AquaSafari

[ggunn]

Yes dive ops advertise unlimited shore diving and now it is being said that this diving is dangerous in Cozumel. I have been there many times and have not noticed this. What has changed? I also have used Aqua safari in the past and am now very troubled by there employees actions.

About Aqua Safari, don't rush to judgement when you've only heard one side of the story.

Nothing has changed WRT shore diving in Cozumel; it's no more (or less) dangerous than it's been in the past. Don't come up in boat traffic areas and don't dive without a guide in the Marine Park.

 

[old gaffer]

I will be staying at the Occidental Grand this coming spring and the only reason I would do a shore dive would be to do a weight check prior to going out with the dive operator. I do most of my diving in Minnesota with a 7mm wetsuit, boots, hood and gloves and lots of lead so the only time I dive with a 3mm shorty is on vacation. Though when I dove with Scuba with Alison last November her dive master Chucho was spot on when he weighted me for my dive there.

I am interested in snorkeling around the Occidental docks at night to see critters so I am wondering if that is allowed, I would assume it is far enough away from the reef and outside the marine park boundary?

Gaffer

 

[Mawg]

I am interested in snorkeling around the Occidental docks at night to see critters so I am wondering if that is allowed, I would assume it is far enough away from the reef and outside the marine park boundary?

Gaffer

I have stayed at the Occidental Grand, Fiesta Americana and Presidente. ALL three have areas for you to swim,dive and snorkel that are clearly marked by buoy lines. As long as you stay inside of the buoys, you should be safe from all boat traffic including those idiots on the wave runners. I hate those things.

 

[redacted]

I will be staying at the Occidental Grand this coming spring and the only reason I would do a shore dive would be to do a weight check prior to going out with the dive operator. I do most of my diving in Minnesota with a 7mm wetsuit, boots, hood and gloves and lots of lead so the only time I dive with a 3mm shorty is on vacation. Though when I dove with Scuba with Alison last November her dive master Chucho was spot on when he weighted me for my dive there.

I am interested in snorkeling around the Occidental docks at night to see critters so I am wondering if that is allowed, I would assume it is far enough away from the reef and outside the marine park boundary?

Gaffer

You can snorkel or scuba within the Grand's rather large roped off area. Maximum depth is about 15 ft. It is not a reef. but you will see a lot more than you find in your local lakes. The peir is not in their roped off area and you do want to stay away from it when they are running boat (every day and M-W-F nights). But a night snorkel when it is not active is worth it.

Enjoy

 

[DandyDon]

Yes dive ops advertise unlimited shore diving and now it is being said that this diving is dangerous in Cozumel. I have been there many times and have not noticed this. What has changed? I also have used Aqua safari in the past and am now very troubled by there employees actions.

You're kidding - over one dispute between locals posted on several networks. I'm not. I suppose they had their meeting a couple of hours ago; what are the odds in seeing a resolution posted today. Wow, this has been a circus.

But then, I've been in the position of the upset diver after a confrontation in the water with another dive operator - except I did call the owners of the dive op to tell them what I thot first, then got a hot call back from the other owner - before I posted my complaint on SB.

What I should have done was check to see how popular the dive op was on SB before posting my bad experience, tho - as I was just posted down. Being right on a discussion board is never as important as being popular. And the dive op got to me again in the long run.

I'm trying to imagine a possible resolution coming from the locals in dispute here, but I don't see it happening today.

 

[ReefHound]

What I should have done was check to see how popular the dive op was on SB before posting my bad experience, tho - as I was just posted down. Being right on a discussion board is never as important as being popular. And the dive op got to me again in the long run.

Unfortunately, I have to agree with you here.

 

[deeper thoughts]

You're kidding - over one dispute between locals posted on several networks. I'm not. I suppose they had their meeting a couple of hours ago; what are the odds in seeing a resolution posted today. Wow, this has been a circus.

But then, I've been in the position of the upset diver after a confrontation in the water with another dive operator - except I did call the owners of the dive op to tell them what I thot first, then got a hot call back from the other owner - before I posted my complaint on SB.

What I should have done was check to see how popular the dive op was on SB before posting my bad experience, tho - as I was just posted down. Being right on a discussion board is never as important as being popular. And the dive op got to me again in the long run.

I'm trying to imagine a possible resolution coming from the locals in dispute here, but I don't see it happening today.

I guess you have a point but lets hope that Aqua Safari takes the invitation to tell there side(scubaboard forum)

 

[DandyDon]

I guess you have a point but lets hope that Aqua Safari takes the invitation to tell there side(scubaboard forum)

Oh the owner did better than that, did you mis it? He posted here that he wanted to meet with the thread author ASAP (all the parties live there), gave his schedule and phone numbers - to determine any possible truths and a resolution.

 

[tlmainer]

As Op posted earlier, they were suppose to meet this a.m.

 

[teknitroxdiver]

Resolution of events with AquaSafari


I had the pleasure of meeting with Bill Horn, owner of AquaSafari, as well as the Ocean Two's captain, and the instructor I exchanged words with in the water.

Mr. Horn seemed very stressed about this event. We had a discussion of the events that day to make sure we all had the story straight. Mr. Horn assured me that this event was in no way intentional (which I didn't think it was anyway), and also told me of steps he is taking immediately to insure that in the future the captain's full attention is toward operating his vessel.

The instructor was apologetic for the words we had exchanged that day. He told me the divers with him were 3 resort course customers, and he was concerned with keeping an eye on them, not on dealing with me at the moment. That is understandable, I suppose. While it definitely wasn't the best way to approach the situation, in the heat of the moment logic doesn't always come into play. Even my posting this on message boards may not have been 100% ideal.

So, in the end, it has all worked out. AquaSafari is not irresponsible, nor are they unsafe. Whatever events led up to my close encounter with their boat were most definitely unsafe, but I feel confident that Mr. Horn has taken steps to resolve those issues.

Would I be one of their customers? I think I would. 2 days ago I wouldn't have set foot near his boats. Now I feel otherwise. So, if you're planning a trip to dive with AquaSafari, don't cancel your reservation because of this. Take it into consideration and make an informed decision, of course, but the thread title is certainly not an accurate representation of either company, or the vast majority of it's employees.

Our conversation also brought back to my mind another thing about our dive that day: His boat was the THIRD to come near our flag....one ran straight past it, another drifted past it, then his boat pulled up near it and stopped. So it's not just AquaSafari that was too close to the flag, he's just the only one that resulted in further interaction and conflict. But, it's all good now.