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Acapulco isn’t a significant diving destination, but there are some nice diving spots off the coast of this legendary resort town. To schedule your dive, go through Acapulco Scuba Center or Swiss Divers Association. Both outfitters offer certification courses, and dives start at $70, which includes all gear. Keep in mind that this is the Pacific Coast, and that, with the exception of the summer months, the water is not nearly as warm as it is in the Caribbean.

In picturesque Los Cabos, the best diving is found at Roca Pelícano, Land’s End, Playa Chileno, Cabo Pulmo National Marine Park, Gordo Banks (advanced certification required),  and the Cabo San Lucas Marine Preserve. Several local outfitters offer dives, including Land’s End Divers, and Cabo Acuadeportes, which is the largest water-sports provider in the area.  Blue Adventures is run by a group of extremely knowledgeable local divers, who know the waters better than anyone in the region.  The species-rich Sea of Cortez is constantly under the threat of devastation by commercial over-fishing and over-building. Great efforts are being made to protect these pristine cape region’s areas, where a large variety of species, including hammerhead sharks, sea lions, the  giant Pacific manta are already on the brink of extinction.

During your dive, you will be able to see a wide variety of marine life, including  sea turtles (please refrain from touching them), sting rays, tropical fish, mantas, puffer fish, Mexican parrot fish, hammerhead sharks, and many more. Water temperatures in Los Cabos vary greatly throughout the year. It is precisely those changes that create the necessary conditions for the unique underwater world that is to be found in this part of Mexico. The ocean is at its warmest September through December, with temperatures ranging between 80 and 90 degrees. Between January and April, the temperatures range between 65 and 80 degrees, with May being the coldest month.

Puerto Vallarta offers many great water sport activities, and diving is one of the most memorable ones. The water is calm, clear, and tranquil, and there’s an abundance of tropical fish and coral to be seen. Shallow reefs make the resort town an ideal diving destination for beginners. Vallarta’s bay is lined with a number of hidden coves and secluded beaches with plenty of safe diving (and snorkeling) sites. The best diving spots can be found in Majuaita coves, Islas Marietas, and Los Arcos, where you will find underwater caves, tunnels, tunnels and pinnacles. Los Arcos is also a great night diving spot for experienced divers, which offers you a rare glimpse at the fascinating nocturnal sea life. During the winter months you are very likely to see whales and dolphins. You’ll see sail fish, wahoo and mantas year-round, especially in the Islas Marietas, which Jacques Cousteau himself chronicled because of the impressive diversity of marine life.  Water is usually at its clearest from May to November.  Multilingual Ocean Quest, Vallarta Adventures and the large Chico’s Dive Shop are three good outfitters in Puerto Vallarta, with dives starting as low as $79. Snorkelers can usually also join the same dive trips, so if your spouse is a non-diver, this is a good way to share an aquatic experience.

--By Judy Jenner

The crème de la crème of diving is to be found around Cozumel in the Mexican Caribbean, and it really doesn’t get any better than this: warm water, spectacular reefs, an almost infinite number of friendly and colorful tropical fish and year-round high visibility (50 meters and greater), making it possible to see white clouds in the sky even when diving at 20 feet. Cozumel’s reefs, the second-largest reef system in the world, cover a total of 12 square miles. They are famous for their enormous coral pinnacles, tunnels, coral and more than 500 species of tropical fish. During the peak diving season (June through August), which also happens to be the bargain season on the island, water temperatures range between 75 degrees and 85 degrees.

Cozumel is easily reached from mainland Cancún, with ferries leaving all day from Playa del Carmen. It’s a 45-minute ride (on a modern, quick ferry) at a cost of less than $10. Many hotels and all-inclusive properties also offer diving packages that include pick-up at your hotel. Most diving trips also take along snorkelers, making it an ideal outing for the whole family, including non-divers. Snorkelers will enjoy seeing a plethora of tropical fish and the occasional hammerhead shark.

The Palancar Reef (also known as Maya Reef) is widely regarded as one of the top five diving spots in the world, and it lives up to its reputation: 3.5 miles long, jaw-dropping marine life, tons of coral (be sure to keep your hands off it), swim-through caves, and sea turtles. Palancar Reef is actually a conglomeration of many coral formations. Palancar Gardens is shallow and best dived between 40 and 70 feet. Here you’ll find spectacular, large caverns. It’s ideal for novice divers. Deep Palancar, for advanced divers, is pristine and uncrowded, with depths from 100 to 120 feet.

The Santa Rosa Reef (also known as The Wall) is the island’s second-most popular dive, and it’s ideal for intermediate divers. The wall starts at approximately 50 feet and drops straight down to the ocean floor. Here, you’ll find massive amounts of sponges, stony corals, and breathtaking tunnels and caves. Virgin Wall, for advanced divers only, is pristine and uncrowded due to heavy currents, which prevent large groups of divers. With depths ranging between 40 and 130 feet, you will need several dives here to see it all. Columbia Reef features some of the best deep diving on the island, and is an excellent choice for intermediate divers. Huge coral pinnacles (many taller than 100 feet), tunnels, and caverns make this a very unique diving experience – divers often describe it as floating around the Rocky Mountains.

Paradise Reef, the island’s most popular night dive spot, is a series of three separate reefs that parallel the island’s western shore and are ideal for beginners. It’s also the only reef that can be reached from the beach. You’ll see lobster, crab and thousands of friendly tropical fish swimming all around you. Chancanab Reef, located south of Parque Chancanab about 350 yards off the shore, offers fantastic dives for novices at depths up to 55 feet. This is also an excellent spot for night diving.

La Francesa Reef is the ideal location for first-time ocean divers, as it’s surrounded by a sand bottom at depths between seven and 15 feet. Currents are usually very mild, and there’s an abundance of friendly tropical fish. This is the place to sit on the ocean floor, float around in the warm waters, and wonder why you didn’t start diving sooner.

The small island is literally awash in dive shops. Acuatic Sports, Deep Blue, and Scuba Gamma are three of the best outfitters in town. Several hotels, including the very charming Playa Azul Golf and Beach Hotel offers free demos, given by their onsite diving outfitter, Pro-Dive, in the resort’s pool. In general, two-tank dives start about $70 (less if you bring your own regulator and BCD). You can usually negotiate good discounts if you purchase multiple dives and pay in cash. There are several hyperbaric chambers on Cozumel.

For the diving experience of a lifetime, head south from Cancún. Here, less than two hours’ drive, you will find cenotes – large limestone freshwater pools that date back to the Mayans. The popular American-run dive outfitter Hidden Worlds offers dives in the underwater caverns of Dos Ojos cenote, which is the access point to one of the largest underwater caves in the world, full of stalactites and stalagmites. This extraordinary world is only to be explored with certified diving instructors. Do not attempt to dive alone. As these are caverns and not caves, you will not need an advanced certification, but can dive with your regular open water certification. Hidden Worlds offers several dives a day, and they all include a mesmerizing ride through the jungle that’s a little adventure in itself.

--By Judy Jenner

In order to start your ocean dives immediately, it’s best to already be PADI open water diver certified or National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI) scuba diver certified before you leave on vacation. The certification involves three portions: knowledge development, confined water dives, and open water dives. You can also easily get PADI open-water certified through almost all scuba-diving instructional institutions in Mexico (some offer NAUI courses), but allow at least several days for this. For the open water certification, you might need a physician’s release. Contact your local dive shop or go to www.padi.com or www.naui.org for details.  

Alternatively, you can begin your PADI open water diver training at a dive shop in your area and then complete the open ocean dives in Mexico in order to obtain your certification. This is a quicker and cheaper course than the full open-water certification, as you will have already completed the theoretical portion back home. And trust us, it’s a lot more fun to do your initial open water dives in the Caribbean than in say, a murky lake in the Midwest in October.

--By Judy Jenner

• If you are lucky enough to encounter a marine turtle, don’t try to ride on its back or touch it.
• Coral is a highly sensitive living organism that’s home to hundreds of species, and it’s very delicate.  Be careful with your fins, and keep some distance between you and the reef.
• Especially in the Caribbean, coral is strictly protected, so don’t touch it or even break off a part. Many reefs were damaged after hurricane Wilma and need time to recover.
• Help maintain the marine environment by taking all your trash with you. You probably know this, but just for the record: the ocean is not a trash can.
• Follow the diving philosophy of taking only memories and leaving only bubbles. Of course, those memories can be taken in the form of underwater pictures.

--By Judy Jenner

• Bring your current diving-certification card from an internationally recognized scuba-diving institution.
• Although there are conflicting guidelines on this, it’s recommended to allow at least 12 hours between your last dive and your flight home.
• If you are not feeling 100 percent healthy, skip the dive.
• Be sure to arrange your dives through certified dive shops only. Ask around in the diving community to ensure that the provider is reputable and doesn’t have any safety complaints against them.
• In some areas, the nearest hyperbaric chamber is not in the immediate surroundings, such as in Ixtapa, where the hyperbaric chamber is located in Acapulco, two hours away, so be sure to exercise additional caution and take your time during the ascend.
• Diving in caves – and especially night diving in caves – is challenging, so be sure you are diving with a guide who knows the area and the caves extremely well.
• Open water dives in unknown territory are not the best place to go beyond your diving abilities, so stick to dives that are adequate for your skill level.
• Respect all local laws and regulations, especially concerning the protection of wildlife.
• Before you go on the dive, be sure to inquire about underwater conditions, which will determine your equipment for the day (full wet suit, short wet suit, etc.) It’s always good to get a feel for  the local conditions, so ask the local experts.

--By Judy Jenner