Getting Certified, Going To Cancun, Need Advice

[johnstires]

Hello All. I am getting certified next weekend through a PADI program in NYC. I plan on completing my Open Water dives during my New Years trip to Cancun. I've been an avid reef aquarium hobbyist for 15 years and have just decided to take the plunge and try SCUBA. I'm really excited about the door I am about to open. My wife is a yoga teacher (and a diver) and we are going to be on a yoga retreat at this place:

http://www.mayatulum.com

I was hoping that someone could give me advice on where to get my open water certification in Cancun.

Also does anyone know how badly damaged the city and reefs are? I'm sure any diving will seem awesome, but I'd like to know if there are places I should avoid.

Does anyone know of fun things to do in Cancun for New Years? My wife has this crazy desire to celebrate at Mayan Ruins, but I'm not sure if that even happens???

Thanks and I can't wait to start diving!

 

[Solitude Diver]

Congratulations on the door you are opening. I did the same last December, and diving has been my passion ever since. My wife got started, and now my 8 and 9 year olds are going to.

I'm afraid I don't know what to tell you about Cancun, other than search the internet, and check with the place you are staying. If it is a resort type, they are usually in touch with local shops. I would see if it is a PADI 5-star shop if possible (check with PADI online). It is hard to go wrong with 5-star's when traveling for fun dives. Caution, resorts usually get commisions for refferals, so look around.

It seems strange that you are starting an Open Water class in NYC and then doiing the dives in Cancun? I would recommend doing it all with one instructor, but that is up to you. Did you mention this to your instructor, and are both places charging you full OW class rates? You'd probably be better off completing with one or the other.

Note: I took my open water, and advanced from resorts in Hawaii last year. They typically rush you through the programs, and you get less out of it. Your local dive shop may have a longer but better quality program for you than a resort. That's just my opinion. My wife took hers here in Seattle, and hers was much more intense than mine (and the price was the same).

The more you dive the funner it becomes. I am thinking about going to that coast to dive some wrecks.

Yoga might help with your breathing rate and gas consumption (I know it has been suggested that I try it) Although at 6'4, and 245 lbs, I am not sure I'll ever have a great SAC (consumption) rate.

Good luck. Keep diving.

-Steve

 

[Damselfish]

There are some benefits to doing it all locally, but it's not at all strange to do an "OW referral" with the class at home and the OW dives somepalce warm, in fact quite common.

It's true you don't want to be rushed. You're doing the right thing by asking for recommendations and not going just anyplace. (Unfortunately I haven't been there and don't have any.) You did say you are getting certified "next weekend" - that implies a weekend quickie course for you classroom and pool? These classes are ok for some people but not for others. If you must do it that way, be sure you feel comfortable with everything by the end of your pool sessions, and try to get extra time in the pool if you don't.

 

[johnstires]

Yeah my confined water dive program is from this place, www.panaqua.com, and is reputable in the Manhattan area. It's a 4 hour class each day over the weekend, with reading and watching a DVD outside of class. I feel comfortable with this method. They will sign a referral and I'll do my open water in Cancun. I heard this is the best way to do it as the open water tends to cover the basics, then once comfortable, you just dive for the remainder of the time. It's much better to do that IMO than to try a cold water dive up here. Brrrr...

Thanks for the input, I hope to hear from people on Cancun. So far it seems like Cozumel is the place to go when there (by ferry).

Any word on the damage done by the hurricane? People haven't said much on this board about it.

 

[Rafael]

Hello my friend, well is lots of options in Cancun, but the bigest operator in Cancun is Aquaworld, i dove with them in October, they are OK, i had a good time, but what i will recomend you is contact them and check if they are back in business, i was there for the hurricane and the area where they are located was very damage, now Cozumel is the place to be for a diver, i do not know if you are paning to stay there for a few days, but if you do is nothing better than that.

Check the pictures i posted, i took those in October down there, some in Cancun some in Playa del Carmen which is a very nice place to dive and to hang out, i will recomend you to spend one night down there is so much fun, i'm sure you and your girlfriend will love it.

If you have any questions send me a message i will be more than happy to help you with anything i can.

 

[proyce]

I can't tell you about dives in Cancun, but I can tell you that Cozumel is a diver's paradise. There are numerous dive shops in Cozumel, as the island caters more to divers than partyers. Call around down there and check this board for recommendations. There is Cozumel hurricane recovery information at the top of the board. I can recommend Living Underwater, if Jeremy is back in business after Wilma.

 

[johnstires]

I think I am going to try mantadivers.com for my certification. They seem like a good operation. Aquaworld sound like they might be good, but I have heard that people think thier too big and that dives are impersonal and overcrowded.

If I feel up to it after my cert course I think I may try cozumel. However drift dives kinda concern me and I'm not sure I want to do that for my first dive. I figure there are many years ahead and that a trip exclusively to Cozumel would be a good one.

 

[maltbyg]

just avoid LEMMON DIVERS.I had a very bad experience with them a few years ago.i was came up after the dive with my buddy only to find the boat had gone.we were left bobbing around in the sea for a couple of hours.the sharks that were about did`nt put any ease on the matter.great diving though.i like the uk better.
go to sinyoir frogs for new year.i realy enjoyed it

 

[justindiddy]

Congrats! Don't feel that you need to reserve a course before you arrive. You are more than welcome to show up and check out the shops/gear/instructors in person to see if your confidence is in the right place. Most shops around there have plenty of staff and can get you into the water within 24hrs of you showing up and requesting the class.

Don't rule out Playa del Carmen, either. It is significantly less overrun, less expensive, and has some wonderful dive sites (it has a lot in common with cozumel). It's less than an hour away by cheapo minibus.

 

[halocline]

Hi John;

I'm also a reef aquarium nut and I can tell you that diving on a reef will totally change your perception of reefkeeping. If possible, you should try to do whatever you can to get to Cozumel for at least one dive, for that reason among others. The damage from Wilma on Cozumel was less catastrophic than on Cancun, and the diving is MUCH better, plus you'll have a choice of many great instructors.

From the link you provided, it looks like you won't be staying in Cancun, more in the tulum area, correct? If that's the case, forget about diving in Cancun and you can easily get your certification dives done closer to tulum. The diving will be better, but probably still not like Cozumel. Here's a thread with some info, looks like the guy who posted it might be on the same retreat as you:
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=113878

A couple of suggestions: 1) Don't worry about the difficulty of the drift dives on Cozumel; in fact, the best scenario might be to do your cert dives there, then go on a couple of drift dives with the same dive op you get certified with. The better, smaller dive ops on Cozumel are experts at taking care of new divers. There's a whole forum on Cozumel here on scubaboard; there you'll find all sorts of info. 2) As far as mayan ruins, tulum is pretty spectacular, but my favorite in the area by far is Chichen Itza, which is probably a couple of hours by bus from the tulum area. (Never went from that direction) There are all kinds of references available to find out more about ruins on the yucatan peninsula, in fact there's a lot of info on the Cozumel and Mexico forums right here.

Have a GREAT time and PM me if you need any more info.