Dive Report – Dressel Divers Iberostar Pariso Maya

[xaf1plt]

I just returned from a week at Iberostar Lindo and six dives with Dressel. We prepaid for dives and a Cozumel excursion which saved us a lot. The Cozumel trip was outstanding and we could not have had a better experience. Diving from the hotel was another matter. The whole procedure of loading up from the beach in rough water really detracts from the dive. On our first dive one of my crew was seasick by the time we got in the water for the dive. Getting in and out of the boat is a hazardous undertaking at best, you really have to be careful not to get knocked over by the waves or hit by the boat. You wait a long time for everyone to load getting bounced all the while. They need to rebuild the dock for comfort and safety reasons.
All the divemasters were great except one who was a little inattentive and seemed like he wanted to be somewhere else. I would dive with them again but only after the dock issue is resolved.

 

[ottawascubalady]

I dove with Dressel Divers in Jan. 2005 and stayed at the Iberostar. They had a dock then. I logged 6 dives with them and 1 night dive. I felt very safe with their operation and had a fabulous time. I would definatly dive with them again.

 

[xaf1plt]

Yea, they lost the dock to the hurricane last Feb and so far the owner refuses to rebuild

 

[handy andy]

I stayed at Iberostar Cozumel in November 06, and it was less expensive to go with Dive with Martin. They picked me up at the pier, dove with divers from other resorts, had a great time. Most of the people there went with Dressel divers, Looked to me like I received a much better deal. The 5 2-tank dives cost 255, got a free night dive although had to get a taxi to the dive shop in town, and David made me a video no charge of dives there. My granddaughter loves that video, glad I got it now. Wasn't important to me at the time. Jim

 

[Jason Ooi]

Good report..thanks

 

[bdklein]

I'm staying there in December (beginning). I assume that the water is usually kind of rough that time of year. Any insight? I keep hearing mixed things about Dressel. What are my other options from the Paraiso Maya (meaning will other operators pick me up?). Thanks in advance for any assistance.

 

[freodiver]

i can just say... stay away from them: i used to work for them last year and it was one of the worst experiences in my career as a diving instructor... they are just about the money and i had quite a few issues with standard violations and unsafe diving (we had to take just certified beginners to 30m or on dives with strong currents etc.), and if you start to complain too much they fire you (didn't happen to me, cause i was a good seller, i quit myself), if you do an open water course everything has to be quick, quick, if you have any problems with the skills theres no real time to teach you, you got a few tries if it works somehow you pass (even it is not close to mastery of the skill) and if its still not working: out of the pool, come again next time. also you have no time for theory if youre doing courses cause the instructors have to be constantly in the pool for free scuba. their course directors even tell the instructors tricks how to bend standards to save time and so on...

so for your own and the poor instructors sake, find another place to go diving...

 

[BocaGinny]

Does anyone know if the dock at Iberostar in Cozumel has been rebuilt yet? Our dive club wants to run a trip there next August, but I'm not jumping into water with gear and swimming out to a dive boat (been there, done that - not doing it again!).

 

[scratchmyback]

Does anyone know if the dock at Iberostar in Cozumel has been rebuilt yet? Our dive club wants to run a trip there next August, but I'm not jumping into water with gear and swimming out to a dive boat (been there, done that - not doing it again!).

OK I'm confused - I was there in Feb 06 and the dock was there. Has something happened since then?

I would also agree with the previous poster who worked for Dressel as an instructor. That experience happened to me from a student's perspective and I returned home to complete my OW course here because I was getting jerked around by the dive shop. It was not the instructor's fault - he was being yanked out of the pool sessions to go and lead dives.

 

[PlayaCountryBoy]

Hola Everyone! As far as I know I am the only fully American-run dive operation. I do privately guided tours for the same price as local shops. Private means just that....if you want to stay 80 minutes at depth...then let see ya do it! Hope I can keep up! I have a boat moored right off the beach in Playa del Carmen located one block north of the ferry pier for Cozumel. I teach in a pool in a condo complex one block from the beach. Its all private without a pool full of people staring at you while you learning.:no I like Keeping the exerpierence private; helps reduce possible accidents underwater. It also gives you more confidence in your guide because you know that you're the only one he's got to look after. I'm a U/W videographer as well. So I know what its like for photo/videographers to want to take their time and not be rushed. So what ever your level of diving is, you're going to appreciate the private service. Have a look at my website, and on the homepage is a link to my myspace page where I weekly posts small video clips of my guests. They love it! Check 'em out!