Playa De Carmen/Cozumel dive sites

[mrsprincesssmith]

Hi,

I am going to be in Mexico in October and am looking for some good dive sites and shore dives. We are staying just outside of Playa, and are planning on spending some time in Cozumel and Akumal (sp?) I am a fairly new diver, but have dived in Belize and Canada so I am fairly comfortable in most conditions. We are interested in shore diving as well as boat diving and are planning on bringing our own gear. I have been in touch with a company called Phantom Diving and they seem pretty reasonable. Has anyone dived with them? If you have a list of shore dives, suggestions or tips for diving in that area then let me know.

Thanks

 

[driftwood]

I don't have a high opinion of the ocean dives off Akumal. The middle and outer reefs have seen a lot better days. The best diving in the Akumal area are in the cenotes.

Phantom Diving is one of the companies that feed the sharks on their dives. I feel that shark feeding is inappropriate and wouldn't do business with them for that reason.

 

[rongoodman]

By all means, plan on some dives in the cenotes!

 

[Mike]

Hi,

I am going to be in Mexico in October and am looking for some good dive sites and shore dives. We are staying just outside of Playa, and are planning on spending some time in Cozumel and Akumal (sp?) I am a fairly new diver, but have dived in Belize and Canada so I am fairly comfortable in most conditions. We are interested in shore diving as well as boat diving and are planning on bringing our own gear. I have been in touch with a company called Phantom Diving and they seem pretty reasonable. Has anyone dived with them? If you have a list of shore dives, suggestions or tips for diving in that area then let me know.

Thanks

You only listed one accolade for Phantom Divers, and that was in reference to pricing, unless reasonable is referring to their demeanor? I'd advise you to put price at the bottom of the list of criteria. Keep in mind you'll get what you pay for. Dive shops who's major focus is on their prices is a red flag that I would shy away from, this is your life you are messing with here. Click on the Cozumel forum listed above these posts and view the two threads about the 3 injured and 1 dead diver incidents from just the last 2 weeks. In regard to pricing, cheaper pricing often comes with skinny bottom times, larger slow boats packed with divers, older equipment, boring but close to the dive shop dive sites, too much focus on the schedule instead of the experience.

Cozumel out ranks Akumal for diving probably 100:1. Akumal is a great place and a dive there wouldn't be wasted however it's not Cozumel. Playa Del Carmen will have more variety then Akumal, but again it's nothing compared to Cozumel. The Mexican Riveria is not known for a lot of shore diving, its almost all boat diving with a lot of drift diving. If you're going to be staying on the main land you should investigate doing some cenote diving, as it's very popular and many people staying in Cozumel try to squeeze in some main land cenote diving. This tells you something cause making the trek over to do it from Cozumel is not exactly a breeze, so since you're already there, it's something I would recommend you look into and take advantage of if you're so inclined.

I'd also recommend focusing a bit more on one area, jumping around from Playa to Akumal to Cozumel to try all those dive areas will involve a lot of wasted transit time, not to mention probably diving with multiple dive ops and all the time involved with that.

If you have some specific questions those are going to get better answers then just asking for broad advice.

 

[jmb]

I've had great experiences diving with Tank Ha located in Playa Del Carmen over the past 10 years. They offer ocean dives, cenote dives and Cozumel dives so you can make all your arrangements with one dive shop. Tank Ha is also the only dive shop in Playa which takes its boats directly over to Cozumel, so you can don't have to take the ferry and haul your gear over. The staff is friendly and professional, and have always provided excellent service. Whatever you decide, have a great time - if by chance you'll be there between October 8 and 15, I'll be diving with Tank Ha that week !
Julie

 

[warmwaterturner]

There are lots of good sites off shore around Playa. One of my favorite is up north and not frequently visited. It is called Los Arcos. It is a deep dive and a drift as well. I think the second tank is at Cerebros. There are lots of large coral heads and the aquatic life there is abundant. I am also a big fan of Tortugas. Not much structure there but as the name implies there are Turtles. Shore diving at Playa is a no go. Another good spot is Jardines. This is the reef that killed the cruise ship dock for Playa (YEAH!!!!!) Akumal is good for snorkeling and diving is or was not allowed inside the reef. The LDS that I prefer in Playa is Reef Quest. And as stated above - if your bouyancy is good - do a cenote for sure.

 

[markmantei]

I have dove several times with Abyss Dive Center, they are right across the street from Phantom Divers, however, Abyss does NOT feed for their shark dives (many of the shops do not, but there are a couple that do, you'll need to ask to be sure). Very good and safe dive op that is owned by a Canadian expat (from Revelstoke area if I recall correctly). They run small boats, so can do a better job of taking you to sites that interest you, some times I have had my group as the only ones on the boat, the most divers I've ever dove with was 6 (including me) plus the DM. I'll second Tortuga (and usually Sabalos or Barracuda for the second tank). Sometimes you can get lucky even on dives you wouldn't have picked, last Feb. I did a dive at Moc Che, a beginner dive (max depth was 40ft) and a wild dolphin happened to come up at the end of the dive, a rarity to say the least. Try and book at least a day for cenotes, as long as your bouyancy control is good. If you planning on going to Cozumel, Aldora Divers will usually hold a boat for you to come over on the ferry if you book in advance, I can't speak directly to Aldora, as we booked Coz for our last day of diving, and it so happened that the weather sucked and the harbour was closed, so ended up diving playa again, so I'd recommend booking cozumel earlier in your trip so you can change things up if you need to. I will say that Aldora was very good about refunding our deposit though. Have fun on your trip!