Itinerary suggestions in Yucatan

[v g]

Hi,
After reading tons of posts and till confused more than ever, I am here to ask for some advice for creating an itinerary from Belize to Yucatan.

We are a couple with AOW cert and 100+ dives. We try to stay economical (cheapest hostels) but can pay more for great diving. Have been travelling for some time and made dives all around in Indonesia (Raja, Komodo, Nusa penida, etc) and Phillipines (Coron, Dayım Apo island). Ah also made dives in Roatan and Utilan recently but not greatly impressed maybe due to the dives in Indonesia. I am more into big fish and/or big schools but would like to try cenotes for sure. Again open to other suggestions.

We are currently in Livingston, Guatemela and trying to make a plan until our flight from Cancun on 17 May. So we will have probably two weeks or so in Yucatan travelling from south to north. We only have our masks and dive computers, the rest we will rent.

Based on what I read so far, here are my impressions:

- Cozumel: Busy, good diving but not so great marine life (maybe some nurse sharks, eagle rays). Not cheap but overall affordable. Playa del Carmen is similar?
- Mahahual/ Xcalak: Mahahual is less busy, may be more expensive. Banco Chinchirro is expensive but great diving. Not sure if there are dive op s in Xcalak. Xcalak is better shore diving but further away from Chinchirro.
- Tulum: Good base for cenotes. We probably will spare a few days due to its less expensive location/accommodation options.
- Belize: Expensive and not so great marine life. Many snorkelling options but nurse sharks are being fed, so a big no. (skip for diving just use to travel to Yucatan?)

So more specifically, are there places that you suggest to be added that I missed? Am I yoo critical about Cozumel's marine life and crowds? Is Banco Chinchirro really great? Am I wrong about Belize?

Well these are my thoughts. I d appreciate any help. Thanks all!

 

[BRT]

If you want big schools of fish try Puerto Morelos.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I did a similar itinerary about 20 years ago. From Utila over to Livingston on someone's boat! As for the diving, you will never find anything in the Caribbean as nice as Indonesia, so just get it out of your head. Anyway, from there I made my way to Belize, as you will. Don't miss diving in Belize. Yes, it's expensive. You're not in Indonesia or even Guatemala anymore, for that matter. From Belize on up north, it can get "expensive." For sure, do some cenote diving in Tulum. Then up to Playa del Carmen. Don't miss Cozumel. Cozumel is much better diving than Playa del Carmen. Take the ferry from Playa del Carmen to Cozumel, dive for a couple of days, then head back to the mainland. That's probably all for diving. Sounds like you're doing some general land-based tourism, too, so head over to Merida, maybe stopping at Valladolid. That itinerary will keep you busy for a couple of weeks.

 

[Ontwreckdiver]

Definitely make time for cenote diving, I have been to the mainland 7 times and have not done one ocean dive, only cenote dives. You can dive reefs anywhere. The cenotes are all over the Yucatan, but the best area to stay would be anywhere between Playa Del Carmen and Tulum. The mainland is a lot better location for non diving land based tours.

 

[v g]

Thanks all for the replies. What you guys think about Banco Chinchirro? We are a bit short on time so we may need to skip it in exchange for dives in Cozumel or Puerto Morelos.

 

[profmason]

Quick notes:
My vague memories is take the ferry from Livingston to punto gorda. Take the bus from punto gorda up to Placencia. Hostel in Placencia is pretty cheap. I think it is worth 2-3 days diving. Bus up to Belize City and Ferry across to Caye Caulker. Caye caulker is a good base for going out to tunifee and blue hole. Caye Caulker can be expensive! You could skip it and go straight over to San Pedro on the ferry from Belize City. I liked the diving out of San Pedro, I think it is worth 3 days of diving. Prices are more reasonable in San Pedro. Ferry over to Chetumal and catch the ADO bus up to Playa del Carmen (PDC is cheaper then Tulum to stay) I think the logistics are hard going to Mauhaul so I haven't done it. PDC is a fine place to dive the cenotes from. Ferry over to Cozumel. Lots of cheap stay and dive options in Cozumel. I think it is worth at least 6 diving days. Ferry back and ADO bus from PDC to Cancun to fly out.

 

[horn34]

Hi,
After reading tons of posts and till confused more than ever, I am here to ask for some advice for creating an itinerary from Belize to Yucatan.

We are a couple with AOW cert and 100+ dives. We try to stay economical (cheapest hostels) but can pay more for great diving. Have been travelling for some time and made dives all around in Indonesia (Raja, Komodo, Nusa penida, etc) and Phillipines (Coron, Dayım Apo island). Ah also made dives in Roatan and Utilan recently but not greatly impressed maybe due to the dives in Indonesia. I am more into big fish and/or big schools but would like to try cenotes for sure. Again open to other suggestions.

We are currently in Livingston, Guatemela and trying to make a plan until our flight from Cancun on 17 May. So we will have probably two weeks or so in Yucatan travelling from south to north. We only have our masks and dive computers, the rest we will rent.

Based on what I read so far, here are my impressions:

- Cozumel: Busy, good diving but not so great marine life (maybe some nurse sharks, eagle rays). Not cheap but overall affordable. Playa del Carmen is similar?
- Mahahual/ Xcalak: Mahahual is less busy, may be more expensive. Banco Chinchirro is expensive but great diving. Not sure if there are dive op s in Xcalak. Xcalak is better shore diving but further away from Chinchirro.
- Tulum: Good base for cenotes. We probably will spare a few days due to its less expensive location/accommodation options.
- Belize: Expensive and not so great marine life. Many snorkelling options but nurse sharks are being fed, so a big no. (skip for diving just use to travel to Yucatan?)

So more specifically, are there places that you suggest to be added that I missed? Am I yoo critical about Cozumel's marine life and crowds? Is Banco Chinchirro really great? Am I wrong about Belize?

Well these are my thoughts. I d appreciate any help. Thanks all!

- Cozumel: Busy, good diving but not so great marine life (maybe some nurse sharks, eagle rays). Not cheap but overall affordable. Cozumel has lots of marine life. Playa del Carmen is similar? No. PDC is not good diving.
- Mahahual/ Xcalak: Mahahual is less busy, may be more expensive. True. Banco Chinchirro is expensive but great diving. True. Not sure if there are dive op s in Xcalak. Xcalak is better shore diving but further away from Chinchirro. Nobody does shore diving in Xcalak. The reefs are a long swim with equipment and you'd need to bring your own tanks. XTC is the dive op there.
- Tulum: Good base for cenotes. True. We probably will spare a few days due to its less expensive location/accommodation options.
Banco Chinchorro is great. It's cheaper to go with a dive op from Mahahual, like Amigos Del Mar, as opposed to XTC in Xcalak.

 

[pintodog]

Just got back from Playa del Carmen and have been diving in that area for several years. Here are my thoughts:
* I just dove in Cozumel last Sunday. The topography is good, the visibility is great, and the marine life was much better than what I saw diving in December...saw quite a few stingrays, lots of turtles (3 kinds), and nurse sharks. I was told that it is the beginning of turtle mating season, which may explain the large number of turtles. I stayed in Playa, took the ferry, stayed the night in Cozumel, dove the next day and came back at the end of the day on the ferry. The ferry between PdC and Cozumel are super easy and frequent. I dove with ScubaTony. Great outfit with small boats (6 divers)
* I dove the Cenotes. This trip I did Angelita and Car Wash. Both were great. On previous trips I've done Kukulkaan, Chac Mool (aka Little Brother), Dos Ojos, and the Pit. All are great. My personal favorite is Chac Mool. I went with The Cenote Guy (I've been with them 3 times now). Great outfit. Highly recommend doing 2 days of cenotes.
* I dove Xcalak 2 years ago around Christmas. I went with XTC. I received a notice that are closed indefinitely. Marine life-wise it was a bit quiet...except the night dive, which was fantastic! The topography was nice and diving with tarpons and manatees was a unique experience. It is also very uncrowded diving, which I liked. I stayed at XTC and the dives were never that far away. It is a very quiet part of Mexico, which is hard to find along the coast these days.
* I dove at Akumal (south of Playa del Carmen) around Christmastime. Diving is a short distance from shore and I would characterize it as easy diving. I went there because it is supposed to be a good place for turtles. I did see the turtles. I would think this is a "okay" diving.
* Cozumel is definitely the best ocean diving in the area re: visibility, topography, and marine life but it can have a lot of dive boats. You will rarely encounter another boat at Xcalak.

My vote...do 2 days of diving at Cozumel and 2 days at the cenotes.