OW certification recommendations in PDC

[CJ76]

hello, i'm going to be in playa in October for a week and i am looking to get certified as dive shops in my area are few and far between. I'm looking for some input from people that has been certified there so i can pick the right dive shop. Tried the resort course and 5 more dives in Punta cana in march and got hooked

 

[vitalspark]

We've been diving with Phocea in Playa a few times, Bull Sharks, Cozumel, Cenotes, they cover most things and provide most types of training as well as being really nice people.

 

[jmb]

Tank Ha is another good dive shop. I've been diving with them many times over the past 8 years and always been very happy with their service - great staff and always helpful.

 

[rye_a]

We've been diving with Phocea in Playa a few times, Bull Sharks, Cozumel, Cenotes, they cover most things and provide most types of training as well as being really nice people.

My wife and I dived with Phocea and enjoyed the experience as well. As I recall they have a heavily European clientele. Many of the shops in Playa are on or just off of 5th Ave., but Phocea is in a hotel right on the beach which could be convenient.

 

[anbrundage]

I go with Tank Ha as well. We just went about a month ago and my husband and I got our AOW certs there and it was awesome. We also did cenote dives with them as well. Whenever we return to Playa we will be going with them again

 

[phantom divers]

Hello there...you can visit us at 1av nte con calle 14 why don´t you come to meet us or visit our website Buceo en Playa del Carmen - Phantom Divers will be very happy to help you
regards

 

[Byte Me]

I only have first hand experience with one shop down there but have heard good things about Geofish, CenoteXperience and Tank Ha.

On a personal note, I would absolutely NOT use Phantom. Against the wishes of many local shops, protests of this board and my own opinions, they feed (fed?) bull sharks creating an arguably very dangerous situation. Details in this thread.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/mexico/278204-shark-feeding-playa-del-carmen.html

There are many shops in Playa and a bunch of them post regularly on this and other boards. Search for the dive shop name and take a look through some of the feedback - should give you a pretty good idea of ops with a good rep!

I did my AOW in Playa and have been there numerous times. There are some really nice sites for your checkout dives - good luck and enjoy the sport! Post when you get back and let us know how it went!

 

[ednedfred]

I've used Jason at Fantasea for years. One-on-one diving, very professional. Here is his link:

Playa Del Carmen diving - small uncrowded groups

 

[phantom divers]

Hola Byte Me, after our conversations on facebook, do You still feel that you should recommend not to dive with PHANTOM DIVERS?
I think people at this board have been trying to discredit Phantom Divers by misleading potential customers and trying to direct them to their own dive centers or people they know.
We are one of the leader dive centers in the area. Others think that talking bad about us is going to help them, maybe a little unprofesional?
You can find lots of information about us in Dive in Mexico - Dive Playa del Carmen and Cozumel
dont be mislead by people trying to boycot a reputable dive operation.
Jorge Loria

 

[Byte Me]

Hola Byte Me, after our conversations on facebook, do You still feel that you should recommend not to dive with PHANTOM DIVERS?
I think people at this board have been trying to discredit Phantom Divers by misleading potential customers and trying to direct them to their own dive centers or people they know.
We are one of the leader dive centers in the area. Others think that talking bad about us is going to help them, maybe a little unprofesional?
You can find lots of information about us in Dive in Mexico - Dive Playa del Carmen and Cozumel
dont be mislead by people trying to boycot a reputable dive operation.
Jorge Loria

Jorge,

Thanks for reaching out and offering more detail on your side of the story. I'm impressed by the information you provided and the efforts you're taking down there to coordinate conservation education with other shops in Playa, the government and locals / divers. Also very impressed by your tone and demeanor throughout, you could easily have come out swinging but rather you chose to invite me to learn more before making any decisions about your intent.

From our conversations it's clear you're interested in more than a fast buck by exploiting these local resources and rather are spending a great deal of time educating about sharks, their role as the oceans top predator and importance in maintaining a healthy reef system.

It's easy for your competitors to take shots at your practices, however, with some of them, if you look closely - they'll be chastising you on the boards but also running premium priced dives to the same site (albeit without feeding) thereby having the best of both worlds for themselves. That's a bigger offense IMO and more of a reason not to use a shop than if they were straight with potential customers and present their side of the story as you have.

The jury is still out (and may always be) on whether educating people about the beauty, grace and power of the sharks through baited dives is worth the risk of incident given that any incident would result in far more people getting a message perpetuating the "shark week" type mentality and/or worst case the slaughter of 70 sharks like we saw after the Cancun "attacks". While we may be on separate sides of that argument I look forward to stopping in and talking more to you next time I'm in Playa, seeing more about your operation and perhaps getting underwater with you!