New to diving - Trip in June - looking for advice

[Spratman]

Most of the dives off Cancun are drift dives as well. It is great just floating along and stopping when you see something of interest.

As Scott said, as a new diver, you may not be as comfortable with multi-tasking. A strong current, plus maintaining your position in the water column, is very important in Coz. It doesn't take long to drop below your comfort/depth level without realizing it, especially on a wall. Coz will still be there next year, as will the cenotes.

Work on your basic skills until they are second nature. Bouyancy is the toughest thing to get down pat. Once you do, everything else is easier.

And most importantly, never exceed your skill level, especially in a new environment.

You will have a great time! This will be my third year diving in Cancun, and I ALWAYS look forward to it. You are hitting there at the right time too. You might get to see some eagle rays and manta rays! Not to mention whale sharks.

 

[scubawife]

I go to Cozumel a few times a year and also do one or two mainland trips (Akumal area) a year. It's never been an issue having a young or new diver in the group when we're diving the mainland since the majority of dives are not deep and there are really no wall dives. Current is barely noticable or non-existent. So basically, a group of mixed ages and experience levels doesn't interfere with anyones diving satisfaction.

The best dives in Cozumel are deeper and/or are sites with current. If it's your first time drift diving or diving deeper then it can take you a couple days to start feeling comfortable and getting the hang of it. And most Cozumel dive operators want to dive with you for a couple days (regardless of your cert level) before they take you to the sites Coz is known for. If you only have a day to dive then you will probably have a better day on the mainland.

 

[kwelker]

I went on a trip to Playa with my 19 year old daughter last May and loved the diving. I am a 24 year veteran to diving and have over 300 logged dives. I have never felt as uncomfortable as I did with my daughter in the water on a drift dive. The current in and around the Playa/Cancun/Cozumel water is very strong for someone who is not used to it. I would recommend that you stick close to the bottom and stick to your nephew like glue especially if he is a lightweight. Make sure the dive master knows you are inexperienced divers and he will take you somewhere where the current is less. I DO NOT RECOMMEND CENOTE DIVING FOR NEW DIVERS. As I said, I am an experienced diver, but the water is very cold, the caves are dark, and if you are diving in the right cenote you have the halocline(slatwater/freshwater mix) which is fabulous, but caused me problems. My masked fogged up, my light went out, and I couldn't see a thing in the halocline. After a second or two of panic, all I could think of was that I couldn't see my daughter. It's hard to enjoy the fabulous dive of the cenotes when you are concerned about a young diver in your care. Not to mention you have to worry that the young diver or even you may have trouble controlling bouancy which can easily destroy millions of years worth of stalagmites. Save the cenote trip for when you don't have kids around and you are experienced enough to really take it all in.....It should be on the top 100 dives to do before you die!!!

 

[bgsnmky]

Thanks for all the help...I can definately mark the cenotes out...and I don't want ot dive more than 30 to 40 feet. Since the drifting is in both Cozumel and Cancun..it sounds like you guys are saying that Cozumel is usually deeper.

THANKS AGAIN!

 

[scubawife]

Thanks for all the help...I can definately mark the cenotes out...and I don't want ot dive more than 30 to 40 feet. Since the drifting is in both Cozumel and Cancun..it sounds like you guys are saying that Cozumel is usually deeper.

THANKS AGAIN!

The mellowist drift diving can be found out of Puerto Morales, Aventuras and Akumal. The dives are done as single tank trips since the sites are only 5-10 minutes from shore. No "cattle boats" here either so it's small groups and if you talk to your DM before the dive they will provide you with a little or as much attention and assistance as you need to enjoy the dive. The single tank trips are great because you don't have to commit to hours on the boat.

 

[bgsnmky]

Is the drifting good or not good. Or both depending on what we want??? I was thinking it wasn't good by the reviews.

also, if we did scuba in Cancun, where is the best place you would recommend for the sea life (I really want to see Turtles - either scuba or snorkel) so if we don't scuba where there are turtles we can always snorkel (which I am reading Tulum is the place to go)....

Anyway - recommendations for mainland diving, and dive shops (I know a few have already been mentioned).

 

[scubawife]

Is the drifting good or not good. Or both depending on what we want??? I was thinking it wasn't good by the reviews.

also, if we did scuba in Cancun, where is the best place you would recommend for the sea life (I really want to see Turtles - either scuba or snorkel) so if we don't scuba where there are turtles we can always snorkel (which I am reading Tulum is the place to go)....

Anyway - recommendations for mainland diving, and dive shops (I know a few have already been mentioned).

Tulum is usually too rough for snorkeling. THE place for snorkeling seeing turtles would be Akumal (which means "place of the turtle" in Mayan). June is in nesting season and this is one of the main nesting areas. There is a resident turtle population in Akumal Bay and you can also see turtles in Half Moon Bay (although they aren't there all the time like in Akumal Bay.) You'll also see turtles on most dives in the Aventuras and Akumal area. You could certainly do a day trip down to Akumal and do a dive and also snorkel. The shops here go out at around 9, 11 and 2p. You'd have to check their exact schedules. It would be a nice day to do an 11:00 dive, have lunch and then snorkel in the bays or do another dive if you really liked the first one.

There's a site from PDC called Tortugas. It's sort of a Boca for mexican turtles 20+ all the time. But there can be a strong current there.

All the diving in this area is drift diving, however, the current in some areas barely noticeable. Most dives out of Aventuras and Akumal fall into that category. Puerto Morales is also supposed to be nice.

I haven't dived out of Cancun so I can't comment on that. The current in Cozumel is always noticeable, and some sites it can get pretty swift.

Locogringo.com is a good site for info on areas south of Cancun.

 

[bgsnmky]

OH I meant Akumal....

I gotta get these names right!!

Sounds like we should definately make it to Akumal....the turtles were high on my list as well as a few of the teenagers going...awesome. thanks for the quick reply.

 

[Spratman]

Last August, my son and I went out on Manchones Reef. We saw a pretty diverse population of sea critters, saw a couple of small turtles as well. We did a night dive on Punta Negra and had a turtle that must have been five feet wide zoom over us out of the grass.

Snorkeling is just plain tough along the coast. If you dive Cancun, make a trip over to Isla Mujeres to the marine sanctuary. Really nice snorkeling. Some operators will take you down to Punta Nihuz, just below Club Med. But you get some decent swells sometimes and constantly clearing your snorkel will hose your trip.

Drift diving is great for cover a lot of territory, but not much time to dwell on a particular area. Sometimes you are just dealing with surge, but we had a good two knot current blowing on Machones. I like it, definitely lazy man's diving! It's tough trying to take pictures though. You have to slow down enough to get a shot.

Hopefully, you will have awesome weather, and then you'll make many more return trips to hit PDC, Tulum, Akumal, Coz or Cancun.

Safe diving!

 

[jon m]

huh?
snorkling at Akumal and halfmoon bay are about as calm as it gets, unless you try to swim through the breakers (which can be fun!)
you should also snorkle Yal kul (sp?) lagoon, it's cool....