We are considering a family trip to Coz sometime over the next few months. Any suggestions on inexpensive places to stay (there are 5 of us plus a baby) that are close to the dive ops and offer shore diving? All inclusive would be great...
Thanks,
Joe
Joe -
Cozumel is not a place where you can stay at a resort and do lots of shore diving. All the reefs are far from shore and you need a boat to get to them. Plus it is all drift diving as current is strong, so even if you made it out to a reef you would have quite a fight to get back. This is true for most of the island. There are a few resorts that offer shore diving, but they are merely diving from a shore to some rubble which has fish, small coral at best.
There are lots of resorts, big and small to choose from on the island.
Your best bet is to buy the Cozumel map here:
MapChick's Cozumel map and travel guide
It is an excellent resource and most Cozumel visitors buy one to help get around. It has all the info you need for your vacation there: hotels, restuarants, taxi rates, car rental agencies, beaches, reefs, dive ops, shopping info... it is a travel guide.
As far as dive ops go, there are dozens and dozens of them, mostly small one boat ops but there are also some bigger ones, mostly associated with hotels. So you have quite a choice depending on your needs. Dive ops will pick up at hotel piers south of town so you don't have to be staying near the dive ops. Check with the dive op though to make sure they can pick up at your hotel.
Probably one good choice for a family, close enough to walk to town is
Hotel Cozumel. They have an all-inclusive plan or you can stay there wiithout it, your choice. It is a nicer budget type hotel. Look at some of the Dive travel agencies for package deals:
http://www.bayadventures.com/cozumel/rates.htm
Caradonna Dive Adventures - Dive Travel and Vacations
or you can even book that hotel through Expedia, etc.
I would suggest you buy the MAP first though so you can get an idea of the layout of the island.
another website that might help:
Cozumel My Cozumel: A Reliable Travel Resource
robin