Group of 10 for a day of diving in Cancun

[glamourpuss]

We're headed to Cancun for a friends wedding (at Dreams Resort Cancun) and I'm trying to organize a day of diving for a group of us. I don't have exact numbers yet, as it's still a few months away, but probably 8-10 of us, all certified ranging from Open Water, to DM.

Can anyone recommend a shop that can cater to a group of 10? Do any of them do group deals? (most will need equipment as well)

Also after the wedding my boyfriend and I are sticking around for an extra week (however moving hotels... closer to Playa Del Carmen at The Grand Mayan) and will want to do a couple more dives, so would love a reco for there as well. (might be a bit far to use the same company unless they pick up a various hotels).

I haven't been to Cancun before so appreciate any suggestions!

Cheers!

 

[Ed Hatfield]

I don't have any info on the Cancun part of your trip but I may be able to help with the Playa part. I guess that you are staying at the Wyndam Grand Mayan that is about 10 minutes north of Playa. If your travel brochures show a series of 3 storey walk-ups that are white with large visible palapas, and it is attached to a golf course, then I am pretty sure it is the Wyndam. It's so hard to tell because resorts will remodel and change names to avoid previous bad reviews. Not to say that the Wyndam had any bad reviews but that is a general practice in the industry. If your second week is a 'dive holiday' and you are planning several dives then you may want to plan your dive itinerary and send your requests to several shops for quotes (even if it is just two of you). Since you will be taking a cab into town the location of the shop shouldn't be a factor so you have the whole field to pick from. I don't know if the resort has a dive shop or an affiliation with a particular shop but you should e-mail them to get the info. Some of the shops commonly recommended here at SB are GeoFish, Scuba Playa, Cyan Ha , Tank Ha, Abyss, Phocea Dive, and Scuba 10. Fantasea Dive is Jason who is an independent (no shop) and is also commonly recommended here. NOT recommended is Phantom Divers (a personal choice becasue I don't support any operator that chums the bull sharks). If you are only doing a day or two then you can probably drop into town on your 1st free day and check out some of the shops and make a booking then. FYI - don't forget your wallet. I went for a walk once and stopped by Scuba Playa to book a dive for the next day and they refused my business because I couldn't leave a deposit. I walked across the street and booked with GeoFish - no wallet - no problem. I guess they had more faith in a 55 year old tourist with an honest face. Enjoy your holiday and my regards to the newlyweds.

 

[SarahOP]

I go to Cancun all the time and I finally got certified this year with Mayan Aqua Dive. They were great. The guy I dove with was Ben and he started his own operation called Scorpio Divers. I went back last month and Ben and Jorge took me out a few days. I had a great time. We did Cozumel a day and it was amazing. We did a wreck and I loved it. I also did a cenote for the first time. They can take you anywhere and everywhere. They are fun, nice, make sure to show you all the marine life under water and are safe. They can also do hotel pick ups, etc. I would give Scorpio Divers a try.

Aquaworld is a big tour operator in Cancun. They do all the water tours (scuba, snorkel, jet ski, boating, etc.) They could probably handle large parties because they are huge. But they're also known for sometimes having too many people. I've done other tours with them and at times it's like a cattle call. I've heard mixed reviews. They would be my last choice.

As I said before, I go there ALL the time. Three times this year alone. If you have any other questions, just let me know.

Have a great trip!

 

[psumike]

I just returned from the Grand Mayan on Sunday :-(
Sad on the returning part.

Had a great week.

We dove 4 days with Dive Aventuras in Puerto Aventuras and were treated as family, like always. They are at diveaventuras.com and picked us up via shuttle each day.

They run 2 AM and 2 PM trips usually.

Mike

 

[psumike]

Couldn't resist a shot of our Christmas Eve dive...

 

[Spratman]

Nice pic! I wish I was there on Christmas instead of freezing my *** off in PA!

I would definitely recommend Ben and Jorge at scorpio divers. Drop them a line and they'll hook you up!

 

[randykiw]

I would not recommend Aquaworld in cancun. As a newbe I dove with them in Nov 2008 they are a cattle boat. After the first dive to 55 feet for 55 mins they got everyone back on the boat and changed tanks and immediately told everyone to get back in the water, literally only 10 mins surface interval. Everyone kinda looked around an one guy said we need alittle more time for surface interval, dive master said they had schedule to keep that if we did not dive now the second dive would be canceled.

 

[rodman4085]

At the Cancun Clipper club, about a block walk from the Dreams Cancun, in the lagoon...
http://www.divecancun.com/
or
Cancun Diving, Scuba Diving Trips for Beginners and Advanced Divers, Cozumel Diving, Cenotes Diving and Cancun Scuba Diving Courses.

Look them up on TripAdvisor.....2nd best excursion operator in Cancun
Contact either Fred or Octavio, tell them Rodney from Wisconsin pointed you their way.....!

 

[glamourpuss]

Thanks for the input! We're not going till June so have a bit of time to plan, but will look into the above mentioned shops!