Cozumel or Roatan for a recently certified diver.

[DirtyDeeds]

I was recently certified and am looking to go diving on a vacation. I am looking for good diving and a pretty active nighlife. I was looking at Cozumel after reading reviews but I been also reading that it is drift diving and wonder if this is a good place for someone recenty certified to go. I was also looking at Roatan but the nightlife does not look up to snuff. If anyone has any other suggestion on where to go it would be appreciated.

Thanks,
DirtyDeeds

 

[drdiver1952]

I was recently certified and am looking to go diving on a vacation. I am looking for good diving and a pretty active nighlife. I was looking at Cozumel after reading reviews but I been also reading that it is drift diving and wonder if this is a good place for someone recenty certified to go. I was also looking at Roatan but the nightlife does not look up to snuff. If anyone has any other suggestion on where to go it would be appreciated.

Cozumel is mostly drift diving which is an experience in itself. I went on my first trip to Coz as a newbie (did my advanced down there)-along with several others and had no problems. Likewise, Roatan is pretty easy diving. Nightlife in Coz is probably better than Roatan although from what I hear Roatan's has improved in the past few years if that is your thing. The quality (reef, fish, vis) is good in both places-vis probably a little better in Coz. Jest my two cents worth.

 

[Rafael]

I never been in Roatan, but i heard the night life is not the best, Cozumel is OK for night life, but if yu really want to go out at night Cancun is the place.

The Cancun operators will pick you up and take you to Cozumel or to do some cenote dives (incredible dives) they will take you antwherepick in you up at the door of your hotel and if you get packages is not that expensive.

Now my concern is if you go out till late and i do't know but you may have afew drinks you may stay away from diving the next day, being tired is just going to make your dive harder and you won't enjoy it as much as if you are rested.

I'll be leaving to Cancun tomorrow and i'm planning to do a couple trips to Cozumel, but what i'm really looking for are the Cenote dives.

Take my friend a be safe.

Cheers

 

[Al Mialkovsky]

As a newly certified diver you might want to consider cutting back on the night life. I'm sure it was covered in your course. Lack of rest, residual alcohal in your system, all bad things and leads to increased risk of DCS.

Roatan doesn't have much night life. It's about diving.

 

[Ron Brandt]

Deffinately COZ !

I personally have never been to Roatan but now people that have done both. They keep returning to Coz.

Why? The people are great,the diving can be as chalenging as you want and the nightlife can be what you make it.

Drift diving is one of the best ways a new diver can practice getting trimmed out.

Rafael mentions staying in Cancun....If you want to make the 8:00am or 9:00am dive boat you will have to be up by 5am to take the taxi or bus down to Playa and then the ferry over to the island.

While you are at it look at my sig at the bottom of my post click on the links....one or two will be for Cozumel.

Ron

 

[DirtyDeeds]

Thanks All! I have been to Cancun twice already and am looking to go to somewhere else. I really do not want to have to wait on lines to get into clubs or bars. Cancun is a little too commercialized for me. drdiver1952 makes it sound like Cozumel should not be a problem for me. I will still look into that as a destination but I am open to others. It seems you get really good dive packages in Roatan and Cozumel but I want to be able to do other things besides dive.

DirtyDeeds

 

[Paco]

I have been to both Coz and Roatan. From a diving perspective, I liked the fish better at Coz and the reefs better at Roatan. I agree that Roatan night life is much more limited than Coz, though I prefer not to party at night before diving. We are returning to Coz next March, not because of the night life but because we feel that staying in San Miguel offers other things (like shopping for my wife) as well as night life. Drift diving is great and if you let your dive op know you are a new diver, they should probably start you out shallower with less current till you get a feel for it.

I would also love to go back to Roatan. Great diving there and our resort (Anthony's Key) had great food, dolphins, horeseback riding, no phones and no television. Really enjoyed that trip too.

You have a geat dilemma.

 

[DirtyDeeds]

Paco,
Looking to dive in the late morning or early afternoon so I am rested. I do not see myself going out eveynight or staying out until 4AM. I do want to enjoy the diving but be able to enjoy myself at night also. Thanks for your advice!

DirtyDeeds

 

[herman]

Welcome to the board DD.
I am not too sure I like Coz as a first time trip for most novice divers. While there is some shore diving, for the most part you will be doing drift diving. This requires you to do free controlled decents and accents and be able to do safety stops using nothing but your gauges and watching the DM as a reference. If you can do this without any trouble, great but after DMing 2 OW classes recently, I would not feel comfortable sending any of them to Coz for their first trip unless they had put in at least several practice dives after the class or they will be diving one on one with an experienced diver. Unless my experience with Coz was unique, most of our dives were on the deep side with most all of them over or just under the OW limit of 60 ft. I would suggest you confirm with your dive op that they can and will accommodate a novice diver and go to shallower sites, at least for the first few days. Coz has some great diving, you just need to understand what it's like and determine for yourself if your skills are up to the diving conditions.

 

[DirtyDeeds]

Thanks Herman for the welcome and advice! I confrimed with a dive operator in Roatan(Coconut Tree Divers) that they can accommadate me. I am waiting to hear from the dive operator(Blue Angel Dive Shop) in Cozumel. Do you have any suggestion on any other places to go?

DirtyDeeds