Central America is a very narrow isthmus of southern North America extending from Mexico to Panama.
Ten kilometres/six miles off the coast of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula lies Cozumel, the “Island of the Swallows.” Barely 50 by 16 kilometres/30 by 10 miles, this diminutive island has become a popular scuba diving destination. Cozumel has all the ingredients for a great dive getaway – friendly locals, good food, lively nightspots, towering coral formations, warm...
On the southern end of the Central Pacific Coast, Acapulco is a traditional holiday destination without a defined scuba industry. This is steadily changing as dive operators open and discover interesting new dive sites. Caves, walls, sunken ships and rocky reefs make up the majority of underwater environments.Dive sites in the area sit at one of two extremes. Either...
In the Yucatán Peninsula, divers can find everything from cenotes to high-speed drift diving. Most of the dive sites are found off Riviera Maya and Cancún in the Caribbean Sea, but unexplored reefs do exist along the northern coast of the peninsula. Dive sites off Riviera Maya feature beautiful caverns while there is plenty of healthy reef near Cancún including an...
Not yet as famous as its neighbor to the south, the state of Veracruz holds unknown diving potential. At its epicenter, lies Veracruz. At first glance, this chaotic city does not bring images of fantastic diving to mind, but just offshore lies the Veracruz Reef System with its 8 reef platforms, which are ripe for exploration. There are also 5 major wrecks nearby...
Located 240 miles (390 kilometers) off the Baja Peninsula, the four Revillagigedo Islands offer some of the best diving in Mexico. Of these, Socorro Island is the most famous. It’s so well-known that often the group of islands is referred to as Socorro Islands rather than its proper name, the Revillagigedo Islands. Advanced divers flock to remote Socorro Island and...
From the coast of San Carlos to the shores of the Isla San Pedro, diving in the northern Sea of Cortez offers divers the opportunity to get in the water with several large pelagic species.Both beginners and advanced divers are welcome. Beginners remain closer to shore while advanced divers will spend more time in the open ocean where drift dives are more prevalent...
Thrill-seeking divers come to the remote island of Guadalupe for one reason: diving with Great White Sharks. Most of the diving here takes place within the confines of a cage, although a few operators will permit cageless diving for qualified individuals. The liveaboards running tours to Guadalupe Island boast several different variations on shark cages created...
Puerto Vallarta is the main diving destination in the Pacific Coast of Mexico although most of the dive sites are quite a distance from the resort area. Half of the dive sites are within the Banderas Bay while the other half surround offshore islands such as Los Arcos and the Marietas Islands. Underwater environments include caves, tunnels, rock formations and coral...
The Pacific Coast of Mexico is not known for its diving in the same way that the Baja Peninsula or Caribbean Mexico is. However, with several diving areas up and down the coast and many offshore islands, it makes sense that many divers wish to visit the wild west coast. Pelagic species and rocky corals abound in this off-the-beaten path diving destination.Advanced...
Thanks to the work of local environmental activists, Puerto Morelos is home to the best preserved section of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef. This piece of the second largest barrier reef in the world is also closer to land in Puerto Morelos than anywhere else in Mexico. This means that many of the sites in this small tourist center are easily accessible from shore...