Costa Maya

[cruzbound]

Hi,

We will be visiting Costa Maya via cruise ship for a day and want to do some diving. Any suggestions on what dive operator we should use? I have been in contact with Amigos del Mar and Doctor Dive and they have both been very responsive. I have also spoke with Dreamtime but they have a contract with the cruise ship so we would have to book with the cruise line and they charge almost double the amount of a dive if I were to book it myself (I always knew they ripped their guests off but now I know by how much - crazy).

Thanks for the recommendations. We are okay with having to get a taxi to get to the operator as we will have to do this with both Amigos and Doctor Dive.

cruzbound

 

[Altamira]

Just curious as to what cruise line you are using, what is the ship's dive excursion price, and does the ship excursion price include equipment? I know transportation is included, but I think some dive ops will pick you up as well. I have used Dreamtime Divers on several occasions (several years ago), both as the ship's excursion and as an off-ship vendor, and do not remember the difference in price being anywhere near double, especially if gear rental is needed. Thanks for the update.

 

[Dogbowl]

I dived with Doctor Dive off a cruise ship in September 2016. I walked out of the cruise ship pier where all the shops are and got a cab. I Googled for instructions on how to do that, where the cabs were parked, etc. The cab fare at the time was very cheap, like USD$5 if I remember correctly? The ride to the shop was not that far either, and it is on the beach, facing the beach. Real nice. The boat was "docked" on the beach so you wade into water, then climb onto the boat. They're fine and I would use them again. I had to cancel my next days' dive in Cozumel due to illness and they offered to call for me. That was nice.

 

[ReadyTo Dive]

Gypsea Divers. Just returned from a week of diving there (3rd trip there and even had a pod of dolphins on one dive this time) and already miss it. Catherine and Abel run a small but excellent shop with a new small 6 person max panga. It’s normal to take a while to hear back from them. Tell the taxi to take you to the “hotel national” and they will know where to go (G.D. is located next to it). Taxi should be $10 or something small like that. Los Escolones and Punta Tam are both great dive sites but really all are good. Have fun!

 

[lthomas132]

Hi,

We will be visiting Costa Maya via cruise ship for a day and want to do some diving. Any suggestions on what dive operator we should use? I have been in contact with Amigos del Mar and Doctor Dive and they have both been very responsive. I have also spoke with Dreamtime but they have a contract with the cruise ship so we would have to book with the cruise line and they charge almost double the amount of a dive if I were to book it myself (I always knew they ripped their guests off but now I know by how much - crazy).

Thanks for the recommendations. We are okay with having to get a taxi to get to the operator as we will have to do this with both Amigos and Doctor Dive.

cruzbound

Not sure where the love boat vans drop you off but you may have to take a taxi to National Beach Club (Nacional Beach Club). It's an eccentric little place with rooms & beach bungalows. It's owned & operated by an American ex-pat, Evan. Great guy & a great place to hang for the day. Nice beach area with a great restaurant/bar. I stayed there 10 days after Tropical Storm Harvey blew me out of Xcalak. I did all my diving there with Amigos del Mar (Amigos del Mar Mahahual | Mahahual Diving). Heiko, the owner, is a German ex-pat who speaks fluent English, Spanish and of course German. He has the best dive boat in the area by far with a great bimini and dual engines, see pics. We did 2 trips to Banco Chinchorro while I was there, love diving there. Gypsy's is a small shop attached to the Beach Club, nice folks but a small panga with no bimini while I was there. I had one of the bungalows on the Malecon (beach foot path) and watched the boats coming & going.

 

[cruzbound]

Thanks for all the help. It seems I can't go wrong with the two I have already checked into and also Gypsea Divers. I will have to reach out to them to get a little more info as if they do not have shade on their panga, that is definitely out because the hubby needs shade.

Altamira - we are going on Royal Caribbean and the price for their dive excursion is $169 per person, this does include all equipment and shuttle service. However, we will be bringing our equipment and will only need tanks and weights - so Dreamtime's prices are $85 per person (they will provide the tanks and weights) and then whatever a taxi will cost but it seems like the average for a taxi is $8 one way, so that makes the dive $89 per person which is $80 less per person than the ship cost. There is not a dive option with no equipment through the ship. Plus, I am afraid of how many divers will be on the excursion if we sign up through the ship - I would rather find a private operator on my own and hopefully they take less divers.

 

[horn34]

You can also take a taxi to Xcalak and dive with XTC. It might be nice to get away from the crowds for a day.

 

[Altamira]

Thanks for your reply. I agree, paying the ship's excursion rate, which includes equipment, makes no sense when you are bringing your own gear. When I dove with them several years ago, the cost differential was no where near that much, and they offered with/without equipment cost options. You will enjoy diving in Costa Maya.