Best Dives for Beginners Going to Cozumel

[nldunn]

The Dive OP we use is We b Divin' Cozumel. If you go with them, tell the DM Yassar that you are nervous and want to find sites that will build confidence and he will take to those. He always drops in the water first to test the current. He will avoid a site where the current is just a bit too fast for those that aren't comfortable. He fully understands that there are divers that want to gain experience and taking them to a dive site that scares the living hell out of them isn't the way to do it. He held my wife's hand for her first three ocean dives several years ago because he was told by us and our friends that she was scared and needed get that experience. That was in 2019. She is a damn good diver now with a Master Scuba Diver cert and over 320 dives. She absolutely loves it!

Here is their website: We B Divin Cozumel

Write them and let them know what you are looking to do. They will accommodate you.

Thanks!! I def need to continue to build on the confidence I started to gain this trip and you are right - if I get scared to death on a dive, I likely won't dive again.

 

[divingjd]

To identify the best sites for you, it would be helpful to know what makes you uncomfortable. For some, it’s the current, which you mentioned in your original post. For others, it is depth. You also mentioned being at 60 feet. For others, it might be swim-throughs, or being out on the wall, where there is no bottom in sight. I haven’t taught in a number of years, but my experience as an instructor tells me that the best sites for new divers are relatively shallow, with little current, a hard bottom, and no swim-throughs. It’s actually not easy to find sites that meet all of those criteria in Cozumel, where the sites tend to be at least a little deeper and there is generally current. I think one of the best for newer divers would be Chankanaab. It’s maybe 30-40 feet, hard bottom, and the current is generally mild. Maybe the best for new divers would be Columbia Shallows, 30 feet or less, hard bottom, and no current or mild current. But It’s very far south and dive operations are often reluctant to go there. It takes a lot of time, making it hard to stay on schedule for afternoon dives and it burns a lot of gas. I’ve seen lots of snorkelers there, which is an indication of its appeal for those who aren’t ready for deep dives on the wall in heavy current. Yucab is usually good for new divers, but sometimes the current gets stirred up. I have seen downcurrents and what amounted to a whirlpool there. It’s rare, but you never know. Dalila and Francesca have hard bottoms and the current is usually mild, but they are more like 50 feet or so. Two of my favorite dives - lots of critters. There are actually several Palancar sites. Palancar Gardens is good for new divers, relatively shallow and the current is usually mild. You can get out on the wall, but you don’t have to. Palancar Caves is mostly swim-through and out on the wall, so not good for new divers. Most of Palancar Bricks would work, as long as you don’t get out over the wall. Paradise is a good reef for new divers, relatively shallow with a hard bottom, but there can be some current.

I would suggest trying Aldora Divers. They are really known for catering to advanced divers, but they have seven boats, so they can group divers by experience levels. This can make it easier to get to the sites you should find comfortable. They have some dive guides who are particularly good with new divers. I’ve been on Aldora boats with newer divers when I wanted to do an afternoon or night dive and there was only one boat going out. I have been impressed with how well they work with new divers. Their rates are higher than most other shops, but I think you get good value for the money.

Good luck, breathe slowly and deeply, and enjoy!

 

[NothingClever]

If you want to increase the frequency of your diving in order to develop proficiency, I wouldn't overlook the accessibility of Florida.

There's a prolific global diver on the forum (screen name escapes me at the moment) and he's remarked on multiple occasions how great Florida diving is compared to all the locations he's dived around the world. I met another prolific global diver a few weeks back on a charter out of Palm Beach and he independently said the same thing.

Not trying to discourage you from going to Mexico - not at all. Just saying that you may be able to become the better diver you aspire to be through shorter but more frequent trips made possible by less logistics and guessing.

Anyways, just something to consider.

 

[nldunn]

To identify the best sites for you, it would be helpful to know what makes you uncomfortable. For some, it’s the current, which you mentioned in your original post. For others, it is depth. You also mentioned being at 60 feet. For others, it might be swim-throughs, or being out on the wall, where there is no bottom in sight. I haven’t taught in a number of years, but my experience as an instructor tells me that the best sites for new divers are relatively shallow, with little current, a hard bottom, and no swim-throughs. It’s actually not easy to find sites that meet all of those criteria in Cozumel, where the sites tend to be at least a little deeper and there is generally current. I think one of the best for newer divers would be Chankanaab. It’s maybe 30-40 feet, hard bottom, and the current is generally mild. Maybe the best for new divers would be Columbia Shallows, 30 feet or less, hard bottom, and no current or mild current. But It’s very far south and dive operations are often reluctant to go there. It takes a lot of time, making it hard to stay on schedule for afternoon dives and it burns a lot of gas. I’ve seen lots of snorkelers there, which is an indication of its appeal for those who aren’t ready for deep dives on the wall in heavy current. Yucab is usually good for new divers, but sometimes the current gets stirred up. I have seen downcurrents and what amounted to a whirlpool there. It’s rare, but you never know. Dalila and Francesca have hard bottoms and the current is usually mild, but they are more like 50 feet or so. Two of my favorite dives - lots of critters. There are actually several Palancar sites. Palancar Gardens is good for new divers, relatively shallow and the current is usually mild. You can get out on the wall, but you don’t have to. Palancar Caves is mostly swim-through and out on the wall, so not good for new divers. Most of Palancar Bricks would work, as long as you don’t get out over the wall. Paradise is a good reef for new divers, relatively shallow with a hard bottom, but there can be some current.

I would suggest trying Aldora Divers. They are really known for catering to advanced divers, but they have seven boats, so they can group divers by experience levels. This can make it easier to get to the sites you should find comfortable. They have some dive guides who are particularly good with new divers. I’ve been on Aldora boats with newer divers when I wanted to do an afternoon or night dive and there was only one boat going out. I have been impressed with how well they work with new divers. Their rates are higher than most other shops, but I think you get good value for the money.

Good luck, breathe slowly and deeply, and enjoy!

Thank you for all that information. I did a dive the other day too 56 and it was fine - much better than my 60 foot dive after not diving for 35 years. So 50 to 60 feet is fine. I absolutely want a hard bottom since we both still struggle with our buoyancy - and I read horror stories here of currents ripping over the wall and sucking people down hundreds of feet. If we are picked up at the end of the "drift" by the boat, I'm OK with drift diving. So being asked to be specific, my big fear is going down deep where I can't get myself back up.
The suggestions were great! I'm writing them all down and I'll look into Aldora Divers! Thank you so much!

 

[nldunn]

If you want to increase the frequency of your diving in order to develop proficiency, I wouldn't overlook the accessibility of Florida.

There's a prolific global diver on the forum (screen name escapes me at the moment) and he's remarked on multiple occasions how great Florida diving is compared to all the locations he's dived around the world. I met another prolific global diver a few weeks back on a charter out of Palm Beach and he independently said the same thing.

Not trying to discourage you from going to Mexico - not at all. Just saying that you may be able to become the better diver you aspire to be through shorter but more frequent trips made possible by less logistics and guessing.

Anyways, just something to consider.

Hi,
Thanks for the suggestion! I can get to FL for a long weekend so that makes a lot of sense. I'll start reading the FL forums, too!

 

[ggunn]

... I read horror stories here of currents ripping over the wall and sucking people down hundreds of feet..

Such occurrences can only happen on wall dives, and even then they are very rare around Cozumel. Cozumel has wall dives but most dives have a visible bottom. There are plenty of sites where the max depth is 50-60 fsw.

 

[nldunn]

Such occurrences can only happen on wall dives, and even then they are very rare around Cozumel. Cozumel has wall dives but most dives have a visible bottom. There are plenty of sites where the max depth is 50-60 fsw.

Thank you!!! That is good news!