Iberostar pier/dock fees

[DawgDiver217]

I don't think I said it is hard or challenging, just giving some info so they don't go running out barefoot with cellphones in hand. It's easy once you know the drill.

Lol... did I say we are used to the very easiest shore diving on Bonaire? I keep reading on here how Cozumel is not Bonaire. Not bringing a cell phone diving ... but I do appreciate the detailed descriptions.

 

[Lafaye]

I'm DawgDiver217's mom. I want to thank everyone for the info and give an update. We stayed at the Iberostar, and 3P picked us up without difficulty from the Iberostar Pier at about 8:20-8:30a.m. each morning. Lots of other operators picked up there as well. I could see how it could be problematic if the Dressel boats were impeded, but the boat captains all seemed to stay out of their way well. There was a uniformed official, presumably from Iberostar, who asked for our room number on one morning, but we were assured by Iberostar that there would be no charges. The back-up plan was for us to be picked up from the water if the boat was not allowed up to the pier, but it was a non-issue. The Iberostar turned out to be super convenient for us. We flew into and out of Cancun and did the "Bag Drag" per all the detailed instructions offered by participants on this forum, and the whole trip went very smoothly, except for losing a Paralenz camera on entry at the Columbia reef. It apparently caught on something during the roll off the boat and snapped off its clip.

 

[NDL_Diver]

So did Iberostar change there fee structure from monthly to daily or free?

Curious minds want to know.

 

[mcohen1021]

If you use the in house dive op there is no pier charge

Not using the house op, priceless!

 

[Lafaye]

So did Iberostar change there fee structure from monthly to daily or free?

Curious minds want to know.

Well, no, I don't think they changed anything. They just did not appear to be enforcing it. At least, they insisted to me -- and I have it in writing -- that they do not charge guests for use of the pier. And no attempt was made to stop or question the 3P Captain or any of the other boats as far as I could see. We had already agreed to meet them out in the water, and that was not difficult. DawgDiver217 got to try it out one day because we left our cameras on the boat and didn't realize it until they had pulled away from the dock and lost their place at the pier. (Obviously, we were having "camera issues" this trip.)

 

[Lafaye]

Not using the house op, priceless!

Oh, I don't know. It didn't look THAT bad, at least while we were there. I would have given it a try, but the email communication before the trip was difficult with them, and they also said they needed more notice than I could give for booking once we were on the property. 3P definitely wins for communication! Yay Jeanie!

 

[Lafaye]

Is there a compelling reason that you are choosing to stay at Iberostar?....Second, you are going to miss out on a lot of great dive sites. If 3P or any other dive op picks you up and drops you off from Iberostar (most southern resort on the island) then they are going to be reluctant to go too far north of the Palancar Reef system because it will require them to backtrack a significant distance to get you back to Iberostar.

You were right about this, BUT, the convenience outweighed going beyond the Palancar Reef system for this very short trip.