dolesorchard
Contributor
As a general rule, it will be far too rough in February to get to the Bat Islands, it’s usually a summer only trip.The Catalinas are nice and there are quite a few dive sites to choose from. February is usually ok, but there will be times when it is quite rough, if you have a weak stomach be prepared! My wife got certified in Ocotal and the first dives we did together were on the Catalinas, on the return trip to Ocotal we had 15’ seas!
Isla Del Cano is a much more reliable destination, we have been there several times in January through February and seas have always been much smaller than in Guanacaste. The number of dive sites is very limited. The closest approach is from Drake Bay, we really like Corcovado Adventures Tent Camp. Cano is 10 miles off the coast so it’s not a really short boat trip but there’s usually dolphins riding the bow wave of the boat and plenty of birds.
As someone else said, Costa Rica is not a place to do a dedicated dive trip, the diving is interesting with lots of fish, huge schools of big jacks and massive schools of many other fish on nearly every dive you’ll see White Tips and lots of rays. If you’re looking for 100’ visibility, you’ll be sadly disappointed. There are many other fun things to do though. One of the drawbacks of Cano in February is often a very strong thermocline and poor visibility below it. We’ve been to Costa Rica 14 times and can point you toward some fun stuff if you’re interested.
Isla Del Cano is a much more reliable destination, we have been there several times in January through February and seas have always been much smaller than in Guanacaste. The number of dive sites is very limited. The closest approach is from Drake Bay, we really like Corcovado Adventures Tent Camp. Cano is 10 miles off the coast so it’s not a really short boat trip but there’s usually dolphins riding the bow wave of the boat and plenty of birds.
As someone else said, Costa Rica is not a place to do a dedicated dive trip, the diving is interesting with lots of fish, huge schools of big jacks and massive schools of many other fish on nearly every dive you’ll see White Tips and lots of rays. If you’re looking for 100’ visibility, you’ll be sadly disappointed. There are many other fun things to do though. One of the drawbacks of Cano in February is often a very strong thermocline and poor visibility below it. We’ve been to Costa Rica 14 times and can point you toward some fun stuff if you’re interested.