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Scuba, Snuba, and Snorkeling in Cozumel Thread

dbrady

By dbrady,
in Cozumel

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bruce-r

bruce-r

Posted
Posted
We want to snorkel in cozumel-thought maybe we'd do Chankanaab in the a.m., then on to Paradise Beach or Playa Mia-but it would be nice to make camp in one place. Do either of these offer decent snorkeling?
Any place that has a sandy beach where the sand goes out into the water will have disappointing snorkeling, including PB or Playa Mia. You need to go to a place with a rocky shoreline for the better snorkeling from shore. For the best snorkeling, you'll want to do a boat snorkel trip. You can do this from PB or Playa Palancar. If you still want to snorkel from shore, stop at Dzul Ha for an hour or two, then go to PB for the rest of the day.
Besides, I undertand Chankanaab is rough in the a.m.
Rough as in the water will be rough? I don't think this is quite accurate. Usually the water is calmer in the morning.

 

Someday I hope to hear more about why you like BC diving so well, the drysuit in your pic tells me part of the story...

Oh, I like the warm water too, but BC has some much to see underwater, big stuff like seals, Giant Pacific Octopus, and wolf eels.

 

BC photo galleries: Quadra 2006, Quadra 2005, and Wolf eels

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clofty

clofty

Posted
Posted

I agree with Bruce, the best shore snorkeling is from Dzul Ha via rock shelf/boat ramp and not the beach. My daughter (8) and myself went snorkeling there last September and loved it (despite snorkeling in the middle of a severe thunderstorm). You can pay a local to guide you to the best spots too if you're in a hurry like we were. We wanted to see something before the very close lightening strikes scared us to death.

Be careful though, as the Taxi driver didn't know where to take us so we got her to stop and we just walked along the street looking for the place, (We had a map).

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  • 2 weeks later...
Smileeface

Smileeface

Posted
Posted

We snorkeled in Chankanaab Park in 2003 & loved it. We'll be back this June 2007 with older kids & young teens (ages 11-16). We thought Chankanaab would be the right setting, especially since we're still all "amateur" snorkelers. Has anyone been there recently since the hurricane? Is the beach, botanical gardens & path to the replica ruins all open now? I remember being impressed with their miniature ruins. Any information would be appreciated! It was truly a beautiful park. I hope they are able to have it fully open when we are there.

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232271

232271

Posted
Posted
I think I read that the lagoon is closed to swimming and snorkeling? This was the primary reason we were considering spending the day here, but if the lagoon is closed, what options are there?
:eek:

 

I just sent an email off to them and will post the reply when I recieve it.

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JStarbrite

JStarbrite

Posted
Posted

How is the Sea Trek Helmet Diving in Cozumel? We are going in May and have one person from our group who may not be able to tolerate wearing the helmet but she's thinking of trying it. She feels she may get too nervous and not be able to breath. Any feedback?

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FamilyDoc

FamilyDoc

Posted
Posted

Hi!

 

I did Snuba, although it wasn't in Coz. I have been trying for about 20 years to get my husband to get certified in Scuba. (He has a little issue with closed spaces and wasn't sure he would enjoy being enclosed by the water.) He and my kids ages 12 and 14 at the time did the snuba as an entry to scuba. It worked wonders! I enjoyed it but not as much as scuba. Certified divers usually don't do it though. I just wanted to be on the same excursion with my DH and kids.

 

It was very, very easy and low key. My son was tugging on the tubing trying to get deeper. :) The tubing only extends to about 20 feet or so but you probably wouldn't want to go much deeper unless certified anyway.

 

My family enjoyed it so much they all (finally) got certified.

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sushisushi

sushisushi

Posted
Posted

I'm looking into a snorkeling trip at Palancar and Colombia Reefs. How are the corals there? Have they recovered from the hurricane?

 

Are there any other locations you can recommend that are good for looking at corals? I've heard Chankanaab doesn't really have any, what about Dzul Ha?

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jjprugby

jjprugby

Posted
Posted

There will be for of us visiting Cozumel on our NCL Sun cruise leaving feb. 25th. We want to do some snorkeling from shore, on our own. Since there are so many beaches along the coast we were hoping some of you would have suggestions on which beach would render the best snorkeling experience for us. Two years ago we took a cab and snorkeled at Playa Corona and it was pretty good, not great though. Do any of you know of a better place to snorkel from shore? We plan on just taking a cab, and 2 of the 4 of us already have our fins, goggles, and snorkel. Our goal is to have some better than average snorkeling for a couple of hours, then spend a couple of hours on the beach laying out.

 

Any help?

 

Thanks a bundle!!

 

-Justin

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bruce-r

bruce-r

Posted
Posted

I hate to say it, but I think you will be a little disappointed with even the best shore snorkeling that Cozumel has to offer. Most of the near shore, shallow snorkel sites were scoured clean by wilma, and while quite a bit of the fish life has returned, a lot of the stationary life, like corals and sponges, are much slower to return.

 

If you are still set on snorkeling from shore, Dzul Ha has probably the "best" snorkeling.

 

The better snorkeling will found from a boat trip. Both Paradise Beach and Playa Palancar offer snorkel trips that depart right from the beach. That is what I'd pick IF I was looking to go snorkeling.

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jjprugby

jjprugby

Posted
Posted
The better snorkeling will found from a boat trip. Both Paradise Beach and Playa Palancar offer snorkel trips that depart right from the beach. That is what I'd pick IF I was looking to go snorkeling.

 

Thank you for your expertise. Would these boat trips be something that I would need to schedule prior to arriving on the internet or would it be something that we would sign up for when we arrived on shore?

 

-Justin

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lazygal

lazygal

Posted
Posted

Justin, there will be four of us in Coz. on March 1. We plan on renting a jeep, going to Playa Palancar and taking an excursion from there - no reservation. I understand the snorkle boats leave every hour starting at 9:00 for $30 ea.

 

I guess that means it is only a one hour tour. Does anyone know?

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Orangetexas

Orangetexas

Posted
Posted

We were there jan 31st and snorkled at dzul ha. I thought it was wonderful. We rented a jeep and my friend dropped me off a little North of the entrance to dzul ha and I snorkled back! Got out had a drink and relaxed and then did it all over again. I saw lots of fishes ,a few big ones too! I highly recommend this. good luck!:D

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kenf333

kenf333

Posted
Posted
I hate to say it, but I think you will be a little disappointed with even the best shore snorkeling that Cozumel has to offer. Most of the near shore, shallow snorkel sites were scoured clean by wilma, and while quite a bit of the fish life has returned, a lot of the stationary life, like corals and sponges, are much slower to return.

 

If you are still set on snorkeling from shore, Dzul Ha has probably the "best" snorkeling.

 

The better snorkeling will found from a boat trip. Both Paradise Beach and Playa Palancar offer snorkel trips that depart right from the beach. That is what I'd pick IF I was looking to go snorkeling.

 

Paradise Beach no longer has the snorkel tour.

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jjprugby

jjprugby

Posted
Posted
We were there jan 31st and snorkled at dzul ha. I thought it was wonderful. We rented a jeep and my friend dropped me off a little North of the entrance to dzul ha and I snorkled back! Got out had a drink and relaxed and then did it all over again. I saw lots of fishes ,a few big ones too! I highly recommend this. good luck!:D

 

When you went did you just snorkel from shore? If so is there a place to rent gear? My wife and I have our own snorkeling gear, but the couple that is joining us does not, so we would need to rent them some. I've read good things about Dzul Ha, so it may be where we end up. Is there an entrance fee into Dzul Ha? How far out from shore did you snorkel to find all these wonderful fish?

 

Thanks for the advice!!

 

-Justin

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mlbcruiser

mlbcruiser

Posted
Posted

How is Chankanaab? I recall MOSTLY fish (and a cool acting barracuda!) when I've snorkeled there in the past (a few years ago). My dd will be there soon and just seeing a LOT of fish would probably be fun for her and her friend. (It's so easy to get to.) I'm also wondering if they still have the learn to dive lesson, how much the entry cost is and the price of renting snorkeling equipment. Thanks!

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