Question Little Cayman Beach REsort vs Cayman Brac Beach Resort?

[Jaan]

Looks like we’re going to have to make a separate trip to little cayman in future to dive that famous bloody bay wall

 

[Jaan]

Nat is writing up some posts with some reviews and pics. I’ll share when ready too.

Diving Cayman Brac’s Healthy Reefs and Spectacular Walls

Highlights of a week of scuba diving with Reef Divers at Cayman Brac Beach Resort. Cayman Brac dive sites, Cayman Brac wrecks, reefs and walls

freedomtourtravel.com

Diving the M/V Captain Keith Tibbetts Off Cayman Brac

The Tibbetts wreck is a purpose sunk military frigate turned into an artificial reef. It's a must dive site in Cayman Brac. Brac wreck dive

freedomtourtravel.com

Scuba Diving Vacation at the Cayman Brac Reef Resort

The Cayman Brac Beach Resort is a great choice for a scuba diving vacation on Cayman Brac. There's a great dive operator on site: Reef Divers

freedomtourtravel.com

Funny that we got into our unit and placed all our gear all over the room and kept saying we'd take more pictures of the room before we left ... but then there was a power failure before leaving and in the end we didn't get that many pics inside the room. We had a great time, and while we didn't get to Little Cayman, perhaps that will be a separate trip (for that Bloody Bay Wall) and a separate write up for Nat ...

 

[tridacna]

I’m taking a group there in June. AFAIK they’re still doing the one day trip from LC to CB to dive the CT and lunch at CB.

Has that excursion been canceled too?

 

[Jaan]

I’m taking a group there in June. AFAIK they’re still doing the one day trip from LC to CB to dive the CT and lunch at CB.

Has that excursion been canceled too?

They told us they were not doing it since Covid. Still on the website, we pointed that out to them, but …

 

[drl]

When we were in Little Cayman in fall 2022 they still took us over to Brac for a morning dive on the wreck and another dive, but we didn’t stop at the resort for lunch, we went back to LC. They don’t want to mix populations in case of an outbreak, but we did dive on CB at that time.

 

[Jaan]

When we were in Little Cayman in fall 2022 they still took us over to Brac for a morning dive on the wreck and another dive, but we didn’t stop at the resort for lunch, we went back to LC. They don’t want to mix populations in case of an outbreak, but we did dive on CB at that time.

Yes, in fairness (as you can see from the dive boat picture above) it was a bit rough so we didn’t make it to the bloody bay wall from Brac unfortunately.

 

[drl]

Yes, weather can put the kibosh on the crossing!

 

[tursiops]

We'll be back at LCBR this late October. We were at both CBBR and LCBR (in that order) in 2023, back-to-back trips. We only wanted to do a one-week trip this Fall, and we chose LCBR for the diving; we actually preferred CBBR for the resort and the food. While at CBBR they did not offer a trip over to LC ("weather") but while at LC they did offer a two-dive trip over to CB, but not including lunch at the resort there. Since we'd just been at CB, we did not go over, and just dived with fewer people at LC.

 

[nldunn]

I think it really boils down to what kind of diving you like and at least a little about how much of an air hog you are. We did a week at LCBR in October and did make the trip over to dive the Russian Warship one morning. At least during our trip, they did not do lunch at the other resort, and the divers coming over from Brac did not come in and have lunch at LCBR. I think that had at least a little bit to do with Covid and trying to avoid mixing divers from the two resorts, so maybe over time that will change.

Here is my take on Brac. It is great diving. The topography is general spur and groove formations with fingers reaching out from the shallows towards the deep. While there is plenty of shallow stuff to look at, the sites are generally a little deeper than what you find on the north side of LC. The diving on Brac is very similar to the south side of LC. With us only doing the Russian Warship, I don't have an opinion on the current overall health of the reefs and fish, but the resort has had a major upgrade in the recent past and it has a nicer pool area than LCBR.

Here is my take on Little Cayman. It is great diving. The topography on the north side (where most of the dives take place if the weather cooperates) has two modes; sheer wall with shallow (20-40' tops) or inner wall and outer wall separated by a wide flat sand boulevard parallel to shore. I LOVE the Jackson's Bight section of the bloody bay wall where there is an innerwall and outer wall separated by sand. It is pretty much my favorite type of dive site topography and on LC, the depths are very shallow, making it ideal for an air hog like me. My impression of the conditions there in October (having been diving there ~10 trips since 1995) is that it was as healthy as I have seen it in at least the last decade. We saw multiple different reef sharks in a single dive and saw reef sharks pretty much every day. That has never happened in all of our diving there. Prior to this trip, it was rare to see a reef shark more than once or twice in a week, and it was nearly always the same shark (tagged so there was no mistaking which one you were seeing).

The one drawback to LC is that there is not a lot to do out of the water other than bird watching. So if you are the type that only wants to dive morning and then explore in the afternoons, or if you have non-divers with you, it is probably a bit lacking in other things to fill your time. Brac doesn't have a lot more to see and do, but it does have some. Either way you really can't go wrong with either place. The hospitality, food, and dive operations at both resorts are top notch and I would gladly go to either place on any day ending in a y.

Two years later, I have a question!! When you say the dive sites on Little Cayman are shallow, how deep is shallow to you? I like shallow dives as well!! Thank you!

 

[tridacna]

Two years later, I have a question!! When you say the dive sites on Little Cayman are shallow, how deep is shallow to you? I like shallow dives as well!! Thank you!

50-80ft. But you’re on Bloody Bay wall (which is the whole point of going there), so if you want to go to 120 ft or 1,200 ft, go for it!