Going to PDC for the first time in April '15

[freeclimbmtb]

A good friend of mine is doing a destination wedding in PDC next April so of course I couldn't say no! It's an all-incl trip and we are staying at the Valentin Imperial Maya in PDC.

My girlfriend and I are going for the entire week and of course planning to dive while there. I have a good amount of dive experience (the usual PADI OW, AOW, Nitrox certs along with ~120+ dives). My girlfriend is OW certified, but that's literally it. She took her cert class (NAUI if I recall correctly) through a LDS here in New Hampshire this past summer (in preparation for this trip) but has not done any diving outside of the class. I have (embarrassingly) only dove a hand full of times here in NH in the last 2 years. (after spending 16 days in Curacao November of 2012).

Our plan is to get in Saturday mid day and get settled, then we will be there from Sunday through Saturday, leaving the following Sunday. (The wedding is on Monday.) So I see that as being able to dive potentially the first Sunday, and then Tuesday through Friday so we can fulfill our no fly obligations without worry.)

Basically, I have no idea what to expect from the diving or how they are setup down there and was looking for advice. (where to dive, who runs what kind of package deals etc.) Keeping in mind both my, and my girlfriends level of experience.

 

[PlayaCountryBoy]

Hey Freeclimbmtb,
I have been running dives all around the Yucatan for about 15 years and can tell you that at the time you are here, the diving will be good! Light onshore breezes with clear water and fish and turtles starting to spawn. Check out this video I made this past end of may-first of April. It is of a couple of our best sites. You can get a good feel of diving and reef structure we have around here. Shoot me a message with any questions you may have.

 

[gone_swimming]

Diving on the PDC side is very easy and generally shallow. Good place for your girlfriend to get a little experience. You should definitely get across to Cozumel for a day or 2. I'm sure you could arrange to have a dive shop pick you up at the ferry or Aldora and Aqua Safari have piers walking distance (maybe 1/4 mile which could be a factor if you are both lugging dive bags).

 

[freeclimbmtb]

That was originally going to be my plan, but since we are there for the wedding, just getting some diving in will be a bonus, there is plenty to do (and drink) at the resort, I don't really want to add the hassles of traveling inside the vacation to the equation. I have plenty of years to take other vacations and Cozumel is still on the list.

---------- Post added December 18th, 2014 at 10:11 AM ----------

Hey Freeclimbmtb,
I have been running dives all around the Yucatan for about 15 years and can tell you that at the time you are here, the diving will be good! Light onshore breezes with clear water and fish and turtles starting to spawn. Check out this video I made this past end of may-first of April. It is of a couple of our best sites. You can get a good feel of diving and reef structure we have around here. Shoot me a message with any questions you may have.

What should I expect for water temps? November in Curacao, board shorts and a rash guard was "enough" a 2mm was a little more comfortable.(but I get cold easy, I dive dry in New England and San Diego). My girlfriend has a shorty that she uses for kite boarding in Massachusetts in the summer...not sure how thick it is. Which leads me to my next question, I just booked the vacation but I am trying to figure out how much diving is going to run me on top of that. I have all my own equipment (not traveling with tanks or weight obviously) but she has none, excluding the shorty. So I am still thinking: settle Saturday, enjoy the resort sunday, wedding Monday, dive Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, relax Saturday, fly Sunday. Curacao I did an unlimited shore diving package so we did 3-5 dives a day, but I am getting the impression PDC is mostly drift dives off the boat and not as shore diving friendly...so I'm thinking 3-5 is probably ambitious...(Especially for her.)

 

[Diverspoint]

PDC is all boat dives.

Prices vary, also with gear included or not.
Water temp is mid 70's that time of year.

The divws themselves of PdC are simple in all respects. Not really great. We are based in Puerto morelos, 20 miles north, and our dives are much better.

With your girlfriends level of experience beware of large groups. The dm may not pay good attention to an inexperienced diver if there is a large group.