Newly certified - Aldora, DiveWithMartin, or?

[gryffin]

Hello all:

My husband and I will be getting our Open Water Certification locally (in NH) this summer. We are planning a cruise to the Western Caribbean next February, and would like to dive in two of the ports: Cozumel and Grand Cayman. Since these would be our first dives after certification, I plan to hire a private DM as has been recommended in several of the threads in this forum. Our dive in Cozumel would be our very first open water dive post certification, and I want to choose the best shop for the experience.

While a shore dive might be best, that doesn't seem to be a common offering in Cozumel, so a boat dive might be the only option. If I have missed a good beginner shore diving option, please let me know!

From the posts in this forum, Aldora and Dive With Marthin seem to be the most highly recommended operators. I'm not sure which is the best for brand new divers though- any thoughts? In either case, should I consider a private charter- a lot more expensive, but I don't want to be pushed beyond our limits.

Thanks-

 

[Mike]

Personally, I'd dive with the ship in both cases. You're brand new, you've got a lot that is going to be hitting you all at once, simple is going to be better. The dive operator who has the ship's dive concession will dumb the dives down to the lowest common denominator which will be others like yourself. You're not going to see the best of Cozumel's diving, you won't be diving for 70 minute bottom times with the ship operator, but you won't be doing that with a private operator either because of your experience. You will be just as safe and you are not going to notice the difference in the dives anyways, but diving with the ship is going to simplify the entire process and give you the same end result for your experience level.

Now if you're not competent, and will be wet messes in the water, I'd probably recommend the private thingy since you'll need the major hand-holding they will provide.

 

[Mossman]

Aldora, to be sure. But I don't know where you got Dive with Martin as a "most highly recommended". They are cheap, that seems to be their strong point.

Blue X-T-Sea is a most highly recommended dive shop here that may be able to accommodate your schedule depending on ship's arrival time. The owner is very big on the private DM idea and could probably set you up with a great one.

---------- Post added April 29th, 2014 at 08:50 AM ----------

Now if you're not competent, and will be wet messes in the water, I'd probably recommend the private thingy since you'll need the major hand-holding they will provide.

They probably won't know that until after their OW course.

 

[Ron Lee]

Do you know your arrival pier? If not, can you provide a cruise line and ship name and arrival date?

 

[cvchief]

Lots of people love DWM, not just for price.

People love Aldora, a higher end shop with big tanks and nice extras.

BlueXTC is always well recommended.

Our fave: Scuba with Alison hosts lots of cruisers and lots of newbies. We started with Alison when looking for someone good with newbies. And we are still there.

I would NEVER suggest going on the cruise concession. You will pay more for a low end experience. Why would you? I don't go with the "You are new and suck and it doesn't matter." Get a good op.

Coz is full of great small boutique ops that will cater to you. You can discuss all your concerns and wants and work something out for you.

I wouldn't get carried away with a private charter and all that. Just make your concerns clear to the op and see what they have to say. The private DM is nice, but we didn't have one. I have seen Alison bring another DM for time there were going more than one or two needy divers. If you are new and air hogs, order the bigger 100CF tanks. Any shop can rent them. (If you are with Aldora they have 120CF tanks all the time)

 

[Skittl1321]

Personally, I'd dive with the ship in both cases. You're brand new, you've got a lot that is going to be hitting you all at once, simple is going to be better. The dive operator who has the ship's dive concession will dumb the dives down to the lowest common denominator which will be others like yourself. You're not going to see the best of Cozumel's diving, you won't be diving for 70 minute bottom times with the ship operator, but you won't be doing that with a private operator either because of your experience. You will be just as safe and you are not going to notice the difference in the dives anyways, but diving with the ship is going to simplify the entire process and give you the same end result for your experience level.

Now if you're not competent, and will be wet messes in the water, I'd probably recommend the private thingy since you'll need the major hand-holding they will provide.

Honestly, being brand new is the reason I would NOT dive with the ship. Too many horror stories about incompetent dive ops, crowded cattle boats and crap rental gear. I've also read numerous times on cruise forums that the dives went deeper than beginners expected (100 ft), and dive sites were preselected based on a schedule, not the makeup of the divers on the boat.

As someone who was brand new when I went to Cozumel, I will say Scuba with Alison met my needs perfectly. She had cruisers on the boat everyday, and our pick up time was often adjusted to accommodate them- so cruisers are not a problem. She picked great sites for the level of people on the boat, and if you need it- her rental gear was excellent (including a computer)- and included in the price we were quoted. She's not as cheap as Dive with Martin, but less than other places. Her boat is fast, so a cruiser might even have time to fit in some after dive/after shower shopping.

You can ask her if she recommends a private DM, but for me, she told me unless I really really thought I did, I wouldn't need it as she'd be able to pay attention to me (she knew on that day her boat was mostly 'regulars')

 

[DjDiverDan]

Aldora, to be sure. But I don't know where you got Dive with Martin as a "most highly recommended". They are cheap, that seems to be their strong point.

Having recommended both Aldora and Dive with Martin, I think it is underselling DWM to say that the only selling point is price. Yes, Aldora is my first choice, for several reasons -- Steel 120 tanks (not just for the extra air, but also for the better buoyancy characteristics of steel), very long bottom times, long relaxing SIs at a beach club, high end valet service, etc. But DWM is a very competent, lower price lower service Dive Op, with some excellent DMs. I've been to Coz many times, and about half the times (more often, recently), it has been with a group trip where I didn't get to pick the Dive Op, and I've never been disappointed with DWM. For a newbie diver off a cruise ship, they could do a LOT worse than DWM. And, since the shop is located right at the International Pier, and sets up dive trips later in the morning to accommodate Cruisers, it might be a very good choice. And, with the Cruise Lines taking a HUGE markup on the excursions booked through the Cruise, I'm betting a cruiser could save 50% or more by booking directly through DWM - the Cruise Line will almost certainly charge $120 or more for the "scuba excursion" and you'll get exactly the same 2-tank dive that others are only paying $55 or $60 for. If it were me (it won't be, since I think Cruise Ships are little better than floating prisons with better food), I'd book directly through a Dive Op - any of a dozen or more could provide a great experience, including Aldora, DWM, Blue XTSea, etc. - and save the excursion Markup that the Cruise Line would take. Don't feel sorry for the Cruise Line, it'll have LOTS of other opportunities to fleece you over the course of a 7-day cruise.


Another reason to avoid the Cruise Line Excursion - the Cruise Lines contract with the lowest priced operators they can find, often the cattle boat operations, including some I would NEVER dive with (like Del Mar Aquatics), then ratchet the price WAY up for the suckers on the boat. And I did not mean to snub other Dive Ops in my list, like Living Underwater, Scuba with Allison, or many others, all with excellent reputations. It's just that I haven't been diving with any of them, so I don't feel competent to recommend them.

 

[Ron Lee]

There are THREE cruise ship piers which is why I asked about the cruise ship name above. Two would be convenient to DWM with the International Pier the closest.

 

[Skittl1321]

There are THREE cruise ship piers which is why I asked about the cruise ship name above. Two would be convenient to DWM with the International Pier the closest.

But if a newbie cruiser diver doesn't know the answer to this- they can rest assured that they still are not stuck diving with the ship. Most ops that cater to cruisers will be able to tell them based on ship name/port date! (As I see you asked for- since you probably know how to look it up too.)

 

[Ron Lee]

Skittl, the OP should know the cruise line/ship name. With that you can find the time in port and docking pier and that info may factor into their choice.

I know that I like the beach surface interval that Aldora and others provide. Maybe Gryffin would like that as well. If so, that could drive them to a smaller subset of dive shops.