Description
Fifteen minutes from the dock
This is our home water — around 30 dive sites scattered across the Gulf de Papagayo, almost all of them a 15-minute boat ride from Playas del Coco. It’s where most Costa Rica dive trips start, where our courses run, and where a lot of divers end up spending their whole week once they see what’s down there. Tortuga, Monkey Head, the Aquarium, Shark Shallows, Punta Gorda, Sorpresa — each one has its own character.
This trip is a two-tank boat dive, and it suits just about everyone. Brand-new divers, families, people knocking the rust off after a few years away, and macro hunters who could spend an hour on a single rock all come out on the same boat. Tell us where you’re at and we’ll pair you with the right guide and the right site.
How the trip runs
Our boats are the fastest in the region, so the short hop out to the sites is exactly that — short. The water’s warm enough that a 3mm wetsuit is usually all you need, though you’ll feel the odd thermocline slide through and remind you where you are. We’ll arrange hotel pickup around Coco Beach, Playa Hermosa and Playa Ocotal, and there’s fruit, snacks and water waiting on the boat between dives.
One honest heads-up: visibility here has a mind of its own. It can run anywhere from about 10 to 70 feet and change almost day to day with the tides and the season. That shifting, nutrient-rich water is exactly why the Gulf is so stuffed with life — our guides know which sites are fishing best on any given morning and plan around the conditions.
Make it your trip
Keep it simple with two tanks, or add any of these when you book above.
Full Gear Rental
Mask, fins, BCD, regulator, wetsuit and dive computer — all sorted, so you can fly with just a swimsuit.
Nitrox · 2 Tanks
More time poking around the reef, less surface interval. Must be Nitrox certified — and we can sort that fast if you’re not.
Add a Third Dive
Three tanks for the day, nitrox included, since the boat’s already out there. Must be Nitrox certified.
Non-Diving Passenger
For anyone who wants the boat ride and the sunshine without getting in the water.
New to all this? The Gulf is the perfect place to start — try a Discover Scuba dive with no experience at all, or go all the way to your Open Water certification right here. Already certified and want longer, more relaxed dives? Ask us about Enriched Air (Nitrox).
What you’ll swim with
The Gulf is a macro lover’s dream and a big-fish playground at the same time. On a single dive you might find seahorses clinging to a sea fan, a frogfish doing its best impression of a sponge, an octopus folding itself into a crack, and then turn around to a wall of grunts and snappers thick enough to block the light.
White-tip reef sharks nap under the ledges, turtles cruise past unbothered, and eels, rays and the occasional squadron of mobulas round out the cast. No two dives here look quite the same — which is exactly why our regulars never get bored of their own backyard.
Ready to make some bubbles?
Pick your date and number of divers at the top of this page, add any extras, and you’re booked. Not sure which site or which level fits? Send us a quick message — we’ll point you to the right dive and get you on the boat.