Blue Angel dive op?

[ggunn]

Understand your dilemma, been there with group trips to Coz. BA is the most logical choice and ‘should’ be a no brainer. As long as expectations are communicated it probably is the right choice. It frustrates me that such a potentially awesome resort is so mediocre.

I have been staying at BA at least once a year since 1987, through 5 owners/resort names. It isn't a mint-on-the-pillow luxury resort and it never has been. It has always been a bit rustic, but that does not bother me.

As for the turnover of personnel in the dive shop, the dive community on Cozumel is very fluid, pun intended, and DMs switch affiliation all the time, though some of the BA employees have been there for many years.

 

[brsnow]

I stayed and dove with them once. We are experienced as well. First time in all my trips to Coz we did 60 foot max depth dives. They were nice but not the dive experience we are accustomed when down there. Service at the restaurant is great.

 

[mike_bayer]

I have been diving for 20+ years, and I have been staying at Blue Angel and diving with them ever since they moved into that space. I like them a lot. They offer a choice between early departing fast boats and the later departing, not-so-fast No Problem. The DM's are great and the boats all have the usual safety gear. Their practice is to send buddy pairs up to the DM's buoy as they get low on air but otherwise let you dive your tank and computer. Dive sites are determined by diver consensus with advice from the DM. Is there anything else I can tell you about them?

Do they still have live music? Wow big price jump since I was there in 2014. I do remember needing silicone earplugs but i am a light sleeper.

 

[ggunn]

I stayed and dove with them once. We are experienced as well. First time in all my trips to Coz we did 60 foot max depth dives. They were nice but not the dive experience we are accustomed when down there. Service at the restaurant is great.

Second dives are always shallower but I have never had a first dive with BA to be restricted to 60 feet.

 

[ggunn]

Do they still have live music?

The last time I was there (May 2023), yes. Personally, I could do with a bit less of it, but it's a matter of taste, I guess.

 

[brsnow]

Second dives are always shallower but I have never had a first dive with BA to be restricted to 60 feet.

Did it twice with us, so we didn’t dive with again. I would stay there just use a different dive op.

 

[ggunn]

Did it twice with us, so we didn’t dive with again. I would stay there just use a different dive op.

Suit yourself, but IMO diving deep is not all there is to a dive. Diving with BA the dive sites are decided upon by consensus of the divers aboard with advice from the DM, so either the majority of the divers aboard with you wanted to dive shallower or conditions dictated it. Either way, it wasn't the op unless you wanted to go to an advanced site and someone aboard wasn't qualified to dive it.

 

[brsnow]

Suit yourself, but IMO diving deep is not all there is to a dive. Diving with BA the dive sites are decided upon by consensus of the divers aboard with advice from the DM, so either the majority of the divers aboard with you wanted to dive shallower or conditions dictated it. Either way, it wasn't the op unless you wanted to go to an advanced site and someone aboard wasn't qualified to dive it.

All good, I have dove in Cozumel for a long time, my dive buddy longer. We hit closer sites that historically were always 2nd dives or shallow night dives. Just not my preference. I enjoyed the stay, just will stick with ops I am familiar with moving forward.

 

[GameChanger]

If my non-diver wife is NOT going with me, I always stay and dive with BA. My non-diver wife wants the white sandy beach stuff, so when she does decide to join me, we always stay in our favorite condo at Residence Reef and use either Jeremy with Living Underwater (if he has room) or 2nd choice, Aldora.

ggunn recommended BA to me a few years back, and I have been sold ever since. The rooms are just fine for me, and the restaurant has excellent food at reasonable prices, with outstanding service. The room locations are so darned convenient too! I get up in the morning, take a short walk to the restaurant, have their complimentary breakfast, and watch for the boat to pull up at the BA dock. They load the tanks and gear, so I have plenty of time for that last cup of coffee before I leisurely stroll to the boat. My gear is already set up for me (valet is a choice), so I only need to get on the boat and go diving. The boats are fast, and we quickly get to the dive sites. They will take you to the northern sites if there is enough demand. Devils' Throat and Barracuda as well if the DM's deem you qualified. They also include Nitrox at no additional charge.

 

[Matt B]

Wife and I have about 20 trips to the BA over the years. I have never seen a boat restricted to 60'. While they always ask for site preference, I have heard guest's speak up and actually many prefer shallower dives. We like a mix of both. The DM's are very experienced and the same core 3 are still there after 10 years. Mateo, Andy and Julio. One of the captains, Chango, has been there over 20 years. Is the place fancy? Nope, Can it be noisy sometimes? Yep. Mostly road noise. Is the food good? Yep, and plentiful. Location is awesome as well. One of the best area's for shore dives and teaching. And arguably some of the best live music on the island. Every time we go we are met with hugs and smiles from all of the staff. I would say that most of their guests are repeat customers as well. Just depends what you are looking for, We will be back in March, our 21st visit.