bluebanded goby
Contributor
There are lots of great cenotes near Akumal. Dos Ojos is probably a good place to start, although there are any number of others. Make sure you're with a qualified guide/divemaster for any cavern diving, and don't try cave penetrations unless you're fully cave-qualified and really know what you're doing.
As was mentioned in another post, although the ocean water is like a warm bath tub, the water in the cenotes can get a tad chilly. I know one cave diver based there who routinely wears a full 7mm wetsuit, although if you're just doing a couple of dives a 3mm is probably fine.
If you want to avoid groups, Fred Devos based in Puerto Aventuras has been recommended to me as a personal dive guide -- he'll take you on a checkout dive in an open-air cenote and then a cavern-type dive in an enclosed one. He's reachable at fred@aquaexploration.com, or see his web site at http://www.aquaexploration.com (I haven't dived with him myself, have no financial interest, etc, etc).
As was mentioned in another post, although the ocean water is like a warm bath tub, the water in the cenotes can get a tad chilly. I know one cave diver based there who routinely wears a full 7mm wetsuit, although if you're just doing a couple of dives a 3mm is probably fine.
If you want to avoid groups, Fred Devos based in Puerto Aventuras has been recommended to me as a personal dive guide -- he'll take you on a checkout dive in an open-air cenote and then a cavern-type dive in an enclosed one. He's reachable at fred@aquaexploration.com, or see his web site at http://www.aquaexploration.com (I haven't dived with him myself, have no financial interest, etc, etc).
