Trip Report: Cozumel, Mexico
February 17 – 22, 2003
Prologue:
This was my first trip out of the country with the Abyssmal Diver’s group, and
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I had been to Cozumel back in 1997 on a
family trip through the Yucatan. Things had changed quite a bit since my first
trip.
Getting There:
We elected to fly Mexicana Airlines into
Cancun, and take a shuttle to Playa Del Carmen to catch the ferry across to
Cozumel. This approach had two distinct advantages; (1) it was a direct flight
from Los Angeles (LAX) to Cancun (CUN) and even with the shuttle and the ferry
ride, the total time was less than doing the connection through Houston, and,
(2) it was cheaper than the “2 stop and land in Cozumel (CZM)” airfare, with
the shuttle and ferry costs added in.
Cozumel
Facilities:
We chose “Las Brisas” formerly known as “Costa Club” and “Fiesta
Inn” for our trip this year. It seems that this resort changes names the way
most folks change their underwear. The resort itself is well maintained, clean,
and comfortable. There is a restaurant on the premises, however it is not the
cheapest meal in town. Breakfast ran an average $13.00 (US), a fruit plate and
coffee was $6.00 (US).
Las Brisas also has its own pier, as do most of the larger resorts, and Dive Paradise operates out of the hotel grounds. An added convenience, which proved a bonus on the first day of diving when our dive operator couldn’t get his smaller “fast” boats out of the harbor due to conditions ( a strong wind created rough sea’s closing the port to smaller craft). But Dive Paradise’s 44’ slow boat was able to get out, giving us 2 dives for our first day instead of none.
As mentioned above the restaurant on the hotel premises is a bit expensive,
however a short taxi ride into San Miguel, and you have a wide variety of eating
options available to you and in every price range. From just a couple of bucks
for huaraches at Cholongo’s to $18 for veal parmigiane at the Prima’s. If
you do go to Cholongo’s bring your own cerveza’s, he doesn’t serve them,
but doesn’t mind if you bring your own.
Entertainment
and other Interests:
There was quite a bit to do in town near the plaza, but quite honestly, by the
time we got back from our night dive, all we were ready to do was take a shower
and call it a night. Most of our sight seeing was done in the afternoon, between
the mid-day dive and the night dive. And dinner was sandwiched in this time slot
too.
The dive operator we used was Living
Underwater. Living Underwater’s claim to fame is the longest bottom times,
and the fastest boats. They get the long bottom times by providing LP steel
120’s. Their boats are small, but accommodated all 7 of us plus the crew
comfortably, and they were fast. We would typically leave after most other boats
and yet would consistently arrive at the dive spots before the other boats.
The reefs of Cozumel are world renowned for their immensity, diversity, and
beauty. They are spectacular! The
diving is easy, every dive is a drift dive, although Jeremy tried to ensure the
night dives were either non-drift or a very slow drift dive.
Playa Del Carmen
Facilities:
In Playa we stayed in a small hotel “Hotel
Colibri” right on the beach north of the main plaza. The staff was
friendly and very helpful, at one point when were trying to arrange the van back
to Cancun for the flight home, Simone, our concierge paid for it out of her own
pocket to reserve it as we were out diving at the time, talk about going the
extra mile for your guests. All rooms were comfortable and clean. The hotel has
28 rooms and 5 cabanas. There is
also a small dive shop on premises.
Food:
Hotel Colibri has a small bar/restaurant on the beach but I must admit, we never
partook of it. We did venture up one block to Quinta Avenida (Fifth Avenue),
which has been blocked off to all vehicular traffic and tried several fine
eateries there. One of our favorites was Hemmingway’s which made killer
Jamaican Margarita’s, oh, and the food wasn’t bad either. Another was the
100% Natural, natural food restaurant. We had breakfast there everyday. Their
fresh squeezed orange juice was outstanding, and they had great omelets. Their
only shortcoming was the coffee, very weak, however, this was easily solved by a
short stroll to Java Joe’s just across the street, for a good strong brew, and
they had no problem with you bringing it back to the restaurant. They must’ve
known their coffee was bad.
Entertainment
and other Interests:
There is a pretty active nightlife in Playa del Carmen for those interested in
such activities. Being a group of middle-aged men, our nightlife consisted of
maybe a drink or two with dinner and back to the hotel by 9:00 pm.
There are plenty
of places to buy souveniers, and artwork by local artisans. All along Quinta
Avenida you’ll hear the vendors calling, “the best silver in all of the
Yucatan, no junk.” And there are some beautiful pieces to be had at very
reasonable prices.
Dive Operator:
Dive Adventuras in Puerto Adventuras
handled all our Cenote diving needs. They were professional, and went out of
their way to accommodate us. They picked us up at our hotel (for a small
additional fee), brought us to their shop, where we completed any necessary
paperwork, and picked up necessary gear. The dive briefings were complete, Oscar
our dive master went over the safety factors associated with cavern diving, what
to expect, the layout of the each cenote and how we would navigate them. A sack
lunch was provided, and at the end of the day, they drove us back to our hotel.
The Diving:
Cenotes diving was in a word, intense! They are magical, other worldly, unreal,
mysterious, the descriptors are endless. Unless someone kicks up the silt, the
water is ultra clear, in fact at points you really don’t feel like your in
water, except when you exhale, there are the bubbles. Chac-Mool does have
salt-water infiltration so there are haloclines, a shimmering similar to a
thermocline where the two waters meet, that tend to hinder visibility.
One note of caution: In spite of what might be presented in various forums, cenote diving is intense. You are in an over-head environment for most of the dive. Chac-Mool did have several openings to the surface, but they were spaced out. You will be out of sight of an opening to the surface for extended periods of time. Dos Ojos (two eyes) is even worse, with only the eyes open to the surface, and the bat cave has a ladder to an opening cut in the roof, the rest of the time you will be in an over-head environment. If you are not comfortable in the conditions, give it some thought before committing to it. Also, lights are required. It gets dark in there, very, very dark.
That said, the diving there is nothing short of spectacular. The rock formations, stalactites and stalagmites, the sensation of flying through a cave, the clarity of the water, all combine to make this a truly awesome experience. Oscar our dive master was excellent. He kept a watchful eye to make sure everyone was doing ok, no panic, and no one got lost. All routes are well marked with a guideline and direction markers. Did I mention the diving was spectacular?
Summary:
If you want excellent diving, outstanding food, and a warm inviting people for a
reasonable price Cozumel can’t be beat. The variety of diving and the sheer
number of locations guarantees you won’t be bored, and the likelihood of
overcrowded reefs is almost nil. The only place we ran into another group was
Devil’s Throat, and even then there were just a few other divers.
Playa del Carmen has a charm all its own. The people are warm and friendly, the beaches were awesome, the food outstanding, the margarita’s strong, and the diving…intense!
Would I go back?
Absolutely.
Rating: 10.