Cozumel

Advanced Divers/Plaza Las Glorias, May 1995, Stuart & Deborah Avrin, Plano, TX. "Plaza Las Glorias first class; close to town but, from sites. Advanced Divers great about finding sites away from crowds. Allow experienced divers to dive computer limits."

Aldora Divers, August 1995, James Whipple, Taylor, MI. "Dove at 8 AM sharp - first boat to the reef everyday. Saw: black tips, turtles, bottlenose dolphins, nurse sharks; no other divers until end of dive. Lunch/breakfast at a local beach. 'NEW' tanks, spare airs, new regs. First class operation."

Aldora Divers, December 1995, Ellen Mauer, Union, NJ. "An operation discerning, experienced divers dream about. One day we took a super long surface interval on San Francisco beach (went there every day between dives) and did dive: #1 the entire cavern system at Punta Sur and for dive #2 did Columbia Wall at 100! Steel Genesis tanks 80's, 100's, and 120's whatever you prefer. Did Santa Rosa wall as never before (been there 3 x's) went through all the cavern swim thrus in the reef. Every other day went south to Punta Sur, etc. A real class act. vis: 75­80 ft. water: 81°­83°."

Aqua World, February 1995, Raul & Carol Jimenez, El Paso, TX. "5 of us new to the sport. Instructor gave no briefing and just indicated we were to follow him. Halfway into the trip, one diver was low on air. Sergio motioned him to surface and we went on. The diver started back down and Sergio became upset and started after the diver, motioning us to stay. The divers buddy also began to surface leaving us on the bottom. We waited 15 minutes until we were down to 500 psi and decided to surface. The boat was 900 yards away and the water was rough. After a eternity trying to swim to the boat, a small lobster boat picked us up. Once back at the dive boat, we found our 'leader,' relaxing having removed all his gear."

Aqua Safari/Plaza Las Glorias, March 1995, Robert Bohanno, Willis. "Angel and staff a pleasure to deal with. Big boats get cramped, stick with fast boat. Shore dive: enter at 2nd telephone pole before the harbor near El Presidente - easy access to Paradise Reef. Punta Sur lots of fun; Santa Rosa Wall spectacular as is Columbia Deep. Columbia Shallow has healthy coral and abundant small fish life - fast boat will honor request (afternoon fast boat best). Seldom dived: Fiesta Delila, Punta Tonicle and Des Pulanas. Safety is stressed and depths restricted on regular dives. Once the divemasters have confidence in you there is flexibility. Best snorkeling at Playa Corona."

Aqua Safari/Plaza Los Glorias, June 1995, Dennis McCrea, Sacramento, CA. "3 well equipped boats with twin diesel engines, covered. Dive staff accommodating, balancing site choice to those who had been on the boat awhile. Several divers were 'reef crashers.' Divemasters had to take their gloves away. Food at the resort above average."

Aqua Safari/Barracuda Hotel, July 1995, Carolina Nurik, Longwood, FL. "Boats comfortable; divemasters helped divers without being controlling. Knowledgeable about where to find certain fish. Should have stayed at the hotel where the operator was located so we could store our gear overnight. Island Photo and Video, Holly Alentado, helpful when I had camera 'problem'."

Aqua Safari, Fiesta Inn, September 1995, N.B. Ross, Abilene, TX. "Fiesta Inn clean and well run. In town food excellent, prices good. Nearly every afternoon there was a brief shower, but not enough to matter. . . . Aqua Safari does a good job considering there were 16 divers of all d abilities. If you have seen all of Palancar Reef you want, book with someone else. vis: 100­150ft. water: 82°­84°."

Aqua Safari/Cozumel Fiesta Inn, September 1995, Mark Fleming, Houston, TX. "Aqua Safari operates at a standard significantly higher than years ago. One block from Fiesta Inn; beautifully landscaped pool and a friendly, cooperative staff."

Aqua Safari/Plaza Las Glorias, November 1995, Anne Godejen, Redondo Beach, CA. "Two weeks after Roxanne; viz 30­60 feet. Lots of sponges and garbage on the beach. Aqua Safari divemasters competent, safety-minded. Friendly help, but you manage all your own gear. Water 82° to 84°F. Depth limit 120 to 130 ft. Saw one shark. . . . Plaza Las Glorias ok, but every request from getting towels to a glass of water at breakfast required three tries."

Aqua Safari/Plaza Las Glorias, December 1995, no name. "Hotel is close to town, large rooms, clean, free safe deposit box in your room, also a refrigerator; food excellent. Great place. Aqua Safari is great if you want to meet a lot of people on a dive boat." vis: 100­150 ft. water: 80°."

Aqua Safari/Plaza Las Glorias, July 1996, Chuck Wohlust, Orlando, FL. "Relaxed easy going place; night life if you want. Lot of divers; like Grand Central Station in the morning at the piers, but handled fairly efficiently. Wonderful restaurants: Santiagos, La Mission, El Capi Navigante and Pizza Rolandi."

Aqua World, November 1995, Russell Radcliffe, Auburn, ME. "Poor weather, 6­8' swells, current 6­8 knots, poor vis, surge."

Aquatic Sports/Fiesta Inn, 1995, Gary Nagel, Milwaukee, WI. "Dove Maracaibo, Columbia, and Punta Sur. Sergio's boat old and slow. Always greeted with a smile and treated as valued customers. At dock equipment handled by staff. Water had thimble jelly fish at the surface so the staff was conscientious about our entrances and exits. Allowed to do our own thing and dive our computer profiles. Dinner; try Santiago's and The Mission."

Blue Bubble/Fiesta Inn, February 1995, Sally Bussell, Pensacola, FL. "Hotel great; balconies overlooking channel perfect to dry gear. Sand beach and pier where Blue Bubble picked us up. BB first class operation. Put us with experienced divers and took us where we asked. Boats fast and newer Left later than other dive operators, but got to sites first. Kept us from other dive boats; dive with computers."

Blue Bubble Divers/Casa del Mar, February 1995, Brad & Maren Heinze, Sebastopol CA. "Flexible, helpful; lived up to motto: 'Blue Bubble . . . no trouble.' Boats fast, vis good, water 78­80°, drift mild, divemaster Giovanni had great humor; sensitive toward inexperienced divers. Used computers 4x/day safely. . . . Ask your physician for Flagyl or something similar before leaving home. Three of six developed mild to full revenge, and neither Pepto-Bismol nor Lomotil did much."

Blue Bubble Divers/El Presidente, May 1995, Dan Appel, Stevens Point, WI. "Top notch resort; rooms 1/2 price mid-April to mid-December ($120 standard, $240 deluxe ocean front). Meals pricey. Blue Bubble safe, friendly and helpful. Divemaster Giovani is excellent. You dive to your ability. First dive 80' plus depending on your ability. Long surface stop. Second dive 50' over a flat reef. 6-pack boats picked us up in morning at El Presidente. Prepared and switched tanks for second dive. Always good briefing. Longest boat ride 1/2 hour. Picked up at 9AM, back at hotel 12­12:30PM. 2-tank dives averaged $42 after 5 days (+10% tax)."

Blue Bubble/Day's Inn, August 1995, Roy Leonard, Converse, TX. "Tried two days to get to Punte Sur or Maracaibo without success. Grouped with less experienced divers who divemaster was unwilling to take to those locations (maybe other reasons, like distance and time). Night dive in bioluminescence was a treat. Days Inn - walk to shopping and dive shops. Large, clean rooms, economically a deal."

Blue Bubble Divers/Plaza Las Glorias, September 1995, Dale McKinney, Bluff City, TN. "Nothing could be easier than Cozumel's drift diving. Small fast boats with 6­8 divers made quick access to sites. Staff congenial. Columbia Reef exceptional. Plaza Las Glorias accommodating, within walking distance to town. Rained every day due to nearby hurricane; still the best dive trip."

Blue Bubble/Plaza Las Glorias, March 1996, David Vickery & Suzanne Leeson, Hobson, NJ. "Hotel close to town, down at the heels. Too many rowdies making noise at night. Dive operation good: take you where you want to go, match divers of similar abilities. Punctual, fast boats. Come at 9:00 and still beat cattle boats to the reef. . . . Devils Throat: had to swim to it; when we arrived I had 1100 psi, but others were at 600­800 before descending to 138'. At Maracaibo Deep, we entered 10 foot seas before dropping to 165'. Second dive at Columbia Deep was 101'. Third dive at Santa Rosa was 96' vis: 60­100 ft. water; 80°­82°. No oxygen on boat - said the tanks were being painted. Blue Bubble they had oxygen and but was the DM's responsibility to carry to the boat."

Caballito de Aquila Condo, December 1995, B. K. Marshall, Minneapolis, MN. "Well run dive operation; handled bad weather and divers with different skills with great success. Divemasters, particularly Oswald and Israel, were patient with novices, flexible with more experienced. Their routine for switching tanks and helping with gear in small boats best we have seen. They rinse gear and store overnight. Condo clean and convenient. . . . No lockers at dive shop; Aquila office failed to meet our plane and forced us to vacate condo too early on the day we left."

Caribbean Divers/Melia Mayan, July 1995, Rick Starrett, Los Gatos, CA. "Entire group must stick together. First one out of air, everybody up. No computers. Impossible to do photography or see anything much while being cattle herded. Resort was great."

Cha Cha Cha Dive Shop, June 1995, Edward Franks, Albany, NY. "Edmundo the best divemaster I've worked with; adept and safety conscious. Made trips exciting. Best with the moderate to advanced divers and enjoys challenging dives. Boat accommodates 6 divers, more with planning."

Cha Cha Cha Dive Shop, November 1995, Kathy Sours, Peoria, IL. "Disaster. Divemaster was forever preaching safety but underwater when he wanted you to move over, he would grab and jerk you quite suddenly. Once he grabbed my hand away and the mouthpiece went sailing. Not one to panic, I simply found it and put it back in my mouth; had I been a new diver, the result might have been different. He took a lady's arm and pushed it under an overhang of coral. Unfortunately, a spotted eel bit her. He acted like it never happened and when we were on the boat, he offered no first aid or apology. When filling out our log books Edmundo would sometimes refuse to tell us the names of the reefs. . . . Night dive the best."

Chino's Scuba/Day's Inn (AKA Villas Del Rey), April 1995, David Ryan, Waukegan, IL. "Small first-class operation. Daily destinations decided by divers with suggestions by Chino or Roberta. Staff is friendly and knowledgeable. Day's Inn 6 blocks from the main drag (a $1 taxi ride) and $200 cheaper. Excellent staff, AC, pool, safe and quiet."

Chino's Scuba/Plaza Los Glorias, May 1995, Ron & Cyndi Hart, Joliet, IL. "Food better and cheaper than Caymans; seafood excellent! Diving great, lots of eels, grouper (6'), lobster, octopus. Night dive: bioluminescence all around. Chino allowed us to dive at our own competence (computers). Always pleasant and friendly, competent without being restrictive. Plaza Las Glorias adequate."

Chino's Dive Shop/Plaza Las Glorias, June 1995, Jim Juneau, Houston, TX. "First class resort; short walk from town. Pricey, good food/drinks; large air conditioned rooms with ocean view: excellent for less adventuresome. . . . Chino's: slowest boat on the island, but divemasters knew where to find interesting things. Coral fascinating; towering coral heads, caves, tunnels. Stout current requires vigilance and planning. Bring your ScubaTuba and whistle and know the name of your boat. Lots of divers get separated from their group; currents mix dive groups together."

Chino's Scuba Shop/Wildcat Scuba/Plaza Las Glorias, April 1996, Leslie Eiser, Beaconsfield, NC. "3rd floor room; king bed, refrigerator, microwave, coffee maker, blender, sitting area, balcony to dry gear. Dinner buffet: $9 . Short walk to town for $15 dinners for two. . . . Chino guaranteed 6 divers max. Late picking us up, but we steamed past every boat. Between dives, serves fresh rolls, fruit, water or sodas. . . . Divemasters professional . Two boats are shaded. Turtles every dive, 4 rays, grouper let me pat him. Chino coaxed out splendid toad fish. Too many divers; frequently divers in front, a group behind, even a group above. During night dive, it was so crowded the sea was filled with lights. Instead of feeling like an explorer, I felt like a tourist on a cheap bus tour. Boat ride 30 minutes then wait in line for our turn to explore a cave. I got yelled at by a video team because I wasn't moving thru a cave quite fast enough to suit them. Only once did we find a site off the beaten track: Punta Tunish and a roller coaster current ride. . . . Dove with Wildcat; pickup 20 minutes early, making us rush to get down. Third diver off a cruise ship and had made arrangements to go snorkeling with his family later. Divemaster made him her priority, and cut short our interval and bottom time. Went back to Chino's for the rest of the week. . . . Took ferry ($14 round trip) to mainland, rented a car ($45), and toured the Mayan ruins at Tulum (neat) and Coba (much neater)."

Club Cozumel Caribe, July 1995, Steve Kress, Holland, PA. "Hotel nice, rooms clean. All inclusive - food only fair. Not enough fiber; fruit only served at breakfast. Diving $29 for 2 tank dive. Only 1 DM per 12 divers. Had several cave dives and swim throughs in excess of 120 feet without follow-up DM's. Not safe for new or average divers."

Club Cozumel Caribe, November 1995, Lynn Gordon, Joe Brown Florence, AL. "Service, staff excellent. Food O.K., plentiful. Hotel had dancing, games, boat rides. Dive boat not over crowded. Good fish; not too much coral damage."

Cozumel Equalizers, May 1995, Steve Neal, Fairfield, TX. "Small operation 2 blocks from pier off plaza. Our 12-year-old was doing her third and fourth dives. Divemaster showed her creatures"

Del Mar Aquatics/Casa Del Mar, June 1995, David W. Allen, Euless, TX. "New ownership. Some top guides left for other shops. Full payment in advance and no refunds. Two in our group were paying day-by-day to avoid paying for a dive they might miss. But when the boats filled, there were no more spots - even though they had been promised a reservation for the week. We booked dives everyday for a week, and each day was like starting over. . . . Two boats carry 30 divers each. Splash III has little leg room when seated. Intern¡ational Pier at Le Ceiba: peppermint shrimp, lobsters, hermit crabs, eels, eight octopus on each dives. Best sites are Santa Rosa Wall and Palancar Caves. Worst was El Cedral - current strong, little to see."

Del Mar Aquatics/La Cieba, August 1995, Julian Marshall, Ossining, NY. "Dive boats too full, did not have large enough buckets for camera gear. Divemasters Tony and Martin excellent, but heard about 'El Pirat' who left his group in the lurch and half the boat aborted the dive. . . . Hotel is ok, food adequate, but San Miguel is being turned into a tourist stop for cruise ships; must be 100 stores selling T-shirts. . . . Water was 82°­85°, currents at times strong and erratic. Vis:80­100 ft."

Deportes Aquaticos/Fiesta Americana, August 1995, Jim Juneau, Houston, TX. "Sergio Sandoval and Deportes Aquaticos staff are the best. No advertising and no "Dive Shop", so divers book by word-of-mouth. Dive boat large and comfortable, with only 4 divers this trip. Sergio led each dive with a 'safety-first' attitude without restricting diver's profile. After 25 years diving Cozumel, Sergio knew hidden critters and caves that I hadn't discovered, even at sites that I had dived several times. Fiesta Americana is comfortable with a very nice pool and good food. The staff was a bit surly and slow, and it's a long cab ride to town."

Dive Cozumel/Galapago Inn, February 1996, William Allen, Rochester Hills, MI. "As good as ever, the food even better. Set depth and time limits based on computer not tables. Emphasized the National Park and made divers aware of its protection. Tried to keep groups small and to match experience of divers. First rate operation. vis:85­100 ft. water: 78°"

Dive House/Fiesta Americana, February 1995, Fred Silberman, Philadelphia, PA. "Staff excellent, gear lockers at dock adjacent to hotel. Drift diving easy; photographers have to be quick to set up shots. . . . Hotel beautiful, large rooms with ocean view balconies. Wonderful restaurants in town at bargain prices, better than hotel meals."

Dive House/Fiesta Americana, March 1995, Bruno Lanman, Cincinnati, OH. "Excellent operation, good divemasters. Hotel excellent, food reasonable, a little too far from town."

Dive House/Fiesta Americana, June 1995, Jim Kutch, Honesdale, PA. "Close to Palancar, Columbia and Santa Rosa reefs. Boats roomy and fast; only 10 divers on each. Divemasters helpful and friendly. Resort 5 min taxi drive to town."

Dive House, June 1995, Alan & Barbara Fischl, Great Neck, NY. "Too many operators, too many boats, too many divers bumping into reefs, hanging on coral heads and trashing the eco-system. Good operation but we spent too many hours waiting for dive boat to return from picking up divers at another hotel. Divemasters nice but they neglect to warn their divers not to touch the reef. One divemaster got bent as did a diver on our boat. Jorge, the chief divemaster recounted to us how many times he had been in the chamber. Reef is lovely, vis good, no pelagics."

Dive House/Fiesta Americana, November 1995, Kelly Simmons, Douglassville, PA. "Hotel top notch: friendly and helpful staff. All amenities. Beach, pools. Lots of big and small fish: friendly for easy photography. Great caves and caverns. Drift diving relaxing (sometimes difficult). Most dives 40'­80' which allows a lot of bottom time. Dive House boat large but only had 8­12 divers. Divers picked location. Staff helpful putting on gear, getting out of boat, switching tanks. Dive House setup at Fiesta Americana could use a place to hang things to dry. Locker room not airy, therefore it smelled."

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, February 95, Al-Anne Nugent, Algonac, MI. "All inclusive resort (not diving). Food buffet; plentiful; several entrees. Rooms decent with A/C and fan; good maid service. Instructors and personnel are friendly and knowledgeable. Boat is roomy. Santa Rosa wall great and just offshore. Allow only 80' depth. Good trip for money."

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, March 1995, Fred & Angela Kadlubar, Pine Bluff, AR. "Resort near Palancar - 5 min by boat. Excellent for families, all kinds of food, liquor, entertainment. Dive Palancar has 2 boats, no more than 8 divers. Specialty diving to Maracaibo Reef fantastic! Divemasters. Kids 12­18 had good time (volleyball, swimming pool, windsurfing, basketball, tennis."

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, July 1995, Matthew Thomson, Spring, TX. "Certified since I was 12 (I'm 16), but never been on ocean dive. Beach dive - swam to buoys 15 ft deep and dove for 50 min. Only 6 people on boat. Dive was great. About 60 ft depth. Got to feed and pet black grouper, saw huge eel and crab. Divemaster led us through beautiful tunnels and caves. Strong current. Fish everywhere. Resort was great. Everything free, food activities, kayaks. All kinds of stuff to do, never even left the resort."

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, September 1995, Patrick Wilstrom, Brasstown, NC. "Diving spectacular. Water 83; Vis on wall 150'; 80'­100' elsewhere. Surface calm, drift diving effortless past some of the prettiest coral structures in the Caribbean. Resort far south on the island, across from Santa Rosa Wall with huge black groupers, five minutes from Palancar."

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, September 1995, Carlos Lluch & Louisa Callery, Los Angeles, CA. "Breakfast and dinner buffet with plenty of choices. Lunch by the swimming pool could be improved. People fantastic and helpful. Rooms simple, clean, comfortable. 50 yards to dive shop, pick up equipment in lockers, 30 yards to boat dock, 5 minute ride to Santa Rosa or San Francisco reefs, 10 minutes to Palancar, 25 minutes to Punta Sur. Boat would sometimes go back to the pier between dives. Two tanks in the morning and two in the afternoon; first dive 75­120 feet by the tables, the second 30 to 50 feet to 500 psi. Children were having a great time while we were diving guilt free. You can have it all."

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, September 1995, Stephen Wallace, Oaklawn, IL. "Good diving despite poor weather. Operators friendly and helpful while allowing the group choice of sites. The Diamond Resort pathetic; poor food, poor entertainment, rock hard beds."

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, November 1995, A. Keith Dick, Stanford, CT. "Great trip - weather super, water 84 degrees! Excellent safe dive trips; accommodating as to locations to dive. Diamond is restful, luxurious environment for a vacation. Can't beat the value!"

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, February 1996, Robert Lloyd, Burlington, VT. "Charming island, locals friendly, high pressure sales pitches for resorts. Days in the 80's, mostly sunny. Nights cool, bring a sweater. Carnival fantastic. Rented a jeep; only one road. Mayan ruins mildly interesting. West side: beautiful coast. . . . Diamond Resort well run, plenty to do, sandy beach, food always available and drinks. Cuban cigars. Dive operation well run. Boats on time, not larger than 8. Ask for preferred sites. vis: 100­150ft. water: 75­80°. Columbia Reef excellent swim throughs, chutes; groupers, turtle, rays, eels, lobsters. San Francisco wall: octopus, lots of corals, fish, strong currents. Plan on D.C. stops"

Dive Palancar/Diamond Resort, July 1996, Greg Gearing, Arlington, TX. "Need bug spray. Get 6­8 divers and you can let your own boat and computer dive at will. vis: 50­100ft. water: 82­84°."

Dive Paradise/Fiesta Inn, March 1995, Ed Freedman, S. Orange, NJ. "First experience drift diving - great. Fiesta Inn OK. Needs cosmetic upgrading. Price was right."

Dive Paradise/Fiesta Inn, March 1995, Karl Klemm, Chico, CA. "Much more commercialized since five years ago. Everybody trying to get a buck, shopping not as good deal, food about the same. Pepe's Restaurant outstanding, 5 star. . . . Much less life of all forms. Too many divers in some places. Divers getting onto many boats, boats losing dive groups."

Dive Paradise/Maya Cozumel, April 1995, Laurinda Logan, Cheyenne, WY. "Went solo. Different divemasters every trip with skill levels and attitudes all over the board. I took the afternoon 2-tank fast boats and worried whether they would get enough divers to go. You don't know until the last minute, making it impossible to make other arrangements. . . . Office staff outstanding. Great trip!"

Dive Paradise/Barracuda Hotel, April 1995, Joel & Mary Anne Kluger, Chapel Hill, NC. "More dive options than anyone; 6-pack fast boats or larger lower priced slow boats. Multiple departures morning and afternoon. 3-tank (2 morning/1 afternoon) package available and night dives. Advanced divers ask for 'EDP' dives to be matched with experienced divers for exotic sites. Divemasters speak English, sensitive to reef. $5­$10 more for fast boats."

Dive Paradise/Barracuda Hotel, April 1995, Samuel T. & Nancy Anderson, Albuquerque, NM. "Divemasters know where to find the critters. Prefer slow boats; whole deck covered for shade or go on top for sun - your choice - nice. Lunch too!"

Dive Paradise/Plaza Las Glorias, April 1995, Steve Lanini, Glendale, AZ. "Aqua Safari at Playa Las Glorias; wife signed me up with the hotel dive package but Aqua Safari said I had no reservation. . . . Dive Paradise punctual, picked us up at hotel. Divemaster good. Currents strong but easy to maneuver. Chan Kanaab the best: large groupers (3­5 ft) came to us right away. On small boat - 6 divers - impossible to change film. Each day I requested the same boat and divemaster and each day I had a different boat and DM. Young DM had oil in his tank that caused his lips to numb. He drifted ahead of us and never turned around. All deep dives 20' for 10 min. decompression."

Dive Paradise/Plaza Las Glorias, May 1995, Robin Henspeter, Spokane, WA. "Rooms and service superb. Large and clean, king sized beds, ocean view. Pool is clean and happening. Food and drinks great and reasonable. Town is walkable. . . . Divemasters friendly and professional. For inexperienced; helpful and safe. Let experienced dive as you like."

Dive Paradise/Barracuda Hotel, May 1995, Wyatt Skaggs, Laramie, WY. "Slipping since Hartigan's death. Some crews unfriendly. Demand diving on the outer reefs. Their limits are stingy and you must dive with the group. Fiesta Taco downtown is great for cheap food. Barracuda is a fine diver's hotel but avoid the telephone. The rates back to the States are high."

Dive Paradise/Fiesta Inn, June 1995, Brock Jenkins, Renton, WA. "Promise of 'Big Boats - Small Groups' ignored. Divemasters not flexible on requested sites. Had new DM each time and went to the same location over and over. Group had to stay painfully close together or be verbally beaten up on the surface. When the DM said "40 min", they meant back on the boat. Even on shallow dives. Many times my buddy and I would surface with 1400­2000 psi. Rushed to get in and out of water quickly. Saw a lot of bumps and bruises, an ankle sprain, slight back injury; one person bent looking for one of two cameras that were lost. . . . Fiesta Inn I recommend."

Dive Paradise, July 1995, George Robert, Leawood, KS. "For the price, one of the best in the Caribbean. Staff friendly and helpful; third tank each day makes a great value. 20­25 lobsters in one crevice at Paradise Reef! Columbia, Santa Rosa, Palancar Caves and Horseshoe are beautiful and serene. Cedral huge grouper, large schools of tropicals, and many spotted and green morays."

Dive Paradise/Plaza Las Glorias, August 1995, David Cohn, Berkley, CA. "Professional, good staff. Safety conscious. Allowed to use computers; did advanced (decompression) dive at the end of a 9 day trip. Fish coming back. Reefs in good shape. Air fills 2950­3150. Renee running a good show after Tom's death. . . . Plaza Las Glorias staff pleasant and helpful; hotel rooms had broken toilet, broken light bulbs, broken phone, but great view."

Dive Paradise/Fiesta Inn, October 1995, Jim Dunphy, Jersey City, NJ. "Dive Paradise staff excellent. Helpful and friendly. Let group pick dive sites. Did not go to Punta Sur due to weather. Reef formations are great, fish small but plentiful. Hurricane Roxanne hit the island; staff at Fiesta Inn great; a lot stayed for whole storm and made sure guests were protected, fed. No injuries, lot of broken windows, doors, and roof damage. Dove Palancar the day after the storm. Reef was not badly damaged, although vis not great; Cozumel is the best value for the money in the Caribbean."

Dive Paradise, October 1995, Frank Bender, Plainfield, IL. "Took the afternoon fast boats; delighted with staff. Santa Rosa and Palancar Gardens were gorgeous and I did Cedral twice by my request."

Dive Paradise/Fiesta Inn, January 1996, J. Tully, Littleton, CO. "Hotel good and clean; major remodeling. Tile floors slippery when wet! Froze when we turned on a/c. Hotel water treated and safe. Buffet breakfast good. . . . Dive Paradise outstanding. Boats have newer and faster diesels. Crew lots of fun. Fresh water rinse tanks. Lots of novices; complete briefings. Went to sites off beaten path; absolutely beautiful; no other divers. Gregorio's green moray feeding is something to see. Water and air 80 degrees, vis 100 feet."

Dive Paradise/Plaza Los Glorias, January 1996, Brian Jones, Kingsburg, CA. "We and five children (ages 10­15 are novice to intermediate) chartered a nice 35 foot boat with bathroom, cover, divemaster Nester, Captain Pepe and deck hand George for $500 a day. Took us where we wanted to go; never dove with others sites. Captain was there when we surfaced. Never had to wait. Divemaster let us dive with computers, kept an eye but not over bearing. Pointed out sea life the kids had never seen. . . . Nester was great with the kids; if he thought they needed to improve skills he would bring it up in a nice way when briefing us. Would always check currents before he let us get in. Between dives they let the kids parasail. Boat Captain would radio the sail boat and meet up. Between dives always fresh fruit, sandwiches, cookies and soda or water. Picked us up before 8:30 every morning (at our hotel pier), then stopped at Fiesta Americana to pick up our friend. Ten of us had great safe and fun dives. vis 80­125 ft. water: 72°­81°."

Dive Paradise/Fiesta Americana, March 1996, Cara Iddings, Reno, NV. "Nice hotel, clean rooms, view of ocean unless assigned to back. Front desk does not give best service. vis: 100ft. water: 77°. . . . Good divemasters. Shop could not get my BC rental size straight - even though I dove 5 days, I still had to remind them daily to give me a small BC!"

Dive Paradise/Plaza Las Gloria April 1996, Ed Richardson, Madill, OK. "Paid an extra $400/week for average accommodations. Other hotel services, food, pool very nice. Dive Paradise efficient and well run. Safety is foremost. For extra $, have faster boats and higher level dives for experienced divers. Not able to dive our computers; I came up with 1000­1200 psi after each dive. Dive Paradise would not pick us up in large boats, so the logistics of moving our gear became a challenge. vis: 75­125 ft. water: 81°­82°."

Dive Paradise, July 1996, Lloyd Baker, Washington, DC. "Dive guides are suffering from burn out; they lack enthusiasm; our guide made no effort to find or point out marine life. Should group divers experience level; my buddy ran low on air after 35 min. at 60 ft. whereas I still had 1800 psi. Easy, relaxing drift diving, healthy corals and many tropicals. vis: 70­100ft. water: 80­85°."

Fantasia Divers/Fiesta Inn, April 1995, John (Jack) Duff, Albany, GA. "Small boat (25'), 12 divers and divemaster, 2 crew; tight. Best pre-dive talk, in-water organization, site locations and guiding in 18 years. Saw 5­6 ft turtle, 8­9 ft nurse shark, many other big fish and beautiful coral. Fiesta Inn: Excellent."

Fantasia/Diamond Resort, April 1995, Bob Kerley, Dallas, TX. "40' vis. Diving good but strong currents stirred up things. On one dive the current was so strong the strongest swimmer could not stay in place to photograph. . . . Resort is nice, especially if you have family that does not dive. Request an upper room because the breeze is better; leave things out to dry. Good food, entertainment in the evenings. Good diving and the kids are entertained."

Fiesta Inn, May 1995, David Bell, Fort Worth, TX. "Don't get a first floor room; easy access for foot traffic to steal your dive equipment if laid on patio to dry. Breakfast downtown at Ernesto's: $1.00 for eggs, toast and coffee."

Galapago Inn, March 1995, Brad Irwin, Denver, CO. "Good service and food. Stress free dive operation. Boats and staff good."

Galapago Inn, April 1995, David Lund, Minneapolis, MN. "6th trip to Galapago. Reliably good, not great diving, good food, fairly comfortable accommodations, adequate staff and safety briefings, relatively inexpensive. Don't follow divemasters through the tunnels - usually kicked to zero vis by other divers anyway. Stay on the wall, fly with the gentle-to-moderate current; you never know what critters might be dropping by."

Galapago Inn, July 1995, Susan Collier, Salem, OR. "Divemaster Servando made sure we enjoyed our dives; kept us secure and guided all our dives. Typical Mayan hospitality. Drift diving in Cozumel is hard to beat - excellent vis - 150'­200' at least!"

Galapago Inn, August 1995, Tom DeVincentis, Columbia, MO. "Boat diving excellent. Shore diving at night is good; depth about 22' off Galapago. Plenty of octopus and lobsters just off pier. Dive operation professional. Food great and varied."

Galapago Inn/Scuba Cozumel, September 1996, Gek L. Stevens, Seattle, WA. "Good accommodations, great facilities (rinse tanks, lockers), good food. Summer special between hurricanes Luis and Roxanne - great price!! Divemaster very friendly; took newly certified divers to Punta Sur and various deep dives to 130 ft. Didn t want to go that deep but these were tunnels that exited at 125 '. Tried to stay near roof of tunnels so we exited closer to 110. Wondered if logbooks were checked. vis: 50­80 ft. water: 80°­82°. Dive crew very friendly and we enjoyed our week. . . . Sites required 45 min rides each way. Some took 90 minutes! Great dive resort, great value, friendly people. Would prefer a more spacious room with a less noisy air conditioner but the price was fair."

Galapago Inn, October 1995, Bill Knoblauch & Dave Embank, Fair Oaks & Folsom, CA. "Sixth trip (for Bill) and third trip (for Dave) to the Galapago. Hurricane Roxanne visited; evacuated rooms that faced the ocean, relocating guests to safer rooms. They furnished a brown bag dinner, water, and candles. Only moderate damage. We're glad to have experienced this interesting event, but don't need to do it again. . . . Three days of diving prior to Roxanne. Hardly a current; one dive, we turned south and went back where we started. . . . Guides always in a hurry to finish the dives - we like to take our time. Wish that they let us dive our computers; several dives we came up with over 1,000 psi and plenty of time on our computers. . . . A class operation; reimbursed us for the lost days of diving and gave us a "$50 OFF" certificate to use when we return. . . . Price for developing color prints has come down from $19 in 1994 to $9; many other prices still reasonable. . . . Guests at Diamond Resort had to vacate their rooms and go to town to find a place to stay; when they returned they were told their rooms were no longer available as they had checked out! They raised a stink and management recanted."

Galapago Inn, February 1996, Bill and Kathy Wentz, Bethlehem, PA. "Good bargain. $103/day, 3 meals, 2 tank boat, unlimited shore, good location. Pleasant place to stay and dive. Better than La Ceiba where you have a giant cruise ship at your beach. Food above average. Stay off slow boats - 2 tank dive in a.m. Drift diving is great feeling. vis. 60­120 ft. water: 76°­80°. . . . Sixty-eight years old and still blowing bubbles." Scuba Cozumel/Galapago Inn, June 1996, Elmer Watts, Wakerfield, VA. "Water 80­82 Degrees, Vis 150­300 feet. Authentic Mexican rooms. Satisfied with various restaurants, but disappointed with lobster and steak. Restaurant staff helpful when I practice my Spanish. . . . Diving best in three years. Current lazy, One of our group is recovering from a spinal cord injury; travels mostly by wheel chair and does some walking with forearm canes. First time back to diving; she was able to navigate well using her fins and webbed hand swimming devices. Getting on and off the boat at the dock and at the dive sites were little trouble for her. Boat crew very supportive. . . . Eel swam full length down my body allowing me to feel the velvety skin. Monster grouper liked to be scratched. Turtles cooperated for good pictures. Trip was the greatest."

Galapago Inn/Scuba Cozumel, July 1996, Bill & Jayne Goocher, Hermosa Beach, CA. "Best resort (dive related) in Cozumel. vis: 150­250ft. water: 80­82°. Took Advance and specialty classes. Dive shop dedicated to safety and preservation of reef. Great boats. Divemasters professional, instructor committed to students learning correctly and enjoying diving. Resort plays to every need and whim. No need to leave the gates."

Martin Aguilar/Sol Caribe, March 1995, Ray & Fran Belunke, Salt Lake City, UT. "Martin is top-notch! Offers a beach lunch as in the 'old' days. A gentleman who provides a great dive experience and educates all into preserving Cozumel's reefs (even to confronting and helping apprehend a 'rich gringo' yachter dragging his anchor through the reef). Hotel is very good by Mexico's standards and the grounds, personnel and food in the restaurants (and those in proximity) were above average to excellent."

Martin Aguilar/Plaza Las Glorias, September 1995, Ron Watson, Lewisville, TX. "Martin Aguilar (Dive with Martin) is the best. All boats very fast and Martin only takes 8 divers/boat. careful not to mix resort divers with experienced divers. We were asked each day where WE wanted to go, how deep and what WE wanted to see. During surface intervals we were taken to a secluded beach for fresh fruit and soft drinks. All boats are equipped with radios and oxygen. All dives began with a detailed briefing about the site, dive profile, safety stop and need to use proper buoyancy control to preserve the reef. Martin and his staff were courteous, helpful, knowledgeable and professional."

Melia Mayan Cozumel, January 1995, Gary Banas, Leesburg, VA. "All inclusive plan. Plenty of good, sometimes great food. Never any limit. Unlimited alcohol-beach palapa w/good Mex. beers. Indoor bars-anything!! People great - will go back."

Paradise Divers/Plaza Las Glorias, April 1995, Charles H. Cardarelli, M.D., Coeur D'Alene, ID. " Vis 100+, but disappointed in the number of reef fish. Offered "Experienced Diver Program" to Punta Sur and Maracaibo. Most enjoyable were 4 night dives at Paradise Reef, soon to be obliterated by construction of a pier for cruise ships. Octopi and spotted morays every dive, perfect for close up kit. Photographed the reclusive Splendid Toadfish, signature fish of Cozumel. Thanks to Adrian with Paradise Dives, he was able to get the toadfish out of it's hole where close-up photography was easy since it is a slow swimmer in open water."

Pasqual's/Casa del Mar, March 1995, Tom Oaster, Kingwood, TX. "Pasqual saved my Cozumel experience. Dove with Dive Paradise the first day ; begged to go to farther away reefs to no avail; boats slower and more ancient than I remembered. Pasqual's modern, custom 24' runabout with twin 135 HP had ample space and was superfast. The fish and morays seemed to know Pasqual personally, and the 6' moray at Punta Tuniche came out of its cave right to him. For no Flippers in the face and personal service Pasqual rates a 10."

Pasqual's, February 1996, Ronald Hays, Santa Barbara, CA. "Pasqual a great guy, diving was great, fast boat, hurricane damage to topside almost completely cleaned/repaired. Reefs a bit sparse in grouper and barracuda compared to previous trips. Eight night dives. Continues to be a 5+. Palancar Reef is still healthy and colorful with plenty of fish, but no slack for slow breathers. vis:120­150 ft. water: 80°."

Seafari Dive, February 1996, Ginny Tanner, Westminster, MD. "Guide took us on a nothing two-tank dive. Mostly sandy bottom. Maybe because one of our group was inexperienced and nervous. Exit from the dive boat at the pier in town was ridiculous. One lady had blood running down her leg and I got a bad bruise and cut my knee on the concrete pier. It was 3 1/2' high; had to hoist ourselves up from the boat onto the pier. Why not go closer to shore and let us wade onto the beach? vis: 65­100 ft. water: 75°­80°."

Scuba Cozumel/Galapago Inn, March 1995, Karen York, Sharon, WI. "First-class operation with a full service dive shop. Fresh water tanks for gear. Lockers convenient. Boats pick you up at resort dock a short walk down the beach. Never visited same site twice in 5 days of 2-tank boat dives - 2 spectacular night dives and unlimited shore diving. . . . Food excellent. Staff is friendly and attentive. Hammocks under the thatched roof are great!"

Scuba Shack/Barracuda Hotel, April 1996, Dave Melvin, Indianapolis, IN. "Made 26 trips to Cozumel since 1990. Barracuda Hotel a good value. Close to town and right on the water. Rooms are large, clean, with fan/ac and fridge. . . . Diving was super! Adolfo Diaz lets you dive to your capabilities but within reason and safety. Great trip to Barracuda Reef and San Juan reef. Especially for experienced divers. vis.100­150 ft.water: 78­80°

Scuba Shack, Sol Caribe, June 1996, Norman Ross, Abilene, TX. "Hotel refurbished and nice. People friendly, service good. All inclusive - items on the buffet limited, but good. Beer cheap. Best dive operation I have used in Cozumel."

Yucatan

Cancun

Aquaworld/Cancun Sheraton, June 1995, Karl Geesey, Nashville TN. "Aquaworld's facilities complete and well kept. Staff friendly and helpful; locked our gear in maintenance area. Full range of water sports equipment for rent, dive boats well maintained. Enjoyed drift diving. Over protective on the dives; group literally surrounded by divemasters. Good for beginning divers."

Club Med Cancun, June 1996, Dino Dimauro, Santa Clara, CA. "Not that great. Reefs in poor condition; one day we went to Cozumel - great drift dive 100 lb groupers eat bread out of your hand. I got bit (drew blood). Club Med has rules that could upset some people, but food was good and they have land sports. Long walk to dive shack from your room with gear or leave gear in locker area."

Club Med Cancun, September 1995, K. Caryn Spear, N.Y.C. "Vis 40­60 feet. Enjoyed dives, but most of the time only one dive. Equipment missing depth gauges. I brought my own diving gear but didn't use it because I would have to walk a half mile with it in 100 heat!. Sites not deeper than 70 feet; 83­86° water. They had dive excursions to Cozumel. Food great."

Club Med Cancun, November 1995, Bruce & Linda Petraca, Phoenix AZ. "Beach is public; you wear ID bracelet to eat or use equipment; rooms have locks and two safes. Excellent staff worked with what was available and had many first time divers doing wonderfully in two days. Great place for the novice diver - they even have a day trip to Cozumel."

Manta Divers/Costa Real Hotel, June 1995, Patrick Wilstrom, Brasstown, NC. "Called us in the states before the trip to set up private trips for we four (all for regular budget price). . . . Surprisingly good diving for heavily frequented tourist area. Many calm, shallow dive sites. Audrey took extra care of two recent open water graduates, performing a buoyancy workshop before we boarded the six pack to the first site. . . . Casa Real caters to drunken college students whose endless screaming, shouting, and partying almost spoiled the vacation for my wife and 10 year old daughter."

Scuba Cancun, February 1995, Frances Callaway, Windsor, Ontario, Canada. "Owned by a Mexican and his Canadian wife. Edith Hurtado checks C-cards. Novice divers separated from experienced. Divers walk to platform to don fins and mask, then crew carries tank and BC and puts it on seated diver. Sea rough. Each diver descends individually as two crew members watch for anyone having difficulty. All drift dives. Excellent briefing. Water 79 degrees. Huge schools variety of fish. Huge porkfish, parrot fish, lobsters and crabs. . . . Saw five eagle rays lift off. . . . I was surprised at the plenitude of fish in Cancun."

Scuba Cancun/Cancun Clipper Club, November 1995, John Kruse, Jacksonville, FL. "Underrated dive destination. Abundance of medium size fish. Drift diving; divemasters careful about keeping us together and counting noses. Good operation for experienced divers."

South of Cancun

Akumal Dive Shop, Summer 1995, Cal Emery, Harker Heights, TX. "Cenote diving unique. Shop is good; arranges hotel/condo, diving and instruction through cave certification. Water 85 degrees, vis: 60­150 ft. . . . Nice condo. Would have been a ten if air-conditioned. Three good restaurants; modest prices."

Akumal Dive Shop/Akumal Caribe Casitas, October 1995, Jeff Bell, Dallas, TX. "Went for cave diving certification. Caverns and caves were spectacular. Most notable: Grand Cenote, Temple of Doom and Maya Blue. Diving was world-class and the instructors top notch. Operation somewhat disorganized; we will leave at 9:00 AM really means 10, 11 or 12:00. Food surprisingly good; well stocked grocery store. Casitas have small functional kitchens. Staff friendly and interested. Takes cave diving very seriously. Only take a limited number to sites they believe you capable of."

Aquatech/Villas DeRosa, August 1995, Brad & Melissa Caudle, Tomball, TX. "You must have 50 dives before they will allow diving course. Excellent buoyancy control is a MUST. Most amazing adventure of our lives. No more than 3 students/instructor. Caves formed above ground during ice age, so all kinds of stalactites and stalagmites. Naharon, 'the dark cave,' was the spookiest, but thrilling. Vaca Ha's entrance was small, but it opened into an enormous room with all kinds of formations. Some caves have cave fish, which have no eyes, Mexican tetras, small catfish. The course takes a week, and there's reading night. You will feel better if you are in good shape. A couple cenotes require a little hike through the jungle on paths with your double tanks. Aquatech also offers ocean diving."

CEDAM/Oasis Colony, March 1996, Arthur Frank, Boston, MA. "Too noisy so checked out. Excellent restaurants in Puerto Adventuras. Went to see Uxmal, Chichen Itza, etc. Reefs awesome. Dives, drift at 5 knots. Happy overall. vis. 30­50 ft. water: 80°."

CEDAM Dive Centre II/Club Oasis, May 1995, James Forstner, South Port, NC. "80° water, 50­60 ft. vis. Less fish than Cozumel, bigger coral. Saw turtles most dives, boats small, without shade but the ride is 10 minutes. No oxygen or drinks on board. Dive shop and hotel people helpful and courteous. Good snorkeling; reef coming up 50 feet offshore from about 8 feet to just below water surface."

Club Akumal/Caribe Hotel & Dive Center, February 1995, H.R. Wainwright, Highland, MD. "The Dive of Dos Ojos Cavern - 1250' in & 1250' out, max depth 15'. Real adventure for first time jungle cavern dive. From time you left main road 2-1/2 mile (50 min) trip into jungle, to the last 500 yds by foot into small thatched hut village. Requires mental preparedness and experience, even with the competent, experienced guides! 6­7 hr. adventure. No direct access to surface and most of time 'no light' except self contained flashlight units. Dove 'Temple of Doom' Cenote. Another real adventure. From short walk to Cenote, to the 20' jump into water, to the 45 min - 65' max depth - to climbing out of Cenote."

Costa de Cocos, July 1996, George Kane Raleigh, NC. "Water: 81­83 degrees, Vis: 30­60 feet, "Chinchorro Banks splendid diving. Excellent conditions, one day current on 2 of 3 dives. Dive operation in Xcalak professional, was a bit hyper - Next trip will dive with the operator in Tealik."

El Dorado Resort, August 1995, Burt Hoffpauir, Kaplan, LA. "Looked at all the resorts along Cancun - Tulum Corridor. El Dorado was not the biggest, but by far the best."

Playacar Divers/Playacar Caribbean Village, September 1995, Gary Costigan, Grand Prairie, TX. "No one knew what was going on. Nothing was ready, or set up like we were told. No one asked to see my dive card or log book! No predive instructions, or plans for possible emergencies. The D/M was my buddy, and he never talked to me. I knew where my alternate air source was always, because he let it hang lose, and dragged it through the coral for both dives!"

Villa DeRosa, February 1996, Corbett and Francine Bunton, Lafayette, NJ. "Caves are beautifully decorated; water is clear as looking through air, barely a current almost anywhere You need cave diving training and good technique so that nothing is destroyed in these gorgeous caves. Water : 78°."

Copyright 1997 by DSDL, Inc.Publishers of Undercurrent. All rights reserved. No portions of this report may be reproduced in any way, including photocopying and electronic data storage, without prior written permission from the publisher. For more information, contact DSDL, Inc., P.O. Box 1658, Sausalito, CA 94966.