sharky60
Contributor
Ok, here's the short version...
Living in Texas, one of the top things to love about Cozumel is the short plane ride to paradise... 2 1/2 hours and it's "island time". (sorry East and West coasters)
Beyond that, the people are one big reason we keep coming back, everyone works very hard to make sure you have a good time and always welcoming you back with a big warm smile, like you are part of the family. That hasn't always been my experience in "tourist towns".
The food, the food, the food! Coming from one of the top restaurant towns in the U.S., good eats is a top priority when it comes to vacationing, every year there is something new to try as well as long-time favorites that are on everyone's "must-do" lists.
The history, from the Maya, to Columbus to pirates of the Caribbean, this island has been a trading post, haven from would be captures, a cultural and ceremonial center and now meca for scuba divers and cruise ships.
And the place is just beautiful! I LOVE being on an island, can't explain it, and don't even try. Cozumel is no different, palm trees swaying the tropical breeze helping to knock down the humidity, every color of blue you can imagine is represented from the edge of the beach out to sea, flowers and other plants you find back home at garden centers and as house plants growing wild along the roadside, the bright primary colors painted against white stucco...I'm geting home sick!!!
Oh yes, need I metion World Class Diving!?!
The consistantly clear visability, even when it's "bad" it's better than a lot of places. Great wall dives! the canyons, pennacles, swim-thrus, garden dives and shallow mid-reefs, along with the variety of fish, coral, sponges and other critters, all accessible by achieving boyancy and simply "floating by" in a drift dive should make Coz on every diver's "dive before I die" list.
Not to mention the services provided by the dive ops on Coz, that I think most of us take for granted...
1.) many places around the world you dive won't set up your equipment and weights for you, not a huge deal, some people even prefer setting up thier own gear, but it's a nice service when you have a full "6-pack" boat and not a lot of room to move about.
2.) some places don't put a DM in the water as a guide, rather they just have one on the boat as a "safety diver".
3.) In many places you have to go to the dive op to take out in the morning if they are not on site at your hotel, almost all Coz dive ops pick up at resorts and hotels that have a pier, northern hotel zone excluded, mostly.
And that's just at the "no-frills" dive ops! You can spend a little extra and get pampered on Coz for still just over 1/2 what you would pay for a 2-tank dive other places.
...maybe I should apply for a job at the Cozumel Chamber of Commerce!!!
Living in Texas, one of the top things to love about Cozumel is the short plane ride to paradise... 2 1/2 hours and it's "island time". (sorry East and West coasters)
Beyond that, the people are one big reason we keep coming back, everyone works very hard to make sure you have a good time and always welcoming you back with a big warm smile, like you are part of the family. That hasn't always been my experience in "tourist towns".
The food, the food, the food! Coming from one of the top restaurant towns in the U.S., good eats is a top priority when it comes to vacationing, every year there is something new to try as well as long-time favorites that are on everyone's "must-do" lists.
The history, from the Maya, to Columbus to pirates of the Caribbean, this island has been a trading post, haven from would be captures, a cultural and ceremonial center and now meca for scuba divers and cruise ships.
And the place is just beautiful! I LOVE being on an island, can't explain it, and don't even try. Cozumel is no different, palm trees swaying the tropical breeze helping to knock down the humidity, every color of blue you can imagine is represented from the edge of the beach out to sea, flowers and other plants you find back home at garden centers and as house plants growing wild along the roadside, the bright primary colors painted against white stucco...I'm geting home sick!!!
Oh yes, need I metion World Class Diving!?!
The consistantly clear visability, even when it's "bad" it's better than a lot of places. Great wall dives! the canyons, pennacles, swim-thrus, garden dives and shallow mid-reefs, along with the variety of fish, coral, sponges and other critters, all accessible by achieving boyancy and simply "floating by" in a drift dive should make Coz on every diver's "dive before I die" list.
Not to mention the services provided by the dive ops on Coz, that I think most of us take for granted...
1.) many places around the world you dive won't set up your equipment and weights for you, not a huge deal, some people even prefer setting up thier own gear, but it's a nice service when you have a full "6-pack" boat and not a lot of room to move about.
2.) some places don't put a DM in the water as a guide, rather they just have one on the boat as a "safety diver".
3.) In many places you have to go to the dive op to take out in the morning if they are not on site at your hotel, almost all Coz dive ops pick up at resorts and hotels that have a pier, northern hotel zone excluded, mostly.
And that's just at the "no-frills" dive ops! You can spend a little extra and get pampered on Coz for still just over 1/2 what you would pay for a 2-tank dive other places.
...maybe I should apply for a job at the Cozumel Chamber of Commerce!!!
