Diving in the open sites is no different today than it was before the closure - all diving is fantastic. The sites that are open are slightly different than the ones closed - mostly less large formations but otherwise the water is fine.
Let's clear the "up North" diving stigma up - The statement that "there's no shortage of missing divers stories" is really out there, very misleading in fact. The last two divers missing were fishermen, the ones before that were fishermen - in fact, the only normal scuba diver to go missing recently that I can remember was Cameron, God rest his soul. Fishermen dive differently than you and I, very different - so different that I think those guys are nuts - they also dive in different areas than we dive - I also don't think these guys were lost forever, I believe I hear most are found.
More and more shops will be taking people "North" to Baracuda and San Juan, maybe even farther North than that. Those sites are "expert" sites when the current is humming, separations can happen and that can cause a problem. Some operators have PLB's and I'd highly suggest using one, big SMB's (plural on purpose) and listening very closely to the dive briefing - the next stop Cuba is no joke. They are expert sites when dove by experts lead by experts and picked up by experts that can be a blast, one non listening diver can ruin it for everyone. If you are not comfortable speed drift diving (if the currents are humming and your operator will probably have an idea), just stay down south, you aren't missing anything.
Come here and have fun, dive what you are comfortable diving - they give out Tequila here, not trophies.
