The weather is cooling down, hurricane season is coming to an end, and all the kids are back in school. The middle of fall is the perfect time to take that much-needed diving vacation. With the rainy season coming to an end the weather is perfect at most tropical locations around the world. Plus, now that kids and college students are all back at school, popular vacation spots will be much less crowded.
Here are our top five diving destinations that are quick and easy to get to from the United States:
Cozumel, Mexico
Cozumel has been a top diving destination for decades. Unfortunately, with the increase in the cruise line tourism industry, Cozumel has become a popular stop-over destination for cruise ships. With the fall season being a lower time for cruise travel, Cozumel won't be crawling with as many tourists, making it a perfect time to go. Cozumel is very easy to get to from most places in the United States, usually only requiring a single layover in either Houston or Dallas, Texas, depending on the airline you fly. Don't miss out on Cozumel's top notch diving with their amazing visibility, second largest reef in the world, and astounding wall diving.
Belize
Belize is not only very easy to get to from parts of the United States, it is also one of the most affordable diving destinations in the world, plus it is home to a world heritage site, The Blue Hole. Sharing in the second largest barrier reef in the world with Cozumel, Belize also boasts top-notch diving with crystal clear water, corals and fish galore, plus lots of amazing shark species such as reef sharks, nurse sharks, and hammerheads.
Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean
Commonly ranked as one of the Caribbean's top diving destinations, Bonaire is home to crystal clear waters and reefs that have been protected by this Dutch island for more than 35 years! Bonaire is famous for its amazing shore diving, which can be found all over the island. In fact, shore diving is so predominant here that many of the dive resorts include small trucks in their room rental rates for divers to get themselves to and from all of the many shore diving locations.
Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands
With a whopping 162 dive sites, Grand Cayman is any scuba diver's dream land. It's been a world-class diving destination since the beginning of scuba. With this many dive sites, there is something for everyone, from clear, shallower dives for beginners, to amazing wrecks and deep drop-offs for those more adventurous. And, because there are so many amazingly deep drop-offs, it's a magnet for larger marine species such as spotted eagle rays, turtles, sharks, and groupers.
Panama City Beach, Florida
Ok, so it's not an exotic Caribbean island, but Panama City Beach is not only super cheap and easy to get to if you are already living in the Continental United States, but it actually boasts some great diving and beautiful white sand beaches! The Gulf of Mexico is still warm in the fall, is full of sea life, and the wreck diving is fantastic. In fact, this beach is home to the world's largest artificial reef, which includes an actual aircraft carrier, the USS Oriskany. There are also two fighter jets which were sunk here last year and are a great underwater site to see!
The weather may be starting to cool down for most of the US, but the southern states and Caribbean are still nice and warm with warm, clear water to boot. So, don't pack away that dive gear just yet. Book a quick little get away now, before the holiday crowds start rolling in, as well as the holiday prices!
