Going to Cayman Islands in 2 weeks. Need advice.

[jdavisod]

My wife and I are novice divers going to the Cayman's at the end of Sept. Staying at the Westin for anniversary. Looking for a good dive shop nearby that takes 6 or less divers at a time. Who would you recommend and why?

Also, what dive locations do you recommend and how is the water (vis) this time of year?

Any other advice would be greatly appreciated since we haven't been diving long.

 

[diversteve]

Try WalltoWall or Neptune's both take 8 max only. Neptune's has the bigger boat. Just about every dive op will pick you up so nearby isn't really an issue unless you have a reason for it. Given what you're looking for, I probably wouldn't dive with Red Sail, the diveop at the Westin. Their smallest boat takes 12 and their larger one(s) up to 24.
Why? - because they post here and nothing I've read disagrees with my experiences there. The diveop I dove with didn't survive hurricane Ivan or I'd recommend them.

http://www.walltowalldiving.com/index.htm - PM CJ's here.
http://www.neptunesdivers.com/index.html - PM Caymancase.

Aquarium is nice, Hepps Wall is nice, Peter's Reef is nice. I didn't exceed 50' at any of them. Although you can drop over the edge and go deeper at Hepps. The trend in Cayman is to go deep first off/near the wall then do a shallow second dive. In some cases it's possible to stay shallower on top of the wall. So mention your experience level to anyone you book with.

If you feel like shorediving, drive a couple miles north to Divetech's Turtle Reef location, there's a shallow mini-wall there that I think is the best shoredive on Cayman - easy access into a protective cove with a short swim out to the site also.

And Stingray City's been called the best dive you can have in 15' of water. Most of the boats that go there leave from the Harbour behind your resort. Book it through whatever diveop you select.

The vis should be great, typically 90-100' unless a hurricane churns it up. It's partly why Cayman is one of the top Caribbean destinations.

 

[Alex777]

No dive op takes "6 only". For 8 only, you can also try Divers Down or Quabo. Check the Yellow pages under Diving.

 

[ianr33]

Indigo Divers take a maximum of 6. Have never used them personally
http://www.indigodivers.com/

 

[greenmoray]

We just returned from Grand Cayman this past Saturday (9/16) and stayed at Sunshine Suites across from the Westin.

I dove with Off The Wall Divers and Dive 'N Stuff on north wall, and Ocean Frontiers on east wall. OTWD and DNS are small ops that provide free pickup from SMB and fit my and your criteria.

IMHO, between OTWD and DNS I'd choose Jerry with Dive 'N Stuff (www.divenstuff.com). Jerry has been on the island for 4 months and runs his op just like Danny with OTWD. They both park their boats side by side in the marina only 3 minutes west of your location. DNS is newer and therefore doesn't have as many customers. BIG plus here. Also, Jerry is a cool funny British guy too.

Don't forget to do Turtle Reef and Cobalt. These sites are great shore diving alternatives. Other shore diving sites to be considered are Eden Rock, Devil's Grotto, Sunset, Spanish Bay and Cemetary. Rent a car if you can afford. It's worth every penny. PM me if you have more specific questions.

 

[monsdive]

Last May, went with Danny at Off the Wall Divers. It was spectacular. Danny was a lot of fun and very helpful. www.otwdivers.com

 

[Drew Sailbum]

Your travel dates are during one of the slower periods of the year. Despite the lag in tourists, the water is very warm and typically conditions are excellent for diving this time of year.

The late summer usually offers calmer than average winds, which translates into smooth seas. This can make for very comfortable diving out on the fabulous North Wall.

The only down side to the extra-smooth seas is that we depend upon very slight currents to continually bring in clear, nutrient-poor water from the open sea. When we get several days of zero current, algae and plankton can cause the visibilty to drop a bit. Still, you should expect no worse than about 70ft vis, and very well may have some of those spectacular summer days with 150+ vis.

Enjoy your diving, and Happy Anniversary!