Santa Rosa Wall

Quintana Roo, Mexicowall37 m maxadvanced

Conditions & tides

Channel site — tidal current funnels through here and can run fast, changing quickly with the tide. It is usually strongest around mid-tide and eases near the slack windows below. Dive with a local operator who knows the timing.

Santa Rosa WallQuintana Roo

Good · 5/5

conditions visualisation

Good5/5

Calm and diveable right now — best window today 7 AM–5 PM.

Wind7 kn NE

Current~0.9 kn N · model

Swell

0.0 m · 4s · SE

Water

29 °C

Max depth

37 m

Conditions through the day

6 AM6 PM

Calmest current near slack — 02:30 AM & 02:15 PM local

Sunrise 06:53 AM · Sunset 06:10 PM local

Show details

Tide · local

Outlook — select a day for full conditions

On-face swell 0.0 m — the component of the swell aimed at this site’s exposed face. Strong-current reef: plan a drift and enter near the slack windows above. Current is a regional model value (Copernicus, ~9 km grid) — a guide to the area, not a precise reef measurement. Imagery © Esri · not depth or visibility.

Scored by DiveConnect's site-physics model

Marine forecast via Copernicus Marine. Score is a rule-based guide from swell/wind vs. the site's exposure — always dive your own assessment.

Dived here today? How were conditions vs. what we showed?

About this site

Santa Rosa Wall is a drift wall dive on the western side of Cozumel, running from around 20 m down to a maximum of 35–37 m, with the wall profile offering significant vertical relief along its face. The site is known as one of Cozumel's deeper, more demanding walls and is dived year-round, with typical currents of 1–2 knots and recorded peaks of up to 3 knots.

The terrain is a classic Caribbean wall with swim-throughs along its length, dropping from the shallower lip at around 20 m to the deeper sections at 35 m and beyond. Sponges and sea fans are prominent on the wall face, and the structure rewards divers who stay close to the reef contour rather than drifting into open water, where current is noticeably stronger.

Marine life at Santa Rosa Wall includes eagle rays and spotted eagle rays, with December through March being the peak season for ray encounters. Reef sharks, groupers, horse-eyed jacks, moray eels, lobsters, angelfish, damselfish, coney, cowfish, and turtles are all regularly seen on the wall, along with sponges and corals throughout the year.

Read the full guide

The dive is boat access and conducted as a drift dive, with divers dropping in and moving with the current along the wall. Water temperature runs between 24–31°C depending on season. Hazards include strong current that can change without notice, depth, fire coral on the wall, and the overhead environment inside the swim-throughs. An Advanced Open Water certification is the minimum requirement, and most operators also expect at least 20 logged dives; some apply additional gatekeeping for less experienced Advanced divers. Night diving at this site is not conducted by operators due to the drift risk in darkness.

AI-written site guide