Dive in Cozumel or Grand Caymans?

[Howie411]

Going on a cruise next week and need to decide between the 2 tank dive in Grand Caymans or Cozumel. Any recommendations for which is better?

 

[DjDiverDan]

That's a really tough question - Grand Cayman has some great wall dives, with great visibility. Cozumel has some wonderful diving as well, soaring coral spires, vibrant reefs, great visability, lots of life. While I do most of my diving in Cozumel, that is mostly due to cost and value - for what it costs to stay for a week in Grand Cayman, with expensive lodging, expensive dining, and expensive diving, I can get almost two full one-week trips to Cozumel. But in terms of quality of diving, I think its about a draw. The best advice I can give you is DO NOT book the diving through the Cruise Ship - it will contract with the lowest cost Dive Op, then jack up the price to you by at least 40%. The Cruise Ship will try to scare you with the line that "if you book through us, we'll guaranty that the Ship won't leave port without you, but if you book on your own and don't make it back in time, you might be left behind." B_ll S__t! There are plenty of very good dive ops that will cater to cruisers and know the schedules. In Cozumel, check the scheduled arrival and departure of your cruise ship, then check with Aldora (which dives with HP Steel tanks, an HP Steel 100 or 120, giving you very long bottom times), Blue XTSea, Tres Pelicanos, Dive with Martin (which offices right at the end of the International Pier) or others to check about a reservation that fits your cruise schedule. You'll save money AND get better dives if you book directly with the Dive Op.

 

[diversteve]

On Grand Cayman you can even walk to a couple of them.

The cruise op on Grand Cayman is likely Don Fosters.
Don Foster's Dive Grand Cayman - Cruise Ships

My recommendation is often Wall to Wall at the Lobster Pot Dive Center - a couple blocks north of the cruise tender dock. They limit divers to 8 max. per boat.
Wall to Wall Diving - Wall to Wall Diving
Cruise Ship Visitors to Grand Cayman |

Deep Blue is there also. And Off the Wall.
Deep Blue Divers - Grand Cayman's Premier Scuba Diving and PADI Certification
Off The Wall | Grand Cayman Scuba Diving for Small Groups

Divers Down also has a cruise program. http://www.diversdown.net/cruise_divers.html I don't know anything about it.

 

[champ]

Going on a cruise next week and need to decide between the 2 tank dive in Grand Caymans or Cozumel. Any recommendations for which is better?

Both are pretty similar in a lot of respects. Cozumel will be drift diving in current. Caymans will be wall diving with little current. Both have good visibility. I would say do the dives in Caymans. Cozumel is lot more busy with lots of boat traffic, divers ...

 

[robint]

Cozumel diving is better, but a bit harder due to the current and drifts. Fishlife is better in Cozumel.

 

[DeputyDan]

Cozumel diving is better, but a bit harder due to the current and drifts. Fishlife is better in Cozumel.

I agree with this but GC diving is plenty good enough.....

 

[diver00014]

Both good places for diving , either one will be nice clear warm water with lots of marine life.

If you choose Grand Cayman and you want to get something to eat after the dive take a huge pile of money, 14 credit cards, and then be willing to cut off an arm to pay for a hamburger. They have a license to steel there and they smile while doing it.

 

[ppina]

I like grand Cayman .
I stay always on Morrits Tortuga Club.

2014 Photos https://flic.kr/s/aHskeXioZU

 

[KathyV]

Both good places for diving , either one will be nice clear warm water with lots of marine life. If you choose Grand Cayman and you want to get something to eat after the dive take a huge pile of money, 14 credit cards, and then be willing to cut off an arm to pay for a hamburger. They have a license to steel there and they smile while doing it.

The diving is very good in the Caymans but they are an expensive destination, especially since the $USD is only worth $0.80, but there are ways to mitigate the costs somewhat. When we are on Grand Cayman we stay at a nice, clean, small, family-owned inn that is on the beach but away from the tourist destinations of Georgetown and the 7 Mile Beach, and we cook most of our breakfast and lunch meals. A rental car is included in the price and that's fine with us because there is a lot to see and do on Grand Cayman - including some free and inexpensive options.

On GC we tend to shore dive and snorkel and only do a few boat dives, but an all-inclusive dive resort like Cobalt Coast is another option for controlling costs. There are other diver-dedicated resorts on GC like Sunset House that offer packages. There are also small dive operations like DNS and Scuba University that may be willing to negotiate a good dive package.

The diving is even better off Cayman Brac and especially Little Cayman, and the flights to the sister islands from GC are only around $100 or $150 roundtrip. When we go to the Cayman sister islands we stay at the small, diver-dedicated, all-inclusive Cayman Brac Beach Resort or Little Cayman Beach Resort so that accommodations, food, valet diving, taxes, service charges, and transfers are included and we know the costs up-front. They also offer some packages that include alcoholic beverages. We may rent a car for just 1 day to tour the sister islands. The same company that owns these 2 resorts now owns the Cobalt Coast resort on GC.

The Caymans also offer some valuable intrinsic benefits that are not always available in other tropical locations. It is usually pretty easy to find convenient flights at a decent price to GCM. You can drink the food and water without worry. They have good mosquito abatement and very low incidence of dengue fever and chikungunya and no problem with malaria. They have good roads and health care facilities and good communication systems, the islands are safe and the locals are friendly. It is a British island so almost everyone speaks English.

But your destination choice should also depend on the things you like to do (besides diving) while on vacation. There are lots of restaurants, shopping, and night life on GC but very few of these entertainments are available on CB or LC. The seven mile beach is a world class destination, but there are some other nice beaches throughout the Cayman islands. The Caymans are also rather conservative for a tropical vacation destination. There is no gambling or casinos, no topless or nude sunbathing, and it is hard to buy a bottle of liquor on Sunday, so they may not be the best fit for everybody.

You will see healthy reefs and marine life while diving in the Caymans but not a lot of sharks. We recently returned from diving Grand Cayman and Little Cayman and we saw beautiful walls, healthy corals and sponges, clear, clean, warm (84 F) water, and lots of turtles, stingrays, tarpons, eels, octopus, groupers (including a goliath), and barracudas and lots of tropical fish and many small creatures including a seahorse. We saw some nurse sharks and a few reef sharks but not many - so if you like to see a lot of sharks this may not be the best choice for you.

Most of the boat diving is done from permanent moorings and there usually isn't a lot of current so the Caymans are not a drift diving destination either, if that is your preference. There are a few nice, artificial reef, wreck dive options available, like the Russian Frigate and the Kittiwake - but the Caymans are not a big wreck dive destination if that is what you like to do.

I also like really warm water (in the 80s) and during the winter months the Caymanian waters are usually in the mid to high 70s, so I prefer going further south to someplace like Bonaire or Curacao at that time of year. But if you like to travel during the spring, another nice thing about the Caymans is that they are not a "college vacation, spring break" destination, like parts of Florida, Mexico, or the Bahamas.

The Caymans are a great destination for a 2-island vacation. We like to spend some time enjoying the amenities and attractions of Grand Cayman and then travel to one of the sister islands for our dive vacation. Your airfare costs and travel times are almost the same when you add on some days and a second destination and you get more vacation and two different experiences.

Wherever we go we often travel during the low season which reduces costs (and crowds) but we run a higher risk of bad weather. Every destination (and season) has pros and cons, you just have to do some research and make the decision that is best for you; but keep in mind that sometimes a pricier destination may be worth the cost.

 

[thenewN2O]

I'll tag on to this thread because I need a similar recommendation. What is the drive from the Cozumel airport to the resort areas like in terms of blight and visible poverty? I haven't been to Cozumel, but our silly matriarch funding our next family trip is the only non-diver and associates Cozumel with the typical poverty and crime stereotypes of Mexico she knows from her one trip to Tijuana 40 years ago. However, the luxury resorts in Cozumel look like something she would enjoy and seem to be a better value. We're also considering Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac, but I think she'll gripe at Cayman prices.