The place to learn diving.
Are you visiting the Riviera Maya? Do you want to have unforgettable experiences while being amazed by the coral reef and surrounded by sea turtles? Diving is what you need and the perfect place to fulfil that need is Akumal in Mexico.
Human beings and the sea have always shared a strong connection. We actually relate the sea waters with holidays, time off and a connection with nature.
Haven’t you ever wondered about the feeling of being surrounded by sea nature, fish and corals after watching a video or a picture of the undersea world? It might seem very difficult to achieve, but diving is actually an easy, fun and safe activity for everyone.
Why is diving in Akumal special?
Akumal gets its name by a mayan word that means “place of turtles”, it is a small village located on the heart of Riviera Maya, only 30 min driving from the world famous Playa del Carmen and only 20 min far from the beautiful mayan ruins of Tulum. Akumal was originally a coconut plantation used for copra. In 1958, Pablo Romero Bush, an expert diver who was in the area looking for underwater treasures, fell in love with the place and bought a portion of the land with the formal intention of settling the base for his new expeditions.
Currently these white sand Caribbean beaches are the place where expeditions to sea and cenotes are planned and carried on, letting the past melt with the present and the dream of adventures become real, transforming Akumal into a diving worldwide famous and loved destination.
Despite being developed as a small touristic destination, with the time Akumal in Mexico keeps the ancient times magic and poetry that make the diving enthusiasts fall in love with the place.
Akumal is the house for one of the biggest diving communities in the Riviera Maya. Akumal is Often visited by mexican and also foreign divers, people that left their homelands behind to move and live in this paradise, local and foreign divers that find joy diving in one of the most beautiful coral reefs in the Mexican Caribbean.
Learning to dive at Akumal in Mexico means not only to discover and practise this beautiful activity, but to learn to love diving. That is why many people decide to come back over and over again after their first time. You can run into people who you dived with, or perhaps a diver can tell you their story or experience with the sea. There is always somebody willing to talk and share good advice, making you feel part of this great community that loves diving.
How are the diving areas in Akumal?
Akumal offers a wide variety of places to dive with different depths that allow it to be the perfect place not only for expert divers but for amateur or even begginer divers. It is very common to find sea turtles during immersion, canyons and short tunnels, aside with the sponges and coral reefs serving as a natural scenario for a wide variety of fish, stingrays, moray eels and barracudas.
These diving areas are no farther than 5 to 10 mins out to sea sailing. Its warm, currentless water and the wide vision field allow Akumal to be one of the best places in Mexico for learning to dive.
Why learn to dive?
There are many reasons why diving is considered a very healthy and beneficial activity.
Diving is a complete exercise that activates the full body, tones the muscles and helps the blood circulation. The breathing techniques that are learnt from diving and the natural environment where diving is carried on are the perfect antidote for stress.
Diving doesn’t care about what language you speak, it doesn’t take into account where you come from or where you are heading to, if you are single or with a family. You will always find someone willing to share the diving experience with you.
Nowadays, diving represents a perfect ally for young people. Diving promotes the love for nature, respect and conservation of the environment. You learn self confidence, to overcome fears and to practise self-control and discipline. Getting the young people close to diving means to encourage them to travel to discover new underwater worlds and getting familiar with new costumes and people that share the same passion.
Diving is an activity that allows us to share funny moments with friends, lovers and family.
Do you dare to try it?
How do I learn to dive?
If you are over 10 years old, you are ready to learn diving. You only need to know how to swim, feel comfortable in the water and have good health. Before starting a diving course you need to fill in a medical questionnaire to discard any chronicle issues that might interfere with the process, such as recent surgeries or medical prescriptions that are not recommendable to be taken during diving. May you have any concern regarding this, talk to your health provider and consult the DAN (Dive Alert Network).
The first level of certification for divers is The Open Water Diver. During this course you will learn to dive with ease, in a safe and funny way, under a professional instructor’s supervisor. Once certificated you will be able to dive around the world up to 60 ft (18 mts) depth.
The Open Water Diver course was designed to be very flexible and adaptable, it can be completed in 3 or 4 days, depending on time availability of the learner. This course consists of 3 parts. The first part is the diving theoretical part, where you will learn all the technical parts about how to keep the body in the water; learn about the basics of diving in a safe way and you will learn about the undersea world and its characteristics.
Also, you will learn about confined waters, one section of the Akumal bay serves as a confined area due to the calm and shallow waters, here you will get used to moving, breathing and get confident with the diving gear. Besides, you will learn to find solutions to the most common problems that might arise when diving. The last part is the practical one, the funniest part, the 4 diving times. Here is where you will bring into practice what you learnt in the first two parts of the course, but underwater. Instructors will teach you the diving language, you will see how easy it is to communicate underwater.
Probably, you will feel a little bit nervous the first time, but calm down, you will be gaining confidence in every try, then you will be diving comfortably and relaxed, surrounded by the coral reef and multicolor fish varieties.
Do I have to be in Akumal for the entire course?
It is possible to take at least the first two parts of the course – theoretical and confined waters- before arriving in Akumal, so once you are in the sea you will be taking advantage of the whole practice time.
What if I am still not sure about diving?
If you think you are not ready to take the Open Water Diver course or you don’t have enough time to do the course because you have a tight holiday agenda, do not panic, diving school offers the Discovery Scuba Diver that is solely the diving experience without being certified. As this is not a certificated course, the Discovery Scuba Diver offers a brief and easy introduction to diving that will allow you to explore the undersea world in only half a day. During this experience you will get the basic knowledge of safety, you will learn to breath under water and the correct usage of the diving gear. You will have fun in a sea immersion up to 40 ft. (12 mts) depth under a professional instructor’s supervision.
At the end, either you want to get the Open Water Diver certificate or you just want to do the Discovery Scuba Diver and enjoy the experience, you shall contact us. Our professional, well experienced and certified instructors will make sure to help you get close to this wonderful world of diving.
Communicate with us using +52 984 151 8775, or send a mail to dive@akumladivecenter.com. Visit us in Km 104, Carr Cancun- Tulum, Akumal.
