Mahahual (Costa Maya)

Local diving at Mahahual means a short boat ride from the village. The centres treat about 10 km of coastline as their home patch, with up to six underwater landscapes in three depth ranges, and every dive except the night dive goes by boat. 40 Cañones lies five minutes from the fishermen's dock, and Punta Tan is the run south out of the village surroundings. Centres working from the village include Pepe Dive, Mar Adentro, Doctor Dive, Takata Experience and Mahahual Dive Centre.

The reef runs in two barriers. At Escalones, Dos Ojos and 40 Cañones a platform about 15 m wide sits at 13 m, then the slope tips at roughly 80 degrees down to 40 m, cut by canyons and reef gullies; beyond 15 m the outer wall steps down to a vertical drop at 50 m. At Punta Tam, Connie's Office and Balam Kuh parallel coral mountains run from 12 to 30 m, and Faro Viejo is low coral colonies on sand. All three Caribbean turtles, hawksbill, green and loggerhead, are common, nurse sharks and large stingrays can be found in the deep cracks at Punta Tan, and lobsters and lionfish live in its caves and holes.

Warm water and feeble currents make Mahahual a place to learn or to dive at an easy pace: El Acuario, Dos Ojos and Simio Bipolar are shallow reefs for new divers, while 40 Cañones and Escalones ask for medium experience and Faro Viejo, where moderate currents generally run, is an advanced dive. When the sea closes the port, the alternative is the two-hour drive to Tulum for cenote dives, and trips to Banco Chinchorro need booking ahead with a group of at least six divers.