Best Diving in April? Btwn Bonaire, Bay Islands, Caymans, and maybe Cozumel

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War Eagle Diver

Registered
Messages
33
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Location
Nashville, TN for 11 months a year, 1 month a year
# of dives
25 - 49
Hey everybody,

Just found this board the other day and it is such a great find! I was just wondering if anyone can give me any good advice on where is the best place to dive in April?

My girlfriend and I are both 30 and are planning a trip for 4/9 - 4/16. We are both fairly new divers (I have logged around 20 and she has only logged 4) and are looking for a good place to go diving in April. We are looking for great diving (hoping to do several dives per day) but are also looking for a good place for newbies as well as with some things to do topside.

Our choices we are between are Bonaire, the Bay Islands, Grand Cayman, and maybe Cozumel.

Any suggestions or help would be greatly, greatly appreciated!

Thanks so much in advance!
 
I have been to all those places more than once and they are all good.

Bonaire is the best of the bunch for easy diving.

Bonaire is Dutch.. good dining and some interesting land based activities. Check out it's sister island Curacao as well.. Especially the west end. Bonaire is the easiest and Curacao has more topside activities in the main city. Bonaire is mostly do your own thing from shore + some follow the DM from boat. Cruise ships overtake downtown when in (maybe 2 times a week) . Mostly smaller stuff. Awesome variety of creatures.
My recommendation - Den Laman and Bonaire Dive & Adventure.

Cozumel is about drift diving. Some people love it, some don't. Harder to slow down. It's mostly follow the DM diving. Ferry over to the mainland gets you to some cenote diving if you have the time. Mexican culture with some decent places to dine downtown. Cruise ships overtake downtown when in (a lot). Mostly smaller stuff, possibility of some pelagics.
My recommendation - Scuba Club Cozumel.

Roatan has some decent shore diving, but not nearly as much as Bonaire. Good value for your $$. Some shark dives if you want to do them. Slight Spanish / Honduran colonial culture influence with a bit of Garifuna. Just starting to get cruise ships.
My recommendation - CoCoView

Grand Cayman seems like the most affluent of the islands. Has the steepest walls, has sting ray city and some decent shore dives. It is British and has a banking economy. It is the most expensive of the islands and caters to a more upscale crowd for the most part. Overwhelmed by cruise ships on some days (quite often). Might see some pelagics, but as with all of these options mostly smaller stuff.
My recommendation - Sunset House

They are all good but for someone starting out, I would put them in this order.
1. Bonaire,
2. Grand Cayman,
3. Roatan,
4. Cozumel.

All recommendations are based on someone starting to dive and with access to easy shore diving.

You will find plenty of opinions on this board. Good luck sorting them out.
 
From a budget point of view
Grand Cayman will cost the most
and Cozumel will cost the least.

Been to all and would go back to all tomorrow!
 
My suggestion would be Roatan and the Reef House Resort. Read the reviews on tripadvisor about RHR because they are pretty much spot on. We had a group of 18 there this past fall and it was great. I have also been to CocoView and liked it as well but I thought the diving and food were much better at the RHR.

I think you may find a few more things to do topside in Roatan. We took a tour of the island and stopped at several interesting locations. Also there are several zip-lines. We did the "Pirates of the Caribbean" zip-line. Best one I've been on.
 
As mentioned by others:
Grand Cayman most expensive (and least exotic, very touristy)
Cozumel is cheapest (and best place, especially for newbies, is Scuba Club Cozumel)
Bonaire is great but I don't think for brand new divers it is the best option... go back there once you both have more dives in order to maximize bottom time, enjoyment of dives
Roatan is great (best place IMHO is CoCoView Resort)

If price is your biggest concern, then I would go to Cozumel. Yes, it is drift diving, but the boat capts and DMs are great at Scuba Club. Cozumel Scuba Diving at Scuba Club Cozumel Dive Resort and Scuba Cozumel Dive Shop They also have a great shore diving area, perfect for new divers or photo geeks like me and hubby.
I have lots of photos and videos, trip reports, etc. (see links in my signature)

If you are looking for more exotic, over-water rooms and feeling like you are in a tropical paradise, check out Cocoview Roatan. CoCo View Resort Roatan Scuba .
It is very small, only 26 rooms, and may already be sold out for the week you are looking at, so call now.

robin:D
 
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Thanks for all of the great replies! I think at this point we are headed to GCM and diving with Ocean Frontiers. The girlfriend wants a little bit of topside activities so we thought GCM would be a good place to start for our first "nothing but Scuba" trip. We are staying on the East End however in order to get away from the cruise ships and the crowds.

She did not really want to try drift diving quite yet, I personally thought (as the Robin stated) that we would not get full enjoyment out of what Bonaire has to offer yet, and she was worried Roatan was a little to remote maybe. BTW, you can see which one of us had quite a large input into this trip selection :). I am just thrilled to have a great dive buddy however so the fact that she'll even go on a trip with me simply for Scuba is good enough for me. We have also decided to get our AOW certification so I am slowly hooking her :).

I greatly appreciate all of the responses. Keep'em coming as I am using them to build my future Scuba trips planner :).
 
Why not consider Plantation Beach Resort in Cayos Cochinos.
The Cochinos are located in the Bay Islands but are underdove compared to the other mentioned places.

The reef is healthier and has a great range of dive sites from beginner to much more advanced.
 
Thanks for all of the great replies! I think at this point we are headed to GCM and diving with Ocean Frontiers. The girlfriend wants a little bit of topside activities so we thought GCM would be a good place to start for our first "nothing but Scuba" trip. We are staying on the East End however in order to get away from the cruise ships and the crowds.

She did not really want to try drift diving quite yet, I personally thought (as the Robin stated) that we would not get full enjoyment out of what Bonaire has to offer yet, and she was worried Roatan was a little to remote maybe. BTW, you can see which one of us had quite a large input into this trip selection :). I am just thrilled to have a great dive buddy however so the fact that she'll even go on a trip with me simply for Scuba is good enough for me. We have also decided to get our AOW certification so I am slowly hooking her :).

I greatly appreciate all of the responses. Keep'em coming as I am using them to build my future Scuba trips planner :).

I found Grand Cayman in 1981, it was the first place I snorkeled. Since that trip my wife and I have dove all over the world and we've been back to the Caymans many times.
You'll I'm sure enjoy this trip. One reason I've been to the Caymans many times is that the weather is always nice in April. I would say Little Cayman is some of the best diving in the Caribbean then T&C followed by the Brac but also the north wall on GCM provides excellent dives. Do not miss Sting Ray City.
There is plenty to do on GCM, the gardens are nice for a topside stroll, the blowholes are interesting. You might want a car so check out the rental choices before you leave. Seven Mile beach will give you some excellent views of the Caribbean.
Rum Point as well as Starfish point are interesting, here are some pics:

East end
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Rum Point
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north end to Seven Mile beach
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near Starfish Point
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South Sound
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Boats in the Georgetown Harbor
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Cayman Aggressor a liveaboard that can take you to all three Cayman Islands
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Underwater:
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the end...sunset off seven mile beach
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https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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