TO BEGIN
It had been 8 years since our last trip to Cozumel. The first time we stayed at the Fiesta Americana and I dove with Dive House. We had a great time and a snorkel trip motivated Julie (wife) to get certified! Back then it was still a fairly sleepy little town maybe 1 cruise boat in every couple of days.
(Had hoped to post pics but computer is locks up every time I try to download)
HOTEL
We typically dont do the all inclusive deal since we like to eat at the local restaurants, especially in towns like Coz. We wanted to be able to walk into town but not be down town. So we settled on the Hotel Cozumel/Brisas. The rooms were nice, clean, well air-conditioned and have a small deck with pegs to hang wet gear on. Staff was friendly and helpful. As suggested a US$5 tip early on insured our room was typically one of the first cleaned. We did take advantage of the buffet breakfast which was very good with a variety of eggs, pancakes, local cuisine, fruits, etc The hotel is not on the water but there is a tunnel under the main road that leads to their pier and nice little beach club. The hotel is a 15 to 20minute easy stroll from downtown.
1 Downside
For us diving and relaxation are the two main priorities. After 3 dives, we like to lay by the pool, have a drink, read, and nap. Unfortunately (for us) the hotel has an entertainment staff so from 10am on they are running drinking games, pool volleyball, bingo, etc All accompanied by VERY LOUD (think Led Zepplin in small bar loud) running commentary by the lead Entertainer/Cruise director/Motivator. Many people took part and enjoyed it, but forget napping.
DINNING
Some of our favorites for local cuisine: Café Dennis, El Foco, Le Chosa, and Especias. Amber (Italian) has great food and a very romantic/chic setting. Another good Italian place is Guidos. Pepes Grill on the main drag, is expensive and the food is not so great in our opinion.
DIVING
We were looking to do 10 days/3 dives per day, with a small boat operator. In addition we planned on taking the PADI Advanced Course and later dive some of the more advanced sites. Since air consumption is not a big issue for us, steel tanks was not a deciding factor. After scouring the boards and sending several emails we settled on Blue XT- Sea. It was a good choice. Once again, we look to dive and relax, well we had no idea we booked during Carnival. So Coz was quite busy and all the dive operators where full. Christi admitted it was the busiest and most hectic week in her companys history. You would have never known.
She was using two boats, both fast; it is a pleasure passing all the cattle cars on the way to the dive site. We dove with both Rauls and they were excellent DMs. They knew the areas, finding all sorts of octos, seahorses, eels, etc even in the stiffest currents. They also took time with the less experienced divers, making them comfortable. The best part is we never dove with more than 6 people often only w/3-4. We were very impressed with the boat captains. They were a big help on board and when it came time to be picked up they were right there. I cannot remember ever waiting more than a minute or two, literally, before they were alongside. Even more impressive when compared to other operations, which on several occasions we had to flag down boats that had no clue where their divers were. Gear was always set up and between dives, Chisti provides dry towels and windbreakers if you want them. Surface intervals are typically at nice beach resorts that often had fresh water pools, showers, banos, drinks and food available for purchase.
The water temp was in the mid to high 70s/low 80s and the outside temp about the same. I typically dive 3mm full all day. But after the first dive I was throwing my 3mm shorty on for warmth on the 2nd and 3rd dives. Julie wore her 3mm long, 3mm short and tropical hood and stayed warm through most of all 3 dives. If you think that is a lot, Raul II was typically wearing 16mm, yes that is 16mm!
Favorite sites
For deeper dives we liked Punta Sur with massive coral heads, great topography and we saw 3 eagle rays and several turtles. Barracuda was fun, we saw two eagle rays there and the largest turtle we have seen, it looked like a VW. Raul estimated the current at 4 knots max, it was great to cruise along and Julie w/75 dives loved it. For small critters we liked Tormentos, Palancar Caves and Turchin (SP?). Of course all the dives are great. If you are new to wreck diving, the C53 is a good start. Very open, easy to navigate; the interior has lots of hatchet and bait fish inside with 6-7 groupers patrolling the stern.
The only downside was we lost 2 days diving due to an el norte (very windy conditions). The harbor was closed to the smaller boats. A few bigger boats were allowed out. The sea was pretty choppy, though, and Im not sure I (Julie) would have wanted to be diving those days. All in all, diving the smaller boats had many more upsides than downsides! One thing, if you are packing a camera make sure to have a padded soft case for storage on the boat and bring along a 1 liter bottle of tap water for rinsing your camera.
Durring the el norte we rented a car ($40/day) and went to the other side of the island (about 20 minute drive). As reviewed by other the best beach is Playa Bonita and there was hardly any wind at all. They have a small restaurant/bar and bathrooms on the beach.
It was a great trip, well never go back to cattle boats and are already planning the next trip, maybe a liveaboard. Any suggestions???
It had been 8 years since our last trip to Cozumel. The first time we stayed at the Fiesta Americana and I dove with Dive House. We had a great time and a snorkel trip motivated Julie (wife) to get certified! Back then it was still a fairly sleepy little town maybe 1 cruise boat in every couple of days.
(Had hoped to post pics but computer is locks up every time I try to download)
HOTEL
We typically dont do the all inclusive deal since we like to eat at the local restaurants, especially in towns like Coz. We wanted to be able to walk into town but not be down town. So we settled on the Hotel Cozumel/Brisas. The rooms were nice, clean, well air-conditioned and have a small deck with pegs to hang wet gear on. Staff was friendly and helpful. As suggested a US$5 tip early on insured our room was typically one of the first cleaned. We did take advantage of the buffet breakfast which was very good with a variety of eggs, pancakes, local cuisine, fruits, etc The hotel is not on the water but there is a tunnel under the main road that leads to their pier and nice little beach club. The hotel is a 15 to 20minute easy stroll from downtown.
1 Downside
For us diving and relaxation are the two main priorities. After 3 dives, we like to lay by the pool, have a drink, read, and nap. Unfortunately (for us) the hotel has an entertainment staff so from 10am on they are running drinking games, pool volleyball, bingo, etc All accompanied by VERY LOUD (think Led Zepplin in small bar loud) running commentary by the lead Entertainer/Cruise director/Motivator. Many people took part and enjoyed it, but forget napping.
DINNING
Some of our favorites for local cuisine: Café Dennis, El Foco, Le Chosa, and Especias. Amber (Italian) has great food and a very romantic/chic setting. Another good Italian place is Guidos. Pepes Grill on the main drag, is expensive and the food is not so great in our opinion.
DIVING
We were looking to do 10 days/3 dives per day, with a small boat operator. In addition we planned on taking the PADI Advanced Course and later dive some of the more advanced sites. Since air consumption is not a big issue for us, steel tanks was not a deciding factor. After scouring the boards and sending several emails we settled on Blue XT- Sea. It was a good choice. Once again, we look to dive and relax, well we had no idea we booked during Carnival. So Coz was quite busy and all the dive operators where full. Christi admitted it was the busiest and most hectic week in her companys history. You would have never known.
She was using two boats, both fast; it is a pleasure passing all the cattle cars on the way to the dive site. We dove with both Rauls and they were excellent DMs. They knew the areas, finding all sorts of octos, seahorses, eels, etc even in the stiffest currents. They also took time with the less experienced divers, making them comfortable. The best part is we never dove with more than 6 people often only w/3-4. We were very impressed with the boat captains. They were a big help on board and when it came time to be picked up they were right there. I cannot remember ever waiting more than a minute or two, literally, before they were alongside. Even more impressive when compared to other operations, which on several occasions we had to flag down boats that had no clue where their divers were. Gear was always set up and between dives, Chisti provides dry towels and windbreakers if you want them. Surface intervals are typically at nice beach resorts that often had fresh water pools, showers, banos, drinks and food available for purchase.
The water temp was in the mid to high 70s/low 80s and the outside temp about the same. I typically dive 3mm full all day. But after the first dive I was throwing my 3mm shorty on for warmth on the 2nd and 3rd dives. Julie wore her 3mm long, 3mm short and tropical hood and stayed warm through most of all 3 dives. If you think that is a lot, Raul II was typically wearing 16mm, yes that is 16mm!
Favorite sites
For deeper dives we liked Punta Sur with massive coral heads, great topography and we saw 3 eagle rays and several turtles. Barracuda was fun, we saw two eagle rays there and the largest turtle we have seen, it looked like a VW. Raul estimated the current at 4 knots max, it was great to cruise along and Julie w/75 dives loved it. For small critters we liked Tormentos, Palancar Caves and Turchin (SP?). Of course all the dives are great. If you are new to wreck diving, the C53 is a good start. Very open, easy to navigate; the interior has lots of hatchet and bait fish inside with 6-7 groupers patrolling the stern.
The only downside was we lost 2 days diving due to an el norte (very windy conditions). The harbor was closed to the smaller boats. A few bigger boats were allowed out. The sea was pretty choppy, though, and Im not sure I (Julie) would have wanted to be diving those days. All in all, diving the smaller boats had many more upsides than downsides! One thing, if you are packing a camera make sure to have a padded soft case for storage on the boat and bring along a 1 liter bottle of tap water for rinsing your camera.
Durring the el norte we rented a car ($40/day) and went to the other side of the island (about 20 minute drive). As reviewed by other the best beach is Playa Bonita and there was hardly any wind at all. They have a small restaurant/bar and bathrooms on the beach.
It was a great trip, well never go back to cattle boats and are already planning the next trip, maybe a liveaboard. Any suggestions???
