Akumal, Need a little Help!

[AmyJ]

Hi there,

We have rented from Hertz, twice with no problems. Did the reservations etc. online while here, picked up at the Cancun airport. Never had any problems, and the driving down there is not bad at all.

 

[scubawife]

I just got back from my annual trip to Akumal. Love it! We go between Thanksgiving and Xmas, right before high season and the crowds. We usually have the boat to ourselves most of the week. We stay at Vista del Mar condos on Half Moon Bay and dive with Akumal Dive Adventures, also on HMB. HMB is a good, central location. The condo, hotel and dive shop are owned by the same people so they do a package where you get 10% off accommodations and 15% off on dives. We usually use Corp Dita for transfers and don't rent a car at all. We go to dive and 100% relax. It's a private car or van (depends on how many bags and people you have). No sharing or stopping at hotels, etc. We pay the driver to stops for about an hr in Playa del Carmen on the way down so we can grocery shop. We go for a week so we like the condo. It's much more relaxing having breakfast and lunch and a couple dinners in.

The diving is great! The reefs were better this year then ever. Very lush and tons of marine life. Lots of turtles, sting rays, some eagle rays, all kinds of angel fish and lots of the usual tropicals too. Single tank trips are at 9am, 11am and 2pm. They dive off a skiff that accommodates up to 8 divers and they return to shore between dives. The diving is easy drift diving, usually with a light to moderate current. We like to do the cenotes our last day since it's fresh water and an easy way to get the gear rinsed.

La Lunita on Half Moon Bay is still our favorite restaurant for dinner (romanitc, right on the beach, tables in the sand, lights on the palm trees and candles on the table). Que Onda by Yal ku was also nice if you like Italian (homemade pasta). Pescadaro in town is great for seafood, and Turtle Bakery Cafe has awesome breakfast (good dinner too, but it was a bit pricey). Lol Ha was a real disappointment this year. Happy Hour at La Buena Vida is always good, but dinner is hit or miss.

Check out locogringo.com for lots of accommodations and info. akumalinfo is Vista del Mar's site, and akumaldiveadventures.com.

 

[Diver Lori]

I just returned from Akumal yesterday. It was our 4th year in a row staying and cavediving with Villa DeRosa. The Bahia Principe is just a blip down the road from DeRosa's. You questioned transportation from the airport....doesn't the Bahia have a bus or transfer van? A taxi will set you back about $90 US for the 90 minute trip. If you take a passenger bus from the aiport you will have to get off in Playa Del Carmen and get the next connection. This can be a pain with luggage, gear etc.

Yes, a cenote dive is a MUST. First choice for the open water diver would be Dos Ojos, second choice would be Grand Cenote. Any of the dive ops can set you up with guide for either. Be mindful of which operation you choose as there were two separate cave diver deaths this past spring as a result of contaminated air obtained from a "highly visual" op in the area. There are NO air quality regulations in Mexico and you're on your own....inquire about whether the compressor is electric or gas.

Zero Gravity is an excellent choice as is Gonzalo Vaccaluzzo at Aquatech. The Zero Gravity link was given earlier in this thread and the link for Aquatech is www.cenotes.com.

 

[Ondeen]

Big Thanks.....

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

.......for all of the information.

It sounds like the transfer down to Akumal is the biggest challenge. I was hoping for something faster than the bus, but at the prices people are talking maybe that is the best way to go. I have been unsucessful renting a car twice in the past year in Mexico with reservations that I originated here. Has anyone been sucessful with one of the american companies? If so, which one.

kaz thank you for the links. I now see choices for lodging I hadn't seen yet.

If anyone thinks of anything else, let me know. I am planning on making the arrangements on 27th of Dec after my wife and I can agree on the best weekend for us. I will let you know what we end up doing.

Thanks Again,

Dave

If I had my choice of dive shops narrowed to one or two, I'd email both and ask them if there are less expensive options. It usually isn't difficult to find decent lodging in or near Akumal at reasonable prices. Now, rental of a car is another matter. It is a high dollar option. However, driving on the road between Cancun and Akumal is easy and having the car gives you lots of options.

 

[AmyJ]

I just returned from Akumal yesterday. It was our 4th year in a row staying and cavediving with Villa DeRosa. The Bahia Principe is just a blip down the road from DeRosa's. You questioned transportation from the airport....doesn't the Bahia have a bus or transfer van? A taxi will set you back about $90 US for the 90 minute trip. If you take a passenger bus from the aiport you will have to get off in Playa Del Carmen and get the next connection. This can be a pain with luggage, gear etc.

Yes, a cenote dive is a MUST. First choice for the open water diver would be Dos Ojos, second choice would be Grand Cenote. Any of the dive ops can set you up with guide for either. Be mindful of which operation you choose as there were two separate cave diver deaths this past spring as a result of contaminated air obtained from a "highly visual" op in the area. There are NO air quality regulations in Mexico and you're on your own....inquire about whether the compressor is electric or gas.

Zero Gravity is an excellent choice as is Gonzalo Vaccaluzzo at Aquatech. The Zero Gravity link was given earlier in this thread and the link for Aquatech is www.cenotes.com.

Can you please tell us which ops were involved with the contaminated air? I would really like to know BEFORE we book with someone!! Thanks

 

[SterlingDiver]

the trip reports and extra information is wonderful and I know it will give us better odds of having a sucessful trip.

We will checkout all of the suggestions made here I try to finalize our plans as indicated earlier by the 27th.

Dave

 

[SterlingDiver]

It looks like my last post was a victim of the deleted 2500. So I thought I would re post a big thankyou to everyone and let you know what we finally did.

We have reservations to stay 4 nights at Hotel Club Akumal Caribe in early Feb. It is smaller, moderate priced, looks to have a great beach, and is close to several restrurants. We will be diving with Akumal Dive Center 3 days 2 tank dives plus a night dive and a cenote dive.

The hotel said the transfer from the airport is cheaper just picking up a van at the airport ($35 vs as high as a $100) rather than reserving one. we have been to this area three other times so I think i am comfortable chancing this. Worst case scenerio will take the Collectivo.

Thanks again for all of your great suggestions. We will post a trip report when we get back in Feb.

Happy New Year,

Dave

 

[Ondeen]

It looks like my last post was a victim of the deleted 2500. So I thought I would re post a big thankyou to everyone and let you know what we finally did.

We have reservations to stay 4 nights at Hotel Club Akumal Caribe in early Feb. It is smaller, moderate priced, looks to have a great beach, and is close to several restrurants. We will be diving with Akumal Dive Center 3 days 2 tank dives plus a night dive and a cenote dive.

The hotel said the transfer from the airport is cheaper just picking up a van at the airport ($35 vs as high as a $100) rather than reserving one. we have been to this area three other times so I think i am comfortable chancing this. Worst case scenerio will take the Collectivo.

Thanks again for all of your great suggestions. We will post a trip report when we get back in Feb.

Happy New Year,

Dave

Do consider reserving a rental car in Cancun before you take off. The try to find something less expensive at the airport. Obviously, if you don't find a less expensive alternative, you at least have something on which to fall back.

 

[Diana5531]

Hi Dave,

Re: renting a car, I agree you may just want to do that, there is so much down there to go and see. You can also get in some great shore diving, up/down the various roads. Much less expensive. Also, the restaurant at the hotel you are staying at has really gone down in quality over the years. There are so many others (9 in Akumal proper), and lots more up/down the road. Even in the pueblo's there are several great ones that are 1/3 the price. I love Akumal, and own a condo there, but it's fun to get out of the town and explore. The rest.'s have gotten expensive there (US $$$ like), and I've learned that the money I save by exploring restaurants pays for the car.

If you decide to rent a car as a backup, check to see if they have a cancellation fee in case you change your mind. If you don't, you can always rent a a golf cart while in town to run around Half Moon Bay. PS: La Buena Vida has 1/2 price HH from 5-7pm.

Finally, next time you come, check out the vrbo web site. Several of us owners that rent list through them, and you can usu. either get great accom. w/ a lot more amenities.

Sorry for not responding to this earlier, but I just joined.