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Dive Review of Dressel Divers/Iberostar in
Cozumel and the Mexican Yucatan

Dressel Divers/Iberostar: "Cozumel with Dressel Divers", Jul, 2016,

by David Riggs, OK, US ( 1 report). Report 9020.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 4 stars Food 4 stars
Service and Attitude 4 stars Environmental Sensitivity 5 stars
Dive Operation 3 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 4 stars
Beginners 5 stars
Advanced 4 stars
Comments We did a 10 day July trip to Dressel Divers at the Iberostar resort. I paid before the trip online for a package of $55/two tank dives, including free nitrox. We have been back to the same resort/dive group many times since 2003. It's a popular destination with close flights to the US. July is most likely a peak time with the back to school group so the boats were packed at times and I saw people get mad because they were not able to get a spot on one of the boats. I believe this should ease up as the kids go back to school and the crowds thin. Dressel has 3 large boats that can each hold 18-20 divers so they are set-up for larges groups. One con to using Dressel can be the huge clouds of divers. They usually try to keep the dive groups separate per DM by dropping them off at different spots on the reef but sometimes they converge and it can be confusing which group you are with. You can dive 4 times a day plus a night dive 3 times a week. They dive a rotating schedule resetting on a 7 day period. So if you stay for 7 days and dive most days you will be repeating sites. This was not an issue with me because just a small change in entry site or a different DM and you would see a different part of the same reef. If you are staying longer you will want to use a different dive group for variety. The property is very close to some of the best reefs on the island so the boat rides are short, all drift. The reefs looked healthy, very little bleaching except on very shallow spots and I noticed a rebound in soft coral that took a real beating after the 2005 storm. This trip I also noticed an increase in the number and size of fish. The reefs have been off limits to fishing for decades but I think they really stopped fishing or at least cut way back. It was not unusual to see huge lobster and 3-4' black grouper.

The DM's/boat staff were excellent as they almost always are. Young kids in their 20's, we dove with most of them:

Cley - Jamaican with a huge bright white smile, let my wife try his new mask as she was struggling with hers

Amy - Aussie, very pretty blond that respects the environment and would not swat a bee

Edgar - unknown origin, a real pro, loves to search the sand for creatures

Jose - Mexico, low key, always asks divers to alert him if we see any mermaids

Alex - Lawton, OK - Said he interned for 1 year unpaid teaching scuba in the pool just to get a spot on the boat, wow. When the wife's high pressure line started leaking he hooked us up with a fix, really appreciated that

Websites Dressel Divers   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving [Unspecified]
Closest Airport Cozumel Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas calm
Water Temp 83-86°F / 28-30°C Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility 50-100 Ft/ 15-30 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Max depth was flexible within reason but bottom time was 60 min for morning dives, 55 min for afternoon dives and 45min for night dives
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 4 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish 2 stars
Large Pelagics N/A

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

Subject Matter 3 stars Boat Facilities 3 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 3 stars Shore Facilities 3 stars
UW Photo Comments Small water tub for camera
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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.

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