Cozumel in January

[mbryant27]

Travisc,
You can't go wrong with ScubaTony. He is like a boutique dive op. His operation is small and will tailor your dives to your experience and level. We dove with him two years ago and will dive with him this next summer. His wife can find you a condo if you need it.

 

[dartref]

I've used Papa Hogs twice in the past year and will be using them again in January.

 

[South4Scuba]

I agree with the Scuba Club Cozumel 1/2 off diver special. That is a good deal if they haven't sold out. However, you do pay pretty dearly for the all-inclusive food at SCC.

If you are not looking for an all-inclusive hotel then you might consider Hotel Cozumel. Don't eat there, just use their great pool, dock and dive operation.

I used to use BayAdventures or Carrodonna, etc. and then I found recently that I could save about $200 per person if I booked the hotel and airfare through Expedia.com and then go directly to the dive operator for diving. The hotels, dive operators and travel agents seem to feed off each other's pricing if you do a package deal.

We like the convenience of Dive Paradise which operates out of Hotel Cozumel. They are very friendly and have big slow boats. Maybe it's just me, but I don't like the bumpy wet ride of the go-fast boats. I like to socialize on the way to the dive sites, take a leak between dives and have a good area to gear up before the dive. Dive Paradise provides that for me.

Anywho, that's how I feel about booking a dive trip. I'm going to be in Coz from February 4-11, 2007 at Hotel Cozumel. Total cost for 8days/7nights is $1075 per person including hotel, airfare and diving from Houston.

South 4 Scuba

 

[dartref]

I have also stayed at Hotel Cozumel (New Year's last year) and it worked out just fine.

As for using big or small boats, I like them both!

Big boat - covered areas, take your time, more room, longer time between dives, as much as 30-45 minutes to some of the furthest sights. 2 dives done and back in about 4 hours, more leisure time on the boat.

Small boat - FAST!, may or may not have any shade but not worried about it on a fast boat, very little room to spread out, but minimal surface intervals and only 15-20 minutes to the furthest sights. 2 dives done and back in about 3 hours, more leisure time for the island.

 

[nyprrthd]

Blue XT~Sea is our choice for dive op in Cozumel. There is also a fairly new operation called Deep Exposure who does specifically cater to more advanced divers http://www.deepexposuredivecenter.com/. They have a very nice bigger boat (@36ft), which would be more comfortable if you venture to the more advanced sites. We went to Maricaibo with BXTS (in 4-5+ foot swells), so you can probably discuss your desires with Christi, and see if she can provide you with the level of challenge you desire. As for me, I just like to relax, and drift along with the current.

If you just want a conveniently located, extremely clean hotel (with a great complimentary full breakfast buffet), try the Casa Mexicana.

 

[OceanSailor]

When are you going and what's your budget? Is a beach and/or pool important? How many dives do you want to do per day? Answers to these questions will dictate where to stay and who to dive with.

Lodging in Cozumel ranges from condos/hotels north of town, hotels/houses/bed and breakfasts in town to the all-inclusives way south of town. Where you stay will depend on what you like to do after diving.

Keep away from the cattle boat operations and generally most of the diveops will be satisfactory. From personal experience, I can recommend BlueXTSea, Xtabay divers, Dive with Martin, and Living underwater.

www.cozumel.net is a good place to start looking.

Cap'n Ed

 

[Christi]

Big boat - covered areas, take your time, more room, longer time between dives, as much as 30-45 minutes to some of the furthest sights. 2 dives done and back in about 4 hours, more leisure time on the boat.

Small boat - FAST!, may or may not have any shade but not worried about it on a fast boat, very little room to spread out, but minimal surface intervals and only 15-20 minutes to the furthest sights. 2 dives done and back in about 3 hours, more leisure time for the island.

Hmmm...this is an interesting perspective. However, the reality is that SI times, procedures, etc. are dictated by the shop/crew...not by the type of boat you are on. We use small boats exclusively and our SI times are never cut short.

Regardless of what type of boat you are on, you should be given an appropriate surface interval. Our surface intervals are a minimum of one hour and usually closer to an hour and a half at one of the beaches (not out on the water in the boat). In addition to being better for the divers AND the divemasters who dive everyday, several times a day; this also allows more options for the second dive without being limited on depth or bottom time. Considering travel time, 50 to 60+ minute bottom times, 60 to 90 minute surface interval, and another 50 to 60+ minute second dive...we could never do a two-tank trip in 3 hours.

I used to use BayAdventures or Carrodonna, etc. and then I found recently that I could save about $200 per person if I booked the hotel and airfare through Expedia.com and then go directly to the dive operator for diving. The hotels, dive operators and travel agents seem to feed off each other's pricing if you do a package deal.

It should be no surprise that tour companies and travel booking agencies will cost you significantly more than booking on your own. They are in the business to make money just like everyone else. You are paying for their service, nothing more. Travel agents book you in places that pay them the highest commissions. It's an ancient concept, but one that NOT all hotels, dive ops, etc. play into.

 

[dartref]

Didn't mean to be vague and sound like SI's were cut short. All I meant was that the faster boats could go between further dive sites quicker. Obviously, there is a waiting period that in most cases in Cozumel, the SI will be longer than the travel time between sites. And it has been my experience that the smaller fast boats come and go to the sites in about 1/2 the time as the bigger slow boats, thus cutting your total time from start to finish by about an hour. Again, I don't have a preference, I like them both because either way, I'm going to spend that hour chilling and enjoying the moment!

 

[Doc Harry]

I just returned from my second trip to Cozumel with Scuba Club Cozumel two days ago. I highly recommend them.

There are many other dive operators there in Cozumel. However, while traveling to and from the dive sites I was happy to be in a larger boat with more protection from the wind, rain and waves. The other operators have zippy little boats but be prepared to get SOAKED & COLD on their boats unless the weather is sunny and calm. It rained everyday for 9 days while we were there and it got a bit nasty weather-wise. Sure was nice to hunker down and stay dry behind some protection on the boat ride.

 

[Landlocked Missourian]

There is no best op on Cozumel; there are lots of choices and lots of different types of experience. What's the best for me is not necessarily the best for you. Aldora is not the best op for me, either. YMMV.

I'm seriously considering going with Aldora for my upcoming trip 1-22 to 1-31, based on what they claim to deliver, but they are quite a bit higher than other operators. Would either of you (or anyone else) be so kind as to share your experiences, both good and bad? Thanks- need to decide something soooooooon.....

For me, it's about having the most bottom time, having a reasonably sized group of people on the boat, great dive masters (I'll probably be buddying up with one of them as I'm travelling solo this trip) and, who doesn't love to have someone lug their gear around for them? I know I do...