Need your experienced opinions...

[SAR Bart]

I'm looking at a cruise with stops at four diving hot spots. To be brief, I need to limit myself to diving at two of them. Out of the following locations, which two would you select for a relatively new diver?

Roatan
Grand Cayman
Bonaire
Cozumel

Thanks in advance!!

 

[outofofficebrb]

Hi,

I haven't been to Roatan, Grand Cayman, or Bonaire, but I can comment on Cozumel. I went to Cozumel as a relatively new diver, maybe about high 20's, low 30's in dive count. It was great! My dive buddy at the time was just newly open water certified and he had a great time. He also ended up doing his AOW while out there - given the conditions, it was hard not to if the alternative was Monterey, California. He really enjoyed himself and had a blast and the diving was not over his head. Based on our experiences, I have no problems recommending Cozumel. Plus, it's some pretty awesome drift diving - like kicking back in a recliner.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I have been to Roatan, Bonaire, and Cozumel. (Grand Cayman, too, but on a cruise, and I did not dive.) I say you cannot go wrong with ANY two of them! There is no wrong choice, even for a new diver. Looking at the decision from a different perspective, which of these ports of call offer activities other than diving that interest you? In other words, save the diving for the ports of call that do not offer much else that interests you. I believe Roatan has stuff for cruise shippers to see and do other than diving (though I've never done any!). Bonaire has, I dunno, the Donkey Sanctuary and maybe mangrove kayaking and windsailing. Cozumel, well, you could drink margaritas, listen to mariachis, and get hustled by touts selling stuff, but if I were you I'd go diving instead. The dive ops are all very close to where the cruise ships dock. The Cayman cruise hordes enjoy the snorkel with stingrays thing--I kinda enjoyed it. I can't speak to the diving, though.

 

[drrich2]

What time of year? I tried 3x's on cruise stops to dive Cozumel and weather shut us out 2 of the 3. But my wife likes cruising when it's still cold, so we would've likely been going December, January or February - and it was a January I got to dive it.

My little anecdotal experience there may not apply broader, but time of year could be good to know.

Richard.

 

[jmb]

I agree with the suggestion to consider the other activities available at the ports, and then maybe chose the dive locations by default. Other than that, of the places listed, I'd choose Cozumel first because I love the diving and the variety of dive sites. Next would be Bonaire - the diving is good & one of the main attractions - there's not as much else to do and it gets very crowded in town when there's a cruise ship in port. Grand Cayman diving was also good but there's a lot of other choices for the day - yes, even snorkeling with sting rays if you have non-divers in the group. After a couple days of diving Roatan, many of the sites seemed very similar but for one day's diving, that wouldn't matter so much. Whatever you decide, any of the ports should be enjoyable dives so have fun !

 

[KathyV]

I have dived in all of those locations but not on a cruise ship. I agree with @Lorenzoid that you should also take into consideration the other things that you would like to do in those ports.

I would definitely tell you to dive Bonaire, because the island has such a unique culture that is dedicated to diving and you shouldn't miss that opportunity IMO.

Of these 4 choices I was least impressed with Roatan's diving, but it's still good and there isn't as much to do topside in Roatan IMO, so it might be an excellent opportunity to go diving. Cozumel has great diving but it is all drift diving, are you comfortable with that? Grand Cayman also has great diving and many topside activities, but it is expensive, so you should decide how you want to spend your money while in port.

You can find good diving in all 4 of those locations, so start investigating the various ports and deciding what you want to do with your time ashore, and that should help you to make your decision. And keep your mind open, because if you run into some less than ideal weather, you may want to switch plans mid-cruise.

 

[dberry]

Out of curiousity, why was this question posted in the Bahamas subforum?

 

[Dogbowl]

It sounds like a cruise I'd like to go on! Would you mind telling me the ship and dates?

I've dove all of those ports from a cruise ship more than once, except for Bonaire. I generally agree with the above comments but would like to add one more observation. Depending on the time your ship is in port, it may be difficult (but not impossible) to find a local dive operator to take you diving (as opposed to the ship affiliated operator). As a cruise ship diver, they're not going to bend over backwards to accommodate your schedule so keep that in mind. Most local dive ops have a set schedule and often they leave before your ship docks. I found this to be especially true for Coz.

Having said that, when the schedule did work, things went well and we had a great time. In Coz, we used Tres Pelicanos (we walked to their shop and they drove us to the marina). In Roatan, we used West End Divers (they can organize transportation as well). In Cayman, we used Off the Wall (they also provided transportation).

Seriously, they're all great diving. I'm not familiar with Bonaire, but I personally found the easiest diving in Roatan with less current. Cayman is deep but we experienced little current. Coz would not IMHO be the best for beginners (and I am one too) due to the possibility of strong currents. I know many ppl say it's "easy diving" but I didn't find it easy when the currents were ripping. But the coral walls are magnificent.

 

[Schwob]

Bonaire diving, cause it's not bad at all, if you can pick a good site (not sure you can off a cruise) ... and because, what are you going to do topside?
Roatan.... if you are AOW, you could do a self organized shark dive (not through cruise ship). Worked for us March last year. T'was 4'waves 6 foot swells, but worked fine.

 

[Ricardo V.]

Go for Bonaire and Roatan. Save Cozumel and Grand Cayman for when you've accumulated more experience. These are great dive destinations.

I've had a chance to dive both Grand Cayman while on a cruise vs. flying in.

My "while on a cruise" assessment of Grand Cayman is skip it, don't waste your time. it's nothing to write home about. Your going to end up diving within a stonesthrough of the cruise ship and the main port.

One more suggestion, read a bit more about diving in Bonaire and Roatan. Find out which operators are serving your trip. In Roatan, Anthony's Key Resort has taken care of us in the past and they do a great job.

Bonaire is more flexible, since its mainly shore diving, so it will depend on where your provider ends up driving you over to dive. That's why it's best for you to study a map of Bonaire divesites, get somewhat familiar with site review and see if you can arrange to go there.

Hope this helps, enjoy your trip and have fun.

Cheers,

Ricardo