Georgetown, GC

[diveAK]

Hey guys,
Im going on a cruise and making a stop in Georgetown, GC and want to do some diving. I dont really want to book the diving through the cruiseline as im sure it will be crowded, overpriced, and overprotective(along with probably not going to the best site). I was wondering if anyone had suggestion about local dive shops to book with in Georgetown? Thanks for the help!

 

[Makin Raider]

I do apologize if this sounds rude but you could get some good answers if you search a little farther down in the Forum. This question gets asked at least every other week. Go with Sunset House's dive op or make arrangements with Dive Tech. Good luck and have fun!!

 

[smokey braden]

diveak,
dive tech
http://www.divetech.com/frmain1.htm
regards,

 

[DeputyDan]

CJ's on this board works for a dive op there.

Send him a PM and see what he can do for you.

I am assuming CJ is a "he".

 

[mike_s]

The only negatives to not booking with the cruise line are that they don't "dock" there and use tenders, which causes a problem with 2500 people all wanting to get off the ship at the same time on the tenders, which can have an up to hour wait to get off. They let the people with "cruise line sold excursion tickets" off the boat on the first tenders. So if you book it yourself, you might have an issue getting off the boat waiting on the other people.

 

[blawler1]

I don't know how long your ship will be in port, but you could easily get in a couple of fun shore dives in front of the Eden Rock dive shop and save yourself a bunch of money. They are within walking distance to where the cruise ship will dump you off and the these dives are quite fun with lots of swim throughs and pretty shallow and you can do them on your schedule for about $8 a tank.

 

[carlislere]

Well, when you get off the cruise ship at the harbor, turn right and walk down to Eden Rocks Diving Center. It's just a few hundred yard walk. They have lockers and two great beach dives.
If you want boat diving I would suggest Neptunes Divers or DiveTech.
Have a great time!

 

[Doc]

No dive operator is going to treat you much differently than any other 'certied diver' that comes off the ramp.

The dive sites in Cayman, and God bless them, but they aren't all that much different, one from the other- and the really different ones are farther from the dock- some are quite dicey in regards to currents, etc.. Why would they take an unknown ability diver to anything other than a pool-like dive?

On the cruise ship, off of the cruise ship- they treat you as the lowest common denominator. Add into all of that the Cayman over cautious attitude- a position well learned and earned- there you have it. The name Jack Cowstow on your c card- they could care less. Liability is liability.

The most unique dive available to cruise ship divers viviting Cayman is Sting Ray City. Go and enjoy the spectacal !

 

[Barracuda2]

One other thing to consider: If you book a trip on your own, then YOU are responsible to make it back to the ship on time. If you don't make it, you'll get a great photo of the stern of your ship as it leaves. Last week I reserved a car to cruise around the island for the day but because a front was moving in and it would be difficult to tender guest back to the ship and unload them, they cut our time on the island by three hours. Fortunatley the car rental allowed me to cancel without any penalty. If I had a dive charter planned, I could be out the bucks. I don't think the dive op would refund me because they probably could have filled the spot with a paying quest. If you want to dive GC coming off a cruise ship I would suggest you reserve through the cruise line or (NOW THEY ARE RESPONSIBIE) or walk down to Eden Rock and dive off shore. My $.02

 

[BurBunny]

I've never had an issue with a dive shop in the Caribbean on a cancellation due to not being able to get to port. The ones who are accommodating to cruise ship logistics and schedules understand the risk there, but also the benefit to them of being flexible. Ask their cancellation policy if you're concerned.

In addition to the excellent DiveTech and Neptunes Divers listed above, I also really like Off the Wall Divers. Frequently the logistics don't work well for boat diving with DiveTech from a ship (though their shore dive is excellent as well), but Neptunes and Off the Wall do a nice job of shuffling things to get you in.