Main Menu
Join Undercurrent on Facebook

The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers Since 1975 | |
For Divers since 1975
The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers Since 1975
"Best of the Web: scuba tips no other
source dares to publish" -- Forbes
X
 

Dive Review of Dive Palancar/Occidental Grand in
Cozumel and the Mexican Yucatan/Cozumel

Dive Palancar/Occidental Grand, Nov, 2002,

by Charles Tache, TX, USA . Report 724.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 5 stars Food 5 stars
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 3 stars Shore Diving 3 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 4 stars
Advanced 4 stars
Comments Occidental Grand is a very nice new 5 star hotel. Everything is new and pristine. Staff was very courteous and helful, and wore lots of smiles. Food quality was top notch and good selection. Mind the dress code when dining at the specialty restaurants. This means that men need to bring a long pair of pants and a sport shirt.

Entertainment was low key. Maybe this was because they were only open a matter of weeks. The pools were cold, and this may be for the same reason that they had not had time to warm up yet.

Dive Palancar was dissapointing. The reefs are very close, so you only have about five minutes to get ready for the dive. Then, after each dive, the boat returns to the dock for your surface time. Then back on the boat for the rush to the next dive. When I am on vacation, I don't care for the "hurry up attitude." With that said, the boats were miticulously kept, the briefings were complete, and the staff courteous. Depth and time restrictions were enforced, but they were close to the limits on my computer, so I did not feel restricted. I would recommend the "Occidental Grand" but experienced divers may want to utilize a more "custom" dive operator.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 101-250 dives
Where else diving Florida Panhandle, Purto Rico (Culebra), Okinawa, Southern California.
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather windy, rainy Seas choppy, currents
Water Temp 80-81°F / 27-27°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 100-125 Ft/ 30-38 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile no
Enforced diving restrictions 100 feet first dive, 80 feet second dive.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks 1 or 2 Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles None Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 4 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish 2 stars
Large Pelagics 1 stars

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter N/A Boat Facilities N/A
Overall rating for UWP's N/A Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments [None]
Was this report helpful to you?
Leave a comment (Subscribers only -- 200 words max)
Subscribers can comment here
 

Subscribe Now
Subscribers can post comments, ask the reviewer questions, as well as getting immediate and complete access to ALL 1077 dive reviews of Cozumel and the Mexican Yucatan and all other dive destinations. Complete access to all issues and Chapbooks is also included.

 

Want to assemble your own collection of Cozumel and the Mexican Yucatan reports in one place?
Use the Mini Chapbook Facility to create your personalized collection.

Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

Undercurrent Home


Get more dive info like these and other important scuba updates sent monthly to your email.
And a FREE Recent Issue of Undercurrent

Free Undercurrent Issue
Get a free
monthly email and
a sample issue!


Find in  

| Home | Online Members Area | My Account | Login | Join |
| Travel Index | Dive Resort & Liveaboard Reviews | Featured Reports | Recent Issues | Back Issues |
| Dive Gear Index | Health/Safety Index | Environment & Misc. Index | Seasonal Planner | Blogs | Free Articles | Book Picks | News |
| Special Offers | RSS | FAQ | About Us | Contact Us | Links |

Copyright © 1996-2024 Undercurrent (www.undercurrent.org)
3020 Bridgeway, Ste 102, Sausalito, Ca 94965
All rights reserved.

Page computed and displayed in 0.12 seconds