Cozumel Hotel/Dive Operation?

[Spavards]

Greetings!
My husband and I, both experienced divers, are planning a trip to Cozumel December 19 to 27, 2017. We don't want a ($$) luxury hotel - wouldn't need or use a tv, phone or even a pool. Breakfast and lunch included would be nice, breakfasts for sure, but we want to have our dinners free to explore nearby. Quiet, clean, firm bed and near a pier we could be picked up from would be good. Shore diving a plus.

As for dive operators, of course reputable. We enjoy boats with smaller amounts of people (8-10 or so) of about the same abilities. Must be covered from the sun. 2-3 tank morning dives and option for night dives. We appreciate long bottom times, shoot GoPro, love critters and Dive Masters who can point out special species.

What about Scuba Club Cozumel? Anyone know Casa del Mar? Cozumel Marian World? Dive House? Dive Paradise?

Too specific? From reading previous posts I learned it helps. Just give me the benefit of your experience! I appreciate all takers.

 

[DreaminOfSand&Salt]

Headed back for 5th year in a row to Blue Angel ...

 

[Trailboss123]

Scuba Club Cozumel seems to fit your bill, particularly for the on site shore diving and on site pier for boat dives. Night dives can be arranged or done right from the resort. I believe you can do a breakfast only or breakfast and lunch only package (check with them) and they do have the all inclusive option. It is close to downtown and walkable for restaurants and grocery store. No one that I am aware of does 3 tank dives on the island. It is 2 morning dives and/or 2 afternoon dives. Not all operators offer afternoon dives though.

 

[robint]

Scuba Club Cozumel fits you perfectly.

 

[Sue Sue]

Scuba Club Cozumel would meet your needs. Diving, meals, lodging all in one place. It is also a very doable walk into town to tour and visit restaurants. I also, however would recommend going the ala carte route and design your own vacation package. Perhaps check out the following:

Lodging:

Villa Escondida B & B Villa Escondida Cozumel Bed and Breakfast is located right in downtown Cozumel, and it is ideal for travelers who want local attractions at their doorsteps: great dining, the main pier, the central park, local shops and more are all at a short walk from this charming villa. A delicious, complete breakfast consisting of fresh brewed mexican coffee, selection of teas, fresh orange juice, pastries or homemade baking, hot main dish /mexican dishes are our specialty!) and fresh fruit and yogurt is served in the terrace every morning. DH and I have stayed here several times. 4 guest rooms with en suite baths (HUGE SHOWERS) in building separate from main home. Pool, Community fridge and microwave. Walking distance to EVERYWHERE in town including budget to $$$ restaurants. Bakeries, Comida Economica, Take out, Sit down with FULL service. The rate also includes a FULL Made to order Breakfast that is beyond wonderful. Breads, Fruits, entree and breakfast beverages. Magda and David are wonderful hosts and treat their guests like family.

Blue Angel Resort: Rooms with balcony face the water. Pool, On site Dive op however other dive ops pick up guests as well. There is a restaurant on site that is open for B, L and D. Some street noise, however, the AC usually cancels it out well enough. DH and I have also stayed here several times and have never been disappointed.

El Cid la Cieba: This is a resort with MANY rooms located in either a 2 story low rise or the Tower. Packages are available for All Inclusive or European. The resort has a pool and a "Box-o-Beach" (engineered beach with step access into the water. The venue also has a Restaurant as well as a dedicated dive pier and rinse tank. It has an in house Dive op, however other dive ops pick up there as well. It does get a bit busy at times, especially during the day when the cruise ships are in town as they sell Day Passes to use the facility. However, if you are diving you actually miss most of the activity. Once the cruise ships leave for the day the place slows down to a quiet calm.

Diving: There are sooooo many dive ops to choose from and everyone has their FAVORITE. My recommendation is to check out the reviews and reports here in the Cozumel Forum. Make a list of the top 5 that interest you and then contact them directly with your list of requirements. 1)Where they pick up 2)Bottom time 3)Covered boat. In addition to Hotels/Condos with dedicated dive piers, some dive ops will require you to meet at the Marina which would require a taxi ride or car. Some will arrange transport to and from the Marina. Some dive ops will pick up at the "Town Pier" which is easy walking distance or a very short taxi ride from anywhere in town.

Best wishes for a fantastic vacation !!
Double S

PS: Should you have any additional questions, feel free to ask..!

 

[Jayfarmlaw]

We dive with Aldora for the long dive times from Steel hp120 tanks and stay at Casa Mexicana for the breakfast buffet. CM is downtown, on the sea wall, and is within walking distance of most of the restaurants we like, Mega, the Square, all the shopping, and 1/2 block from where Aldora picks up divers in the morning. We find the beds comfortable. We leave Sunday for the 8th trip staying at CM.

Another lodging option would be Aldora Villa, no food options, but some rooms have kitchens and they give you a ride to Mega when you arrive to stock up. It is very quiet and they have tanks for night dives if you wish. Their pick up pier is less than 100 feet from your door. Firm beds. They do have bicycles for town trips, but cabs are readily available as well. It's definately a walk to town...but I'm old...and fat....and out of shape...

If long dives are what you are after, there is no substitute for 120 cf tanks. We regularly hit 80-90 minute dives starting 80-100 feet.

Good luck, safe travels.
Jay

 

[JamesBon92007]

Yes, Scuba Club Cozumel sounds a lot like what you are looking for. HOWEVER, I think their prices go up right about December 18th or 19th. I've gone there the past two years but got there in early December and got their special (such as the 5-4-2 Special which is five nights, four days of diving, and two meals--breakfast and lunch for $542 US). I think they may only have Alum 80 tanks there, but I'm not sure. You can check out tanks during the day and do all of the shore diving and night diving you want.

There are no cooking facilities but the rooms have a small refrigerator to keep snacks in. It's a short walk to restaurants. They offer a dinner package for an extra $20 per person per night but with all of the great places to eat in San Miguel (and for a lot less sometimes) I prefer just going out for dinner.

My girlfriend is talking about going there again this December.

 

[Sallygirl]

We've been staying at Casa Del Mar for several years. It is comfortable, clean and friendly. They have an option to include meals, which we never use. One hint, it is important to upgrade to a superior room! The breakfast is good.
We often have breakfast at Ernesto's, across the street, because it is fun to watch the cruise ships dock, and watch the Fury catamarans get ready for their daytrippers. Also a small dive op getting ready for the day. ( don't recall the name, maybe scuba shack?) There is a pier where dive ops will pick up of they offer that service. It is a nice walk or cheap cab ride into town.
There is some shore diving from Tikila, which is right across the street.

 

[lionfish-eater]

Sallygirl is correct about the room upgrade at casa del mar. They have a few (maybe 6) rooms that are half below grade and the windows have cars parked two feet from the glass. I don't think many people stay in these "standard" rooms. I have stayed at cdm many time, but I prefer Hotel cozumel/resort for the same price range. Better beach area, better pool, closer to town, pier for pickup from many ops. etc. It is directly next door/and across the street from scuba club cozumel.

You can't go wrong with any of these places. Or most of the others as well. Find a good price on any of the places south of town and pick one.

 

[nodakdive]

I'll confirm the need to upgrade to the "superior" room at Casa del Mar, but would also point out that those ground floor rooms at the back of the hotel are not the only "standard" rooms, if they are "standard" at all. The entire back side of the hotel that faces the jungle are standard rooms. They're very small and don't have a balcony. You want a balcony if you're diving. Also, CDM has a pier for pickup too. They don't charge anything to be picked up by other ops.

There are a couple of close dining options other than the CDM restaurant itself, namely Ernesto's and Paprika. Both are less than a block from the hotel. Since the exchange rate is so good right now, taking a taxi to town for supper isn't as much of a factor, but CDM is a loooong walk to town. Scuba Club is much closer to town. Getting a taxi from CDM is extremely easy. Most of the time, we just walk down the steps from the restaurant and we have a taxi in less than a minute. There's almost always a few taxis right across the street. One nod, and they u-turn and are in front of you in about 20 to 30 seconds. Even if the desk calls one to pick you up at the lobby, it's rarely more than 2 minutes until you're climbing in.

I'm not sure how many divers are on the Scuba Club dive boats. I could be wrong, but I think they're big boats as opposed to small panga types? The last I heard, CDM's all inclusive package was $42 per day per person. You order off their menu and I think there's an upcharge for a couple of the items, as I recall, the seafood platter and the lobster carry an upcharge. It used to be that if you booked your vacation through Delta, breakfast was included. I don't know if that's still available. CDM opens for breakfast at 7am.

Scuba Club's all inclusive option/s seem nicely dialed in. It doesn't include alcohol and if I recall correctly, you can do breakfast, breakfast and lunch, or all three. Another smart thing they do (imo), is that you order what you'd like for supper, at lunch. In any event, they're preparing your supper fresh and keeping their food cost down. Smart. I've never stayed there and wouldn't as it's not the right fit for me, but there are some nice upsides to Scuba Club Cozumel.

If you choose Casa del Mar, I'd be inclined to dive with an outside dive op. Those that leave from downtown, Deep Blue, Blue XTC, Aldora etc, will pick you up at the pier, but I know that some other ops that leave from the marina will still back track and pick you up at the pier. CDM is the opposite direction of the marine park, but very close. For instance, I think Dive with Allison will pick you up at the CDM pier. I've seen her there many times. CVchief would know for sure. If you stay at Scuba Club, you dive with Scuba Club, which is no doubt a fine choice.

What I like about CDM is that it splits the difference between big sprawling resort and small hotel. The grounds are very nice. They have a pool with a swim up bar and a hot tub. The restaurant's menu is small but I have many favorite items. The rooms are clean, etc. I think a taxi is about $5 US one way to town. There's shore diving there. The hotel is a triangle, and the best views are on the 3rd floor on the leg that faces northwest. If you're on the southwest, you're seeing trees and cruise ships from your balcony. From the furthest room on that 3rd floor, it takes me 50 seconds to get to the bar/restaurant.

One other note. If you choose a dive op that leaves from a downtown pier, or that provides "courtesy" transportation to the marina, you have a little extra time for breakfast, etc, if you stay at CDM. So for instance, Aldora leaves from downtown, very early, well, you've got an extra 15 minutes. Same with shops that leave early and provide transportation to the marina. When I'm on vacation, I'm there to relax, and having limited time for breakfast doesn't fit my bill. The op I use, Deep Blue, leaves from a downtown pier at about 9am. I have all the time in the world for breakfast, getting my cameras together, etc, and for watching the other divers who dive with ops that leave early, eating breakfast in neoprene and moving fast to get done and on the pier for their pick-up. Fine for some, not for me.