5-6 weeks in Mexico, for diving mainly

[Pajjpen]

Diving in Cabo Pulmo can be great and you are already there so a couple days would be worth it..they encounter tornados of jacks...tons of fish life...for examples..see posts on Scuba Board...area is also a sport fishing mecca...nearby La Paz has close encounters with sea lions and some very diveable wrecks, including a huge ferry that I thought was great. LaPaz itself is worth a couple hours in historic areas.

On the other side...Cozumel is a must-see worth 5-7 days...diving is great there...if you then stay in Tulum there are cenotes and Mayan ruins and ocean diving. I loved Coba ..ruins in the jungle. Chitzen Itza is very doable too.

From Tulum I also thought of going to Belize but didnt have time...you might think of that wirh your lengthy time window..lucky guy - a reasonable bus ride south. Ideas on that are posted on Scubaboard too.

Is Cozumel really that good? I've heard a lot of mixed things about it.
ive learned from previous trips trips that it's better to stick with the 1 country and explore it as much as possible than trying to rush too many things/countries in. I will however have Belize in the back of my mind if I ever get bored (lol) of Mexico.

So aside from tulum/akumal, PDC, cabos and la Paz, are there any other places you guys would recommend I visit/dive in Mexico? Any hidden gems somewhere perhaps.
cheers!

 

[lamarpaulski]

Yes...Absolutely. It would be a true shame to be in playa or tulum and not see/dive Cozumel for a couple days minimum

. I think its great diving and a cool place above water. Swim thrus, drift diving, amazing viz great night dives..lots of healthy life.

After diving Pacific Mexico it would be a beautiful contrast. Apples and Oranges.

 

[Pajjpen]

Yes...Absolutely. It would be a true shame to be in playa or tulum and not see/dive Cozumel for a couple days minimum

. I think its great diving and a cool place above water. Swim thrus, drift diving, amazing viz great night dives..lots of healthy life.

After diving Pacific Mexico it would be a beautiful contrast. Apples and Oranges.

Alright, Will plan 4-5 days in cozumel then!
This is what my schedule looks like right now(besides the 10 days to the Socorro islands)
5-7 days in cabos/La paz for sea lions and whatever else comes to mind
3-5 days in tulum/akumal for the cenotes
4-7 days on Cozumel
7~ days in PDC for the bullsharks, the sailfish run and hanging in bars.

Another question came to mind just now, where on Cozumel would you stay as a single traveler looking to meet fellow single travelers and be within distance of all the good dive spots?

 

[FT]

Nice plan. Cozumel has its own sub-forum, you might start by perusing the stickies there. The geography of Cozumel is such that many dive sites are well south, and the closest places to those are all-inclusive resorts. Possibly some of those might cater to singles but I dunno. Staying in town would be my idea of more fun for you post-dive, and plenty of dive ops will pick you up at the town pier, or give you a lift to the caleta (southern harbour). Most offer a two-tank dive so the day's routine is a half hour boat ride to the first site-dive-surface interval either on boat or nice shore spot-dive-home by 1:30. Afternoon and night dives are offered but not by every op every day. Hm. Maybe one of the dive-focused hotels south of town would provide good social life -- Scuba Club Cozumel or Blue Angel?

The underwater topography of Cozumel is the draw, most varied and interesting. Ocean diving off Akumal was pleasant and well worth a try if you want some easy, low-key puddling around coral ridges, the usual fish suspects in reasonable quantities, plus guaranteed turtles.

 

[Asteve]

My .02
The Socorro islands will be the best of west Mexico diving. Cabos/La paz for sea lions and whatever else comes to mind. Cabos will have your bars, be careful coming out of a bars late at night by yourself as you would anywhere. Feb and La Paz, it is the time of norther that will blow for 2 to 5 days, the weather forecast are fair and you should be able to plan around them. La Paz also has bars. In La paz I would get a taxi and ask them to take me to a hotel give them a price you want to pay and let them know you want to be down town. The bars in Mexico seem for the most part to pour a strong drink.

Here is a trip report I did on Cozumel, http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/cozumel/502775-first-trip-cozumel-trip-report.html?highlight=asteve

We liked Playa del Carmen, there was a lot going on there, the first street next to the sea is walking only, lot of people and bars, and shops and restaurants.

If you want some more open water diving spend some time in Cozumel, would be well worth it.

 

[Pajjpen]

My .02
The Socorro islands will be the best of west Mexico diving. Cabos/La paz for sea lions and whatever else comes to mind. Cabos will have your bars, be careful coming out of a bars late at night by yourself as you would anywhere. Feb and La Paz, it is the time of norther that will blow for 2 to 5 days, the weather forecast are fair and you should be able to plan around them. La Paz also has bars. In La paz I would get a taxi and ask them to take me to a hotel give them a price you want to pay and let them know you want to be down town. The bars in Mexico seem for the most part to pour a strong drink.

Here is a trip report I did on Cozumel, http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/cozumel/502775-first-trip-cozumel-trip-report.html?highlight=asteve

We liked Playa del Carmen, there was a lot going on there, the first street next to the sea is walking only, lot of people and bars, and shops and restaurants.

If you want some more open water diving spend some time in Cozumel, would be well worth it.

Would you not recommend me booking my accommodation prior to arriving? I would love to not have to book it online as it gives me the most flexibility but I'm afraid I'll end up without too many options and having to settle for something either really expensive or some crappy hostel. Will read your report in a bit!

 

[Asteve]

Would you not recommend me booking my accommodation prior to arriving? I would love to not have to book it online as it gives me the most flexibility but I'm afraid I'll end up without too many options and having to settle for something either really expensive or some crappy hostel. Will read your report in a bit!

La Paz should not be a problem. It would be on the level of a Motel 6. Ceaner but basic. The other places, to be closer to the action, booking places mite be better. Playa del Carmen I mite do half and half. Cozumel I would book. Cabo I mite do half and half. By doing half and half would give more flexibility.

You could book after you are already down there as you get ready to leave one hotel to the next.( you could make a list of places that looked good, then book as needed ) Other then Cozumel ( I don't know that much about Cozumel but my feeling are you need to book before leaving home.)

Having said all the above, some people need to have all booking done before leaving home and want 5 stars, other can wait until 5 minutes before going to bed as long as it clean. So you need to figure how adventurous you are before taking the information above. You are going to 2 areas that are fun to explore.

 

[Pajjpen]

Afternoon and night dives are offered but not by every op every day. Hm. Maybe one of the dive-focused hotels south of town would provide good social life -- Scuba Club Cozumel or Blue Angel?
.

I had a look at scuba club and they seem fantastic! Most likely spending 5-6 days with them. Unlimited shore diving is super appealing, love the feeling of diving alone.

---------- Post added December 15th, 2015 at 09:16 AM ----------

La Paz should not be a problem. It would be on the level of a Motel 6. Ceaner but basic. The other places, to be closer to the action, booking places mite be better. Playa del Carmen I mite do half and half. Cozumel I would book. Cabo I mite do half and half. By doing half and half would give more flexibility.

You could book after you are already down there as you get ready to leave one hotel to the next.( you could make a list of places that looked good, then book as needed ) Other then Cozumel ( I don't know that much about Cozumel but my feeling are you need to book before leaving home.)

Having said all the above, some people need to have all booking done before leaving home and want 5 stars, other can wait until 5 minutes before going to bed as long as it clean. So you need to figure how adventurous you are before taking the information above. You are going to 2 areas that are fun to explore.

I'm Swedish so I have no idea what level a motel 6 is haha. Yeah I'm booking the accommodation on Cozumel, I don't really require any fancy resorts, I do however care about how much money I spend, obviously the less the better. I'll most likely do what you suggested and write down the places that look good go from there. Will book my first couple of nights in PDC aswell.

PS: I did some research on cabo pulmo and it looked pretty sweet, the cold water does however concern me and I'll probably not spend too many dives there or in la Paz, might head back to Cozumel and PDC after Socorro if I feel like I want more diving. (I know Socorro is going to be chilly aswell, but for the wildlife that's there I'm more than happy to suck it up haha)

 

[mmmbelows]

I had a look at scuba club and they seem fantastic! Most likely spending 5-6 days with them. Unlimited shore diving is super appealing, love the feeling of diving alone.

I would temper what shore diving from scuba club is going to be , if you're thinking Bonaire like shore dive, think again, it's more quarry dive than a reef dive. There is a little bit of sea life, but the shore diving consists of mostly mud/sand flats with a few rubble piles and man made objects.

 

[Pajjpen]

I would temper what shore diving from scuba club is going to be , if you're thinking Bonaire like shore dive, think again, it's more quarry dive than a reef dive. There is a little bit of sea life, but the shore diving consists of mostly mud/sand flats with a few rubble piles and man made objects.

Oh okey, do you know if any other dive op on Cozumel has a better house reef?