ship excursion fairly basic as far as locations etc. But again...ANY coz diving is better than no diving.
We used dive with martin for one of our week long trips and they were great. I think they don't want to cater to cruise ships and deal with strict times etc., hence the down payment. Other ops (Aquq Safari iirc) more specifically cater to cruisers.
As for gear, I've always taken my own, but have mixed feelings about it. (we also only go on dive trips now and don't cruise anymore) You're going to lug a bunch of gear around for what will probably be 90 mins of bottom time. You have to decide if it's worth it. Obviously, take your own reg, but I'm just not convinced about bc etc. for cruises. imho, for 2 dives, I'd take your reg, mask and, if you're concerned about temp, your 5mm and call it good. In coz, I've really only seen rental bc's that look worn (mostly faded), but it's not like they wouldn't hold air.

As for current, there can be some sites that are more swift, but it's not like you're going 100mph. It's just a current. You descend and float along motionless....like using the people mover in an airport. don't fight the current, and you'll find that by doing virtually no finning, your air will last a LONG time.

Any op that is taking a group from a cruise ship isn't going to push the limits at all. They'll play it really safe.

Good luck!

The only problem with using the cruise ship OP is they really rape you price wise. Based on your schedule you should be fine. It sounds like you can do a normal scheduled afternoon trip, unless they will not let you off the boat on schedule. I think they leave around 1:00pm. Make sure you get you paperwork and rental done beforehand.

There are a ton of Dive OPs in Coz, Call some up and see what they are offering. I agree, you want easier dives but I do not think that is a problem. You may want larger tanks as dives tend to be deeper, and many ops will do an hour plus BT.

I like my own gear but as others have said it may not be worth it for 2 dives. I like Blue XT Sea, so you can call them and discuss options.

UPDATE:
Wanted to thank all of you for your advise. We got back from our cruise and dove in Grand Cayman. We were the only divers out of 9 that had our own gear. We took everything beside weight and BC. One guy was fighting with his equipment the whole dive, and when we got out of the water he said next time he is bringing his gear. The dive was a shore dive at 50 feet. Bottom time was 40 minute, wish it were longer but better than no dive. We did the excursion because last time we cruised and had to tender to get to land it was cancelled because rough seas, figured if that would happen they would reimburse us the money. This was our first ocean dive and it was amazing to say the least. We are now planning a dive in Puerto Rico or the Bahamas. Again Thanks for all your advise.

I'm surprised you only did one dive. Did they explain that? Were you expecting it?

Yeah it was supposed to be 50 minutes. We weren't at port long if not I would have booked a two tank dive.