How is Dive Paradise?

[likestodive]

I've been with Dive Paradise many times. They are a big operation but Apple (the owner) makes sure everyone gets great service. Big or small/fast - they have whatever size boat you want. I preferred their fast boats. They have quite a few very long term divemasters I like a lot. Friendly people and will give you as much or as little help as you want. Good hard working people. I've had alot of fun with them over the years and I'll definitely dive with them next time I am in Cozumel.

 

[boulderjohn]

I think what you think of an operator depends a lot upon the kind of diver you are.

I used Dive Paradise several times in the past, but I don't even think of using them any more.

I can vouch for the fact that Apple will take care of complaints. On three different days during those two weeks of diving with them she immediately refunded my money for a day's diving because of what happened during the dive. I did not ask for the refund--she just decided on her own that what had happened was bad enough that she felt compelled to give me my money back.

That's great, but I don't go on dive vacations for the purpose of getting my money back. I go for quality dive experiences. I have never had any other operator anywhere else in the world even have to entertain the notion of giving me my money back, but Dive Paradise has felt a need to do it three times.

On one occasion, the DM did the first dive on Palancar Caves and did it as a wall dive. We just drifted along about 15 feet on the outside of the reef, never coming close to entering the maze of reef formations. He did the second dive on Las Palmas and misread the current. He got in the water to verify its direction, but as soon as we splashed I could see he was wrong. He persisted in taking us into the current until we ran into another dive group going the correct way. He then turned us. We retraced our path until we ran out of reef and then drifted over sand for the rest of the dive.

On another occasion I was supposed to be in a fast boat heading to an advanced dive. Unfortunately, they left me off the manifest. When boat after boat left the pier without me, I went to the shop to find out what had happened. They realized the mistake and got me on the only boat left--a slow boat full of beginning divers.

On the third occasion I was also supposed to be on a fast boat with experienced divers. They almost got it right. There was a married couple who were both divemasters. I was then a divemaster myself. The fourth diver had just gotten certified and was on his first dive trip. I, of course, was identified as his buddy. As his buddy, I had to go to the surface with him when he was low on air, each time when I had about 1800 PSI.

Finally, each week I was there I signed up to be part of their EDP (Experienced Diver Program--don't know if it still exists). The idea was that if they got enough EDP divers together, they would send you out on a more advanced dive site, like Punta Sur, with you paying a bit extra that day. In the two weeks I was with them, they got such a boat together exactly once.

As I said, it depends upon what you are looking for. I left them and go instead with an operator who will give me the more advanced dives I want every time I want them. If you are a new diver, though, they may be just wonderful for you.

 

[ApexLongimanus]

i did dive with them in a pre-paid deal some time ago. would not do that again. cattle boats. we had an incident where they did not secure their tanks and one diver was not able to continue due to a head wound due to a tank slamming on her head.
the diver got a voucher for the missed pre-paid trips. no refund.
i don't like cattle boats and i thought the incident was poorly managed. two strikes in my book.

 

[Davemohio]

I dived with them last fall. Cattle boats. Some Instructors exceptional...some, not so much.

I went with Dressel in December. Still had large boats, much better experience.

Apple does offer vouchers for bad experiences, that is true.

A night dive I did with some buds off of the DP dock was fantastic.

My next trip to Cozumel will include diving with one of the smaller operations mentioned frequently on SB.

 

[boulderjohn]

I want to go back and emphasize something I said in my earlier post.

Some people have used the term "cattle boat." That is obviously a derogatory term that knocks a certain kind of diving experience. That means a big boat with a lot of people on it giving everyone a beginning experience.

On the other hand, the fact that it is a big boat with a lot of people on it means that a lot of people are perfectly happy with that experience--otherwise they wouldn't be there.

It is possible to run a big boat and provide something for everyone. When I was in Hawai'i two years ago, I did a dive one day on a boat with close to twice as many people as you would find on any of the Dive Paradise boats. They divided us very carefully, though, and I was with a group of divers who all have at least 500 dives. We had a very nice dive. I assume the other groups had dives at their ability level as well.

If a large boat is able to deliver that kind of experience, then its size or number of passengers is irrelevant. If it is only able to supply a beginning level of experience to a large number of people, then it may still be perfectly fine for the people who are at a beginning level of experience.

 

[dmoore19]

I used Dive Paradise on my first open water dives after certification. There were bigger boats but the boat I was on (Calypso) for my trip had 8 customers and 2 divemasters. The experience was wonderful. They were really good at pointing out critters, especially if you asked if you would see it. We asked to see seahorses, they showed us. We asked to see a splendid toadfish and one was found and shown to us. I was totally satisfied with them. It was my first time in the ocean and I don't know if it could have been any better. Hotel Cozumel was clean and the staff was friendly. I would go back in a heartbeat.

Just before splashing one of the divers fell and broke her ankle before getting into the water. The care she was given was quick and very professional. They had her on another boat and headed back shore very quickly.

 

[Okc_diver]

I was there back at the begenning of the month and had a great time. My final day of diving a norte came through and there was no diving and I got a refund. I did leave my gear (everything but my regs) out overnight and it was all there the next morning waiting for me inside the shop. Lots of space to hang up your gear to dry 2 decent rinse tanks (but no tank for cameras). They charge more than the other shops I have used in the past (5 days 2 tank trip costs 345.00 where other shops charge 300.00). It's divers choice on the dive sites and we did 2 sites twice, several divers did complain about that. We also did the wreck dive at no extra charge.