Help choosing a place to stay/dive?

[Kryssa]

My husband and I are headed to Cozumel & the Yucatan for a long week starting with Thanksgiving weekend and going through the following weekend.

We're thinking we'll stay on Coz for 5 nights (4 days of diving) and stay in the Riviera Maya area for 5 nights (3-4 days diving cenotes.) We've visited Coz twice from the mainland but never stayed on the island.

We're looking for something clean, diver-friendly, and good food wouldn't hurt. We're looking to do at least 3 dives most days and like a comfy room to come back to for naps before dinner. We like fast boats filled with experienced divers that are good with air and buoyancy so we can go to some of the more challenging sites.

Any suggestions? I've been looking around all night - Scuba Club, Hotel Cozumel, Blue Angel, all seem to be top choices and I would love to hear what is different about them. Also, any good choices I might have missed? I don't mind booking my diving independently but either way, I don't want to be diving the same sites over and over again.

Thanks!

 

[BDSC]

I have stayed at Scuba Club and Hotel Cozumel and both were OK. I thought the food at Scuba Club was fine for breakfast and lunch but the dinners were really lacking to the point of not being very good. The resort itself was nice and the rooms were fine. The dive boats are not very fast however. It's been years since I was at Hotel Cozumel but the resort itself was fine, however I just don't remember much about the food and I dove with Manta Raya Divers and they were excellent! Would take you to any of the dive sites. Wouldn't hesitate to use them again.

We are returning next year with several friends and have decided to stay at Blue Angel Resort. I have read nothing but great reviews about them here on SB and had a chance to visit with them this past April when we were on a wedding cruise. I was impressed with what I saw and we had lunch and the food was great. They showed me a room and it was large and appeared clean and all are oceanfront. They answered all my questions and I was impressed with the staff. So while I have not stayed there but will next year, I would suggest staying there.

BDSC

 

[diverokc]

I usually stay at hotel Cozumel, but have stayed at blue angel. I think BA would fit your bill It is close to town and has a very good restaurant attached. It is small with only like 25 rooms I think. You might also remember that iron man is thanksgiving week and hotels fill up quick.

 

[SeaFlea]

Kryssa, You didn't say whether you wanted to be close to town or not. If so, you might consider Casa Mexicana for your hotel. It's in town, lots of restaurant choices for dinner. Breakfast is included with room. I've always read happy reviews from guests. As for the diving, its wide open. Dive with Martin will store your gear for you so you don't have to worry with a locker or hauling back to the room. They have small boats and can provide a good profile for experienced divers. I've dived with them for the last few trips and have been very pleased with their service. There are others, Aldora, and Blue XT, plus many more that can meet your specific dive expectations. There really are alot of larger as well as boutique dive operations to choose from.

If you can be a bit more specific about your budget and where abouts on the island front you might like to be it will narrow down the choices.

Have a great time.

SeaFlea

 

[bwetter]

My .02 - for what its worth ...
My non-diving wife and I do a similar trip 2x a year, 1 trip is always between Thanksgiving and Christmas.....we go to Cozumel for 4-5 days, we stay at Allegro and I do 3 dives a day with Pro-Dive(onsite) - free nitrox ...my wife likes that she doesn't have to carry around money and can lay on the beach read and drink (all inclusive) ...we have always been able to find something to eat off the Buffets but we also like many of the in town places, so we will jump in a cab and go into town a couple of nights
We then will move to the mainland for 2 weeks as I love the Caves and the Bull Sharks, we stay at either - Riu Playacar or Allegro Playacar, both are again all inclusive, food at Riu is a little better but the price doesn't out weigh the difference between the 2, so we have stayed at Allegro more often and still go into 5th avenue and watch football on Sundays and go to dinner in town often, my wife has no problem and feels safe walking around town(during the day) by herself......I have made many friends in Playa del Carmen, so I don't dive with a specific shop but I can recommend Beyond Diving ..Scuba dive in Playa del Carmen, Cenotes and Cozumel with Beyond Diving

If you have never been to Mexico around Christmas (Feliz Navidad), your in a for a treat, the atmosphere and decorations are wonderful .... see CVChief's photos on his post about "anyone in Cozumel for December"

Have fun and if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me

Bill

 

[cicopo]

All 3 would work but be aware many dive ops might only go to Paradise Reef for the PM dive. Blue Angel's dive op may be more flexible on that than Dive Paradise (never been to SCC so can't say on them.
i have a full photo tour of Hotel Cozumel & a small tour of Blue Angel & both have links to my trip reports, one of which compared the 2 because we did a week at each on one trip. As for meals at Hotel Coz I'm fine with them but not everyone is so decide on the AI option by price. Sometimes it very low, while at other times it's a bit high & not necessarily worth the cost.

https://picasaweb.google.com/CozumelTimeCapsules/BlueAngelResortFormerlyTheCaribeBlu

https://picasaweb.google.com/CozumelTimeCapsules/HotelCozumelPhotos

 

[robint]

I am a big fan of ScubaClubCozumel, but it isn't for everyone. Look at my trip reports (link below), as well as videos.

robin

 

[islanddream]

We are big fans of The Blue Angel but after looking at the "September diving in Coz" list, I think I'll quit recommending them! Geez, spreading the good word might backfire and there might not be "room at the inn" for us at some point. We love it there!

 

[Kryssa]

What is the dive op like at Blue Angel? I'll admit I like being a little lazy on vacation, is there a spot near the boat to store your gear? Do they set up your gear for you?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[diverokc]

BA has a good dive op. They run small 6-pck fast boats. Matt the instructor is a great guy. As far as places to store your gear, the hotel is only about maybe 20-30 yds from the dock-maybe closer to the water. They have balconies with hooks for hanging gear. They also leave tanks out 24-7 for unlimited shore diving. We did a great night dive from their shore.