Discover SCUBA course worth it?

tl;dr is: Going to be in Cozumel. Want to introduce my fiancée to diving, in hopes of getting her to agree that it's a fun sport we can pursue together. Worried it'll be 10 minutes of staring at sand. Is this a valid concern?

Longer version: going on a mini-honeymoon to Cozumel, taking RCI. I've heard the diving down there is spectacular. It's something that I want to experience. But I'll need to talk my fiancée into it, since she has never felt the itch to get certified and doesn't have an inherent love of the ocean like I do.

Her biggest concern, and mine, is that the 2 and a half hour excursion won't give her a proper taste, that we won't get much time on the reef. And that she'll spend the entire time worried about messing something up. Altogether making it the lesser option compared to a snorkeling tour

So for those who know about it, or have done it before, is it fun? Will it give a total newbie the confidence to not be panicking? And give us time to see what makes it so awesome?

For reference, I'd go out and get certified tomorrow if I had the disposable income and a partner. My uncle gave me a taste when I was a kid and it's been on my to-do list ever since.

tl;dr is: Going to be in Cozumel. Want to introduce my fiancée to diving, in hopes of getting her to agree that it's a fun sport we can pursue together. Worried it'll be 10 minutes of staring at sand. Is this a valid concern?

 

 

Longer version: going on a mini-honeymoon to Cozumel, taking RCI. I've heard the diving down there is spectacular. It's something that I want to experience. But I'll need to talk my fiancée into it, since she has never felt the itch to get certified and doesn't have an inherent love of the ocean like I do.

 

Her biggest concern, and mine, is that the 2 and a half hour excursion won't give her a proper taste, that we won't get much time on the reef. And that she'll spend the entire time worried about messing something up. Altogether making it the lesser option compared to a snorkeling tour

 

So for those who know about it, or have done it before, is it fun? Will it give a total newbie the confidence to not be panicking? And give us time to see what makes it so awesome?

 

For reference, I'd go out and get certified tomorrow if I had the disposable income and a partner. My uncle gave me a taste when I was a kid and it's been on my to-do list ever since.

First in the interest of full disclosure - I'm a dive instructor. A part of me loves discover scuba (AKA resort dives) as they often encourage someone to take up diving. A part of me dislikes them as they can be run in such a rushed manner that participants end up not enjoying it, and will never give scuba another try. The difference between the two outcomes? almost entirely the instructor conducting the discover scuba course.

I hope someone who has done the ship's excursion you're looking at responds to your question, since that would give you some real insight into the course.

Usually a discover scuba dive will be from the beach, and Cozumel is not a place known for beach dives. Also discover courses are limited to 40 feet maximum depth (this rule is frequently ignored, but I would imagine on a ship's excursion it's more likely to be followed). Depending upon your itinerary, there may be better ports to do a Discover Scuba dive. Cozumel diving is world class to be sure, but for the above reasons it wouldn't be my first choice for a discover dive.

An option you may want to consider:

Since you're in Florida, you may want to check about doing a discover dive at a local dive shop for both of you. They will automatically know you're a potential Open Water Course customer, and thus have a vested interest in doing all they can so you feel comfortable and have an experience that would encourage you to pursue diving.

In any event, I'd be rather surprised if the Discover Scuba dive turned out to be "staring at sand" Even shore diving in Coz is going to get you some pretty interesting stuff I suspect.

If your cruise includes Roatan or Costa Maya, either of those would be a better spot in my opinion for a Discover dive. But I doubt you'll go wrong in any event.

Harris

Denver, CO

Thanks, Harris. That actually answered my question quite well.

I wish we were going to more ports, but we're limited by vacation time and schedule. If I don't get any first hand reports here I'll try again over in the Cozumel thread.

Doing a local Discover SCUBA is a good option I'll need to look more into. Her biggest objection is price.

Some dive ops in Coz use Tiki-La for instructional check dives. Tiki-La is a two story building with the upper floor a bar/restaurant and the lower (beach) level where the dive ops share the space. There's a few lockers, a small beach with a few tables, and a nice'n'easy shore entry there. Did my Rescue water work there. Can't say for absolute certain but that's where I think a Discovery Dive may happen. Also Aqua World has a walk-in, a pier for a giant stride, and a ladder. AW might do a DD there. Both places are an easy walk from Puerta Maya.

Thanks, Harris. That actually answered my question quite well.

 

I wish we were going to more ports, but we're limited by vacation time and schedule. If I don't get any first hand reports here I'll try again over in the Cozumel thread.

 

Doing a local Discover SCUBA is a good option I'll need to look more into. Her biggest objection is price.

I don't know how much the cruise line excursion is, but that maybe another advantage to a local course. Since they have the interest in developing a customer, it's not uncommon for a local shop to credit some or all of the price of a discover dive to a full Open Water Diver course should you decide to pursue diving. In any event the price would likely be less than the ship's excursion.

Harris

Denver, CO

couple of points .... I have used Discovery dives to get wife and dau on the path to SCUBA with success ...

First, how comfortable is your partner in the water? If not VERY comfortable this can go wrong real fast. DW was not and I spent two years building her confidence first. She eventually became a very comfortable snorkeler and THEN I proposed a Discovery ... she was signed up for certification the following week. Her big issue was very poor eyesight and a fear she could not see underwater since she'd only tried with 'toy' equipment. Getting GOOD equipment built confidence ...

Second, I took dd on a Discovery, during an RCL cruise and they used the place mentioned above. The site is poor ... not much to see. Fortunately dd had done a Discovery previously in Cayman (Sunset House) where there WAS a lot to see and was already hooked; just "getting wet" was fun when the opportunity arose. In the next year she'd gotten certified and begun an internship at CocoView resort. This pic is from the site ... you can see where it is in relation to the 'old' piers in Cozumel

couple of points .... I have used Discovery dives to get wife and dau on the path to SCUBA with success ...

 

First, how comfortable is your partner in the water? If not VERY comfortable this can go wrong real fast. DW was not and I spent two years building her confidence first. She eventually became a very comfortable snorkeler and THEN I proposed a Discovery ... she was signed up for certification the following week. Her big issue was very poor eyesight and a fear she could not see underwater since she'd only tried with 'toy' equipment. Getting GOOD equipment built confidence ...

 

Second, I took dd on a Discovery, during an RCL cruise and they used the place mentioned above. The site is poor ... not much to see. Fortunately dd had done a Discovery previously in Cayman (Sunset House) where there WAS a lot to see and was already hooked; just "getting wet" was fun when the opportunity arose. In the next year she'd gotten certified and begun an internship at CocoView resort. This pic is from the site ... you can see where it is in relation to the 'old' piers in Cozumel

Water comfortability is a good question, she's comfortable in the water, and has snorkeled before on a previous cruise with her family. She's a decent swimmer, has the coordination and knowledge, just doesn't get much opportunity to practice. But that is something I'll try and work on if she agrees.

Sounds like the better option would be a boat snorkel on Cozumel (thinking the Cozumel Water Sports one), and discover scuba around home. Unless the discover SCUBA here turns into OWC.

couple of points .... I have used Discovery dives to get wife and dau on the path to SCUBA with success ...

 

First, how comfortable is your partner in the water? If not VERY comfortable this can go wrong real fast. DW was not and I spent two years building her confidence first. She eventually became a very comfortable snorkeler and THEN I proposed a Discovery ... she was signed up for certification the following week. Her big issue was very poor eyesight and a fear she could not see underwater since she'd only tried with 'toy' equipment. Getting GOOD equipment built confidence ...

 

Second, I took dd on a Discovery, during an RCL cruise and they used the place mentioned above. The site is poor ... not much to see. Fortunately dd had done a Discovery previously in Cayman (Sunset House) where there WAS a lot to see and was already hooked; just "getting wet" was fun when the opportunity arose. In the next year she'd gotten certified and begun an internship at CocoView resort. This pic is from the site ... you can see where it is in relation to the 'old' piers in Cozumel

 

If you are referring to Tiki-La as being a place where there is not much to be seen, I would agree with you. I wasn't suggesting the site as a great dive site but merely as a safe site used by local dive operators with an easy shore entry for a Discovery Dive in close proximity to the cruise ship piers in Cozumel. Obviously there are better better places to dive in Coz, the Caribbean, and the world. I stand by my recommendations.

wasn't contesting anything you said. OP expressed concern for a bad reaction if the dive was "10 minutes of looking at sand" ... the site in question isn't much beyond that IMO ... MY dd was so excited to have the gear on and be underwater that a pool would suffice (and some places DO the discovery in a pool). DW was also already hooked on snorkeling b4 the dive option was brought it. OP's partner is not and a so-so dive could tilt things the wrong way ....

Coz' has good diving to be sure ... have been there MANY times. Was one of our routine r&r spots while working the western Carib' ... but always from a boat and usually drift (currents are a big factor here).

Current and drift dives are facts of life regarding diving in Cozumel. I'm sure that one can find a dive op in Coz who'd be willing to do a Discovery Dive from a fast boat on Paradise Reef - so that something can be seen. That's probably not the safest evolution for an inexperienced diver though. I go to Coz twice a year for three weeks at a time and have an opportunity to dive with divers of varied experience and skill levels. Some are prepared for the potential 3-4 knot current and some are not. I would also mention that the small, fast boats used by many of the dive ops can give a pretty sporty ride at times - especially in the winter months when "El Norte" is up. Also, one of the reasons Tiki-La is used for instruction is that the current there is usually negligible and is therefore not a factor. I don't mean to over-dramatize the drift diving aspect at Cozumel - I love the diving there, the people, the island, and the food. I've just seen people unprepared and surprised.

First in the interest of full disclosure - I'm a dive instructor. A part of me loves discover scuba (AKA resort dives) as they often encourage someone to take up diving. A part of me dislikes them as they can be run in such a rushed manner that participants end up not enjoying it, and will never give scuba another try. The difference between the two outcomes? almost entirely the instructor conducting the discover scuba course.

There seems to be a lot of wisdom in this statement. I will add I did my first discover scuba in St Thomas. It was through Royal. When you sign up Royal has a bunch of disclaimers you have to specify about yourself to make sure you're fit for this type of excursion. (That makes sense to me,even though some of their requirements for other excursions are absurd) Anyway, one of the questions they should ask, but don't is, "Can you swim" We actually had a lady in our group who couldn't swim so our actual diving time was limited by the divemaster have to tow her around. The dive was exciting enough that I eventually got certified and dive the Carribean, once a year.

Wow - that DD sounds like a recipe for disaster! If one of the other divers experienced an emergency, what would the DM have done? Hopefully there was a second dive master . . .

First in the interest of full disclosure - I'm a dive instructor. A part of me loves discover scuba (AKA resort dives) as they often encourage someone to take up diving. A part of me dislikes them as they can be run in such a rushed manner that participants end up not enjoying it, and will never give scuba another try. The difference between the two outcomes? almost entirely the instructor conducting the discover scuba course.

I acknowledge your experience and say I agree and note your use of "often" and "almost entirely". I've done it twice. Once was myself and it did get me hooked on diving, but events in my personal life prevented me from getting certified after that initial dive. The 2nd time I took my wife. It was the same location and the same operators. The big difference was the customers. In our group the 2nd time one lady couldn't swim. She just wanted the experience of being underwater with her eyes open. It took her twice as long as everyone else to get ready for the dive and the dive master ended up towing her around and our dive was about 20 minutes.

8 years ago I did a discovery scuba off a cruise ship in Nassau. It was the most terrifying thing I have ever done. It was a giant stride off a boat and then an ascent down a down line. And the two skills were done shortly after descent. We then did a 20 min tour around the reef. The tour was amazing.

All of this ultimately led to me being hooked on diving and since then I have completed my Master Scuba Diver.

So the discovery ultimately led to drive me....but in hindsight it is not what I would recommend now if someone in my family wanted to try scuba.

I would try to go to the keys, start in a pool, and then progress to the open water discovery dive.

The cruise discovery can definitely fuel the fire...it obviously did for me....but it could just as easily led to me being to terrified to continue in scuba.

I know that doesn't directly answer the question but hopefully provides food for thought.

Have a great cruise.

tl;dr is: Going to be in Cozumel. Want to introduce my fiancée to diving, in hopes of getting her to agree that it's a fun sport we can pursue together. Worried it'll be 10 minutes of staring at sand. Is this a valid concern?

 

 

Longer version: going on a mini-honeymoon to Cozumel, taking RCI. I've heard the diving down there is spectacular. It's something that I want to experience. But I'll need to talk my fiancée into it, since she has never felt the itch to get certified and doesn't have an inherent love of the ocean like I do.

 

Her biggest concern, and mine, is that the 2 and a half hour excursion won't give her a proper taste, that we won't get much time on the reef. And that she'll spend the entire time worried about messing something up. Altogether making it the lesser option compared to a snorkeling tour

 

I also am an instructor. Please don't worry, the 2 1/2 hours will pass very quickly for someone who has never been down on SCUBA

So for those who know about it, or have done it before, is it fun? Will it give a total newbie the confidence to not be panicking? And give us time to see what makes it so awesome?

 

For reference, I'd go out and get certified tomorrow if I had the disposable income and a partner. My uncle gave me a taste when I was a kid and it's been on my to-do list ever since.

I also am an instructor. Please don't worry, the 2 1/2 hours will pass very quickly for someone who has never been down on SCUBA. It can be a really exciting experience for a newby. Actually simply realizing the they are really entirely under water and can still breath is, in itself, a mind blowing experience. Any certified SCUBA instructor will never put a customer in a situation where the student is likely to panic. We are all trained to observe the signals long before a panic attack might occur. One of the major things I really enjoy about SCUBA is that it is one of very few non-competitive sports. And it is fun.

Scott & Karen

Is it worth it ? The short answer is YES!

I did Discover Scuba in Cancun this past April and a few months later in Bermuda.

Both times the instructors were very good and the entire group had a great time.

I am going to get certified.

Short video of Discover Scuba in Bermuda.