Dive Shop and Resort suggestions

[ben_wilson3301]

Just wondering what would recommend for a dive shop or resort. Or any we should avoid. We are looking for good food, clean rooms! A nice pool would b a bonus. As far as a dive shop goes... some place that caters to photographers. A shop that isnt afraid to boat a little further than their front door. I hate hearing how great a spot is but that its too far.

 

[susanelizabeth]

Google Dive with Carlos in Cozumel. Great dive shop. I live on Cozumel for 8 years and dive with him frequently. Good service and they will cater to your every need and take you anywhere.

 

[vannsbtch]

We used Jeremy with living-underwater.com last year and it was great. Only 4 people on the boat. Dont stay at Sabor. We are going to stay at the occidental grand this year.

 

[DandyDon]

I don't know of any hotels that lack cleaning there. Maid labor is cheap and the hotels really keep things clean. If there are problems, I just don't know about them. I usually find the best hotel deals by shopping various Air & Hotel packages, comparing to booking separately - and Orbitz is still offering an extra $100 discount on a week: see Orbitz Coupon & Promotion Codes Travel Guide, Orbitz Coupon & Promotion Codes Vacation & Travel Tips on Orbitz You didn't give enough info on how many, how long and when to offer more suggestions - nor what else you want in a hotel, i.e. in town, close to town, down south which is a longer cab ride but shorter boat ride to many sites, All Inclusive or not, etc. Pools are quite common, but you can check those as you shop.

I usually book my dive Op separately, altho it can be handy to have the Op's office close to the hotel - not necessary if you're well prepared. There are dozens of goods ones and asking for recommendations usually yields a lot of cheerleading with the best intentions, but little info as to why you might like one over another. Many divers carry cameras so all of them try to make them happy too, especially since the DMs live off of tips mostly - so how much catering do you want? Do you want a big boat with a table (I really don't know if there are such there but maybe), or a big boat with multiple rinse buckets, or a small boat with one bucket? I like a small boat and use a wet T-shirt but that's me.

The best dining is in town generally, with much debate over which - but decent food is common all over. I'm pretty easy to please there really, but you might be picky.

Have you read over the forum here much? It's an active one with a lot of Coz fans sharing their experiences and opinions freely, so you could get a better ideas that way.

 

[sharky60]

There are wide range places to stay, from sort of 'no-frills' places like Casa del Mar, Baracuda and Villa Blaca to the 5-star El Presidente and Cozumel Princess, all with nice clean rooms, good food and great service. Both all-inclusive and on AI hotels/resorts are available, but as a long time visitor, I'd suggest not doing AI so you can take advantage of the great restaurants in town.

Most hotels have their own dive op a or dive op associated with them. Places like Blue Angel Resort & Scuba Club have thier own dive op and have hotel/dive packages that include some or all meals depending on the property and package.

I have 5 dive ops I recommend, from experience and from observation as a smal businessman myself. They are in varrying price ranges and services offered, but all will take you to almost any dive site once they have evaluated your skill level.

A good dive op will dive with you for a day or two and evaluate your skills, no matter what cert. card you have, and then take you to "advanced" dive sites if they feel you are capable...most reputable ops on Coz operate this way.

I've never heard of a dive op being "anti-photographer" on Coz, I have heard of issues in other places, but not here. I'm a photographer myself and having a camera on board has never been an issue with anyone I've dove with.

Sharky's top 5 picks, In alphbetical order...

1. Aldora - very professional, top notch service

2. Blue Angel Dive shop & Resort - dive/hotel packages, some meals included (a very good restaurant, I'd suggest going there for a meal even if you don't stay there), very good DM's and captains, all the boats have been upgraded to new faster and more fuel efficent motors, great on-site instructor, good shore diving (if you are boat diving, free shore diving is included at most hotels that have dive ops)

3. BlueXTSea - boutique diving at it's best! with only 2 boats, Christi and crew concentrate on customer service and it shows

4. Bottom Time Divers - Raul is one of the most safety minded DM's I've ever dove with. He is also one of the best at finding little critters.

5. Dive with Martin - again, very good DM's and captains. A long-time favorite of Cozumel divers, they have some of the lowest rates on the island...cash only, I belive, you'd have to check with them and see if they have changed that. They usually give a bonus one-tank night dive with a dive package of a given number of dives.

All these are excellent dive ops and I would strap on with any of them any day of the week.

There are something like 70 or more dive operations on Cozumel. The majority of them will satisfy most diver's needs, EVERYONE on the island work very hard to make sure you have a good time. So weed through everyone's recommendations and make your best educated guess, you may not find "your dive op" on the first trip, but that's why the pool is open year round...so you can come back and do it again

 

[Gdog]

Always a wide variety of responses to this question. Everyone has a favorite. Mine? Blue Magic Scuba....they do a fantastic job.

 

[Zman96]

As Dandy Don said we need more info from you for offering recommendations on where to stay.
As far as dive ops go, lots will cater to you need to photograph. I use Blue Xt Sea and they are great with photographers. If Pedro is you DM, he is a very slow and methodical diver which allow you to dive a slower pace and see all that you want to without feeling rushed. If you dive with Miguel, he is one of the most accomplished underwater photographers and would be a great guide to have for you needs.

 

[bbarada]

Try Scuba Club Cozumel. Their dive operation is on site and their boats are very comfortable. The food is terrific.

 

[Geckotek]

I'm diving with Scuba Tony right now. Great guy, good op, awesome captain Carlos (my friends called him a human GPS), and his DM Mario has been wonderful as well. I'll dive with him again when I return.

I wanted a cheap but clean hotel. I stayed in the Safari Inn back in the '90s. Stayed there again and it's exactly what I needed. Cheap, clean, no frills (no pool). May not be to your standards if your expecting a pool and some sordoor AI experience.

 

[shardison]

I would also have to recommend Scuba Club Cozumel for the following reasons: The place runs like clockwork!! From the breakfast buffett in the morning, to the last dive of the day!! All you have to do is eat, sleep, dive, ohhh.... and did I say DIVE!!

It is on the south end of town and only about a 10 minute walk to food stores, town square (for Sunday night Fiesta) and most of the restaurants and Bars.

Their boats are fairly good size and the Reef Cat is an excellent diving platform (I.E. Easy in and out) they aren't extremely fast, but they get you to your dive site for sure!! boats leave around 8:30 am and return to the Resort at about 1:30 PM for lunch. You can shore dive to your hearts content right in from of the dock ( I saw an octopuss, juvenile stingrays, and the usual array of reef fish).

The rooms are clean, and have A/C. drinking water can be found in almost every hallway. The rooms are not 5 star by any means, but the service you will recieve definitely IS!!,

I have been to Hawaii, Roatan, and Cozumel. SCC is by far the best I've had the privilege to dive with. I can tell you that my experience with them in May 2011 was the best I've ever experienced, and I will continue to use SCC as my Cozumel Dive resort.

I know the MX President dives with Aldora Divers. I've not dived with them myself, but if the president uses them... They've got to be pretty good too!!

Whom ever you choose I'm sure you'll be well taken care of as there is a very competative market for Dive operators... I mean really... Your diving in perhaps the clearest water ever, it's all drift diving, (no work required) and the abundant variety of animal life will leave you only wanting more...!!