Seeking recommendations on liveaboard: Cayman vs Belize

[Aerobics111]

I'm deciding between Cayman and Belize for this Dec. This will be my first liveaboard trip. Any opinion would be welcome, including suggestions to other destinations. Budget for the face price is <$4000.

Cayman Aggressor IV

The Cayman Aggressor IV is a 33m luxury liveaboard offering year-round Caribbean dive cruises in the Cayman Islands. Explore the wrecks of Grand Cayman, Little Cayman and Cayman Brac including a Russian Destroyer.

www.liveaboard.com

Belize Aggressor IV

The Belize Aggressor IV yacht offers year-round diving to some of the best dive sites in Belize. High-level service on board and luxury accommodations.

www.liveaboard.com

 

[BoltSnap]

I have been to both, I'd take the Caymans any day. I'll never go back to Belize.

 

[Aerobics111]

I have been to both, I'd take the Caymans any day. I'll never go back to Belize.

Haha thanks. What in particular did you not like about Belize?

 

[rongoodman]

I was on one the Belize boats a few years ago. I don't remember any issues and the Blue Hole is probably worth doing once, The downside of the Cayman boat is that winds can prevent you from making the crossing over to Little Cayman/Cayman Brac where the best sites are. You might want to add Turks and Caicos boat to your list. That's my favorite in the Caribbean. FWIW, the only time I've ever come back with ear infections are trips where most of the sites were close to shore and lots of people.

 

[d^2b]

I have been to the Caymans once (it was my first Aggressor), and to Belize 3 times, (on Belize Aggressor III and IV, and to Itza on Long Caye). That more or less reflects my preference / experience of the two. I might go back to Cayman and stay on Little Cayman. I agree with @rongoodman that Bloody Bay Wall (LC) is very nice. It might not be something that everyone cares about, but I found bobbing around Grand Cayman in sight of the land based operations all the time to be a bit disappointing. People who absolutely cannot bear being out of cell coverage will love that aspect, I guess.

 

[BoltSnap]

Haha thanks. What in particular did you not like about Belize?

The marine life there wasn't worth it at all. The biggest thing there is the "blue hole" but that's just one dive and it isn't worth taking a week out of my busy schedule and pay money for that just one dive. The Caymans on the other hand have LOTS of great diving with good marine life, Caribbean scale, without any complaints.

When I do a live-aboard, anywhere in the world, I just want to dive and and dive and see stuff that is worth the trip and the money. Belize doesn't have it.

I have also done live-aboards in T&C and GT, very disappointing in therms of marine life. VERY boring indeed. I won't go there again, there are other places that are worth the trip, time & money.

 

[d^2b]

The marine life there wasn't worth it at all. The biggest thing there is the "blue hole" but that's just one dive and it isn't worth taking a week out of my busy schedule and pay money for that just one dive.

Even though I had the opposite impression of Cayman vs. Belize, I agree the blue hole is overrated. One advantage of my last land-based visit was that it was easy to dive somewhere else while those that wanted went to the blue hole. On a liveaboard it does take up several dives worth of the trip (because of the depth usually less dives are offered that day).

 

[Damselfish]

I think the marine life in Belize, out at the atolls, is better than much of Cayman. I don’t consider the Blue Hole to be “the thing” there at all. The thing that I like least about the Belize liveaboards is that they waste the better part of a day with that (you lose at least one other dive that day, while they have you eat lunch on a hot buggy island instead of on the comfortable boat.) If they ran guaranteed Blue Hole free itineraries I’d go back.

While its great when a liveaboard can get you to sites that can’t be done land-based, I’ve never minded diving the same sites on a liveaboard as land based. I like the liveaboard experience where I come up from my dive - snack relax and don’t have to take my gear apart. What I do find a problem on liveaboards sometimes is if you are limited in sites you can dive because suitable moorings aren’t always available for a big boat.

 

[d^2b]

I think the marine life in Belize, out at the atolls, is better than much of Cayman. I don’t consider the Blue Hole to be “the thing” there at all. The thing that I like least about the Belize liveaboards is that they waste the better part of a day with that (you lose at least one other dive that day, while they have you eat lunch on a hot buggy island instead of on the comfortable boat.) If they ran guaranteed Blue Hole free itineraries I’d go back.

Aggressor announced a southern itinerary in Belize, which looks like it skips the Blue Hole. My host at Lighthouse reef claimed the diving is not as good at Glover's as at Lighthouse reef, but I guess he would, wouldn't he .

 

[drrich2]

That's a comparison that can go either way, for a number of reasons.

1.) Will the trip go? Belize has 2 Aggressors, the Belize Aggressor III and Belize Aggressor IV (formerly known as the Sun Dancer II, which it was still labeled when I went on it in 2015).

The Cayman Aggressor IV was replaced with the Cayman Aggressor V, which was supposed to be bigger and nicer but there were complaints about it, including that it was too big for some moorings. During the pandemic, there was a thread on ScubaBoard that got into the Caymans government claiming Aggressor owed them a lot of money, one post to my understanding indicated it might be shady on the government's part (a manipulation to extort money from businesses - see Post #73 for what I'm talking about), the CA-V was departing and some figured it wouldn't go back, but last I heard it sounded like a Cayman Aggressor (not necessarily the V) would.

I'd want current answers to the standing on that before I booked a Cayman Aggressor trip in the near term future. Let's do a little searching...

@scubadada posted a thread in Feb. 2022: Cayman Aggressor V becomes the BVI Aggressor, IV returns to Cayman Supposed to resume July 2nd.

So Belize has 2 boats actively running; the Caymans have one, there's been a lot of drama, and plans are for it to come back early July. You plan to book for December, so maybe that's not too risky.

2.) Where will the boat go? The best diving for the Belize live-aboards is at the outer atolls; I saw one trip report where the boat spent more time around Turneffe Atoll (IIRC), and the trip sounded somewhat underwhelming.

But the glory of Caymans diving has long been held to be Little Cayman's Bloody Bay Wall and Jackson's Bight area; the Cayman Aggressor IV has to make a crossing from Grand Cayman to LC and Cayman Brac (for 2 dives on the Keith Tibbetts wreck) for the full experience - otherwise it sticks around Grand Cayman the whole week and you only dive there (note: I am not knocking GC diving).

3.) The Diving. I had 'best case scenarios' with my trip to each. I found the reef and wildlife similarly impressive, though some animals in the Caymans were more approachable (e.g.: Nassau grouper; a hawksbill sea turtle swam out to a guide). On the Caymans trip, dives included the Doc Poulson wreck, Kittiwake and Keith Tibbetts, and the Belize trip had no wrecks. Belize had the Blue Hole (which some people like, and I considered worth doing once).

4.) Alternatives. If you plan to eventually hit both destinations (recommended), consider whether you might prefer to save one for a land-based option. In discussions of the Cayman Aggressor, often someone points out a preference for land-based trips in you hit the same sites the live-aboard would. No land-based operator will hit all the sites the Cayman Aggressor IV does if it makes the crossing, but if you mainly want to dive Little Cayman, going to Little Cayman Beach Resort may make more sense. While land-based stays to dive the outer atolls of Belize are possible (e.g.: Turneffe Island Resort), I don't see people criticizing the Belize live-aboards as redundant.

Sun Dancer 2 (Belize) May 2015 - http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/li...ving-belize-via-sun-dancer-2-may-2nd-9th.html

Dive Trip to the Blue Hole & Visit to Half Moon Caye - http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/belize/506647-some-blue-hole-impressions.html

Cayman Aggressor IV May 2016 - Trip Report - Cayman Aggressor IV Trip May 2016

I loved both trips.

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I haven't paid full price for an Aggressor trip yet. The past several years before the pandemic, there'd been an annual 30%+ off sale covering the Caribbean region Aggressors. I think last year it was early November. That's a savings of several hundred dollars. I get that that's awfully late to book a Dec. trip, and even if you could, airfare on short notice might kill your savings, but you should know.

But what about pandemic issues, inflation and the terrible financial blow live-aboard operators sustained from prolonged shut-down related to the pandemic? Will there be a big sale this year? I don't know. I'd check for a 25% off 'dive the world' offering, but their specials page doesn't have anything matching what you want right now.

Would you care for an alternative strategic plan. Book a land-based trip, maybe with Little Cayman Beach Resort, Cayman Brac Beach Resort, or somewhere else...like CocoView Resort in Roatan. For your 1st live-aboard, wait and see whether one of those big sales happens later this year. If and when it does, book a live-aboard at a big savings.