Self-Guided cave diving in cenotes

[vitaly]

Next year, my buddy and I are planning a week-long trip to dive cenotes in Playa - Tulum area and we're interested in diving without a guide. Could you recommend places to stay, car rentals and dive centers where we can rent tanks? We’re both Cave CCR and DPV certified, but we plan to dive on OC SM and may bring or rent a DPV as well. While all of our cave training and experience is from Florida, I’ve also completed several guided cenote dives over the past four years.
Any advice on logistics, safety, and must visit cenotes would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

There are 3 great shops in Tulum for cave divers of your experience...
Protec Tulum & Playa. Full shop with rentals if needed and accommodation above the dive shop. Biwa Hotel for a nicer room, restaurant and pool is a 1 minute walk away,

Third Dimension Dive Shop (edit - added shop name) - Biwa Hotel (also very close ) for a nicer room, restaurant and pool is a 1 minute walk away,

Underworld Tulum. 6 individual condos for rent with a pool.
Every shop have great people there to make you fell welcome.

No disrespect meant by this comment...
Since Mexico caves do not have flow like a Florida cave has, you must be very thoughtful of touching or disturbing any silt. Marks you leave with be there forever.

 

[Lorenzoid]

When people speak of "cenote diving," they are usually referring to the cavern line that guides take OW dives on. But we know you mean cave diving.

I'll be cave diving with Underworld Tulum (mentioned by @Norwegian Cave Diver) in a few weeks. I am a relatively novice cave diver and plan to do all or most of my dives with a guide. Lanny at Underworld said that if my buddy and I want to do some dives on our own, they would be glad to brief us on where best to go and the logistics.

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

When people speak of "cenote diving," they are usually referring to the cavern line that guides take OW dives on. But we know you mean cave diving.

I'll be cave diving with Underworld Tulum (mentioned by @Norwegian Cave Diver) in a few weeks. I am a relatively novice cave diver and plan to do all or most of my dives with a guide. Lanny at Underworld said that if my buddy and I want to do some dives on our own, they would be glad to brief us on where best to go and the logistics.

Lanny and Clair are great people. Enjoy your diving. Post some info on where you have been and what you enjoyed the most!!

 

[vitaly]

When people speak of "cenote diving," they are usually referring to the cavern line that guides take OW dives on. But we know you mean cave diving.

I'll be cave diving with Underworld Tulum (mentioned by @Norwegian Cave Diver) in a few weeks. I am a relatively novice cave diver and plan to do all or most of my dives with a guide. Lanny at Underworld said that if my buddy and I want to do some dives on our own, they would be glad to brief us on where best to go and the logistics.

Yes, I was referring to cave diving. I updated the thread title for clarity The cenote dives I did with a guide were cave dives, and most of them involved 1 stage.

 

[GF99/99]

Next year, my buddy and I are planning a week-long trip to dive cenotes in Playa - Tulum area and we're interested in diving without a guide. Could you recommend places to stay, car rentals and dive centers where we can rent tanks? We’re both Cave CCR and DPV certified, but we plan to dive on OC SM and may bring or rent a DPV as well. While all of our cave training and experience is from Florida, I’ve also completed several guided cenote dives over the past four years.
Any advice on logistics, safety, and must visit cenotes would be greatly appreciated!

Cenote/Cave/whatever you want to call it self diving is super easy in the Tulum/Playa area and will save you a TON of money.

For car rental it is very hit or miss. I am assuming you are flying into Cancun or Tulum so make life easy and just rent from one of the airport agencies. All of the big US brand name car rental agencies are franchises and do not follow the same standards you would use to around the world. They have lots of scams with insurance. I wish I could tell you good one but they are all not very great. I have had the best luck with Europcar. Make sure you take a very good detailed video of you rental car befor you drive it off the lot. As for what kind of car, well and SUV is best but a cheap a$$ so it get the discount manual I'm stupid mini economy car and I can still fit 2 divers with rebreathes and B/O as well as make it all the way up to Concha/Fenomeno road with no issues. So in theory you don't really need a truck/SUV bit it is much nicer to have it. Also pro tip right befor you return the car take it to the carwash and have them wash and vacuum it.

For stays unless you want a fancy hotel on the beach I think Air B&B is the best. You can get some very nice apartments with full kitchen for fairly cheap. There is tons of options with all different price ranges.

For tank rentals in Tulum Protec is my go to place and Cuzul for playa area. Both place rent most of your standard tanks; twinsets, S80, S40, 3l, 2l, etc. and will do just about any fill you need but standard fills are O2, 32% or air. Both are super simple to rent from and then for the duration of your trip you can just drop the tanks off in the afternoon when your done diving and they will be ready in the morning; Protec opens at 8am and Cuzul at 7am. Cuzul will have more verity if you looking for some odd ball tank rentals also alot easier to get trimix from. Protec usual gives you nice "cave fills" 210-220bar Cuzul fills will always be 200bar on the dot.

For DPV's Protec rents Seacrafts and Zero Gravity rents Suex's

For scrubber Protec sells Intersorb. Cuzul and ZG sell Sofnolime (Cuzul is usually a little cheaper and if you pay with cash he gives you a better price)

For stick maps/local info most of the guys are Protec a very helpful if not they have alot of maps in the shop just take a photo. ZG also has also of maps as well. Also couple website have some good maps Quintana Roo cave maps Cave Ha Diving Center Mexico also has alot of good info on there site and maps

For driving directions Google maps is the best. Pretty much every major Cenote is on Google maps. Almost all the Cenotes are on private land so you will to pay an entrance fee. Also one of the nice things is usually most of the cenotes lines start in open water, there are a couple that require primary reels but for the most part alot do not. Some must do's in the Tulum area (All are on google maps for driving directions):

• Jailhouse
• Myan Blue
• Monkey Dust
• Chan Hol
• Angelita
• Dos Pisos
• Naharon
• Kim Ha
• Torruga
• Vaca Ha
• Xulo/Caterpillar
• Doggi
• Nohoch
• Concha
• Fenomeno
• Outland
• Nariz
• Dos Ojos
• Dos Palmas

And I would list The Pit if your actually going to the Wakulla room (if you have the chance this is a must do)

For logistics honestly its pretty easy, once you rent your tanks and have a car your set. If you want Protec will rent you a locker and space in there tec room for setting up your rebreather (pending they do not have a ton of customers) if you want to store your stuff there. Personally I just bring everything in my Air B&B. Usual diving day goes like this: wake up pack all you stuff into the car, drive into town to get morning Tacos from Taqueria El Sabor, stop at protec and pick up tanks, drive to Cenote, unload, gear up, go diving, re-load car, stop in town for more Tacos, drop tanks of a Protec to get filled, drive back to Air B&B and unload and get ready to repeat the next day.

For safety usually a good idea to let someone know where you guys are at and when your expected to be back. Also depending on how long of dives your doing some of the cenotes you can rack up some deco. I always stage an o2 bailout for these dives. Better to be safe than sorry. Also for car safety at night don't leave anything visible in your car like sunglasses, phones, bags, dive gear, etc. better to not give anyone the temptation.

 

[macado]

@GF99/99 's post is very thorough and an excellent guide.

For shorter dive trips in Tulum I like to stay at Protec's Basecamp (upstairs from the dive shop) or Hotel Biwa which is waking distance to Protec (mentioned by @Norwegian Cave Diver ).

For longer trips we've always rented an AirBNB-type accommodation but I've also stayed at Underworld Tulum and find Lanny and Claire both to be awesome resources. I'd stay there again in a heart beat!

I like to pick up tanks the previous night so I can just get up and go in the morning and beat the rush of divers picking up cylinders and loading gear. It's not really a big deal but it's nice to get to dive site earlier and have your choice of parking or be first team in the water.

I typically use Protec in Tulum for tank fills or rentals. I would recommend bringing your own stage / sidemount rigging. They do have rigging but they charge for it; It's not that much but it adds up.

They are able to support independent divers without much fuss. They are also very good about sharing information if you need information about a specific cenote, dive or entry procedures.

I can't really answer regarding car rentals as we usually have our own vehicle with us. I've also never personally had an issue but I tend to not leave computers / regulators / drysuits in my car overnight and bring everything into the hotel / AirBNB. I also keep minimal money / credit cards in my wallet when at the dive site.

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

If your going to dive Caterpillar - there is a fee you need to pay, but...
It is a place known for people to show and break into your vehicle. We tend to do one of the following...
Pay at the end of the day, or take a person with us (a staff member from Protec) to be with the vehicle while we are diving.

Xulo should be on the list also. It is the alternate access to Caterpillar. Expect 1.5 hours with a single stage and a low bedding plane.

 

[GF99/99]

If your going to dive Caterpillar - there is a fee you need to pay, but...
It is a place known for people to show and break into your vehicle. We tend to do one of the following...
Pay at the end of the day, or take a person with us (a staff member from Protec) to be with the vehicle while we are diving.

Xulo should be on the list also. It is the alternate access to Caterpillar. Expect 1.5 hours with a single stage and a low bedding plane.

Agree, unless you have someone to stay with your car I would not park at Caterpillar. Other than this one all the other Cenotes are super safe for parking. The only other ones that I can think of where you kind of park in the open (non commercialized tourist Cenote) is Nariz, Concha, Fenomeno, Outland, Kim Ha, Tortuga, Vac Ha, but I have never heard of anyone having issues there. I have parked at all of these many many times and most leave crates, tanks, etc. in the back to trucks and they are safe.

Much much much safter to just pay the 300 and park at Xulo. The older gentlemen that lives there is very nice and your car is super safe there. If you like shallow bedding planes the traverse from Xulo to Caterpillar is super fun!! one of my favorites!! Also lots of fun jumps to explore off this line. This is a great CCR Cenote depending or your B/O planning train of thought you can use Caterpillar or Bobcat as a B/O if the sh!t really hits the fan, long walk back to the car but at least your alive. I have done some 400-500min dives here with just two s80 B/O's

 

[oya]

I've got to make the disclaimer that I make my living as a guide and instructor in this area. So take whatever I've got to say with whatever amount of salt you feel your blood pressure can tolerate.

I'm also compelled to say that I do not believe in the idea of mandatory guiding. I am, in fact, dead set against the idea. I train divers to be self/team-reliant. Not to be hand-held every step of the way like it's a Discover Scuba Experience for every dive.

BUT... And this is the reason I felt compelled to chime in...

What ya'll wouldn't know - because you aren't exactly members of the community here - is that there are voices in the community here that are very much in favor of such a cockamamie idea.

Don't panic. I very much doubt they'll get very far. But the conversation comes up with annoying consistency and there are loud and somewhat respected voices who very much support the idea.

Please don't give those voices more encounters or examples that they can use as ammunition for the cause.

As some folks have mentioned, conditions here are very different. Access is variable and constantly changing; especially given the amount of rampant development here including that bloody train and airport. Landowners who were friendly to divers last season aren't allowing access this season. Please don't give any other landowners any reasons to deny access next season.

With respect to some of the above posters: some of the information you have given is wrong or outdated. So for folks looking to follow some of that advice... please take it with a grain of salt as well.

Stick to the easily accessed sites at first. It's your first time here... they will be impressive. You don't need to go to the middle of the jungle. If you rent from a place like Protec/etc. they'll definitely be helpful with things like where to park, who to pay, where to tie off, etc. There will almost certainly be people at the sites you can chat with as well. Don't assume protocols from "back home" are the norm here; some instructors will wait for you in the parking lot to give you a dressing down about linework (I'm not kidding).

In any case, enjoy your trip.