Can dive 2 of these 4 ports...which?

[legion3]

Going to the WC in december. I can probably dive 2 of the 4 ports (I would like to do all 4 but not sure DW will agree-she does not dive or snorkle)

 

Which would be your choices and why (if you care to elaborate)?

 

Belize, Roatan, Cozumel and Cost Maya. All are two tank dives. Cozumel is cheapest and Costa Maya is the most costly. I have my own gear.

 

My initial idea was Belize and Costa Maya with Belize being a solid #1.

 

Thanks

[Dabaras]

I would recommend the opposite two. Cozumel would be my number 1. It is the easiest to dive. Part of the reason it is the cheapest is that it is great diving right there and there is a lot of competition. I would say to get away from the ships excursion, particularly in Cozumel. You'll get better service, smaller groups, and usually a better price. I pay more to dive with Aldora, but you get steel 120 tanks, so you get a longer dive and a really long surface interval at Mr. Sancho's.

 

The problem with Belize is that the good diving in Belize is not where you are docked. You have very limited options, basically dive with the ship for $150 or so or dive with Sea Sports Belize for $130, but you'd better get on the first tender or you may miss them. Also, they wouldn't commit to going out if they didn't have enough customers.

 

Roatan is really nice, and you have a lot of choices. Prices are right in the middle of Coz and Belize, right at $100 with transportation. You can dive west bank, north coast or south coast. Plenty of variety.

 

Never dove Costa Maya, but of the four, it is the only one that isn't a traditional dive destination. Not saying you can't have some good dives, just not where divers tend to go.

[Laurie S.]

If you've never dived any of those spots, I would go with Cozumel and Roatan. Belize is wonderful, but harder to get to. I love Costa Maya diving, and would recommend Gypsea Divers there, but it is more expensive than Roatan. We found Costa Maya to be the most unspoiled of all four and the diving is wonderful.

[Middleager]

All 4 are great diving ports.

 

Coz has 100+ dive ops, and most are good. It's a world class drift diving location, and relatively cheap,.

 

Costa Maya is excellent, and not well known. It's actually a gem of a diving location that in a few more years will become much better known.

 

Belize has wonderful diving. But the ship doesn't dock and it has a long tender to get to the cruise terminal. Last time we were there I booked to get driven to the airport and took a propeller to fly to Ambergris Cay, and we had great diving/snorkeling. It takes more work to arrange, to get good diving there. It is probably the only port that can make sense to go with the ship's operator, which isn't bad.

 

I haven't been to Roatan (will go on the next cruise) but heard a lot about it been a great diving port.

 

You will have a good time diving, at any of those ports.

[sparkinator]

I've been to all 4 ports and dived them all. Belize was the worst, and you really can't go wrong with any of the other 3.

 

I just got back from Costa Maya (Mahahual) after spending a week there. They have some really healthy, pristine reefs.

 

The last time I dived Costa Maya by cruise ship, I booked a family beach excursion with Costa Maya tours (Pez Quadro at 40 Canones) and booked a 2 tank dive with Bucanero del Caribe. I went with my family to Pez Quadro and had Jorge (dive master) pick me up at the beach.

 

I spent most of the morning at the beach with my family, and then the afternoon out diving the beach. It was great day for everyone. Taxis are readily availabe to take you to the beach and back to the port. The beach is only a couple of miles from the port and can get you back to the port quickly.

 

http://www.costa-maya-

tours.com/Tour_PezQuadro.cfm

 

http://www.divemahahual.com/english/about/prices.html

 

Roatan and Cozumel are both great dive destinations as well. We've used Aldora in Coz and Barefoot in Roatan. Coz is a little more overwhelming for newer divers (drift diving), but a great dive none the less. Roatan is more laid back diving, but they have TONS of fish and a great reef.

 

My family is going on the same cruise itinery in March and we are diving Barefoot in Roatan, Bucanero del Caribe in Costa Maya, going to Chankanaab park in Coz (swim with dolphins), and to a island beach in Belize.

 

Also, how long you are in each port may have an impact on which ports you choose to dive. Having a long port stay really allows you a lot of flexibility in your choices.

 

My first cruise dives, I emailed a lot of dive shops before deciding who to use. Just tell them your dive experience and what you are looking for, and they can usually work with you. If not, try someone else.

 

Good luck on your decision. You'll have a really good time regardless. Those are some really good ports. We've booked the same itinery the last 4 cruises.

[pamawi]

I recommend Cozumel and Roatan for diving if you can only dive 2 ports although I have never done Costa Maya and it sounds worth a try next time. That might be a good day for a beach day with beach snorkel, Mayan ruins, eco-park, or cenote swim, dive or snorkel.

 

In Belize the Cave Tubing is a popular choice.

[legion3]

Well according to the Belize tour they pick you up at the ship while tendered and take you to the dive facility and then to dive site. Apparently you never tender to shore and drive. Would this alter anyones view of Belize?

 

 

 

Also Costa Maya is not well known (so why or why not, see it before it becomes well known?) and we will be the only cruise ship in port that day.

 

I am hoping to add a third port now.

[legion3]

Now this is clearly Cost Maya's own propaganda but,

 

Diving in Costa Maya

 

Costa Maya is sheltered by the second largest coral reef system in the world, the Meso-American reef, positioning it as a world-class dive site. Costa Maya boasts one of the most well-preserved waters and marine life in the world. The region offers visitors miles of unspoiled beaches and pristine waters that average 100 feet of visibility, and is home to more than 60 types of coral and more than 500 species of fish, making it a haven for any diving enthusiast.

The Costa Maya diving experience is available to both cruise passengers and non-cruising visitors alike. Numerous diving packages are offered through onsite tour operator DreamTime Dive Resort (a PADI-accredited facility), including a two-hour boat trip to Chinchorro Banks, home to the largest coral atoll in the Northern Hemisphere. Over 25 miles long, the famed Chinchorro is regarded among avid divers as the ultimate diving experience. For more information contact

 

 

Sure sounds pretty good...

 

Anyway just through that in.

[legion3]

Check out costa mayas dive sites

 

http://divingchinchorro.com/index.php/diving/dive-sites/

[sparkinator]

Check out costa mayas dive sites

 

http://divingchinchorro.com/index.php/diving/dive-sites/

 

 

There are some great dive sites, but those Chinchorro sites aren't dives from a cruise ship. Chinchorro is a few miles off the coast and takes an entire day and 6 people to make it worth a dive trip to the operators.

 

Costa maya has some really good sites close to the port though.

[sparkinator]

Here's a couple of pics from our dives last year from a cruise ship while we were in Costa Maya.

 

 

[legion3]

There are some great dive sites, but those Chinchorro sites aren't dives from a cruise ship. Chinchorro is a few miles off the coast and takes an entire day and 6 people to make it worth a dive trip to the operators.

 

Costa maya has some really good sites close to the port though.

 

Well that does make sense. Might be a place to go to via a non cruise to check out the farther out diving

[BillOh]

e. I pay more to dive with Aldora, but you get steel 120 tanks, so you get a longer dive and a really long surface interval at Mr. Sancho's.

 

Thanks for mentioning that. I'm considering Western in 2015 and I've been to Cozumel 3 times already so my wife won't be missing anything while I dive.

[pamawi]

I've done both the cruise dive and private dive with Sea Sports Belize. The ship pick up and drop off of the cruise dive excursion was a great benefit and the Sea Sports cut it too close for comfort for me getting us back to the dock late but we still made it to the ship because of the huge line on the dock for the "last" tender. It seemed that most people waited for the last tender so we stood in line for what seemed like an hour as they had to take multiple trips to get everyone. They told me not to worry about gerting back late probably because they know avout the lines and that the last tender is not the last tender.

 

I just wasn't as impressed with the dive sites there as I was in Cozumel and Belize. It was good but not spectacular in my opinion. Part of the issue with the Belize dive is that it is a longer dive day than the other ports because you take a long boat ride to their dive shop and another long boat ride to the dive sites.

 

I'll probably dive their again but if I had to choose between the 4' Belize wouldn't be on the short list.

[Ray Wong]

Went on NCL Jewel in Jan 2014 to the same ports. Dove Belize and Roatan with the ship operator. Both Belize Dive Connection and Anthony Key were both good operators. Both operators tried hard to keep the experienced divers seperate from the beginners. My recommendation is in regards to the reefs. Skip Belize as the ship is too far from the better reefs and way too far from the Blue Hole. Belize would make a good beginner dive with little current and shallow, but take the ship dive as they pick you up directly from the ship. Roatan has lots of good dive sites and the ship is docked so everything is easy.

 

We have dove Cozumel many times and recommend it to anyone. Our dive club was staying in an all inclusive in Playa del Carmen the week before the cruise so we could dive the reefs, cenotes and also the Cozumel express.

 

Did not dive in Costa Maya. Did talk to a dive shop who was affiliated with a group out of Playa del carmen. They quoted $85 for two tanks. Costa Maya has nice beaches and cheaper prices than other spots, kinda like Playa del carmen 10-20 years ago. Got a 30 min massage on the beach for $10 (asking $20) Wife got to swim and play with the dolphins for $35 ( asking $70, ship wanted $100). Next time we will try the diving.

 

 

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[G.C]

Funny how everyone has such different opinions. Last week I was diving in Cozumel, Roatan and Belize while sailing on the Caribbean Princess. Two years ago I dove Costa Maya.

 

First if you like drift diving Cozumel is very good. I learned to dive in Palm Beach which is drift diving central. If you are not comfortable drift diving Cozumel might be a good place to pass on. Our first dive with Island Divers was a wall drift dive with a slight downward current that several divers found troubling. The second dive was a standard drift dive over a 70' scattered hard bottom. Both dives in sight of the cruise ship.

 

Belize had by far the best diving. It also was more effort and cost to get to the barrier reef. The barrier reef had much more varied marine life from eels, turtles, sharks and lots of fish. Out standing viz with almost no current. 20 minute ride from the ship to the dive shop then another 20 minutes to the dive sites.

 

Roatan we dove with Anthony`s Cay resort. Standard wall dive good viz not a lot to see. Second site was a Black grouper feeding dive with a small wreck at 65'. Very short boat ride to both sites.

 

All three operators allowed me to maximize my air supply while the heavy breathers were loaded aboard the boat. I was very pleased with all three operators.

 

When last in Costa Maya we found the diving to be very good.

[Podie]

Belize has spectacular diving, but none of it is very close to the port. You really need to stay on land and spend more time there to appreciate it.

[scuabacruiser]

Roatan and Cozumel. Easiest to get to. Lowest price and great dives. Having dove all 4, Roatan blew us away. Supper viz, beautiful beaches, small boats for most dive ops. I think Anthony Keys is the dive op for Carnival. Went with the ship at Belize and, as others have said, you will not have time to tender into the port.

[pops72106]

A lot of ships go to Belize--roatan and Cozumel...Costa Maya has not nearly as many cruise ships, so I would for sure dive there

[092306]

Of those 4, only dove in Roatan and Cozumel and both were great. Preferred Cozumel to Roatan, but only slightly. Belize is top of my list next time we do a WC itinerary.

[Griff4AU]

I think Dabaras nailed it, but everyone has their own opinion..

 

We were recently in Coz and dove with Aldora. YOu'll see a recent thread on Cozumel diving where I posted my take on Aldora. My better/smarter/better-looking half got Steel 100's (ladies) and the men got 120s, all pushed to 3500 - 3600 PSI. Our two dives were in the 70 - 86 foot range, with bottom times 56 and 66 minutes... You'll never find those kind of bottom times with AL80s or a mixed group of divers or a ship's excursion. Both sites were spectacular. We're certainly not newbies (I'm a 30 year diver / DM and she's a 150++ diver) and we both thought so highly of Cozumel and Aldor that we're going to book them for 5 straight days the next time we head down there. On the thread I mentioned above another 2 members who both seemed knowledgeable also recommended Scuba Club, so they are worth considering.

 

So for your list, I'd pick Cozumel regardless of cost. Then this may sound funny, but as for the other spot to dive, I'd pick whichever port that doesn't have a shore excursion you want to do between Costa Maya and Roatan. Meaning if Costa Maya or Belize has a shore excursion you really want to do, then dive the other port... You can have great dives in either of those two. Belize would be my 4th choice IMHO.

 

With each of those 4, I would NOT use the ship's excursion if you are a good diver who isn't an air hog. Lots of threads on that subject around here....

 

 

Have fun...... dive safely....