MarkWLenox
Registered
In June of this year, my youngest son finally turned 10 and got his SCUBA certification. This changed the family dynamic for vacations considerably, allowing us to consider a full-on dive vacation where it wouldn't have been too fair to him prior to that. He wouldn't have taken it well if we went off to go diving while he hung out with a sitter, that's just not right...
So I started to research where to go, and got considerable help scouring the SCUBABoard forums for information. Given that a 10 year old diver has some limitations, and we wanted to make his first real ocean experience a good one to encourage further participation we had our work cut out for us. I collected quite a bit of information, called people, and did a lot of e-mail. I figured that the things we figured out might be useful to others in the same position, so posted below is what we chose to do, with some of the reasoning behind those decisions to add some updated information to the forums.
First off is the location, and we had a number of recommendations for the Cayman Islands, specifically Grand Cayman for a new diver. I had been there myself years before, but had never dived there. Since we chose to go over the Christmas Holiday, temperature is important. The air was typically in the low 80's, with the water a consistent 81F every single day from Christmas through New Years. We dove with 3mm full suits, and were exceptionally comfortable the entire time. The wife dove with a 5mm, but she gets cold easily. There were people diving without wetsuits at all, but I'd have been a bit cold doing that. There are a huge number of dive sites that are shallow enough to enable a depth limited diver to see and do a lot, and that was important. We wanted to do some boat and beach diving, wrecks and reefs, and all of these types are easily available on Grand Cayman.
Choosing a dive shop is a little more difficult if you don't have first-hand knowledge, and this is where SCUBABoard was a huge help. We eventually settled on Ambassador Divers for several reasons. They have a reputation for terrific service, which is hugely important when you are diving with the whole family. Logistics that are easy when you are just yourself become a nightmare when you multiply by four. Just getting your gear to the boat is a big deal, and I don't want to be exhausted before I start diving. For all of our boat dives, our gear was on the boat waiting for us when we got there, and was transported back to the dive shop, rinsed out and hung up to dry in their locker to get ready for the next day with only minimal work on our part. Truly first class service, no doubt about it. Another reason to choose a shop is the people who work there. I want experienced, knowledgeable dive masters/instructors/captains who know the waters and know diving, and we got all of that. We dove with every dive master and saw every one of their boats (they have 3), and I was absolutely pleased with every one of them. All of them have decades of experience with much of it in the local vicinity. Dan and Tarah are what I could call nurturing instructors, take their time, especially with the kids and really offer up their knowledge in a really pleasant, fun way. Mike took the wife and I on a night dive that was nothing short of phenomenal. He's a little ADD sometimes, so be careful to keep him on track, but he knows all kinds of neat tricks to do unique things and he's good at sharing that. I will remember his demonstration of bioluminesence for the rest of my life. Sarah is simply wonderful with organization and just knows how to get anything you need. Talk to her to to make your arrangements before you get there. I really appreciated Larry's knowledge of the sites, I swear the guy knows half of the stingrays by name, and he's a treasure trove of historical knowledge about the various wrecks. A great guy to go exploring with. I will dive with any of these people again, without hesitation, a truly outstanding group. Safe and conservative when they need to be, consistent, and really nice.
The first day we did a 2-tank boat dive on a couple of reefs. The beauty of the wildlife off 7-mile beach is simply not describeable. We saw a shark, eels, turtles, and more fish than I can count. It was a nice intro for my son, with very little current and calm seas.
The second day saw a night beach dive with just the wife and I. Kids aren't allowed to night dive until age 12, so I had to bribe the boy and his older sister with a large pizza. We went to a bar called Macabuca (yes, the type that serves alcohol), picked up our tanks, suited up, and walked right through the place and down a ladder into a natural pool cut by the wave action in the rocky shoreline. It was phenomenal, definitely on the must-do list.
The third day involved another 2-tank dive. This time wrecks. The Kittiwake wreck site is simply not to be missed. It is shallow enough for those limited by depth (they even take snorkelers there). My son thought it was the greatest thing EVER. The second tank was done at the site of the Oro Verde. It used to be deeper, but the last hurricane has moved it closer and shallower making it a good choice for younger divers. It doesn't much resemble a ship anymore, mostly just a pile of stuff that used to be a ship, but interesting nontheless. The reef that adjoins it, Peters Reef I think, is phenomenal.
The fourth day we went to Stingray City, another not-to-be-missed Cayman experience. We chose to snorkel rather than dive, and I think that was a good choice. It's shallow and lots to see. No need to mess with gear for that.
The fifth day we went without the Ambassador crew on their recommendation for a shore dive. We got our gear out of the locker and caught a taxi up to Macabuca again (in West Bay), this time for a daylight shore dive in the morning. That place was equally as fabulous during the day as it was a night, and the kids got a kick out of walking through the bar all rigged up to get to the entry stairs. The dive shop has air, weights, and gear for rent if you need it, just bring your C-card. It's easy and fun, plus when you get done, you just hang your gear up to dry and walk out on the patio for lunch! Get the conch appetizer platter, it is fantastic.
Given the choice of dive shop, that drives the logistics about where to stay if you want convenience. Ambassador divers is located on the grounds of the Comfort Suites, right next to the pool, and that is the primary reason we chose to stay there. We were very pleasantly surprised with the cost, it is very reasonably priced, clean, and the staff are very friendly and helpful. The hotel isn't directly on the beach, there is another hotel between it and the water, but it's not much more than 100 feet along a path from the pool to the sand. There is a pretty good morning breakfast buffet, it was sufficient for us every day, and it is free with your room. This is a big cost savings for a family of four. Overall, it was well worth it for the far cheaper price, but the room views aren't out on the ocean. If you want that, the Mariott is right next door, just bring your wallet. There are some other condos and such nearby that would also likely be very suitable. We went to dive, and it was absolutely sufficient. They have a deal with Ambassador Divers that can save you some money as well. Call them to talk about it.
We didn't rent a car, we just took a taxi from the airport to the hotel ($25 US). I'm not much into driving on the left side of the road. There are lots of fabulous restaraunts within easy walking distance for dinner. We did use the bus to go up to West Bay for the afternoon to see the turtle farm (highly recommended). It takes some getting used to, but it's more convenient than a car because you don't have to park. Note that the buses are privately owned and operated, they just cruise the main roads, and if you stop anywhere and look like you want a pickup, they will beep their horn as they are coming. Just wave them down and they will stop and pick you up. Different routes have different fares, pay the driver and get it. It's usually entertaining.
Dining is absolutely fantastic, no matter what you like. We spent several evenings at Camana Bay, trying out the different places there. The ladies usually like to do some shopping there as well. Michaels sells a Lionfish appetizer that is made from fish caught by the local dive masters that is super good. Lionfish are considered invasive, and locals are authorized to spearfish them on sight. I'm glad to see them finding a good use for them. If you want a really nice dinner out, Orantique was great. Have dinner, then walk out onto the sand island, find a hammock and relax awhile. The oven fired pizzas at Cimboco are great. We had lunch at Coconut Joes a couple times and we were never disappointed. Drinks at the Reef Grill after the sun goes down is also nice.
Next time I won't change too much, just more of the same. You could spend your whole life vacationing there and not dive the same site twice. Probably the biggest mistake I made was not using NITROX early in the trip. I find it easier on me physiologically. Since all the dives were shallow, I really should have used it the whole time. I did dive NITROX (32%) at Macabuca (Turtle Reef) on the last day, and felt better. It only costs a few extra bucks per dive and I have no excuse why I didn't. The wife and I are both NITROX certified, and we will definitely use it more next time.
In any case, I hope that someone finds this information useful. We really enjoyed our stay and will do it again for sure.
Best Regards,
Mark
So I started to research where to go, and got considerable help scouring the SCUBABoard forums for information. Given that a 10 year old diver has some limitations, and we wanted to make his first real ocean experience a good one to encourage further participation we had our work cut out for us. I collected quite a bit of information, called people, and did a lot of e-mail. I figured that the things we figured out might be useful to others in the same position, so posted below is what we chose to do, with some of the reasoning behind those decisions to add some updated information to the forums.
First off is the location, and we had a number of recommendations for the Cayman Islands, specifically Grand Cayman for a new diver. I had been there myself years before, but had never dived there. Since we chose to go over the Christmas Holiday, temperature is important. The air was typically in the low 80's, with the water a consistent 81F every single day from Christmas through New Years. We dove with 3mm full suits, and were exceptionally comfortable the entire time. The wife dove with a 5mm, but she gets cold easily. There were people diving without wetsuits at all, but I'd have been a bit cold doing that. There are a huge number of dive sites that are shallow enough to enable a depth limited diver to see and do a lot, and that was important. We wanted to do some boat and beach diving, wrecks and reefs, and all of these types are easily available on Grand Cayman.
Choosing a dive shop is a little more difficult if you don't have first-hand knowledge, and this is where SCUBABoard was a huge help. We eventually settled on Ambassador Divers for several reasons. They have a reputation for terrific service, which is hugely important when you are diving with the whole family. Logistics that are easy when you are just yourself become a nightmare when you multiply by four. Just getting your gear to the boat is a big deal, and I don't want to be exhausted before I start diving. For all of our boat dives, our gear was on the boat waiting for us when we got there, and was transported back to the dive shop, rinsed out and hung up to dry in their locker to get ready for the next day with only minimal work on our part. Truly first class service, no doubt about it. Another reason to choose a shop is the people who work there. I want experienced, knowledgeable dive masters/instructors/captains who know the waters and know diving, and we got all of that. We dove with every dive master and saw every one of their boats (they have 3), and I was absolutely pleased with every one of them. All of them have decades of experience with much of it in the local vicinity. Dan and Tarah are what I could call nurturing instructors, take their time, especially with the kids and really offer up their knowledge in a really pleasant, fun way. Mike took the wife and I on a night dive that was nothing short of phenomenal. He's a little ADD sometimes, so be careful to keep him on track, but he knows all kinds of neat tricks to do unique things and he's good at sharing that. I will remember his demonstration of bioluminesence for the rest of my life. Sarah is simply wonderful with organization and just knows how to get anything you need. Talk to her to to make your arrangements before you get there. I really appreciated Larry's knowledge of the sites, I swear the guy knows half of the stingrays by name, and he's a treasure trove of historical knowledge about the various wrecks. A great guy to go exploring with. I will dive with any of these people again, without hesitation, a truly outstanding group. Safe and conservative when they need to be, consistent, and really nice.
The first day we did a 2-tank boat dive on a couple of reefs. The beauty of the wildlife off 7-mile beach is simply not describeable. We saw a shark, eels, turtles, and more fish than I can count. It was a nice intro for my son, with very little current and calm seas.
The second day saw a night beach dive with just the wife and I. Kids aren't allowed to night dive until age 12, so I had to bribe the boy and his older sister with a large pizza. We went to a bar called Macabuca (yes, the type that serves alcohol), picked up our tanks, suited up, and walked right through the place and down a ladder into a natural pool cut by the wave action in the rocky shoreline. It was phenomenal, definitely on the must-do list.
The third day involved another 2-tank dive. This time wrecks. The Kittiwake wreck site is simply not to be missed. It is shallow enough for those limited by depth (they even take snorkelers there). My son thought it was the greatest thing EVER. The second tank was done at the site of the Oro Verde. It used to be deeper, but the last hurricane has moved it closer and shallower making it a good choice for younger divers. It doesn't much resemble a ship anymore, mostly just a pile of stuff that used to be a ship, but interesting nontheless. The reef that adjoins it, Peters Reef I think, is phenomenal.
The fourth day we went to Stingray City, another not-to-be-missed Cayman experience. We chose to snorkel rather than dive, and I think that was a good choice. It's shallow and lots to see. No need to mess with gear for that.
The fifth day we went without the Ambassador crew on their recommendation for a shore dive. We got our gear out of the locker and caught a taxi up to Macabuca again (in West Bay), this time for a daylight shore dive in the morning. That place was equally as fabulous during the day as it was a night, and the kids got a kick out of walking through the bar all rigged up to get to the entry stairs. The dive shop has air, weights, and gear for rent if you need it, just bring your C-card. It's easy and fun, plus when you get done, you just hang your gear up to dry and walk out on the patio for lunch! Get the conch appetizer platter, it is fantastic.
Given the choice of dive shop, that drives the logistics about where to stay if you want convenience. Ambassador divers is located on the grounds of the Comfort Suites, right next to the pool, and that is the primary reason we chose to stay there. We were very pleasantly surprised with the cost, it is very reasonably priced, clean, and the staff are very friendly and helpful. The hotel isn't directly on the beach, there is another hotel between it and the water, but it's not much more than 100 feet along a path from the pool to the sand. There is a pretty good morning breakfast buffet, it was sufficient for us every day, and it is free with your room. This is a big cost savings for a family of four. Overall, it was well worth it for the far cheaper price, but the room views aren't out on the ocean. If you want that, the Mariott is right next door, just bring your wallet. There are some other condos and such nearby that would also likely be very suitable. We went to dive, and it was absolutely sufficient. They have a deal with Ambassador Divers that can save you some money as well. Call them to talk about it.
We didn't rent a car, we just took a taxi from the airport to the hotel ($25 US). I'm not much into driving on the left side of the road. There are lots of fabulous restaraunts within easy walking distance for dinner. We did use the bus to go up to West Bay for the afternoon to see the turtle farm (highly recommended). It takes some getting used to, but it's more convenient than a car because you don't have to park. Note that the buses are privately owned and operated, they just cruise the main roads, and if you stop anywhere and look like you want a pickup, they will beep their horn as they are coming. Just wave them down and they will stop and pick you up. Different routes have different fares, pay the driver and get it. It's usually entertaining.
Dining is absolutely fantastic, no matter what you like. We spent several evenings at Camana Bay, trying out the different places there. The ladies usually like to do some shopping there as well. Michaels sells a Lionfish appetizer that is made from fish caught by the local dive masters that is super good. Lionfish are considered invasive, and locals are authorized to spearfish them on sight. I'm glad to see them finding a good use for them. If you want a really nice dinner out, Orantique was great. Have dinner, then walk out onto the sand island, find a hammock and relax awhile. The oven fired pizzas at Cimboco are great. We had lunch at Coconut Joes a couple times and we were never disappointed. Drinks at the Reef Grill after the sun goes down is also nice.
Next time I won't change too much, just more of the same. You could spend your whole life vacationing there and not dive the same site twice. Probably the biggest mistake I made was not using NITROX early in the trip. I find it easier on me physiologically. Since all the dives were shallow, I really should have used it the whole time. I did dive NITROX (32%) at Macabuca (Turtle Reef) on the last day, and felt better. It only costs a few extra bucks per dive and I have no excuse why I didn't. The wife and I are both NITROX certified, and we will definitely use it more next time.
In any case, I hope that someone finds this information useful. We really enjoyed our stay and will do it again for sure.
Best Regards,
Mark
