COZUMEL, MEXICO

Year:2006

Spectacular drift diving and fine reefs

Season: Year-round diving

Visibility: 25-45 metres (can be up to up to 60 metres)

Water temperature: 25-29°C

The island of Cozumel is perched off the shoulder of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula and offers spectacular and effortless drift diving all year. Although some luxury hotels have been built and cruise liners now use Cozumel as one of their staging posts, little has altered the superb quality of the diving, the warmth of the people and the charming atmosphere of this friendly little island. Remarkably clear water, friendly locals, a very pleasant climate (especially in the European winter), good accommodation, interesting food and some of the Caribbean's finest diving make Cozumel an excellent diving holiday choice.

From deep in the South Atlantic, a current of water flows northwards until it reaches northern Brazil, where just less than half of it splits off and forms the Guiana Current that flows into the Caribbean Sea. Eventually some of this mass of water is forced through the Yucatan Channel, which divides Mexico from Cuba, and the resulting constriction gives rise to currents which sweep past the island of Cozumel and force away suspended sediments. Corals thrive in these currents, which can range from half a knot to over 2 knots on occasion, and some really spectacular sponges can also be found at Cozumel's dive sites. The superb water clarity allows more sunlight to penetrate the water and subsequently the reefs are exceptionally healthy.

Effortless drift diving in Cozumel is very rewarding, most enjoyable and yet quite remarkable We have taken great care to work with a very well established operator who knows the reefs and currents and yet understands that most divers do not want to play follow-my-leader on a dive.

Happily, one can still enjoy the true flavour of Mexico in Cozumel, which should not be confused with its near neighbour, the sprawling resort complex of Cancun, so near in geography and yet so far in ambiance and atmosphere! The small, but busy, seaside town of San Miguel offers a remarkable choice of places to eat and drink, from small cafés and bars, tucked behind the main plaza and specializing in sizzling fajitas flavoured with avocado, barbecued chicken, grilled vegetables and, of course, a little chilli washed down with a cool beer or a zing of Margarita, to more elegant establishments, like Pepe's Grill on the waterfront where waiters 'perform' nightly and prepare flambé dishes for you at your table. Those with energy to spare after diving will also find some flashy nightclubs in San Miguel. Try to make it into town on at least one evening!

There are some truly fabulous long, powder-soft sandy beaches to enjoy on the east coast of the island and a few restaurants which offer wonderful seafood meals. Try the garlic lobster, or shrimps Cajun style and, for the brave, Pico de Gallo (a delicious yet very hot salad seasoned with much garlic and chilli). Naturally, chilli sauce will be offered with everything! Enjoy a long lazy lunch in the shade of an umbrella, sipping a chilled beer and gazing at the sunlit ocean.

Cozumel makes a superb choice for couples who want a romantic holiday, groups of friends who can seek out the more lively bars and nightclubs in San Miguel, and families who can enjoy the superb facilities of a fine hotel. Everyone will enjoy exploring the island, which is very easy to do with a rental car (roads are good and uncrowded away from San Miguel). Live it up, or live it down, the choice is yours. Cozumel offers a great combination of varied and interesting diving along with a wonderful Mexican ambience - perfect for a relaxing holiday.

At Santa Rosa Reef divers are usually dropped at a sand flat, at around 15 metres, which gives way to a coral buttress that rises up from the top of the wall and forms a ridge only about 12 metres from the surface. This tall column of coral is cut by channels which slope downwards from the sand flat to the seaward wall. The almost vertical wall supports superb sea fans and amazing sponges. In the middle section of the wall are caves and overhangs with tunnels that are big enough to swim through with ease. The ceilings of the tunnels are covered with interwoven rope sponges, encrusting sponges and barrel sponges. This is one site where wide-angle photographers should have an excellent choice of subjects with divers silhouetted in grottos or caves, or disappearing into the narrow slots between walls. Fish life includes large Black Groupers, barracudas, moray eels which frequently swim freely inside the tunnels, Queen Angelfish and schools of Creole Wrasse and parrotfish. Look out for cleaning stations, where with luck, you may find a friendly cleaner shrimp to give you a manicure.

Perhaps the most famous reef on Cozumel is Palancar Reef which comprises a three-mile long section of reef along the southwestern edge of the island. Palancar Shallows is an area that can be dived or snorkeled as the depth of the reef top can be as little as 5 metres from the surface. The reef is around 12-24 metres wide and cut with miniature canyons, valleys and tunnels, the walls of which have many orange rope sponges and some very impressive tube sponges. You may find that you are not alone at Palancar Horseshoe . Angelfish, Bermuda Chub, Creole Wrasse and Yellowtail Snappers have been known to follow divers as they explore the amazing 'U' shaped cut in the reef. In 1985 a 4 metre bronze statue of Christ was placed here, but Hurricane Gilbert (1988) knocked over the statue, which was later moved to Chancanab. Today only the base of the statue remains.

Chancanab lies within the Cozumel National Marine Park and is usually done as an afternoon dive, due to its shallow profile. Notable for some really enormous lobsters (up to 9 kilograms!), this area is honeycombed with a maze of tunnels hiding much marine life. Pairs of Grey Angelfish will watch as you encounter crabs and shrimps. Under the ledges, expect to see the fish that enjoy lurking in dark corners: bigeyes and schools of squirrelfish. In addition, margates and grunts can be found in small schools.

Scuba Du offers Advanced Divers the chance to dive some of the more difficult dive sites, with their special Advance Diver's Programme (please see details below). Situated near to the southernmost tip of the island is the incredible Punta Sur Reef . Above and over the lip of the drop-off, at around 23 metres, are huge buttress-like formations where the coral has built up. These are honeycombed with caverns and a complex of interconnecting tunnels, some of which are suitable only for qualified cave divers as they are deep and lightless passageways without access to the surface. This is the place to find pelagics such as Horse-eye Jacks, sharks and Spotted Eagle Rays. At deeper levels, the superb sponges and corals are in pristine condition as few divers venture so far.

CASA DEL MAR HOTEL

The Casa del Mar Hotel is situated on the southern outskirts of San Miguel, within easy reach of the downtown area for shopping, dining or evening entertainment, but with an outlook over the clear waters of the Caribbean at the front and over the gardens to the jungle-like interior of the island at the back. This relatively modern, friendly, middle of the range hotel, surrounded by lush gardens, is situated just across the road from the ocean. The pleasant rooms are furnished in Mexican Caribbean style. All rooms have double or twin beds, with both air-conditioning and ceiling fan, and en-suite bathrooms. Standard rooms look out across the garden or across the tennis court towards the jungle. Ocean view rooms are a little larger and have a terrace (ground floor rooms) or a patio with views of the ocean.

Facilities include a tennis court (with lighting for evening playing), swimming pool with swim-up bar, jacuzzi and a small beach area (across the road) with palapas. When the diving day is over, or on off-diving days, you can relax on the beach or at the hotel. What better way to end the day than a refreshing dip in the pool? Swim leisurely up to the bar to order one of the wonderful cocktails, then watch the sun go down on a warm, Mexican evening. Dining opportunities in the area are legion! Either dine at the hotel's own La Palapa Restaurant located next to the pool, or pop off downtown to sample the delights of Cozumel's amazing array of restaurants. If you are in the mood, there are bars and clubs aplenty to try, or you could just go back to the hotel for an early night ...

Scuba Du is a PADI dive centre situated at the vast and rather impersonal Presidente Inter-Continental Hotel to the south of Casa del Mar. They pick up guests at Casa del Mar from the pier opposite the hotel. The owners were instrumental in the foundation of ANOAAT, an association concerned with maintaining Cozumel's National Marine Park and promoting reef ecology education. The emphasis at Scuba Du is on personal attention and safety. Scuba Du provides a high quality, uncrowded diving experience. They have a fleet of 5 customized fibreglass boats, which are all equipped with DAN oxygen units and VHF radios, and take between 6 and 12 divers per boat, with a maximum of 7 divers to each divemaster. The boats have shade, and bottled water and fruit are available on every dive trip. Boats leave the pier at 0815 each morning for a two tank dive, returning at 1215, or leave at 1300, returning at 1715, for those who prefer to dive in the afternoons. For divers who want a third dive following the two morning dives, an additional dive boat departs at 1230 for a 1-tank, shallow dive and returns at 1400.

With over 10 years experience of teaching at all levels, Scuba Du can offer PADI specialities, Nitrox qualification, night dives and wreck dives (to be arranged locally) and special advanced dives (e.g. Punta Sur and Maracaibo) to dive sites where stronger currents and faster drift diving is the norm. To qualify for the advanced diving, divers need to have satisfied the local divemaster on one day of diving (two tanks). Kindly note that for these advanced dives a fee, currently US$19 per person, is payable locally for two dives. A minimum of 4 divers is needed for dives to advanced locations.

Standard Room

£388 (non-divers £154) from 17 August-22 December

£409 (non-divers £175) from 3-31 January, 10 April-16 August

£423 (non-divers £189) from 1 February-9 April

£451 (non-divers £217) from 1-2 January, 23-31 December

Ocean View Room

£416 (non-divers £182) from 17 August-22 December

£430 (non-divers £196) from 3-31 January, 10 April-16 August

£444 (non-divers £210) from 1 February-9 April

£465 (non-divers £231) from 1-2 January, 23-31 December

Includes:

" 7 nights room and breakfast accommodation on a twin/share basis at the Casa del Mar Hotel.

" 6 days diving (2 morning or afternoon boat dives daily), dive guide, cylinders and weights.

Please note : Transfers are not included. Taxis and transfer buses are readily available at the airport, with costs for transfers to the hotel currently around US$10-12. The journey time is usually 15-20 minutes if you take a shared taxi, as drop offs are made at various hotels. Taxis are readily available for return transfers and arrangements should be made in advance with the hotel reception.

Supplement for additional dives: £19 per dive.

Please note: A National Marine Park diving fee of 20 Mexican Pesos (around £1) per day is payable locally to Scuba Du.

Meal Plans:

£7 per night for lunch and dinner (including unlimited Mexican produced drinks!)

Additional Nights:

Important: If you book 11 nights or more at Casa Del Mar between 10 April-22 December you will qualify for 3 extra nights free of charge!

Standard Room

£61 (without diving: £22) from 17 August-22 December

£64 (without diving: £25) from 3-31 January, 10 April-16 August

£66 (without diving: £27) from 1 February-9 April

£70 (without diving: £31) from 1-2 January, 23-31 December

Ocean View Room

£65 (without diving: £26) from 17 August-22 December

£67 (without diving: £28) from 3-31 January, 10 April-16 August

£69 (without diving: £30) from 1 February-9 April

£72 (without diving: £33) from 1-2 January, 23-31 December

Single Occupancy Supplement : The supplement payable is the same as the 'non-divers' rate for week-long stays and the same as the 'without diving' rate for any additional nights.

Deposit: £100

FLIGHTS

The airfares shown here were typical economy fares available at the time of going to press. We will quote you the airfare applicable, based on current fare levels and booking class availability, at the time of booking. Our quote, which will include all taxes and fuel supplements applicable at the time of quotation, as well as our service charge, may be higher or lower than the airfares indicated here. The usual airfare deposit is £100.

CONTINENTAL AIRLINES

Daily departures from London (Gatwick) to Cozumel, via Houston, with an overnight stop in Houston en route, arriving in Cozumel the following morning. Return from Cozumel in the afternoon via Houston, arriving at London (Gatwick) the following morning.

£726 for departures 1 January-30 April (excluding Easter), 1 November-13 December

£850 for departures 1 May-22 June, 1 September-31 October, 25-31 December

£945 for departures at Easter, 23 June-31 August

£1002 for departures 14-24 December

Includes:

" Scheduled flights London (Gatwick)/Houston/Cozumel/Houston/London (Gatwick) by Continental Airlines.

Overnights in Houston: We can reserve rooms at the Marriott Airport Hotel, a comfortable hotel situated within the Houston Intercontinental Airport terminal complex, for approximately £33 per night Friday-Sunday, £50 per night Monday-Thursday, payable locally in US$, on a twin/share basis. The single occupancy rate is double.