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Dive Review of Maple Leaf Scuba in
Cozumel and the Mexican Yucatan/Cozumel

Maple Leaf Scuba: "High winds ... not many dives possible!", Dec, 2018,

by Raymond Haddad, QC, CA (Sr. Reviewer Sr. Reviewer 10 reports with 9 Helpful votes). Report 10826.

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 3 stars
Dive Operation 4 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 3 stars
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 3 stars
Comments After fourteen months of not diving because of a couple of eyes surgeries, I decided to go to Cozumel for a quick seven day trip. Last time I went (2016), I stayed at a resort, which was convenient for diving, but the food was terrible. This time I decided that I would stay downtown at the Casa Mexicana and enjoy local Mexican meals off the beaten path. The hotel and nearby restaurants were great. I booked five days of diving with Maple Leaf Scuba. What can I say … I am Canadian! Booking and correspondence was fast and simple. Their dive shop is just one block from the main downtown plaza and just a ten minute walk from my hotel. The day I arrived, I dropped off my gear and filled out the standard paperwork. Glenda the owner said that today the port was closed because of the high north winds therefore no boats were allowed out. She said that tomorrow might be the same … and it was! Not much to do in Cozumel if you don’t dive. For the next three days we were able to dive but after that till my departure, no more dives! All this for 6 dives!
I would be picked up or a take a taxi to the port at around 8:30AM. Once you arrived at the port that is when things got a bit messy. A lot of people getting to their boats, tanks being carried all over the place, finding your group and guide … I requested 32 Nitrox but for the first day I has given 36 Nitrox. Not all boats are large and comfortable with toilets. Scuba Leaf Scuba charters different boats depending on how many divers they have and will hire freelance guides to help out. You are mixed with others groups on the same boat. By the time you get to port and by the time you leave the port, +/- one hour has passed … a lot of waiting! The boats had very little dry storage space, no tables for cameras, no rinse buckets for cameras … just a basic boat. The three days I dove, I had a different guide every time. I was on of the few who dove with Nitrox. Therefore, interval times between dives were all more than one hour and half. I still don’t understand why more people don’t dive using Nitrox where diving deeper than 100 feet is not permitted. Another issue with having many groups on the same boat is pick up once you completed your dive. On average, we would have to wait 15-20 minutes on the surface for the boat to pick us up. In summary, I would leave my hotel at 8:30 AM and would return to my room at 2:30PM. Six hours just to do two dives is a bit long!
Websites Maple Leaf Scuba   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 501-1000 dives
Where else diving Bahamas, Belize, Honduras, Australia, Palau, Fiji, Indonesia, Turks & Caicos, Maldives, Philippines, Cozumel, YAP
Closest Airport Cozumel Getting There Once a week you can get a direct flight from Monteal on Air Canada.

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, windy Seas calm, choppy, currents
Water Temp 78-80°F / 26-27°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 60-80 Ft/ 18-24 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Max 100 feet and start ascend to safety stop with 700 psi
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

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

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

Subject Matter 3 stars Boat Facilities 1 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 2 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments No rinse bucks, no tables, ... nothing!
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Subscriber's Comments

By BRADLEY CONDO in CO, US at Jan 20, 2019 23:55 EST  
You get what you pay for
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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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