Aldora Review

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Wow, I never heard of an operator that refused to let a diver setup their own gear. That is backwards. It is my choice to let someone touch my gear or not.

I have had my BCD mounted too low on the tank by the boat crew. I moved it up and from that point on, the crew mounted it in the right spot.

Speaking of valet service, I like when the crew measures your nitrox and shows you the analyzer reading. It speeds the process and the boat's analyzer is less likely to get damaged.
 
Shout out for DM Jorge from Aldora. He's amazing.

I have about 750 dives in Florida, 99% of the operations I've used supply tanks and weights at the boat to those that want them. The others required picking tanks up and returning them to the shop. I've never seen a boat here without weights.

I've gone out with a lot of different Cozumel dive ops. I have used Aldora on my last three trips. My experiences were good. I love the steel tanks, the coats, the warm water (to drink) and the majority of the DMs I've been out with.

In Cozumel I allow the DM to set up my gear, then I check it.

Never do "trust me" diving. Ever. Never. Your life, your responsibility. Check every aspect of the process: gear, depth, etc. etc.

If you don't feel confident to do so, get more experience.
 
Interesting responses to my original thread. I really did enjoy Aldora and would use them again in a heartbeat. The last day was a disappointment but not anything to change my very very good opinion of Aldora. However, I did want to present all of my experiences for folks to consider for themselves.
 
Interesting responses to my original thread.

Great thread, I too am interested in trying Aldora next time I visit Cozumel. Anyhow mgreider, I have a question that hasn't been asked yet... I have stayed at Secrets in the Mayan Riviera before, but not at the new(ish) one yet on Cozumel. Did you like that resort and how did it work for staying/diving with Aldora? Were you close by? Did you have to take a taxi for diving each day or could you walk? What about if you had a heavy camera you had to lug back and forth each day (I know gear could likely remain at Aldora, but no way the camera would)... looking forward to your response despite the fact that all my dive trips are already planned for the next two years anyway LOL Can always dream...
 
Just a comment about the number of Aldora boats and DM's.

Fastet way to find 25 brand new dive sites without having to travel.

We put in over 500 dives with a dive op with only one boat. The crew was terrific. We considered them old friends. With their DM we've dived every site on the west side many times and it was great.

When we started diving with Aldora, about 8 months ago, we were a bit concerned how we would like diving with them because of so many boats and DM's.

Fortunately it took an interesting and rewarding twist. On Aldora we would head towards, as an example, Palacar Bricks. After a dive we would look at each other and say, gosh was that Bricks? Sure didn't look like Bricks. Not sure Bricks has ever looked so good. This would happen over and over, from divesite to divesite.

So now, if we dive with 5 different DM's during a month we get to see 5 different versions of Bricks or whatever dive site we go to. Better yet, good relationships still develop.

Varity is the spice of life.
 
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JodyLynn, I really liked Secrets even though I'm not really an All Inclusive type person. I usually prefer to stay in condos, but the deal was just too good to pass up. Secrets was a nice resort, we were in the preferred section and it sounded like the rooms were much nicer there than the regular section. There is no real differences or advantages to the preferred section, they do have a separate pool and bar but nobody checks so it doesn't really matter. Pool side service by was great. Vicky and the other servers were excellent and proactive bringing fresh drinks around. We found the food pretty good, the buffet was horrible, but the restaurants were good and the service was almost always excellent. The coffee bar was excellent and they have sandwiches and desserts 24/7. It was a nice touch. The beach was pretty rocky but nice.
Aldora is a great shop to work with because they pick you up at the pier at Secrets. The diving is usually south of the resort and you do SI at close beach clubs. We generally left the pier at 8:15 and got back about 1. Remember Aldora has those nice steel tanks that let you have dive times of between 75-85 minutes. I did have to drop off my gear the day before (on the way to the resort from the airport) and pick it up and pay the bill on the way back to the airport.
Everything is pretty close at the resort so I can't imagine more than 5 minutes walking from anywhere on the resort to the pier. The preferred rooms are closer to the pier.
I really wouldn't even consider using anyone but Aldora for diving. The dive time is the big thing for me but also they do an excellent job of matching you with other divers who are similar in abilities/air consumption.
Let me know if I've answered all of your questions or you need help with other ideas for the island or transportation.
 
Thanks for the repost on Secrets.. I was looking for a smaller AI resort. Sounds like Sercrets is the place.. I just want to dive, sleep eat.. Too old to party too much more.. 2 Glasses of wine will do me..
Wife wanr to sit on patio and read her Kindle..
Was there Wifi in the room or just in the publice places?

Photo from last Oct. SCUBA CLUB COZUMEL Cozumel Oct. 2015 - samplin

Joe
 
There is wifi in the room and in the public areas. It seemed to work fine in the rooms. We caught up on a bunch of "breaking bad" episodes on netflix and it streamed them with no problems. The wifi was sort of spotty around the resort. I just used my data on my phone rather than the wifi. If you have Verizon it is only 2/day to use your plan in Mexico. Great deal. We spent most of the afternoons by what my wife called the "old people's pool." It is the rectangular pool right by the lobby. Small, quiet, sounds perfect for you. I spent most of my afternoons doing exactly what your wife wants to do ... i just read in the pool!
 
One last question about Secrets.
My adult daughter want to come down and be my dive buddy. I looked at the preferred rooms and is there a sofa bed in the rooms?
Joe
 

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I'm not sure if it was a sofa bed but it was an very large couch. They do have preferred rooms with two double beds.
 
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