Please Save Me From Certain Death: Need Dive Ops Recommendations FAST

[augustg]

In Puerto Vallarta, check out OceanQuest. It's a small outfit and much more comfortable than the cattle operators in PV. The diving at Los Arcos, off the coast of Mismaloya was really fun and the water was great when I was there in October.

Klaus is the head of the operation and a fun guy...if you contact him, tell him Mini-Me sent you...he'll get it. Post-diving, ask Klaus to direct you to Calamari Adventura (Frisky Squid) as it's the best taco stand in PV IMHO.

 

[northwestdiver]

Don't know if it would be the same in Mexico, but a few years back we went on a cruise in Tahiti and found diving on our own to be VASTLY preferable to booking with the cruise ship.

The divers who booked through the ship tended to be beginners or people who averaged about 0-5 dives in a year, therefore those trips were short, shallow and overly-supervised (well, ALL the diving in Tahiti tended to be overly supervised -- they're French divemasters, after all -- but the ones through the cruise ship were more like all the other "cruise ship" activities).

We found we had better dives, more freedom, cheaper prices and never seemed to have any problem getting back to the ship when we went off on our own. BTW, we pre-booked all our diving (through the internet) before we went.

Again, don't know if you'll find it the same in Mexico (they seem to be a lot looser in Mexico, overall) but just thought you might want to know of my experience.

 

[Diver Dennis]

In PV use either Pacific Scuba or Twin Dolphins. I know all of them and they are the best there. Twin Dolphins has the best boats.

 

[SFScuba]

For Cabo San Lucas.

We went with Underwater Diversions in October 2005. Great service and dives. They are located on the harbor near where the cruise ship tenders drop off (or at least the tenders for the ship that was in at the time we were there). There were at least two other shops (which I don't remember the name for) that were also located in the harbor area.

 

[manitou diver]

I dove with Underwater Diversions last summer with a couple from one of the cruise ships. Since the local sites are very close, you are in sight of the cruise ship from the dive boat, it makes it very easy to enjoy a couple of dives and have time in the afternoon to meet up with your folks in town for some siteseeing. I agree about the Sand Falls, rather anticlimatic when the DM has to "help" the sand to fall! I've enjoyed the dives at Neptune's Finger the most as there is a chance you'll have some sea lions come join you!