Dive Review of Dive Paradise/Hotel Cozumel in
Cozumel and the Mexican Yucatan

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Dive Paradise/Hotel Cozumel, Jul, 2014, by Leigh Vinzant, CO, US ( Reviewer 6 reports). Report 7716.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	We headed to Cozumel for a long weekend getaway, staying at Hotel Cozumel and diving with Dive Paradise. We had dove Cozumel from a cruise ship before and were excited for the opportunity to do more drift diving in its warm, clear water. Hotel Cozumel advertises itself as a diver’s resort, but it was not what we expected. There were large groups of non-divers staying there and it looked as though a lot of locals hung out at the pool during the day. We had an all-inclusive package, so we ate all meals on the property. Breakfasts were pretty good, with cereal, toast, fruit and yogurt, as well as a made-to-order omelet station and a few Mexican dishes. Dinners were okay. We could always find something to eat from the buffet. Lunches, however, were a huge disappointment. My buddy and I are not picky eaters and we had a hard time finding anything we could eat. Thank goodness for chips and guacamole! The snack bar by the pool was not much better. It was difficult to find clean plates and the food was barely edible. The room was large, clean, and comfortable, but dated. We had an ocean-view room with balcony. The ocean was across the street, so we had a lot of road noise to deal with and not much of a view. The shower had hot water with good pressure and the a/c worked well. The dive operator was across the street, but a tunnel connecting the property made it convenient to access. After checking in at the resort, we headed to the dive shop to sign releases and do a gear and weight-check shore dive. Unfortunately, many people were checking in and Dive Paradise had no more tanks or weights available. We were asked to come back later. While we were waiting to dive, we went back to the hotel’s front desk to get a couple of dive locker keys. We were given one key and were told that they only allowed one locker per room. The lockers were good sized - big enough for a full set of gear, but not big enough for two. We were able to store fins and BCs in the lockers, but had to carry our wetsuits and regs back to the room each day. I don’t know what diving families did. Once we were able to get tanks and weights, we did a little shore dive. At first it was pretty ugly - just a sandy bottom with lots of rubble, but the more we dove, the more I saw and the better the dive became. Yellow stingrays were everywhere. We saw lots of small fish, like yellow-headed jawfish and juvenile angels and rock beauties. The next day, our boat diving began. Various groups and buddy teams were assigned to different boats, which would come to the dock to pick us up. We were assigned Saggitario - the slowest boat on the island (as reported by the boat crew.) Being on the slow boat meant it took more than an hour and a half to get to Santa Rosa Wall. The day was extremely hot and the boat was so slow, it didn’t even make a breeze. I was so happy to finally get into the water! The wall dive was okay, but not what I remembered from the cruise ship dive. The viz was only about 60’ and there was barely any current. We saw very few fish. The swim-throughs and tunnels were fun, though. The tanks that Dive Paradise used were very beat up. The faces of the valves were dinged and even with fresh o-rings, did not make a good seal. It was not fun diving with a leaky tank valve. On the ride out, we were given a bottle of water and during the surface interval, they served soft drinks and snacks. The second dive was about the same as the first, with not that great of visibility and not much fish life. We finally made it back to Hotel Cozumel at 2:00 and had a 3:00 afternoon dive scheduled. We ate a quick (and not very good) lunch at the beachside grill and then were loaded back on the slow boat for one more dive. This was a promotional dive for only $15 more. It was only worth $15. We went to a site that was close by, only dove for 45 minutes, and did not get any water to drink. For $6, we rented tanks for a shore night dive. That was my favorite dive of the trip. We saw rays, squid, and lots of eels. There were lobsters and conchs and crabs galore. Our second day of diving was very similar to the first - not impressive. The boat crew with Dive Paradise were safety-minded and good dive guides, but they were not very personable. During the hour plus boat rides, the crew stayed inside the wheelhouse, conversing among themselves and did not mingle with the guests. The crew that manned the shop on the property, however, were friendly and helpful, learning our names quickly. The value and location of Hotel Cozumel make it a popular place, but I was not impressed and do not plan to return.
Websites	Dive Paradise Hotel Cozumel
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Micronesia, Bonaire, Belize, Roatan, Florida
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm
Water Temp	83-84°F / 28-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility	60-80 Ft/ 18-24 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	All dives were guided and guests had to stay within the guides time and depth limits.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
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]

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Dive Review of Dive Paradise/Hotel Cozumel in Cozumel and the Mexican Yucatan

Dive Paradise/Hotel Cozumel, Jul, 2014,

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

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

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

Dive Review of Dive Paradise/Hotel Cozumel in
Cozumel and the Mexican Yucatan