Cenotes Recomendations????

[racer17m]

We are going to Cozumel In March and plan on crossing over and doing some Cenote diving as well, I am wondering if anyone has dove any of the Cenotes in Playa Del Carmen or Akumal if so which ones, how were they and who did you dive with?

[ScubaAl]

Been several years since I've been, but there is a thread on "The scuba board" about cenotes.

Also if your staying on Coz and diving, speak with your operator and they might be able to point you in the right direction.
                                                                          Al

[freedivernd]

since the cenotes are freash water it's a good idea to make that the last dive of the trip... you'll get to give everything a good freshwater rinse for the ride home.  I've only been to a few cenotes.. dos ojos got my vote as the best one I've been to.
Fred

[jasondbaker]

Dos Ojos is very popular and recommended. Have fun!

[Dano]

Dos Ojos(?) is the only one I can name. And DiveMike out of PDC is who I used. I would recommend using an Op out of Downtown PDC as they can provide transportation and a bite to eat.  

[DetectorGuy]

I haven't "dove" in any of the cenotes yet but I did some cliff jumping into one about 20 miles west of Cancun. Not real clear water like the ones near the Gulf. Alot of bat guano with signs warning to shower off after swimming there. another cool cenote system is at Xcaret MX about 4 miles South of Playa Del Carmen. I snorkeled through a 2000' long underground river there. at the end of this underground river there is a bunch of smaller cenotes that you can snorkel through. at the end of the series of cenotes there is a big lagoon where you can swim with the dolphins. The Xcaret area is one of the most beautiful areas that I have ever visited. If I could only "Scuba dive" one cenote in the world it would be the one in Chichen Itza about 150 miles West of Cancun. I went there to see the ruins and I guess they did Mayan sacrifices there. Here is a quote that I found on the net:
"The Cenote Sagrado was a place of pilgrimage for ancient Maya people who, according to ethnohistoric sources, would conduct sacrifices during times of drought. Archaeological investigations support this as thousands of objects have been removed from the bottom of the cenote, including material such as gold, jade, obsidian, shell, wood, cloth, as well as skeletons of children and men. In 1926, the Mexican government charged Edward Thompson with theft, claiming he stole the artifacts from the Cenote Sagrado and smuggled them out of the country. The government seized the Hacienda Chichén. Thompson, who was in the United States at the time, never returned to Yucatán. He wrote about his research and investigations of the Maya culture in a book People of the Serpent published in 1932. He died in New Jersey in 1935. In 1944 the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that Thompson had broken no laws and returned Chichen Itza to his heirs. The Thompsons sold the hacienda to tourism pioneer Fernando Barbachano Peon, and his heirs own the property today.

There have been two later expeditions to recover artifacts from the Cenote Sagrado, in 1961 and 1967. The first was sponsored by the National Geographic, and the second by private interests. Both projects were supervised by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH). INAH has conducted an ongoing effort to excavate and restore other monuments in the archaeological zone, including the Ossario, Akab D’zib, and several buildings in Chichén Viejo (Old Chichen)."

Diving here would require extreme bribery and/or stealth tactics...

[tullibee]

I did Taj Mahal and Grand Cenote a couple winters ago.  Used Dennis at Diablo Divers (set it up via Christi at Blue XTSea).  He picked me up at the ferry dock in Playa, then grabbed a few others from a couple hotels in town and we convoyed to the cenotes (with a stop to grab tanks along the way).  both dives were very interesting and fun.  a few stairs, but not too bad.  He picked those two because Dos Ojos is usually busy, so if you don't want crowds, avoid there.  after the dives we stopped for fish and shrimp tacos (I can't think of the name of the place, but it's right on the highway at a gas stop - awesome tacos and variety of salsas).  If we hadn't gotten a flat tire on the way back to the ferry, I would have made it back to Coz in time to catch a night dive!  (but it was just as well, as I was fairly tired after the days activities!)

I would certainly dive with Dennis again.  I'd have to check my log book and pictures to see if I would prefer one cenote over the other.  they were both nice.  one of them had a little more ups and downs, but it didn't bother me - if you've got sensitive ears it might make a difference.

[Shooter]

Sounds like a covert operation  ;D  ;D   We might have to make it a required psd dive  :-X

Have fun on your trip! Take pics and post us a report..  I look forward to diving there

[scubadog76]

Most dive operations will take you to Dos Ojos first.  If you continue to use the same shop throughout your trip, they will be able to see skill levels and get you into the more advanced cenotes.  There are many good shops down there.  One way to find out if they know what they are doing when it comes to cenotes is to ask alot of details about the cenote they are planning to go to.  Get them to the point where they decide it is just easier to map out the entire cenote on a piece of paper than explain it to you to you.  They map will they draw can give you a good idea whether that individual leading could do the dive in their sleep or if they will be experiencing the dive for the first time right along with you.  Have a great time, J

[pitdvr]

I dove Kulkulkan with Al from Mayan Aqua Divers last year and Chac Moal and Kulkulkan with Evan from Tank Ha the year before.  Tank Ha is right in Playa.  MAD operates out of Cancun.  They were all great dives.