Grand Cayman in 2 weeks

[get10wet]

My husband and I are planning a last minute trip to Grand Cayman (first week of February.) This will be our first trip to the Cayman Islands, so we have a few questions.

Our dive vacations are typically balanced between the local culture above water and the marine life below. We prefer nature and not crowds. Will West Bay area be too crowded and busy for us? Should we stay in the east end instead? How is the weather on the north/east side of GC this time of year? Either way, we will rent a vehicle for a few days to explore.

What are your favorite restaurants on GC? In another thread, someone mentioned that dinner can cost $100-200 for a couple. Is this accurate? I'm trying to decide if it's a better value to rent a condo with a kitchen or to stay in a less expensive hotel and eat out.

Are there any recommendations for sea kayaking or caving without the "tour" part?

Thanks for your help.

 

[divesergeant]

Hi,

Glad to see you're going to Grand Cayman. It is our favorite island and feels like a second home. We honeymooned there in 1985 and have returned many times since.

I recommend renting a car / Jeep. It'll allow you to get to cultural sites easily. (There are taxis and such available, although we haven't availed ourselves of them since we have always gotten a Jeep.) If you do rent, West Bay area might work for you as far as getting to cultural sites easily. If you're up around the Cobalt Coast Resort area you'll be away from much of the crowds.

There are several good dive ops in the SMB area, but that is the crowded area.


For peace and tranquility, I heartily recommend the outer areas.

East End, home of Ocean Frontiers (www.oceanfrontiers.com) is great, and OF has the Compass Point condos (Grand Cayman Diving Resort | Compass Point, East End, Cayman IslandsCompass Point)right there for rental. Another thread here just spoke of CP quite highly within the last few days. Compass Point is consistently rated one of the best dive ops and really spoils you with their service and friendliness. They are religious about preaching marine conservation during their thorough dive briefings, which I really like.

We've also stayed on the Northside and in the Cayman Kai (Rum Point) area. They are great areas for peace and quiet. From the North Side and the Cayman Kai area, it is an easy drive to OF in the morning for diving since there is relatively little traffic. (Driving into the George Town / Seven Mile Beach in the morning is an inducement to profanity!)


Also, check out www.caymanactivityguide.com. You'll need to register, but it is free. They have recommendations, coupons and reviews for many places and cultural activities. Recommended places are advertisers, so the absence of a business doesn't mean it isn't any good, just that it isn't an advertiser. But, I've found that if a business is recommended, they are a good outfit.

Feel free to ask any questions that come up, either on posts or PMs. I, and several other Cayman fanatics on ScubaBoard, are happy to give our opinions masquerading as advice!

DS

 

[get10wet]

DS, Thank you for the links. We most certainly plan to rent a vehicle to explore the island and all it has to offer.

I think right now we have narrowed our accommodations search to either Cobalt Coast or Compass Point. We definitely want to sample both sides of the island - both above and below the surface. On Roatan, we stayed at an eco-lodge where the coast was all karst (similar to CC) and enjoyed the fact that we were not dealing with sand fleas like others who were staying on the beach.

Ocean Frontiers is our top choice for east end diving despite the reports of others on SB indicating that they "crowd" the boats. Other feedback about OF has been very positive. I also like the fact that they will permit an unguided dive (with computer) for experienced divers. In Belize last year, we had a group of four speed divers with us on several dives. One DM stayed up front with them while the rest of us were herded and prodded to "move along." I find it annoying that we were not permitted to pause and enjoy what nature has to offer. Isn't that the point of scuba diving???

My concern is still how stirred up the east end will be in February. Does anyone have any experience with typical suface conditions? I'd hate to book a room at Compass Point and have to drive to the west end all week to dive. We'll do some of that anyway, but convenience is certainly worth considering.

 

[EastEndDiver]

Here is a weather report for today on GC,as you can see it is windy with the wind coming from the NE.If you click on the 15 day forecast you can see that it will probably be windy on and off .Hope this helps.

http://www.caycompass.com/weather/

 

[divesergeant]

I agree about "Speed Divers". I like to find a lump of coral and check it out thoroughly without having to hurry along to keep up with the underwater sprinters.

Yes, the East End gets much of the weather and it can be rough. It is worth it, though. The sites get many less divers than the other areas and OF will find the best area each day. And we've never experienced an over-crowded boat with them!

As for the value of renting a condo with kitchen or doing an all-inclusive,we usually rent with a kitchen and cook breakfast. Lunches and dinners are split between me cooking and eating out.

To get an idea of menu prices, Cayman Activity Guide has a menu search where you can look at the menus and prices of their recommended eateries. At the East End, Northside and Rum Point, you'll find the variety of restaurants to be much narrower since you'll be on the remote sides of the islandremoteside of the island

We have logged many dives with Divetech at Coalt Coast and have liked them also. They don't pamper their divers like OF does, but I'm fine with that as I like to setup my own gear anyway. Divetech can dive the SMB area, as well as south and north. One thing I wish DT did was stress marine conservation more in their dives. They haven't done so on any of our trips and I wish they would.


With either Ocean Frontiers or DiveTech you'll get some great dives and will be treated well.

DS

 

[get10wet]

I've had the chance to investigate the Cayman Activities Guide and forum and found answers to several of my questions. Thank you for that valuable resource.

Out of pure curiosity, we also checked out the Cayman Port Authority to see when cruise ships might be coming into port. I was shocked to see that only one day of our trip would be free from cruise ships, and that on Wednesday, over 12,000 people will be flooding GT and SMB from 4 ships. My husband immediately called OF to rearrange our "day off" of diving so that we would be on the east end and avoid the herds.

GC is not a typical dive vacation for us. Our best experiences have been in Belize and Roatan where we never saw a single cruise ship. In fact, before we decided to try Grand Cayman, we seriously considered Dominica. I think as long as we are informed about when and where to avoid the crowds, we'll be happy. I have nothing agains cruises, I just don't like to rush mentality that accompanies it when I'm on vacation. There is plenty of pressure to rush in my daily life, so I like to avoid it whenever possible.

 

[divesergeant]

We, too, find the Port Authority website invaluable for planning our days. We strive for days with no more than two cruise ships in port to head in to George Town for the seemingly obligatory 'jool' quest! Fortunatley, Mrs DS's salary blows mine out of the water, so she has her own loot to spend!

I'm glad you liked the CAG. I like the bunch of regulars on the forums and we even had a group beach party last trip. It was a cool gathereing of long-time frineds who had never actually met.

We've not yet done Belize, but Mrs DS has been to Anthony's Key in Honduras twice (I've been there once; Mrs DS took off with her niece and left me home on another trip!)

DS

 

[get10wet]

DS,

If you do go to Belize, be sure to stay on one of the outer atolls. We stayed in Placencia in a private villa because 2 of the 6 adults were not divers. The boat trips from Placencia to the outer reef (or any reef worth diving for that matter) were a minimum of one hour each way. Enroute we did see a pod of dolphins and several whale sharks from the boat.

We stayed in Half Moon Bay a 5 minute walk from West End in Roatan. The reef was a mere 5 minute boat ride - no kidding! We did our AOW course and then went to the other side for a few extra dives on Mary's Place. It was some of the best diving overall we have seen. Actually, we're hoping GC tops it!

OF is diving the south side right now. We're excited about Three Sisters and the many options for swim throughs and wall dives. However, it looks like we'll have to brave the west end at least once to round out the adventure. Had Brac recovered by now, we would have split the week or added a week to our vacation for some caving, hiking, and of course Tibbetts wreck. Alas, we'll have to include it in our next itinerary instead.

BTW - my husband had a chuckle over your signature line...

 

[divesergeant]

Get10Wet,

The swim throughs and such on the East End are really cool. On our first dive with them in 1998 we entered a hole in the sand at about 60 feet and came out at about 100 feet outside the wall with 6000 feet beneath us. It was breath-takingly awesome, and we'll never forget the experience! If I can look up the dive site, I'll pass it on. There are numerous other sites that they go to where you can cruise around through underwater canyons and tunnels.

Have a great time and post some pics when you get back!

DS

Oh, for Mr Get10Wet, yeah, the signature line should be posted on every dive boat!