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I almost always get a good bottle of tequila when I'm in CZM. Last one was Fogonero Extra Anejo. Best one yet IMO. Key being Extra Anejo. The guy that sold it to me said the repasado was for drinking with your friends, the Anejo with your very good friends, and the extra Anejo was just...

Not scientific of course, but I'd guess that out of 10 divers I see in the Carribean, roughly 4 will be fairly seriously overweigted (> 5 lbs), 3 slightly overweighted, 2 or 3 weighted properly, and maybe 1 under weighted enough that they have to get more weight to do the dive. If you go on a...

I've had a few 'instanotbuddy' experiences. The guy who went hand over hand on the descent line to the relatively shallow wreck at 60 ft and only had 500lbs of air when he got to the bottom of the line. I don't think a vacuum could have sucked the tank faster. The guy who almost ran out of...

By far the most important thing is that YOU are responsible for your own safety. Don't leave your brain on the boat and count on your dive buddy, divemaster, etc. to keep you out of trouble. Everyone is responsible for their own safety. That doesn't diminish your responsibility with buddy...

I've been with Dive Paradise many times. They are a big operation but Apple (the owner) makes sure everyone gets great service. Big or small/fast - they have whatever size boat you want. I preferred their fast boats. They have quite a few very long term divemasters I like a lot. Friendly...

Alot of weight integrated BC's, especially if it fits 'long', carry the weights low and therefore lead people to think their feet / legs are heavy. It is one of several reasons I don't use a weight integrated BC. I use a weight belt. If I want my legs higher I simply move my weight belt a bit...

You are on vacation in a foreign country. Don't expect things to necessarily run with an American sense of time. Don't get bent out of shape if things run a bit slower in Mexico than you are used to in the US. Treat the locals with respect and have fun with them and you'll probably get the...

BC pocket: safety sausage, small flashlight, shock-corded tentpole and large foldable plastic orange flag as a signal device when it is windy. I've personally seen safety sausages blow over and be useless on windy days and are hard to see in large seas. Before my next dive trip I plan to...

I have had the fortune of diving in some great locations elsewhere in the world, but always manage to get some decent diving and have a good time in Cozumel too. Contrary to some of what is posted here, there are some great places to 'hang out' in Cozumel. As long as you don't go expecting...

The world doesn't automatically come to an end at 130ft like alot of people seem to think. Everyone is right - the margin for error at 164ft (or 200+) is very small, but a bounce to 164ft isn't impossible by an means. In the 'bad old days' we used to go to Maracaibo in Cozumel and do la couple...

If the top of the wall is less than 100ft, just stay a bit shallower than the rest of the group. I doubt any in the group spend long below 100ft. I predict you do just fine. I personally like the remaining air time display of an air integrated computer. "Flame suit on" but many of the...

A decent camera rinse bucket and/or hose on a smaller boat. A place to put my dry stuff that actually stays dry. Small groups of similar skilled divers. If all divers don't have similar skills, multiple divemasters/groups. Being able to use my computer instead of the old table limits -...

I consider myself fortunate to have been taught the tables in depth. I took an interest in them and studied them hard. I think it gave me a greater understanding of what actually happens to a diver. That said, I think new divers are best served by teaching simple repetitive dives via the...

Around 1998 or so I saw and photographed a Mola Mola on Cozumel. One of the pictures was published in a magazine. One of the coolest things I've seen anywhere. Dove with a Manta, got to snorkel with large pod of at least 50 dolphins, quite a few eagle rays including one that ate a...

In a place like Cozumel with a deep wall it is absolutely possible for a decent diver to run out of decompression time way before you run out of air if you don't think about your depth/time enough or go to sites like Maracabo or Punta Sur where the 'shallows' are still relatively deep...

I find it interesting that quite a few people discuss adding air to their BC because they are going to be diving deeper. If you are properly weighted and NOT wearing neoprene, you shouldn't need much more air in your BC at depth than near the surface unless you are overweighted. If you are...

I wear my MOF regularly. I carry a camera and sometimes just find it more convenient. I've had obviously newer divers tell me I'm not suppossed to MOF while I was walking into two inch surf. Who cares? If I was making a surf entry into 4 foot seas I see the relevance, otherwise MYOB and...

Don't charge me a $50 'hurry up' fee when I need my regulator repaired within a week. That's gouging and cost me any loyalty I had to my LDS. If they had to hire extra help, send it to someone else, etc, I'd understand, but they did it with the same labor, parts in stock, etc. It didn't cost...

I've seen 2 hammerheads off the north wall (2 different trips) as well as quite a few eagle rays and a couple of reef sharks in maybe 100 dives in GC. One dive my computer was 'acting up' (and read a depth of 60 feet at 30 feet, 90 at 60, etc). I spent most of the dive pretty much as a...

I've been going to Cayman every August for several years and have stayed in various hotels close to where you are staying. Stingray City is definitely worth doing if you can get out there when there isn't too many other people. Sandbar (which is only 3 feet deep) is different but may be even...