Hi, my name is Clay and I am not a diver yet.

[clayman]

I go to Cozumel about every other year, love to snorkel, and have done the scuba in the pool and think breathing underwater is a great thing. Going next June 2011 and am thinking of me and the grandson, takling lessons and doing a shore dive. Is that the way to get started?

 

[Ameliasea]

Cozumel had great diving although I don't know anything about their shore diving. How old is your grandson?

 

[gmanstan]

It might be a good idea to do your class's & pool training here,then do your open water class in Cozmel. I know PADI & SSI offer this. That way you can get your instruction at a better pace and if your grandson is of the right age you both can take the class together.That way when you get to Mexico no classroom,books, pool, just you two ,your instructor & the ocean.

 

[boulderjohn]

That is EXACTLY how I got started. I was planning to go to Cozumel, so I got certified before the trip. I think you should get certified before the trip, but another way to go is to do the classroom and pool requirements at home and then do the open water training in Cozumel. That is a very common way of doing it.

Cozumel has a lot of great diving, but pretty much all the good sites are only available by boat. Contrary to what I sense you are thinking, that will actually be an easier introduction to diving than shore diving would be. In Cozumel, all dives must be led by a divemaster, and if you let the div e operator know you are a beginning diver, you will be led to a dive at an appropriate level of difficulty.

Your grandson must be at least 10 years old to be a certified diver. Mine is 8--I can't wait!

 

[noreastDIVER84]

Welcome to the board, and as others have said, I would recommend doing your pool and classwork here, and then doing your final dives in Cozumel. That way you have almost the whole trip to enjoy diving.

 

[mselenaous]

Get your certifications at home through your local dive shop, then join the Scubaboard Invasion of Cozumel where all levels of divers from all over the world will be diving, meeting, greeting, and having a blast.
If you don't want to complete the Open Water Dives portion of your course locally, you can certainly do a "referral" to another instructor at your destination. How old is your grandson?
If you join the Scubaboard Invasion in Cozumel, let me know and I will be happy to complete your final checkout dives. Just send me a PM here on Scubaboard.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/in...61018-scubaboard-invades-cozumel-package.html

 

[toddthecat]

Be aware you will pay considerably more money to do half the class here, and half at a different dive shop because you will be charged by both. I would suggest getting certified prior to going. That way you can enjoy the dives during your vacation and not feel stressed over the 4 open water dives that must be split over two days.

 

[boulderjohn]

Be aware you will pay considerably more money to do half the class here, and half at a different dive shop because you will be charged by both.

You won't be charged full price for both, though.

Our shop has a price for referrals (academic and pool only) and another price for the full certification. Resort shops do the same thing--one price for the full certification and another price for just the OW dives with a referral. It may come out to more that way, or it may not.

 

[TSandM]

My initial plan was to do the pool and classroom work at home, and the dives in Maui, where my in-laws live. I didn't end up doing that, and I'm very glad I didn't. Here's why: Diving, in my experience, has a lot in common with skiing. If you watch someone who is good at it, it looks like a blast. But when you're starting out, you don't carve beautiful S-turns down the mountain -- you snowplow, and it's awkward and way more work than you thought it would be, and not nearly as much fun. And the only way to get out of the snowplow phase is to ski more (and maybe take some more lessons) until you get to where things start to be graceful and elegant and . . . well, FUN.

Diving's like that. When you're learning, it's all about process -- how do I manage my buoyancy? Where's my buddy? How does all this equipment WORK? It takes time in the water to become relaxed and facile with the equipment and the skills, and only then do you really have the bandwidth to take in everything that's around you. If you only dive in the tropics, you are unlikely to dive often, or to get enough bottom time to learn to become one with the water. Diving at home, although it may not have the appeal of clear, water water, is where you can learn the joy of weightlessness and freedom in three dimensions, which is one of the most utterly addicting things about the sport.

My advice is to take your class at home, go to Cozumel and enjoy the dives there for fun, and come home and continue to dive locally. It's worth it.

 

[fisheater]

TS&M is right.

I did my certification class here in Northern California in advance of a trip to Hawaii. Sure am glad i did, as I spent my Hawaiian trip diving for real and not trying to learn how to dive.

Plus, I'm an active local diver. As such, my dive skills are greatly superior to those of other locals who only dive while on vacation.