reef invader
New
- Messages
- 1
- Reaction score
- 0
We just returned from Maya Palms Resort, in January. Our group consisted of 8 couples, 2 of them non diving spouses. Maya Palms is located about 6 miles south of the village of Mahahual in an area called the Costa Maya. This area has been the beneficiary of a large cruise ship port built just north of Mahahual.
We flew into Cancun, rented 2 vans and made the 4 hour drive to Maya Palms. The highway is 4 lanes for 60% of the drive, and very good 2 lane for the rest. Our drive took us through Playa del Carmen, Talum, and Lemones.
Upon our arrival in Mahahual we journeyed south along a sand beach road which snaked along the Caribbean coast for 6 miles to Maya Palms Resort. I have to say, from what we saw in Mahahual and along the 6 mile ride to Maya Palms, we were astonished when we came upon Maya Palms Resort. This place was like coming upon an oasis in the desert. Basically, all you see in Mahahual and along the beach road are seedy buildings, beach shacks and jungle. You know you are approaching Maya Palms when you see a 10 foot stone wall lined with white trunked palm trees going for about a half mile, then you come to the entrance to the resort. It looks like a Mayan Palace that emerged from the jungle.
We where greeted by Doug and Catherine, Pedro, Ken, and resort pets, Nemo and Chepiro. We were treated to a refreshing welcome drink, as we completed our check in and were escorted to our beach front villas. There are 2 aspects of Maya Palms and 2 different worlds. One is when you arrive you are on the jungle side of the property. Then your world changes 180 when you arrive at your beach front villa..on the ocean side.
Maya Palms was like a world unto itself, unaffected by the outside world. The property is totally self contained, clean and well maintained. Maya Palms has a freshwater beachside swimming pool, a PADI Dive Center, a great restaurant and bar with a lookout on top. The beach is very private. (No people except MP guests). The gardens have lots of Orchids, Palms, Tropical Plants, and Birds.
They have 3 dive boats; we used the 49 Freezone. The dive center was well equipped and must have had over 100 tanks. They provide soft weights. There are large freshwater rinse tanks, and an impressive tank filling system.
Our stay was 10 days. We scheduled 2 dives daily for 7 days. Our boat left at 1000am and returned at 1130am we ate lunch and boarded for our second dive at around 130. This was our typical schedule everyday. Tanks were always filled to 3200psi, no short fills. Nitrox was available.
The diving is astonishing. It reminds me of Cozumel 20 years ago, but much larger reef. Very virgin, huge sponges, lots of turtles, and medium size fish. The diving is spur and groove. Spur and groove diving occurs when a mountain of coral (barrier reef) has deep narrow
(6'-15' width canyons) grooves, running from the base of the reef towards shore... Our dives usually began along the base of this coral mountain range at approximately 80-90 feet, headed north in a very light current. Along this deep route we saw giant sponges 6-7 ft tall, some hosting eels in their base, large barracuda, and a wide variety of marine life. Most astonishing is the condition on the reef. The reef is virgin, healthy and vibrant. After 10 minutes or so, our guide would take us through some of the most spectacular swim thru canyons (grooves) it was like diving a wall without having to go to great depths. Here we would occasionally see turtles, lobster, and rays. Our dives were usually 40-50 minutes. Upon surfacing the dive boat was always nearby to recover us. This was typical of the diving we did each day. Every dive site is on GPS and the Captain was very precise as to the exact point of entry. In front of Maya Palms there are over 20 dive sites, each is unique in its own way. The dive site areas extended from Maya Palms and went south. We insisted on a dive north of Maya Palms because that is where the other dive boats seemed to congregate, and thought we were missing something, Well, we did one dive about 3 miles north, and agreed we would dive from Maya Palms and south. Ken said the other boats do not like to make the journey from town to Maya Palms reefs.
The boat ride was never more that 15 minutes. Most of the time we arrived on site within 10 minutes.
The reef is so rich that it literally grows out of the sea. The dive boat must navigate through 30 foot cut in the reef to get to the Open Ocean and dive sites.
We typically had breakfast at 8am and were out on the reef by 10am. We returned to the resort after the dive at about 1130 ate lunch, and hung out in the hammocks. We would leave for our 2nd dive at 130. Again no long boat rides because the sites are so close to the resort.
We did 3 night dives, leaving around 530-6pm for a 5 minute ride to the base of the inner reef. There are several swim-throughs which allowed us to get to the other side of the reef. They will not take their boat into open ocean at night, because of the tight squeeze getting in and out of the natural bay formed by the barrier reef.
Maya Palms is gifted with an ideal location for a diving resort because it is encompassed with the protection of the barrier reef which forms a natural bay. The barrier reef is about 400 yards from the beach, with virgin diving on the other side.
The beach front villas are very nice renditions of Mayan buildings; they are made of stone and concrete and have 2 full size beds, bathroom, shower, air conditioning, and porch, with all glass looking out to the sea. There are 2 separate villas per building. All the water is reverse osmosis and safe to drink. (The only place in Mexico I could drink water from the tap). Electricity is (USA) 110 volts 60 cycle current. Stone walkways extend from the villas and through the gardens to the main Palapa (large grass hut), Pool, and Restaurant with a spectacular marble bar. We even had internet access throughout the resort.
I especially enjoyed catching the early evening sea breeze while laying in the poolside hammocks with a cold beer. Words cannot describe the peace and tranquility I had at Maya Palms.
The service at Maya Palms was unsurpassed. We were treated to the friendliest family of staff I have ever experience. Catherine and Doug Goergens, (owners), Ken (manager, dive instructor), Pedro (Head Chef, and Hospitality manager), Anna (assist chef) and the rest of their crew, were at our service 24-7. This large complex set in the jungle along the beach accommodates only 40 people max. You get the feeling you are on your own private island.
The food is fabulous breakfast: Mexican breakfast or eggs, bacon hot cakes, serial, fresh fruit. Lunch: Mexican platter, burgers, sandwiches, soup, salad. Dinner was the great surprise; we had everything from Mexican gourmet, steak, lobster, chicken, pork and shrimp served to us on platters. I gained weight on this trip!
We ventured into the village of Mahahual (20minutes drive) to do some shopping and grabbed dinner. The shopping is only good if cruise ships are in port. The food was expensive and did not measure up to what we had become accustomed to at Maya Palms.
We took a day trip to Cenote Azul, and some newly discovered ruins, and watched the sunset at a 16th century fort on Lake Bacalar. This was a fun day only about 1 hour from Maya Palms.
We took another day trip to Chetumal Bay and Belize Freezone (2 hour drive). The Freezone is a Duty Free area in Belize at the Mexican boarder. The Freezone has 3 Las Vegas style casinos, and is home to one of the worlds largest flee markets. Containers arrive from all parts of the world and the goods are sold at wholesale prices. Liquor purchases are a bargain.
All in all, I recommend you treat yourself to this wonderful resort. It is truly out of this world. Places like Maya Palms are quickly disappearing and being absorbed by the giant operators. Enjoy this while it is in its infancy. They say this is the fastest growing area in Mexico.
I am escorting another group from our club in June. We have reserved the entire resort this time. I will report when I return.
Their website is www.mayapalms.com.
Reef invader
We flew into Cancun, rented 2 vans and made the 4 hour drive to Maya Palms. The highway is 4 lanes for 60% of the drive, and very good 2 lane for the rest. Our drive took us through Playa del Carmen, Talum, and Lemones.
Upon our arrival in Mahahual we journeyed south along a sand beach road which snaked along the Caribbean coast for 6 miles to Maya Palms Resort. I have to say, from what we saw in Mahahual and along the 6 mile ride to Maya Palms, we were astonished when we came upon Maya Palms Resort. This place was like coming upon an oasis in the desert. Basically, all you see in Mahahual and along the beach road are seedy buildings, beach shacks and jungle. You know you are approaching Maya Palms when you see a 10 foot stone wall lined with white trunked palm trees going for about a half mile, then you come to the entrance to the resort. It looks like a Mayan Palace that emerged from the jungle.
We where greeted by Doug and Catherine, Pedro, Ken, and resort pets, Nemo and Chepiro. We were treated to a refreshing welcome drink, as we completed our check in and were escorted to our beach front villas. There are 2 aspects of Maya Palms and 2 different worlds. One is when you arrive you are on the jungle side of the property. Then your world changes 180 when you arrive at your beach front villa..on the ocean side.
Maya Palms was like a world unto itself, unaffected by the outside world. The property is totally self contained, clean and well maintained. Maya Palms has a freshwater beachside swimming pool, a PADI Dive Center, a great restaurant and bar with a lookout on top. The beach is very private. (No people except MP guests). The gardens have lots of Orchids, Palms, Tropical Plants, and Birds.
They have 3 dive boats; we used the 49 Freezone. The dive center was well equipped and must have had over 100 tanks. They provide soft weights. There are large freshwater rinse tanks, and an impressive tank filling system.
Our stay was 10 days. We scheduled 2 dives daily for 7 days. Our boat left at 1000am and returned at 1130am we ate lunch and boarded for our second dive at around 130. This was our typical schedule everyday. Tanks were always filled to 3200psi, no short fills. Nitrox was available.
The diving is astonishing. It reminds me of Cozumel 20 years ago, but much larger reef. Very virgin, huge sponges, lots of turtles, and medium size fish. The diving is spur and groove. Spur and groove diving occurs when a mountain of coral (barrier reef) has deep narrow
(6'-15' width canyons) grooves, running from the base of the reef towards shore... Our dives usually began along the base of this coral mountain range at approximately 80-90 feet, headed north in a very light current. Along this deep route we saw giant sponges 6-7 ft tall, some hosting eels in their base, large barracuda, and a wide variety of marine life. Most astonishing is the condition on the reef. The reef is virgin, healthy and vibrant. After 10 minutes or so, our guide would take us through some of the most spectacular swim thru canyons (grooves) it was like diving a wall without having to go to great depths. Here we would occasionally see turtles, lobster, and rays. Our dives were usually 40-50 minutes. Upon surfacing the dive boat was always nearby to recover us. This was typical of the diving we did each day. Every dive site is on GPS and the Captain was very precise as to the exact point of entry. In front of Maya Palms there are over 20 dive sites, each is unique in its own way. The dive site areas extended from Maya Palms and went south. We insisted on a dive north of Maya Palms because that is where the other dive boats seemed to congregate, and thought we were missing something, Well, we did one dive about 3 miles north, and agreed we would dive from Maya Palms and south. Ken said the other boats do not like to make the journey from town to Maya Palms reefs.
The boat ride was never more that 15 minutes. Most of the time we arrived on site within 10 minutes.
The reef is so rich that it literally grows out of the sea. The dive boat must navigate through 30 foot cut in the reef to get to the Open Ocean and dive sites.
We typically had breakfast at 8am and were out on the reef by 10am. We returned to the resort after the dive at about 1130 ate lunch, and hung out in the hammocks. We would leave for our 2nd dive at 130. Again no long boat rides because the sites are so close to the resort.
We did 3 night dives, leaving around 530-6pm for a 5 minute ride to the base of the inner reef. There are several swim-throughs which allowed us to get to the other side of the reef. They will not take their boat into open ocean at night, because of the tight squeeze getting in and out of the natural bay formed by the barrier reef.
Maya Palms is gifted with an ideal location for a diving resort because it is encompassed with the protection of the barrier reef which forms a natural bay. The barrier reef is about 400 yards from the beach, with virgin diving on the other side.
The beach front villas are very nice renditions of Mayan buildings; they are made of stone and concrete and have 2 full size beds, bathroom, shower, air conditioning, and porch, with all glass looking out to the sea. There are 2 separate villas per building. All the water is reverse osmosis and safe to drink. (The only place in Mexico I could drink water from the tap). Electricity is (USA) 110 volts 60 cycle current. Stone walkways extend from the villas and through the gardens to the main Palapa (large grass hut), Pool, and Restaurant with a spectacular marble bar. We even had internet access throughout the resort.
I especially enjoyed catching the early evening sea breeze while laying in the poolside hammocks with a cold beer. Words cannot describe the peace and tranquility I had at Maya Palms.
The service at Maya Palms was unsurpassed. We were treated to the friendliest family of staff I have ever experience. Catherine and Doug Goergens, (owners), Ken (manager, dive instructor), Pedro (Head Chef, and Hospitality manager), Anna (assist chef) and the rest of their crew, were at our service 24-7. This large complex set in the jungle along the beach accommodates only 40 people max. You get the feeling you are on your own private island.
The food is fabulous breakfast: Mexican breakfast or eggs, bacon hot cakes, serial, fresh fruit. Lunch: Mexican platter, burgers, sandwiches, soup, salad. Dinner was the great surprise; we had everything from Mexican gourmet, steak, lobster, chicken, pork and shrimp served to us on platters. I gained weight on this trip!
We ventured into the village of Mahahual (20minutes drive) to do some shopping and grabbed dinner. The shopping is only good if cruise ships are in port. The food was expensive and did not measure up to what we had become accustomed to at Maya Palms.
We took a day trip to Cenote Azul, and some newly discovered ruins, and watched the sunset at a 16th century fort on Lake Bacalar. This was a fun day only about 1 hour from Maya Palms.
We took another day trip to Chetumal Bay and Belize Freezone (2 hour drive). The Freezone is a Duty Free area in Belize at the Mexican boarder. The Freezone has 3 Las Vegas style casinos, and is home to one of the worlds largest flee markets. Containers arrive from all parts of the world and the goods are sold at wholesale prices. Liquor purchases are a bargain.
All in all, I recommend you treat yourself to this wonderful resort. It is truly out of this world. Places like Maya Palms are quickly disappearing and being absorbed by the giant operators. Enjoy this while it is in its infancy. They say this is the fastest growing area in Mexico.
I am escorting another group from our club in June. We have reserved the entire resort this time. I will report when I return.
Their website is www.mayapalms.com.
Reef invader
