Grand Cayman diving reccos for end of July

[pjoh127]

hi all,
My husband and I are headed to Grand Cayman at the end of July. Do folks on this board have recommendations for must-do dives? While I have 20 dives under my belt, I am still a cautious diver. Having done deep dives in Turks and Caicos and Cozumel, I actually don't enjoy them that much (at least at this point in my diving experience). Plus we will be there with family, so I don't want to spend our entire week focused on diving. I am thinking two days of diving and the rest snorkeling.

Also, can you recommend small dive shops? In Cozumel we went with Blue Magic Scuba. Maximum we had on the boat was 4 people including us once. Another time it was just my husband and me. I got a DM for all my dives, it was so inexpensive (plus just more peace of mind for me since it was my first time drift diving). The people here were really nice and even though the shop was not fancy, they were definitely knowledgeable and we felt taken care of. How much does diving cost in Grand Cayman? And what should I expect to pay for a DM?

If you have any recommendations please send them my way.

Thanks,
PJ

 

[diversteve]

hi all,
My husband and I are headed to Grand Cayman at the end of July. Do folks on this board have recommendations for must-do dives? While I have 20 dives under my belt, I am still a cautious diver. Having done deep dives in Turks and Caicos and Cozumel, I actually don't enjoy them that much (at least at this point in my diving experience). Plus we will be there with family, so I don't want to spend our entire week focused on diving. I am thinking two days of diving and the rest snorkeling.

Also, can you recommend small dive shops? In Cozumel we went with Blue Magic Scuba. Maximum we had on the boat was 4 people including us once. Another time it was just my husband and me. I got a DM for all my dives, it was so inexpensive (plus just more peace of mind for me since it was my first time drift diving). The people here were really nice and even though the shop was not fancy, they were definitely knowledgeable and we felt taken care of. How much does diving cost in Grand Cayman? And what should I expect to pay for a DM?

If you have any recommendations please send them my way.

Thanks,
PJ

Many of the diveshops on Grand Cayman run six pack operations. Some of them also use fairly good sized boats to do so. My recommendations (in no particular order):

Ambassador Divers
Wall to Wall Diving
Neptune's Divers

None of them will take more than 8 divers max. Ambassador will often go with 2. Every dive operator automatically puts a DM in the water - because so many people want to work/live there, most DM's on Grand Cayman are actually Instructors. Really there's no bad dive operators on Cayman, competition weeds them out quickly. Don Fosters and Red Sail run larger operations so they're probably not what you want.

Typical dive profiles on Grand Cayman will be to go deeper (80-100) off the wall followed by a shallower second dive. Most dive operators do shallower dives in the afternoon.

The Aquarium is a really good shallow boat dive. Lots of cleaning stations amongst the coral heads at about 45'. It's often done as a 2nd dive. Peter's Reef was another shallow dive - not particularly memorable.

You should also dive the Kittiwake, it's sitting on the bottom at about 70'. The Official Website for the Kittiwake Shipwreck - Home It's a big ship so the top almost breaks the surface. Many of the dive operators offer a snorkel option also.

If you want to try shorediving, Turtle Reef is among the best. It's only about 50' down to the sand and the wall is just covered all the way down. There's also a large school of Tarpon resting in the shadows south of the entry - they're always there. Sundivers is on-site for rentals. It's an easy entry down a ladder. Cracked Conch Grand Cayman - Sundivers If you want to do it escorted - Happy Fish Divers does that there - even at night. Happy Fish Divers | Grand Cayman Scuba Diving

You can also shoredive at Sunset House, good facility, easy entry (they have an Ocean Pool open on one side) and the famous Mermaid is 55' at the base.

Eden Rock/Devils Grotto is another really shallow shore dive. I don't think any of it is over 40' and there's some neat swim-thru's at the Grotto. However it's 100 yds. away from the cruise port in Georgetown so go when there's no ship(s) in port - or later afternoon. Otherwise it will be pretty congested - not the dive but the area.

Stingray City is the best dive you can do in 15'. Snorkelers can either do the Sandbar nearby - different boat - or snorkel off the dive boat. We went with a family with teens, the parents did the dive while the kids snorkeled down. They probably had as good a time and paid less.

Diving with most operators is going to be in the 2 dives/$100 range.

I don't snorkel but this is a good guide: TESTUDO'S SNORKEL GUIDE Cayman Off the Beaten Path

 

[EastEndDiver]

pjoh where are you staying?

 

[NC Deep Diver]

Diver Steve gave great advise on diving Grand Cayman.
A couple of things to add.
I have been diving Cayman a couple of times a year for the past 15 years.
We have been diving with Dusty at DNS Divers for the last three years and will be diving again with them starting July 18th.
We always request to dive the North Wall, weather permitting and ask for Lisa to be out DM.
When we dive north we like to dive Princess Penny's Pinnacle, Chinese Wall,Tarpon Alley, Hammerhead Hill and Eagle Ray Pass. There are many other greatdive sites on the North Wall as well.
Another thing Dusty will do is let divers dive stingray city as their seconddive if you ask.
We have a dive set up week after next where several non-divers are going with us so they can snorkle while we dive and feed the stingrays at Stingray City.

With regards to Turtle Reef,
In addition to getting tanks/weights from Olin at Sundivers, Lighthouse Pointeis also a great place to dive Turtle Reef. Either way it is a must whenvisiting Cayman.
Something we love to do is go to Macabuca(the outdoor bar at the Cracked Conch)to watch the sunset, then we do a night dive then apps and drinks afterwards. It is also a great place for non-divers to hang out while you are out having fun.
All you need to do is stop by Sundivers sign your releases and pay Olin and hewill leave tanks out for you.

Another great shore dive is at CobaltCoast with Divetech ifthe current isn't ripping.
They also have a scooter dive from Cobalt to Lighthouse Pointe that is a blast.Great way to see a lot of the wall in an hour.

Either way Cayman is one of my favorite dive destinations.

Have a great time!!

 

[dmoore19]

The Kittiwake. I really enjoyed it. Fun dive plus it was probably the best dive I have ever done.

 

[Wolfie]

Yup, looks like the smb west end is covered above. Except, last April I was paying $125. Turtle reef is my favorite, $10 bucks go when you want long dive at shallower range. North wall dives are typically a deeper profile than the west wall. If you're going to east end you will need different advice.

 

[EastEndDiver]

$125. for a two tank boat dive? That seems high for most dive ops .Who was that with?

I have consistently dove with Dusty at DNS for the last 4 or so years,I like his boats and the way he runs his op.

 

[Wolfie]

That was with InDepth, Come to think of it only a few companies were charging that much. Most were in the $100 range. They seemed to be the operator who most consistantly would be on the North Wall which is why I chose them. Being on one of the fastest boats was and advantageas well, There are a few boats around the place that are pretty slow. Although a couple extra bucks I felt it was well worth it and will dive with them again. Another operator that I would recomend is Seasports which may be a good choice for the OP. What I like about his operation is that that he picks you up from the beach where your staying (SMB area), Most other operations shuttle you to the boat. He does tend to favor the West Wall for that reason. I still need to give Turtle reef another bump. Of all the dives I've done on Cayman even putting the cost aside. my favorite is hands down turtle reef. Especially the late afternoon when the sun is lighting up the coral. (Makes it closer to happy hour as well, Macabuca is a fine spot for a little off gassing.)

 

[Froid]

I add a + for DNS. Rusty does a great job.

Also agree with NC Deep diver. Macabuca is a do not miss location.We went to watch the sunset, then we do a night dive. the conch ceviche is fantastic. The night we were there, the outdoor bar had an all you can eat buffet. It wasn't a 5 star experience but it fit the bill for hungry divers. They had jerked chicken, pan fried grouper and lots of great rice dishes.

We did a night dive and 2 people didn't feel like diving. They enjoyed just sitting at the table until we finished our dive. I was afraid of the bar bill when I saw the Mouton Rothschild bottle sitting at the table but was surprised that the bill was half of what I expected.

We got our tanks from Steve Nesbit at Sun divers right next to the bar. it was very easy. I just called him up and set up what was needed for tanks and weights.

It ranked up as one of my favorite night dives ever.

 

[EastEndDiver]

Turtle Reef at" Cracked Conch"is one of my favorite dives.I probably have done that dive 50+ times and never tire of it.I always do it at least twice on every trip.