Would you dive with this op?

[Ron Lee]

There are sites (Palancar) where you can dive shallow to deep. Add a private divemaster for the first two dives and the outcome should have been far better.

 

[Chilidog11]

I dove Cozumel with only my certification dives under my belt. We used Dive with Martin and explained my experience and they were awesome. We dove with the same group of people all week and one guy really wanted to dive Santa Rosa but we never did. I think it was because of my diving level. My dive instructor in class did prepare me for the fact that we would probably dive deeper than the 60ft i was trained for. The drift diving was a suprise though but I never had any issues. The DM Roberto kept a good eye on me without being overbearing and he made sure I had a private more in depth briefing on what to expect. I can't say enough good things about DWM. We will be with them in 6 weeks. CANNOT WAIT!!!

 

[Mossman]

Well, assuming they certified with the most common agency in the region, the certification doesn't encourage diving past 60 feet or in overhead environments- so that aspect is reckless, in that it isn't what they were trained for.

I don't know of any certification agency that doesn't train for diving past 60', regardless of what they encourage. Especially in warm clear water as in Cozumel, there is no different skill set required for 85' than there is for 60'. The only differences are in air consumption and nitrogen loading and I hope their certification course covered both of these topics. Narcosis can potentially be a factor deeper than 80', but in warm clear water it's usually imperceptible at that depth.

Were their dives unguided, maybe they could be considered reckless. But if they were following a more experienced diver (who hopefully had professional-level certifications, though that's not guaranteed in Cozumel) who knew of their inexperience, the risks are minimal. Sure, down currents may occur on Santa Rosa wall, but they're just as likely to flummox a diver with 50 dives as a diver with 5 and they're pretty rare.

As for swim-throughs, where do you get that kind of training besides a cavern or cave course? I've never taken either, yet I consider myself as prepared as any other average Cozumel recreational diver for the rigors of surviving the usually brief "overheads" found in Cozumel.

 

[Skittl1321]

Did I make a mistake?

I dove Cozumel as a rank beginner, just a few cold water, shallow lake dives past my certification. I was so nervous the DM stopped the first briefing to ask if I was okay. (Thankfully, once in the water, I was just fine. But on the dock and boat I was ready to run away and not do it.) The third/fourth day when she had told us we were going to Santa Rosa, I was thinking about just skipping the dive- but she allowed me to dive on top of the wall, instead of to the side of it with some of the rest of the group (a few others stayed on top too).

My point: I did 11 dives in Cozumel without ever being in a situation where I, about as nervous as they come, was in a situation where I felt uncomfortable. (I didn't love the swim throughs, but when I told her that, she promised to keep them wide and where you could always see the light from the exit. Still didn't love them, but as Christi points out- it's a group dive and if I don't have a private DM, you have to go with the group.) I never went below 75 feet, and could have stayed at 60 if I really wanted to. Most dives the current was minimal.

I did not dive with a house op, but rather a boutique op that was recommended as being excellent with beginners and able to cater a bit to my specific needs; but to me, the main thing was to know a bit about what I was getting into- what the common dive sites in Cozumel were. If I had been taken to a wall for my first dive, I would have declined to get in the water and just done the second tank. For that first ocean dive, I wanted a floor.

You didn't make a mistake deciding to dive Cozumel as a beginner. Going with an op where they can't provide real personal attention (or an op that caters to more experienced divers)- private divemaster for the first day is a really really good idea. I think if I had been with most anyone else (my op really reassured me that she could give me the attention I needed- my first day I think most of the boat was repeat customers she knew well) I would have gotten one.

 

[Lost Sailor]

Wow what an overwhelming read. My wife and I are going to be staying at the Grand starting next weekend (May 3 -9). I have been in contact with Pro-Dive and was offered the 10% discount, but haven't booked anything. We are rookie divers, certified several years ago but with only a few cold lake dives under our weight belts. This will be our first ocean diving and my wife is already showing some major nervousness. After reading this I too am getting butterflies. I chose Cozumel for the deep sea fishing and because the internet is loaded with folks saying that it is a good place for scuba beginners. Lots of cruise ship passengers trying scuba for the first time, that sort of thing. The dive maps show novice dive sites. Did I make a mistake?

Jazz-fan - whatever you do, don't let my post scare you away from Cozumel. I love the island, love the people and love the diving, I just made a mistake on the last trip. It's a commercial issue that I have with one operator - I went to the shop over two and a half days to make sure that we would be going to the right spots, I chose afternoons in order to avoid the deeper dives, and the guide briefed the right dive because that's what everyone getting on the boat expected - the change didn't come until we were going into the water. Whatever the nature of the sport, that is simply unacceptable.

My only other experience on Cozumel is with Dive with Martin and it was such a better time.

 

[DjDiverDan]

One thing that hasn't yet been mentioned is that, because Pro Dive doesn't use local Dive Masters - they use the Op as a training grounds for foreign DMs - those DMs do not have the same level of knowledge of or experience with tho local dive sites. If for no other reason, That's enough to put them on my "will not dive with" list. A local DM, one who grew up on Cozumel and has been diving here all his life, is going to know enough about the dive sites to know when the Captain stopped at the wrong drop site.

 

[flots am]

Problem at times is the person jumping in doesn't always know that it could be bad (more than any other dive that could go bad).

If you have a brand new diver in tow and had specifically asked for a shallow, low current reef, and the boat takes you to a wall drift dive, you know it's not what you had asked for.

You can't always get the dive site you want, but the final decision to enter the water always rests with each diver.

 

[jazz_fan1]

Jazz-fan - whatever you do, don't let my post scare you away from Cozumel.

Don't worry about that, I am booked and going anyway. (BTW I hope I didn't hijack your posting too much)! I just really didn't want to have a repeat of your experience. And before reading this I was all but ready to go out on the water with Pro Dive. Thanks to all for the advice.

I am not really so much concerned about myself. My wife has always been kind of uneasy about scuba anyway, and this means that my dive buddy is typically not interested in going, which means that more often than not I don't get to dive much. Probably need to be less anti-social and try to make some new friends. But in any case her biggest problem is the 10-20' visibility that we get locally and cold temperatures make her feel claustrophobic. She is excited about Cozumel and I am hoping its all good experiences or I will lose her in the water with me forever.

 

[Skittl1321]

is going to know enough about the dive sites to know when the Captain stopped at the wrong drop site.

It sounds like the DM knew (since he told them "oh, this isn't the site I briefed you about") to me, the problem is he didn't care.

I do think the diver has a responsibility for themselves, and I'd like to think I would be smart enough to forfit the $40 and skip a dive I hadn't been briefed for and didn't think I was prepared for; but if the DM knew they had beginners on the boat, when he realized they were at Cedral Wall, he should have told the captain to try again!

 

[Zman96]

If you have a brand new diver in tow and had specifically asked for a shallow, low current reef, and the boat takes you to a wall drift dive, you know it's not what you had asked for.

You can't always get the dive site you want, but the final decision to enter the water always rests with each diver.

Agreed! I was speaking more about the Santa Rosa dive versus the Original Posters situation.