Playa del Carmen dive ops

[AmyJ]

Hey, you're getting lots of good advice.... We really liked Dennis with Daiblo divers... still working on our trip report! Hi Jerry!!!

But my question is this.... where did you find this deal flying out of cleveland. We are south of you, but could certainly drive up there for that price!! Thanks

 

[driftin' by]

Hi AmyJ. This is totally off the subject but it is worth mentioning since you asked. Plus I am so psyched with this deal. In May, 2001 when we first went to this resort we paid $1200 per person so we feel we really got an awesome deal but it really isn't anything special. We got it through Funjet. We were in the planning process for a week long trip to Key Largo for the week of Thanksgiving about in the middle of October. One day, my wife just happened to check out the current deals and prices at Funjet and the price of $699 for an Iberostar caught her eye. We called our T/A and reserved it immediately. We got it down to $599 per person because we had a $100 per person credit from a trip that went awry last November. The next day the price went up to $1350 pp and the following day it was sold out. If you don't already know, I'll share with you why I think this happens. Funjet and Apple are the nations two largest charter companies. They actually lease a number of rooms from select resorts throughout Mexico as well as other Caribbean destinations. When they feel or believe that they might not sell all the rooms for a particular week the price goes down then slowly rises as demand increases until everything is sold. With the invention of the internet and that fact that they (Funjet) update their website real-time to reflect changes, we were looking at just the right time. In the beginning, we'd see a good deal, think about it for a few days and all of a sudden the price would go up a couple hundred dollars. There are a couple of considerations with this strategy... it really only works a couple of months before your desired date. They know that people planning several months in advance are just going to pay "sticker price" for the sake of having it planned. Also, you need to be flexible about where you want to stay. If you're dead set on going somewhere else like Key Largo, or Bonaire or have a particular resort in mind, don't bother looking because you will end up in Mexico again like we did- but there is nothing with Mexico... We love it but our plans to go to Florida have been scrapped twice because of checking prices at Funjet. We'd also like to go to Scuba Club but we know they are not offered through Funjet or Apple so we will get stuck with paying "sticker price" I'm sure.

 

[AmyJ]

Thanks for the info... I will check it out. We are very flexible and easy going. We have Mayan Palace timeshare and with RCI can go most anywhere... but for that price we might try to squeeze some of those in... I think we paid almost $500 for last tickets and of course that didn't include our maintenance fee or food... soo..... anyway... thanks for the tip I will be watching it!! I hope you have a great time!

Also... just been looking at that site... any suggestions on best ways to find good deals, especially if you're flexible? We are close to Dayton, Indianapolis, Columbus and Cincinnati, but could certainly travel farther for a good deal. so any hints would be appreciated!

Cheers

 

[beachbum70635]

Hey, you're getting lots of good advice.... We really liked Dennis with Daiblo divers... still working on our trip report! Hi Jerry!!!

But my question is this.... where did you find this deal flying out of cleveland. We are south of you, but could certainly drive up there for that price!! Thanks

I have to agree with AmyJ on this one. If you prefer personal service and a great guide for this area, Dennis is hard to top. We didn't dive the cenotes with him , but I"m planning on going back for that as soon as possible. Scot

 

[Dragracer]

>We are only paying $599 per person for 7 nights all inclusive and round trip air from >Cleveland!

May I ask where you found this travel package?

 

[NDH]

We did discover scuba diving with Aqua Safari and Abyss last Nov. before we became certified. Aqua Safari did a wonderful job with our group, discover scuba students did the plane dive and paridise reef. The certified divers went on another boat to a deep dive and paridise reef. This trip took all day leaving at the ferry port at 8am and returning at dusk. The Abyss guys are great and friendly. Small outfit, small boats. Since we were discover scuba students at that time we did a reef right in front on Gran Porto Real hotel. Ok reef but nothing like Cozumel. The certified divers went in the morning and discover divers in the afternoon. Last year during our Nov. trip the Port Master keep closing the port in the afternoon due to current. Have fun. Next time we head down that way we want to dive closer to Tulm.

 

[driftin' by]

Thanks beachbum70635 & NDH for the advice and info!

AmyJ: All I can suggest is to keep checking departures from those cities you listed. We have had some luck checking nearby Pittsburgh and Detroit but have never booked anything departing anywhere but Cleveland. I guess we have been lucky. The best deals will be found in cities that offer chartered flights as opposed to scheduled air on a big name airline. I'm not sure what those cities offer but it is easy to find out by actually making a reservation at either Apple or Funjet's website.... you'll get the details of the flight.

Dragracer: We got it from Funjet... see above post.

 

[luis rivera]

Go with Playa Scuba Dive Center * Centro de Buceo * Tauchbase - Playa del Carmen, Mexico. Unlike many dive shops around these parts they take small groups, and the first one to run low on air and end the dive is you or a friend in your group. If they have different levels of divers then they usually pair them up with different DM´s or Instructors. If you want to dive Cozumel it is no problem, You can always go there for a couple of days, but honestly a full vacation in Coz gets pretty boring. They are located in down town playa del carmen, and have really good prices.

 

[PlayaCountryBoy]

You're more than welcome to come out on my boat. I never have more than a couple people on board,so it's basically private. And I let you dive all your air, no time constraints. Wanna see something in particular...no one knows the reefs here better me!

 

[Byte Me]

Sweet deal! We're going down in 2 weeks and paying more for 5 nights but still close. Talk about right place right time!!

I'm diving w/ Jason from Fantasea on recommendation from many here and on scubatoys.