However, one of the biggest reasons for the gap since my last newsletter is I got a much deserved and long awaited visit from my niece, nephew and my brother. I finally got to certify the both of them - woo hoo !! They are such great divers. Never missed a low on air mark, or a safety stop (Am I playing the proud Aunt card too much !?!?!?!) We were out diving every chance we could get. And trying new foods. And just having a blast!

I'm telling you.... these guys are way too spoiled. The reefs are in phenomenal shape, so much life, bright colors and fish galore!!!! One day we saw 2 black tip reef sharks on the first dive, and a ginormous nurse shark on the 2nd dive. I'm looking forward to many more underwater adventures with them in the near future.

Prior to the pandemic this spring I strived to send out newsletter about once a month or so. With all that has been happening related to COVID, we switched to sending something out about once a week or so, but then we started to see the numbers of opens and click throughs on newsletter drop off. I thought maybe I was bombarding you with too much too often? But as folks are starting to look towards planning their return trips I've been getting questions about why there hasn't been a newsletter recently. So please help me out by completing this little poll.

Remember, to keep up to date with the latest Scuba Shack Cozumel News, follow us on Facebook.

We also have a whole news section on the website that has an FAQ, fun and information articles, and an Information and Resources section.

The State Department FINALLY lifted the Travel Ban for US citizens. It was a much needed notification..... especially since many places are opening but not accepting US citizens. But Cozumel is! Come and take a much needed vacation. The info is difficult to find since it is still not recommended to travel to certain parts of Mexico, so here is the link and a crop from that page.

Scroll down to QUINTANA ROO to find Cozumel.

And you also have to remember that the color does not apply ONLY to Cozumel. It is the entire northern section of Quintana Roo, which includes Cancun, Playa, Tulum, etc. And they have higher numbers than Cozumel.....

As you can see, Cozumel has by far the lowest infection rate for all of the surrounding areas, which still has a very low rate - less than 1%.

We have been receiving some questions that are interesting and the info is important to have since you may have the same questions...

How come you are still in ORANGE?

Well, as with every single reopening that has occurred in the world, once home isolation stops, an increase in Covid-19 cases occurs. That has happened here in Quintana Roo as well. But it is a very low increase. We still have curfew (10 pm - 5 am). Closed container liquor sales are suspended as of 5 pm. This does not affect restaurants or hotels which serve you drinks in an open container. Masks are required. Temperatures are taken when entering every location, including the dive shop. So there are rules in place to keep us safe.

There are still only 230 cases here in Cozumel for 100,000 people. Our hospitals are not overwhelmed, nor have we had to build any new ones. Honestly, we are really are doing well. But COVID is still here and we do have to take care. No tourists have contracted the virus here and presumably no locals have contracted it from a tourist.

What happens if for some reason you move to RED ?

So considering how we have handled this virus here, that would mean a HUGE change. But, if that were to happen then we would still be able to be open, but at an even more reduced rate. Trips would not be cancelled, we would still be able to dive. But again, we would have to have some kind of major incident that changes everything we have been working so hard for. Is it possible - yes. Is it probable - no.

Well, you would have a vacation like you would normally have, but there are no bars that are open. The beaches at private beach clubs are open, but beaches that are not attended to, are not open. So you would have your vacation just like normal.

Really, it is exactly like your vacation was before - unless you were a person that wanted to go out too all hours of the night drinking. Which does not combine well with the morning dive trips :)

Yes, you do have to board the boat with the mask on. They are occasionally checking to insure that everyone has a mask so make sure to have it with you please. You don't have to wear it while diving. But please have it with you. Thank you for your understanding.

If you have any other questions, just let us know !

I'm telling you.... just when you think that you got a handle on it, they throw another wrench into the equation.... here is the latest update on who is flying when....

American Airlines is offering flights from both DFW and Charlotte

DFW - was flying daily but no longer flies directly into Cozumel on Tue and Wed. They do provide service the other 5 days of the week. This flight departs from DFW at 12:30 PM, and arrives to Cozumel at 3:10, then departs here at 4:05 and arrives back to DFW at 7 pm.

Charlotte - service every Sat, through Aug 15. It will be suspended until Oct 10, when it begins every Sat again.

United Airlines began service today, and flies in from Houston ONLY on Sat through the end of Sep. For Oct, Nov and 1/2 of Dec, they are scheduled to fly Wed and Sat. On Thu, Dec 17 daily service begins again.

Sun Country suspends their twice weekly service on Aug 9.

Delta - no longer flying to Cozumel, only to Cancun

So, if you are planning for the fall, you do still have 2 options - American and United. Neither is a optimal option. United is only flying on Sat, so you can come for 1 or 2 weeks, which would be awesome ! If you want to fly another day of the week, then it will have to be American. After that, your options dramatically increase.

You would think that purchasing a round trip ticket would be the best way to get the best price for a ticket right?? WRONG ! It is not logical but round trip tickets are NOT the best deal. For a few years now I have been searching both for round trip tickets and for 2 one-way tickets and consistently, the round trip tickets are $5-15 USD more than 2 one way tickets on the same airline. It is crazy. Why should you be giving them more money? They are still charging the fuel tax even though the fuel prices are lower than ever....

You also might think that Expedia or Orbitz will give you the best deal. That is not always true though. They might be, but then again, they might not be.

So, what should you do? There are 3 really great tools for finding the best fares.

Hope this helps. And if you ever have an issue finding a flight, let me know and I can help. I do this all of the time and am happy to assist you.

Apart from pricing, the flight schedule is important as well. Who likes taking a red-eye, or having to overnight during their travels - NOBODY ! So we need to know how to beat this system.

If you look at the fall schedule for flights, AA gives you more options for flights. But are they the most convenient?? Yes... and no.

For arriving to the island, then YES, the schedule is great ! The flight departs from DFW at 12:30 pm, which allows anyone from almost any part of the country to fly that morning, and make it to Cozumel in 1 day, without having to take a red-eye. SCORE !

But departing from the island, it really is not the most convenient. The flight back to DFW departs Cozumel at 4:05 pm and touches down at 7 pm. By the time you disembark with social distancing, clear Immigration, get your bags, clear customs, and then run to your next flight, and with the reduced number of flights, getting home in 1 day can be a challenge.

This is where you need to be smart. During the fall season for Cozumel, United actually offers the better flight schedule. It departs Cozumel at 2:35 and arrives at 5 pm, giving you a couple of more hours to make a connecting flight.

There is another option. I know, lots of people don't like to make the trek over to Cancun, but it does offer so many flight options to other cities - Chicago, Charlotte, Atlanta, Denver, Los Angeles.... and more. Delta and Southwest both service Cancun but not Cozumel.

So, there you have it. Options for getting here. Again, if you need assistance, please don't hesitate to contact us. We are here to assist you.

Check out the Scuba Shack Website (www.scubashackcoz.com). With all this changing news and information, fun articles and interesting updates, sometimes it's hard to keep track of it all. So, we have been working hard to also update the Scuba Shack website. Here you can find our new FAQ page, newsletter archive page, COVID-19 status page, Travel info page, and much, much more.

The Airline Information page has been very popular lately. As folks are planning their return trips to Cozumel, this has been a good starting point to find out what is going on with the airlines. For example, American just changed their flight schedules for August, AGAIN!!. So check this page by clicking the button below.

As you know, in Sep of 2019, the Marine Park began designating reefs that will close to give the reef a break from the stresses of divers. The yearly schedule was published and will be enforced until further notice. The year us broken down into 2 month periods with most reefs assigned to one.

For the months of August and September, there will be closures at the Southern end of the of the marine park. This is when the corals are spawning and they don't want any stress on the corals. This section includes Palancar Caves and Bricks, and all of Columbia - Shallows, Intermediate and Deep.

El Cielo will also be closing but not until August 17th thru the end of September.

We all know the dangers and damage to the reefs due to illegal fishing, careless divers, stress and disease. The closure to the reefs in the southern part of the marine park last year allowed for noticeable improvements for the reefs. Plus measures were put in to stop illegal fishing, illegal boats of divers coming over from the mainland, and other measures to reduce stress on the reefs.

So it's great news that we know these measures work and will hopefully help save our reefs before it is too late. So during this time, we still have a ton of reefs that we can dive. Maracaibo and Punta Sur for those advanced divers, as well as Palancar Horseshoe and Gardens, Dalilah, French Palancar, Caracolillo, Cedar Pass, .... and much more. If you would like to see a larger version of the map, just click on it and read more.

Our lost and found box was quite full with lots of stuff.... clothes, dive items, and more. We thought it was time to show you what we have. Is it yours? Or do you have mine?? Take a look at let us know! Now, there are a ton of pictures, so give it time to load them all.....

Almost all places are open - Money Bar, Le Chef, Buccanos, etc. Ernesto's will hopefully be opening next week. Apparently there has been an error in his liquor license for years. And now he has to fix it and that is what is taking time. He was listed ONLY as a bar, and not restaurant and bar. And as you know, BARS are not allowed to be open. So that is what the delay has been. The Cigar Shop is also opening this week. All beach restaurants are open.

There are reduced hours, because we still do have a 10 pm curfew. So restaurants need to be closed and employees heading home by 10 pm.

Night dives - We are offering guided night dives from the shore - man are they awesome !?!?!? Last night we saw 3 octopuses, tons of eels and lobsters of all sizes, beautiful sea baskets - and even a baby! 2 Web Burrfish, which are very unusual. And a reef scorpionfish, not to be confused with the spotted scorpionfish that we see all over the place. These guys only grow to a MAX size of 4 inches - this one was about 1.5 inches long. VERY cool.

We are working on getting boat night dives back on now since Paradise Reef reopened. Stay tuned....