HELP !!! Choosing Caribbean dives...

[dataquatics]

Hi to all from "Down Under". Hoping for some feedback to help me with a small problem (One I don't think too many of us would object to )
I am cruising the Caribbean in May for 17 nights, calling at following ports :-
Half Moon Cay - Bahamas
Grand Turk - Turks & Caicos
Samana - Dominican Rep.
Bonaire - Dutch Antilles
Curacao - Dutch Antilles
Aruba - Dutch Antilles
Cozumel - Mexico
Belize - Belize
Roatan - Honduras
Grand Cayman - Cayman Islands
*** Here is the problem - My non-diving wife has given consent for me to dive maximum of 4 ports - which ones do I pick ????? Would appreciate any feedback / suggestions and also suggestions of private operators who might provide services.
Many thanks in advance,

Greg
FORSTER NSW
AUSTRALIA

 

[Papa_Bear]

T & C, Bonaire, Honduras, & Belize! That would be my pick! I would be nice and add Cozumel for a 5ht and well rounded trip! One drift dive!

 

[diversteve]

Help to shorten the list.

First of all here's a description of the Half Moon Cay cruise ship dive - it's their private island:

(Approximately 2 hours) The natural treasures of the deep are all the more enticing at Half Moon Cay, for here they are preserved in unspoiled splendor in the pristine waters of your own private island. Leave the dock at Half Moon Cay by boat, skimming over the aqua sea to a selected dive location. This shallow (12-16 feet), one-tank dive affords you the chance to explore the coral and marine life of the Caribbean. Watch for fan and elkhorn coral, as well as the brilliantly colored fish that dart among the formations.

Sounds like a good Snorkel...

Bonaire and Curacao diving is very similar. Bonaire has better water clarity in my experience. Very similar fish life and reef structure on either island. There's a lot more surface stuff to do on Curacao (your ship moors downtown) so I'd probably dive Bonaire. There's casinos, shopping, good beaches on Curacao - not so much on Bonaire as it's about 10x smaller. (population - not size)

Roatan has a couple of interesting cruise options, in addition to the standard dives, there is a Shark dive - bookable via the cruiseline afaik - if not here's a link or the Dolphin encounter at Anthony's Key resort. Maybe your wife would want to do either the shore encounter or the snorkel with the dolphins while you dove offshore. People have posted that the snorkel is better than the dive for interaction.

AKR handles some of the cruise traffic and picks you up at the port. btw, Coxen Hole isn't much to see. Another option is a day dive at Cocoview. It depends which side of the island you want to dive, AKR on the north means bigger stuff typically, south is more vertical offshore and more macro near CCV. Good shore diving at CCV, not so much at AKR.

Cayman would make my short list also. On Cayman there are a lot of 6-8 diver boats that would be preferable (for me) to the larger operators that normally handle the cruise traffic - Fosters or Red Sail. I'm not a cattle boat fan. Link to most of your options: Cayman Islands - Grand Cayman - Travel and Tourism Site - Diving

Any places I haven't mentioned (except HMC) I haven't been to.

A friend was recently in Aruba - he's also been to Grand Cayman several times. I asked him to compare the two, he said Aruba was much better for non-diving activities - and the water clarity/fishlife didn't compare to Grand Cayman.

 

[edylchtims]

Grand Cayman is my whole hearted suggestion look up Trident Watersports: Home Page . They do not book through the cruise ships so you can get a better deal. They also do sting ray city, both the wading site and the dive site (only about 15-18 feet).

 

[NeilM108]

Half Moon Cay IS a great snorkel site. You can walk in right from the beach where your wife can enjoy the sun and the sand. (if you want to rent a "clamshell" to provide shade from the sun, make sure you're the first ones off the ship - they rent fast). Lots of sea life next to the reef. Service at Half Moon Key from Holland America is stellar.
The Turks and Caicos scuba dive(bookable from Holland America) is good- on our itinerary (7 day cruise), our stop there was a little rushed with a 2-tank dive- I'd like to go back with more time. Divemasters we had were professional, safety conscious, and the equipment was in good shape. Underwater landscape, sea life, and water clarity was superb.
Caymans would make my short list too; but your non-diving wife (and you) may really enjoy Sting Ray City instead. Agree with Papa bear to stay away from the cattle boats.
On our trip to Roatan, the visibility wasn't that great, and there wasn't a lot to see, but that can change fast, too. Operator was professional and well organized.
I just got back from the Dominican, and it's my least favorite site thus far. The operator we had through the resort (Sea Pro Divers) wasn't very organized, the equipment was well used, and there really wasn't much to see off Catalina island.
Enjoy!

 

[bracscued]

Include Grand Cayman for sure. Get a good wall dive on the north side.

 

[RumJunkie]

Hi to all from "Down Under". Hoping for some feedback to help me with a small problem (One I don't think too many of us would object to )
I am cruising the Caribbean in May for 17 nights, calling at following ports :-
Half Moon Cay - Bahamas
Grand Turk - Turks & Caicos
Samana - Dominican Rep.
Bonaire - Dutch Antilles
Curacao - Dutch Antilles
Aruba - Dutch Antilles
Cozumel - Mexico
Belize - Belize
Roatan - Honduras
Grand Cayman - Cayman Islands
*** Here is the problem - My non-diving wife has given consent for me to dive maximum of 4 ports - which ones do I pick ????? Would appreciate any feedback / suggestions and also suggestions of private operators who might provide services.
Many thanks in advance,

Greg
FORSTER NSW
AUSTRALIA

Bonaire- Wanna Dive, and Grand Cayman- Ocean Frontiers. I had a good experience w/ these islands and dive ops.

 

[dfenety]

Hi Greg. The ones that I have been at are Grand Cayman (many years ago), Roatan (in 2007) and Samana (quite a while back). I definitely would dive Roatan. In fact we are discussing a return visit soon. Both sides of the Island offer good sites, but if your wife is beach oriented then you may want to check out Bananarama which operates on the best beach on the Island, which is on the side opposite to where your boat will dock. They are not as big as some of the other ops but are professional and their equipment is in good shape.
To me Samana was nothing spectacular. Grand Cayman is OK, but pretty busy. Friends tell me that Belize is very good diving as are Bonaire and the Turks and Caicos.
So from what I know first hand or from friends, I would say Roatan, Belize, Bonaire and T & C. Hope this helps.

 

[dataquatics]

Just a quick note of thanks to all who provided advice / opinions etc. Will post a review of sites I end up diving when I return.

Cheers & beers from "Down Under"

 

[thedebinator]

Sounds like a great cruise! Can I ask what cruise line? I would be interested in such a cruise myself someday What is your port of departure?

Thanks