Which Cenote diving for beginners around Riviera Maya?

[scubawife]

Thanks for your replies. It sounds that the cenote dives are real cave dives - no place to surface any time, and it could get very dark - both of which I'm not qualified for. If that's the case for all cenote dives in the area, is "Dive Aventuras" very irrsponsible and very misleading by stating that "Although special certification is required for divers who want to penetrate caves, no advanced training is necessary for certified divers who want to explore the cenotes, since routes always follow tunnels bathed in natural sunlight" ? If they are, why everybody on this board seems to be raving about this operator? Could there be some particular dives that fit their description?

Dive Aventuras is a great shop, well established with a good reputation. Do a couple ocean dives with them before the cenotes. They'll know your skill and comfort level and if you want to do a cenote, they won't steer you wrong or get you into something you can't enjoy and manage.

Technically, the "cavern zone" is within I think 250ft of an exit, and daylight. And yes, there is no cert other than open water needed to do a cenote dive with a qualified guide within the cavern zone.

 

[Comstockfire]

Dive Aventuras is a great shop, well established with a good reputation. Do a couple ocean dives with them before the cenotes. They'll know your skill and comfort level and if you want to do a cenote, they won't steer you wrong or get you into something you can't enjoy and manage.

Technically, the "cavern zone" is within I think 250ft of an exit, and daylight. And yes, there is no cert other than open water needed to do a cenote dive with a qualified guide within the cavern zone.

I agree. I just completed my OW training with Pluto Dive in Playa and my first 2 "real" dives were in Chac Mool cenote. If your buoyancy is well controlled in open water and you don't have any claustrophobic issues you will do fine.

 

[sebasdess]

Imho, Dos Ojos and Grand Cenote are suitable for beginners and you have a "cave feeling".

Chac Mool is nice too, but many "up and down" and you will see the halocline much more (so you will sometimes really poor visibility... all things will be really blury)

 

[johnsona1503]

If you do decide to do a cenote dive there is one thing wish I had known before I did dive number 15 and 16 at a cenote.

That is proper weighting.

You may be renting equipment like I did at that stage. When I dove Choc Mool the DM fitted me in 5 mill farmer john. First time for me in a farmer john and its more boyant than the 5 mill one piece I trained in. At that stage I also did not have my weighting dialed in. I did not know some of the tricks that I have since learned from scubaboard and found which ones worked for me. Not that I have anything dialed in now.

My wife is my buddy and our buddy skills at that stage were not what I would want them to be in a cave environment. When your number 5 in a single file 5 diver group you would swear the few times the DM checked you was the only time anyone looked at you.

I started by stating there was one thing I wish I knew and I've mentioned 2 and left out another dozen. I walk thru every cave I get a chance to tour and love them but after my first cenote dive and had no problems in any way, I told another SB poster if you've seen one cave you've seen them all. That comment did not make TsandM too happy but when it comes to diving a cenote I might have the basic skills now to at least enjoy the dive but wont do one as they are trust me dives.

 

[dougr52]

Jason have you done any night dives? I think being comfortable in the dark is key. I was surprised how dark Taj Mahal was--it was night-dive dark for 90% of the dive.

Another diver told me Chac Mool is more open and has more light, but haven't dove it myself.

i dove chac mool last year, i was under the impression that i would always see day light, not true, a lot of places completly pitch black and you cannot surface if there is a problem.. i had a problem, and it is very bad when you can' surface !!!

 

[johnsona1503]

dougr52, tell us more, DETAILS. I learn something on every dive I've done and a heck of lot of usable info.on SB.

 

[vip-diving]

Normally for the first cenote the diveshop will bring you to Chacmool. Its a cenote where you have more daylights entering in the cenote then the other one. Dos ojos his also an easy one. If your interested i have a small diving operation depending where his your hotel we can pick you up at your lobby with all equipment in the van. I can not give my url yet because i need 5 treads but you can look on google for vip-diving you will find us.

Philippe Duval

 

[knfmn]

I dove Dos Ojos and Chac Mool while I was in Playa Del Carmen with my wife in January and it was a fantastic experience. I'm a new diver, too, but had no hesitation going into the caverns with the guides I had. They were both extremely experienced and kept a super-close eye on the people they had with. I dove with Mexico Blue Dream and can't wait to go back.

Kristopher

 

[Dirty-Dog]

Our 13th & 14th logged dives were in Chac Mool. Our skills were about what you'd expect for new divers. Bouyancy control good enough to avoid the top or bottom, able to frog kick, and probably using more air (especially me...) than any 3 real divers.
It was a great experience. Do some OW dives first with your guide, and get them to give you an honest opinion of your skills. That also gives you the chance to see how your guide acts in the water.
Our guide was the same instructor who did our resort course, our OW and AOW, so we were very comfortable with each other. We're planning to do one tank in Angelita this year, and two tanks in some other cenote, but have not decided which.

 

[Qnape]

As newer divers, my daughter and I also wanted to dive in the cenotes. We chose the harder way, and spent 3 long days last year taking a cavern course instead of entering the cenotes as OW divers. Perhaps I had some extra incentive towards caution, enforced by a wife looking over my shoulder (you are taking our daughter where??)

We passed the course and are returning this June to begin diving the cenotes for pleasure. I feel glad I got the training, much of which also has helped advance my open water diving. As a large part of our training, we learned a lot about what can go wrong, and how to deal with specific problems in an overhead, potentially limited visibility environment. Then we drilled that scenario, sharing air, running a line without masks, closing our eyes and finding our way out on the line. As we trained, groups of escorted OW divers went ahead of us into the cenotes - and I considered how the leader would assist more than one of them with simultaneous problems, or multiple problems that could develop at the worst possible time. Murphy seemed to loom large. I came to understand why many find the practice controversial.

IMHO, an OW diver in the cenotes (at least where there is a true overhead - there may be several with air above throughout for all I know) IS doing a trust - me dive.