Advice for New Diver on Cozumel

[adran]

Hi Divers, I am a week away froam a 5 or six days of diving in Cozumel. I dont have a dive op chosen yet and I am feeling both positively excited and a little anxious.I got my OW on Little Corn Island , Nicaragua about two years ago. I went on maybe 6 0r 7 dives after my course and went back again this last Febuary for just a few dives.You can see I am really a semi-virgin diver. I feel was relatively comfortable underwater and certainly got the bug for this exciting and wonderfull way to appreciate nature. All the divers I have met before and since were really cool and interesting people ( with only one or two exceptions - to not be a polyanna or kiss *** about it

. Anyway Im looking for dive shop recs and maybe some notes on the possible dangers of Cozumel. All but one dive I went on in LCI seemed pretty easy so Im wondering what the challenges will be. My vacation partner has his AOW and has dove in a number o f places around the world but still less than 50 dives I think ( and he hasnt been for maybe 2 or 3 yrs). Will we be stuck diving shalower reefs and will that be a drag?I sort of feel like this trip will really seal it for me as far as how much diving will part of my life in the future so I want it to go well. Thanks in advance for any recs or advice.

 

[Martha]

When my husband and I go to Cozumel, Blue XT~Sea is our first choice for a dive operator. Christi, the owner, will try to group people together by experience level. The first dive will be a deeper dive and the second a shallower dive. The DMs are all really great and are more than happy to give you pointers to help you improve your diving skills. Cozumel is known for its drift diving. As far as dangers... none that I can think of, except maybe cheap tequila. Anyway, hope you have a great trip & if you decide to use Blue XT~Sea, you may want to make reservations. Her website is www.bluextseadiving.com

 

[bnajdrovsky]

First of all, you'll LOVE diving in Cozumel. It's one of the best destinations in the Caribbean. That said, there has been some damage to the shallower reefs as a result of hurricane Wilma. Fortunately, the ecosystem appears to be rebounding rather well, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend even the shallow dives in Coz to a novice diver. Certainly, compared to what I saw on the west side of the Grand Cayman, Cozumel is way better off in the reef health department. On the other hand, there aren't too many really 'shallow' (as in 40 or less feet) dives in Cozumel anyway. 60 foot dives are usually considered shallow, while 85 - 90 foot dives are the deeper ones, with some sites that routinely see a lot deeper profiles, such as the Devil's Throat down by Punta Sur, which bottoms out at around 130 feet. You will most likely end up doing several 90 foot dives during your trip, but as long as your comfort level is good, depth is really not a big deal. At Cozumel, 90 feet feels like 60 feet with everything just a bit more blue.

There are many quality dive operators on the island, and you'll see many of them discussed in this forum. Over the years, I've heard a lot of positive comments about Aldora, Papa Hogs, Dive With Martin, and several others, including my personal favorite, Christi's Blue XT Sea Diving. If you don't already have reservations made, it may be a good idea to try to contact some of the operators via email. From personal experience, often times the smaller operators tend to provide better service, but they also fill up a lot quicker. (case in point, I already have my reservations with Blue XT Sea for dives in February of next year)

Anyway, hope you have a great trip, and we'll be looking for a report here on ScubaBoard!

 

[Sue Sue]

Cozumel reefs are alive and well, shallow or deep. There was damage to the area a year ago, however, you won't be disappointed with what you will discover. The Palancar reef in Cozumel is coming back to life. New coral is growing, infants of all kinds and some new swimthroughs. One of the differences you may experience is that Cozumel is in the most part drift diving. If your not used to this it may take a couple of dives to get the swing of it. As one of the Divemasters of Blue XT Sea says, "Take it very very slow". Also, just a reminder, the waters of Cozumel are protected by Marine Park regulations. No touching, feeding , fishing, hunting, knives, gloves. Oh, and the other rules, relax, have fun, enjoy and most importantly, return to Cozumel for another visit! Don't forget your dive report ! Sue Sue PS: There are many good dive ops in Cozumel, I do however recommend Blue XT SEA as well.

 

[Cozdreamer]

Tips: 1. Always tell the DM your wishes and/or apprehensions so you will be heard. 2. Slow down, don't kick, and keep your arms tucked at all times as you glide with the drift diving. 3. Watch your depth gauge b/c with 100plus viz mixed with some bottomless deep dives, you will easily be deceived about how deep you are. 4. Enjoy the beauty around you, below you, and be sure to look upward toward the surface at times to see an awesome view too! 5. You are guaranteed to be in awe of the massive formations at depth, the beautiful colors of the shallower reefs with sunlight beaming in, and the numbers of different sea life creatures you will encounter as you RELAX and listen to your bubbles......6. Be sure you have dive insurance just to be on the safe side too. Enough tips. Have a blast and please report when you return.

 

[jjach]

My wife and I just came home a week ago from Cozumel.We had 9 dives in cold water prior to going down there. So we are definately new. We dove with Blue XT Sea, and had Pedro as our DM. I don't think you would be dissappointed with their operation. Pedro does his best to make sure new divers are comfortable with the dives and he always has his eye on you. We are planning our next trip to Cozumel for the spring, and we will dive with Blue XT Sea again.

 

[scubamgb]

Hi Adran:

Just wanted to give you some feedback on diving Cozumel. I just returned yesterday (Nov 18) from a week's vacation in Cozumel. Much like you, I asked the advice of the Scuba Board with regards to dive operators. I chose Dive with Martin and did not regret it. They have small, fast boats and very good Divemasters/Instructors. It was my first trip to Cozumel so I cannot comment on other dive ops but met a number of other divers who have used Dive with Martin in the past and were using their services again!

I was slightly concerned about drift diving as I am not experienced in that kind of diving. I have my AOW and Rescue diver but was still a little nervous about the drift diving. I had no problems with drift diving. Much like the other comments posted before mine, you just have to not fight the current and just flow with it. Relax and enjoy the view.

I will give you one warning, I lost a day's worth of diving because of Northern winds really kicking up the seas. The Mexican Marine authorities will not allow boats shorter than 40' out of the harbour when the seas are like this. This may impact your decision on the dive operator of choice - Dive with Martin boats are smaller than 40' and were not allowed out of harbour.

Now the good news - the Northern winds don't last for more than 3 days so you should be okay. You just never know what the weather will do. My 4th day of diving the seas were completley calm and flat and by the next morning, the Northern wind kicked up the seas and I couldn't get my last day of diving in before leaving.

I am definitely going back to Cozumel next year - still lots of dive sites I want to see and would like to explore the downtown core of Cozumel next time around.

Go and enjoy the diving and the country!!

 

[Diver18]

Did a drift on the wall 3 years ago and it was awsome. Look up 100+ ft and see the boat...look down and only see blue - you know the bottom is somewhere 100's of feet below.

 

[Christi]

The Mexican Marine authorities will not allow boats shorter than 40' out of the harbour when the seas are like this. This may impact your decision on the dive operator of choice - Dive with Martin boats are smaller than 40' and were not allowed out of harbour.

This is not completely accurate. The harbor master makes a decision as to which TYPES of vessels, which activities (diving, fishing, snorkeling, etc.), and size of vessel based on current and forcasted weather conditions for the day. For example, sometimes (like this morning) the port was closed to boats under 30 feet and to all panga style boats. Later in the day as the winds picked up more, they were calling boats under 40 feet back in. Friday, the port was closed in the morning to all boats under 40 feet, but by noon the port was open to all boats and we sent our divers out. My point is that this is not a black or white rule. It's up to the harbor master based on the intensity, direction, etc. of the winds/weather sytems.

Also, many small boat operators will secure larger boats or rent space from other operations with larger vessels for their divers to get out. This is not always possible, and is not always ideal especailly for those who prefer the small boats. But if it's the only option to dive, people appreciate the extra effort and expense the operation goes to to see that they miss as few dives as possible.

Now the good news - the Northern winds don't last for more than 3 days so you should be okay. You just never know what the weather will do.

Again, this is variable. As you said, "you never know what the weather will do." Sometimes they (nortes) last a few hours, sometimes one day, or two days, or longer. We are expecting strong north winds tomorrow, which will make this our 4th day of this norte...which is really two back to back nortes. The one that started blowing in this afternoon is even stronger than the first. It's flat out COLD outside right now. Even tourists are bundled up in jackets!

We are praying for some relief since this is the first REALLY busy week the island has had in months!

 

[alcina]

My first concern would be getting an Operator to do a refresher session with at least your buddy (it never hurts to join in, either) as he has been out of the water for two + years. That is too long to be out of the water without brushing up on skills and knowledge, imnsho. That should be the first thing he does and then head out for the dives.

hijack - christi...get through that cold stuff now, I need WARM weather for our visit - end hijack