Blue XT~Sea Diving/Casa Phoenix El Cantil Condominiums: "Amazing Blue XT Sea Diving", Oct, 2014,by Karen Fiedler, CA, US ( 1 report). Report 7911. |
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No photos available at this time | |||
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best): |
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Accommodations | Food | ||
Service and Attitude | Environmental Sensitivity | ||
Dive Operation | Shore Diving | N/A | |
Snorkeling | N/A | ||
Overall Rating |
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Value for $$ | |||
Beginners | |||
Advanced | |||
Comments |
We have been going down to Cozumel for the past 27 years and have seen many changes take place both above and below water. Obviously, Hurricane Wilma had a huge impact on the reefs, but I can actually say that we are seeing them recover quite nicely. The reefs are looking lush again and the fish life is abundant with many large Queen and French Angels, large Midnight Parrots and large Groupers. Nurse sharks, often 3-5 turtles per dive, a plethora of lobsters along with giant ones! We even saw some large Spotted Eagle Rays! Additionally, the Lionfish population has been greatly reduced unlike other places in the Caribbean, which may account for the increased fish populations. I can't say enough good things about Blue XT Sea Diving! Christi Courtney, the owner, has developed a concierge dive operation. If possible, they pick you up at your dock (El Cantil has one) and have all your equipment, including weights, already assembled for you on the boat! They let you dive your computers with most dives lasting between 60-70 minutes long! They change out the tanks for you between dives and have pastries, fruit, and juice during the surface interval. They provide a Nitrox analyzer on the boat. You are always given a bottle of water to drink before the 1st dive and after the 1st and 2nd dives. They even supply a towel for you on the boat! The best part is after diving they take your equipment with them, wash it down and store it each day! It can't get much easier unless you're on a liveaboard! We have stayed at the El Cantil Condominiums for the past 8 years renting from Bill and Alison Mencarow's Casa Phoenix 4 bedroom unit. They are wonderful people - always kind and helpful. Conveniently, across the street is Chedraui (mega market) where we will buy food and drinks for breakfast and lunch. We then go into town for dinner every night as it is within walking distance or taxi for $4. The boat ride from the condo to the various sites is approximately 30-40 mins. All things combined, this was a fabulous vacation! |
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Websites | Blue XT~Sea Diving Casa Phoenix El Cantil Condominiums | ||
Reporter and Travel |
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Dive Experience | 501-1000 dives | ||
Where else diving | Truk, Palau, Yap, Komodo Indonesia, Socorro, Bahamas, Caye Sal Banks, Grand Cayman, St. Croix, Roatan, Guanaja, Utila, Belize | ||
Closest Airport | Cozumel | Getting There | United Airlines |
Dive Conditions |
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Weather | rainy, cloudy | Seas | calm |
Water Temp | 82-84°F / 28-29°C | Wetsuit Thickness | |
Water Visibility | 60-100 Ft/ 18-30 M | ||
Dive Policy |
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Dive own profile | yes | ||
Enforced diving restrictions | You were allowed to dive your computer! How refreshing is that! In fact, often our Suunto computers made us go up before the people who had Oceanics! | ||
Liveaboard? | no | Nitrox Available? | yes |
What I Saw |
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Sharks | Lots | Mantas | None |
Dolphins | None | Whale Sharks | None |
Turtles | > 2 | Whales | None |
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best): |
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Corals | Tropical Fish | ||
Small Critters | Large Fish | ||
Large Pelagics | |||
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best): |
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Subject Matter | N/A | Boat Facilities | N/A |
Overall rating for UWP's | N/A | Shore Facilities | N/A |
UW Photo Comments | [None] |
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