Cozumel in late April/early May.

[scarke]

We are thinking of going to Cozumel next year instead of a live aboard….so we don't know where to start…my husband is a very experienced diver with over 130 dives..advanced open water, tech diver, nitrox, deep etc…our girls both in their 20s have open water… and less dives…I love to swim and snorkel (hence i even go on liveaboards as I love the sea)…so we need a really good 5 star hotel…..not AI as I hear its not worth it…..i hear the North shore is good ? I want the beach experience but also a really good pool area for those days when we are not diving….spa treatments would be good too.

are the dive schools based at any of the hotels or independently? are the dive sites hours away by boat? or close by?

Thanks

 

[DjDiverDan]

MOST of the dive sites are at the South end of the island, and all within several hundred yards of the shore. So, if you stay at one of the Southern AI resorts, the dive sites are usually within a few minutes boat ride from your Hotel Pier. The disadvantage is that Downtown, where almost all of the good restaurants are, is a long and expensive cab ride from the Southern resorts. From the North Hotel Zone, your choice of Dive Ops is going to be pretty limited, although Aldora has boats that leave from Aldora Villa, and Aldora is one of the best valet Dive Ops on Cozumel. There are some dive sites that are at the North End of the Island, including Baracuda and San Juan, both advanced dive sites where the current can be very fast (you need to be both an advanced diver and a strong swimmer in good shape to do these dives), and a few sites farther north that ONLY Aldora goes to. But even the Southern dive sites are only a 45 minute to 1-hour boat ride from the North End. As for "Dive Schools", pretty much all the Dive Ops (all of the good ones, at any rate, have instructors on staff that can do dive instruction. You do NOT need to use house dive ops; find one that you like, and book the dives separately from the Hotel.

As far as "5-Star Resorts", I'm not certain that there ARE any on Cozumel. As far as the high-end on Cozumel, that's probably limited to the Cozumel Palace, an AI just south of Downtown, no real beach; El Presidente, a non-AI not too far south of the International Pier, and immediately adjacent to the Caleta - the Marina from which most of the Dive Boats depart, and possibly Fiesta Americana after its recent complete reconstruction, another AI farther south than El Presidente, north of Chankanaab Park.

EDIT: I stand corrected. According to a few sources, Cozumel does have one 5-Star rated Resort - the Intercontinental Presidente - the one I referred to as El Presidente. I've never stayed there, because I never really had need for a 5-Star Resort, nor the desire to pay $250+ a night for a room. And I never dated a woman who was so high-maintenance as to demand a 5-Star experience. In fact, I have often been quite satisfied with a $25-35 a night room, as long as it had a bed, a bathroom, and working AC. But different strokes for different folks.

 

[Ron Lee]

I would also suggest looking at what Villa Aldora offers. Consider staying in one of their suites. It does not have a beach and may not meet your needs so do adequate research.

ALDORA DIVERS

 

[Dave Dillehay]

Owning a somewhat competitive accommodation (the Villa Aldora) I can highly recommend the Hotel Playa Azul. My wife and I occasional spend a night there to get away from the kids! Also, for those staying anyplace up north, and diving with Aldora we provide free, very nice bikes for the short ride to our dock at the Villa Aldora. And as DjDiverDan said, everything up there is a fairly short ride into town for some really good restaurants.


Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

 

[Ron Lee]

I need to clarify my "beach" comment about Villa Aldora. My definition of a beach is a sandy stretch where you can walk into the water. Many hotels on Cozumel (mostly near town) have ironshore at the waters edge. Place sand on that ironshore and you have a sandy area which I NEVER call a beach.

Playa Azul does have a small beach area as does the Presidente. Go further south and further north and you can have some OK beaches.

I have not stayed at Playa Azul but it does get favorable recommendations. It does have a nice pool.

Having stayed at Villa Aldora several times it is a small but wonderful place to stay.

 

[Dirty-Dog]

AI - depends who you ask. We love AI resorts, including on Cozumel.
The Cozumel Palace is our favorite 5-star resort on Cozumel. It's right downtown, if you decide to walk around and maybe eat somewhere else.
We always dive with Aldora Divers, but there is an in house dive shop as well.
The boat picks us up on the pier. The dive sites are minutes away. Aldora has fast boats, and I think pretty much any of the usual sites are 15 minutes or less from the Palace.
The Palace does not have a beach, as such. It does have a lovely pool, and a couple of sand areas, but you can't walk straight from the sand into the water. The water is down a few steps and onto a pier, since this section of the island is all iron shore. You can certainly snorkel at the Palace.
I've never personally utilized it, but Sue and Kim assure me that the Spa at the Palace is excellent.

 

[Ron Lee]

Realize that picking a place may mean giving up on one or more of your stated requirements. That is the reality of hotel selection on Cozumel.

 

[sharky60]

We are thinking of going to Cozumel next year instead of a live aboard….so we don't know where to start…my husband is a very experienced diver with over 130 dives..advanced open water, tech diver, nitrox, deep etc…our girls both in their 20s have open water… and less dives…I love to swim and snorkel (hence i even go on liveaboards as I love the sea)…so we need a really good 5 star hotel…..not AI as I hear its not worth it…..i hear the North shore is good ? I want the beach experience but also a really good pool area for those days when we are not diving….spa treatments would be good too.

are the dive schools based at any of the hotels or independently? are the dive sites hours away by boat? or close by?

Thanks

there is only one true 5 star property on Coz. The El Presidente, VERY nice property, good beach, nice pool area, I have only eaten there for dinner and it was exceptional. The room I saw was beautiful, and roomy.

The Northern hotel zone is not good for divers, as MOST dive ops will not pick up, up there, because the Marine Park and marina where the dive ops harbor are both south of town. Aldora is the exception, the Villa Aldora is located in the northern hotel zone. A very nice property, I would love to stay and dive there sometime, but more of a condo space than a resort. no restaurant, spa, small pool & pool area, small, but nice beach.

The El Presidente is actually right next to the marina wherethe dive ops harbor.

The dive sites are less than a mile off shore, strung outall along the coast of the island. Most dive ops will pick up at most hotelpiers from downtown south.

Some hotels have on-site dive ops with Instructors, not sureabout El Pres.

Most of the dive ops on the island employ instructors. Mostof the dive ops are independent businesses, some with contracts at hotels andsome are part of the hotel, such as Blue Angel Resort and Dive Op.

If I was asked, I’d recommend Matt (Mateo) Moran at BlueAngel as an instructor.

 

[scarke]

Thank you all for the great information…..didnt realize that there were not good beaches on Cozumel for instance...

Guess we may have to do a week on Cozumel and a few days at Cancun to get the beach feel….no point in going all the that way and not getting a beach !!!

Will do some more research..

thanks again.

there is only one true 5 star property on Coz. The El Presidente, VERY nice property, good beach, nice pool area, I have only eaten there for dinner and it was exceptional. The room I saw was beautiful, and roomy.

The Northern hotel zone is not good for divers, as MOST dive ops will not pick up, up there, because the Marine Park and marina where the dive ops harbor are both south of town. Aldora is the exception, the Villa Aldora is located in the northern hotel zone. A very nice property, I would love to stay and dive there sometime, but more of a condo space than a resort. no restaurant, spa, small pool & pool area, small, but nice beach.

The El Presidente is actually right next to the marina wherethe dive ops harbor.

The dive sites are less than a mile off shore, strung outall along the coast of the island. Most dive ops will pick up at most hotelpiers from downtown south.

Some hotels have on-site dive ops with Instructors, not sureabout El Pres.

Most of the dive ops on the island employ instructors. Mostof the dive ops are independent businesses, some with contracts at hotels andsome are part of the hotel, such as Blue Angel Resort and Dive Op.

If I was asked, I’d recommend Matt (Mateo) Moran at BlueAngel as an instructor.

 

[ggunn]

Thank you all for the great information…..didnt realize that there were not good beaches on Cozumel for instance...

Guess we may have to do a week on Cozumel and a few days at Cancun to get the beach feel….no point in going all the that way and not getting a beach !!!

Will do some more research..

thanks again.

Actually there are some nice beaches on Cozumel over on the east side. It's a small island.