Cozumel Dive shop for a small mixed level group

[eugene_k]

Greetings!

I am travelling to Cozumel at the end of this week and will have 3-4 days for diving. Bringing 2 people - one that just got OW and one with a referral to get OW. Myself - ~100 dives.
About 10 years ago I dove with Scuba Gamma which I liked a lot - a small dive shop that could accommodate wishes of a small group of people, French owners that were such a pleasure to chat and do business with.

Now being in a group of 3 people with varying levels I'd like to look around and see if we can mix with other divers without sacrificing experience.

I came up with what I am looking for from a dive shop and hope that I can get a good advise on this forum as digging on the Internet gets overwhelming. None of it is really a must-have.

- Size/Level: After a warm up, I am interested to try those advanced reefs this time around. So, I probably should want a medium-size shop that has other divers diving advanced reefs.
- Location: I stay at Casa Mexicana (in the central part of San Miguel closer to the cruise terminal). So, having either a dive shop location or a boat departure point within short walk is a plus.
- Dive Guide/Instructor: permanent is a plus but good temporary staff is OK too. I like it _very_much_ if I don't have to surface with 50+% of air left, so having either 2 guides with a bigger group or a guide who can send people up and continue the dive is a big plus.
- Equipment: No lowest end. Medium is OK. Dive computer is nice as I often use a shop's dive computer if available since my own is irritatingly conservative. Nitrox is somewhat of a plus, but, since I've been using it without certification, it would be good if the shop that does not get too anal about that.
- Boats: I hate big and slow boats. Fast boats are a plus but medium-fast are OK too. I like boats carrying one group of divers but OK with bigger ones too.
- Customer service: I tend to stay away from often-arrogant dive shops on prime locations but am OK if people are down to business especially if they offer reasonable price. I of course love nice owners that attract nice divers that I can become friends with.
- Price: I usually don't use shops that charge more than 20% above the lowest price point. I do tip.

Thanks in advance! If these look too ridiculous feel free to make fun of me

 

[Ron Lee]

What can I say here?

You do know that the referral person will be doing their cert dives for two days?

That person and the newly certified will not be doing Barracuda, Devil's Throat, Maracaibo deep, the Eagle Ray dive etc. If you want to dive with them then expect dive sites ok for newbie divers.

Aldora is almost next door as far as their office and pick up location but they are higher than the cheapest dive op on the island. Going cheap means you get less.

No nitrox cert...I would not give you nitrox tanks.

They, and others like Blue Xtsea diving, do a nice surface interval at a beach club. Put your feet in the sand. Eat if you wish. Relax then make the second dive.

While paying for a second dedicated divemaster would work on some sites, I suspect that it will not on others. Actually, you could do Devil's Throat and have the others stay higher along the upper parts of the reef.

 

[gopbroek]

I am heading down on Wednesday to dive with Tres Pelicanos, who you have basically described. They have a large fast boat and allow you to dive your tank. They have two of the premier DM's on the island, Servando and Jorge. Servando is a great instructor who can do a OW referal and get you your Nitrox cert.Without the EAN card I doubt any one will allow you to dive nitrox, get the card, last I heard they were running about $120 bucks for the course and card.

 

[MMM]

As Ron has said above, the very, very new divers in your group won't be taken to advanced sites so if you want to do those, it MAY happen toward the end of your trip, depending on how the other divers in your group perform. OTOH, if you want to go with an op with multi-boats, and get split from your friends, the, that would be an option.

I can't say that I know of any op in Cozumel that would give you nitrox tanks without seeing your cert card. I would imagine it's a liability issue. If they did, I would put them into the "sketchy dive op" camp.

It sounds like you want an in-town pick-up. That limits you to a handful of dive ops. The ones I know of that do so are Living Underwater, Aldora, Blue XTSea, Aqua Safari and Deep Blue. There may be one or two others, but those are the ones I have seen when I have been waiting on the pier for my in-town pick-up. I have heard that Tres Pelicanos does not pick up in town but will arrange for transportation to the harbour and there may be one or two others that do so. If in town pick up is critical, then here's a short list for you to begin corresponding with. I have to say it's a real drag for a single diver to take a cab to the caleta but if there are several of you, that amortizes the cost (about $10 each way) and opens up a lot of other possibilities.

I know that Living Underwater and Blue XTSea send divers up as they run out of air; I don't know the policies of the other two. Again, your travelling companions may well be the weak link so, as you have noted, you need to pick those that send divers up as they run out of air so that rules out Aldora which sends everyone up together. However, you note you've been diving at least 10 years but only have around 100 dives so with an average of 10 dives/year I wouldn't infer that you necessarily have advanced diving skills and/or great air use so maybe you wouldn't be that far off from the new divers in your group.

The very lowest price point is about $60 for a two tank dive (I don't think that anyone who picks up in town has this rate, nor will they let you dive your air). That means you are willing to pay, at most, $70 for a two tank dive. I don't think you will get anyone in that range that offers all the other things your are looking for. Most that pick up in town want around $80+ for a 2 tank dive.

Overall, I think you are going to have to adjust your expectations somewhat and figure out who comes closest overall to your wants (you aren't going to hit all of them!). Scuba Gamma is still around and located very close to your hotel. If you liked them before, why not stick with them?

 

[cvchief]

Without the EAN card I doubt any one will allow you to dive nitrox, .

Er.... It is Mexico, you know?

(I mean I am all for getting a card and all....)

 

[eugene_k]

Thanks for the input! It does help to adjust my expectations.

RE: Diving together with my friends.
Sorry, I was not clear - I actually do want to be able to go on different dives from my friends while working with same dive shop. I was thinking of an easy first day with a friend who just got OW and then I hoped to get to the more advanced sites if possible. I do realize that the friend who will be doing her OW referral class will need at least 3 days of relatively easy dives as she is a somewhat conservative learner.

RE: nitrox:
I scratch that from my list. I don't want to question the value of certification here. I was let to use nitrox without certification by a dive master that saw me diving and at the time I likely read all there was about nitrox. You probably gathered that I am a non-crazy warm see vacation type of diver so I rarely dive enough to really need nitrox.

RE: A guy who wants to go to advanced sites having 100 dives in 10 years.
I am afraid I made a bit of a fool of myself here. I don't pretend to be as advanced as many folks here. I of course would leave my eligibility for the advanced sites to dive masters after having an easy and relaxing first dive day. Though, I've been more than OK with my air consumption based on feedback from various very experienced folks.

RE: Price.
If my memory serves me well, I dove Cozumel reefs for as low as $60-65 for 2-tank dives including rental gear (before tips) on at least 3 one-off day trips from Playa (booked through Phantom Divers in Playa I recall). I was lucky to get surprisingly good random diving folks and great dive masters on those trips and enjoyed all my dives. I now want a bit more and can pay more but seeing that diving with well-reviewed dive shops will cost me $110+ with taxes, rentals (I just bring my mask and fins with me) and tips for a 2-tank leaves me with an impression that I am missing some nice and honest dive shops that would charge something in the middle. My recent trips where I had time to walk around and pick a dive shop (Thailand/Dahab/Philippines) I was able to find those middle-of-the-pack excellent dive shops. This time I need to schedule at least the OW class in advance so I am trying to pick a dive shop in advance too. I'll start from calling the suggested dive shops and see what offers I can get.

Thank you very much again!

 

[MMM]

OK, with that additional information, I think I would narrow my search down to shops that have more than one boat and you should ask them that when you correspond with them. I think it's safe to say that all of them are "honest".

But your price reference is 10 years ago! Prices have gone up for everything since then! I recall paying around $55 for a 2 tank dive at Blue Angel about 10 years ago; they are now about $75-80, not including equipment rentals. They have added a few frills since then, but not many. So you probably need to mentally tack on at least $25 to what you paid 10 years ago.

P.S. Another alternative for your friends to be on the same boat as you (but diving a different profile) would be for them to hire their own DM. They would probably need to pay an additional $50 or so, plus tips. Of course if they are getting instruction for check-out dives, that is a different ball of wax.

RE: Price.
If my memory serves me well, I dove Cozumel reefs for as low as $60-65 for 2-tank dives including rental gear (before tips) on at least 3 one-off day trips from Playa (booked through Phantom Divers in Playa I recall). I was lucky to get surprisingly good random diving folks and great dive masters on those trips and enjoyed all my dives. I now want a bit more and can pay more but seeing that diving with well-reviewed dive shops will cost me $110+ with taxes, rentals (I just bring my mask and fins with me) and tips for a 2-tank leaves me with an impression that I am missing some nice and honest dive shops that would charge something in the middle. My recent trips where I had time to walk around and pick a dive shop (Thailand/Dahab/Philippines) I was able to find those middle-of-the-pack excellent dive shops. This time I need to schedule at least the OW class in advance so I am trying to pick a dive shop in advance too. I'll start from calling the suggested dive shops and see what offers I can get.

 

[Mossman]

RE: nitrox:
I scratch that from my list. I don't want to question the value of certification here. I was let to use nitrox without certification by a dive master that saw me diving and at the time I likely read all there was about nitrox. You probably gathered that I am a non-crazy warm see vacation type of diver so I rarely dive enough to really need nitrox.

Your "need" for nitrox isn't based on how many dives you dive over how many years, it's based on the diving you do in any one dive trip. As long as you stay within the no-decompression limits of your computer, there's technically (i.e. statistically) no "need" for nitrox, though many anecdotally claim benefits from its use, most often feeling "better" or less tired after a day of diving. Cozumel reefs can be deep, however, and nitrox can extend your bottom time at those deeper recreational depths provided that you have sufficient gas to benefit from the longer times. There are online courses that may or may not require certification dives, but those dives are basically normal dives on nitrox so they won't impair your enjoyment in any way. The certification lasts a lifetime, so the sooner you get it, the sooner you'll get your money's worth.

RE: A guy who wants to go to advanced sites having 100 dives in 10 years.
I am afraid I made a bit of a fool of myself here. I don't pretend to be as advanced as many folks here. I of course would leave my eligibility for the advanced sites to dive masters after having an easy and relaxing first dive day. Though, I've been more than OK with my air consumption based on feedback from various very experienced folks.

I made quite a few trips to Cozumel without having tried any of the "advanced" sites. When I finally did (Devil's Throat, Maracaibo), I was rather underwhelmed. Devil's Throat is basically an extra-long swim-through. Maracaibo, just another pretty reef. Both are considered "advanced" mainly because of the depths involved (along with often stiff currents and the aforementioned extra-long swim through). Yet you can go deep on many of the less "advanced" sites as well. While I like going deep as much as anyone, the shallower reefs are just as good IMO and the benefit is that you get longer bottom time. Personally, I believe the "advanced" sites are over-rated and good for a "been there, done that" experience not necessarily worth repeating.

 

[mediumone]

I made quite a few trips to Cozumel without having tried any of the "advanced" sites. When I finally did (Devil's Throat, Maracaibo), I was rather underwhelmed. Devil's Throat is basically an extra-long swim-through. Maracaibo, just another pretty reef. Both are considered "advanced" mainly because of the depths involved (along with often stiff currents and the aforementioned extra-long swim through). Yet you can go deep on many of the less "advanced" sites as well. While I like going deep as much as anyone, the shallower reefs are just as good IMO and the benefit is that you get longer bottom time. Personally, I believe the "advanced" sites are over-rated and good for a "been there, done that" experience not necessarily worth repeating.

eugene_k, take this from another pacific northwesterner ------ Read Mossman's response above 2 or three times.

If you insist on the more advanced dives, your friends will have better dives than you will ---- or so 99 people out of 100 would maintain.

 

[nodakdive]

Deep Blue is right around the $75/2 tank trip. If you do a package, the price comes down. For 5 trips, I think the price comes down to about $65 per trip.

Deep Blue, and I suspect the same is true of the other dives shops in the MMM post, do 2 dives of the OW referral from shore, and then the last 2 dives from a boat. This is a plus in my opinion as some shops do all 4 from the shore.

Deep Blue sends divers up when they are low on air. It's not a group ascent.

Personally, I'd be using the dive computer I own, otherwise, why own it. You want to know your own computer. I have a Suunto Mosquito. Very conservative. Diving Nitrox makes a big difference in the NDL department with that computer, even if you're doing just 2 tanks a day. As others have mentioned, it'd be a good idea to get the Nitrox cert.

With any shop you choose, just be sure to tell them exactly what you're looking for, and most if not all will do their best to accommodate you.