Where would you go on your first Caribbean trip if you could do it over??

[Scuba Brian]

1 Bonaire
2 Cozumel
3 Belize
My order of favorites.

 

[PARADISE HUNTER]

I went to Cayman Brac 17 years ago and it was awesome. I've been diving in places around the Caribbean and none have been as great. I will say that I have not been to Bonaire yet, probably next year. Brac is worth the extra money, IMO. You can also do a shore dive out to the Tibits and have the wreck to yourself. Very cool.

Cozumel is the best bang for the buck and I am going next month. It is a great time. I think the island has done a remarkable job in rebuilding after Wilma. But they can't fix the sand that was blown on the coral and I have seen it as deep as 140 feet in places. It is still great diving and if you go I'm sure you will have a great time. You will have no regrets. It just not what is was pre Wilma. As for the Mayan ruins....unless you are planning on taking a full day trip to the mainland, you will be dissapointed. The ruins on Coz are interesting but small and not much carving detail, I would take them out of your destination debate.

So that is just one guys opinion. I vote for Brac. And don't take Grand Cayman as a concelation trip to save money.:no Not nearly as good of diving due to the presure, IMHO.

A nice option to have at resorts is the breakfast plan. It is nice to eat at least half your lunches out and all your dinners.

Have fun!

 

[divingjd]

Cozumel was my first and I still think it would be a good first trip for most people, for many of the reasons others have described. But if you really want to dive your brains out and don't care much about the rest of it, Cayman Brac would be hard to beat. Little Cayman's diving is better, but that is a matter of degree. We will be at the Brac Reef in a little less than two weeks (can't wait!!). We were at the Divi Tiara last year, but it is closed. You can get in lots of very good diving at Cayman Brac and Reef Divers will go over to Little Cayman one day, weather permitting. We walked over to the Brac Reef last year and looked around and it is pretty nice. It is a sister property to Little Cayman Beach Resort. We vacationed there once and it has been one of our favorite trips, so we are looking forward to the Brac Reef. The all-inclusive is buffet-style. Although I don't normally go for AIs, there isn't really a viable option on Cayman Brac. The restaurants aren't very accessible and there aren't many of them.

Look at it this way - there is no one "best" place. Pick one that sounds good and don't worry about the rest. Cayman Brac is a great place to dive and the Brac Reef is by all reports a good resort. Don't worry too much about second-guessing yourself. If you go to Cayman Brac, you will have a great first trip to the Caribbean.

 

[Scuba Laura]

St Barth's.


Scuba Laura, I lived there eight years.

I started at St Thomas Diving Club lining up lounge chairs and raking the beach, before my 3-11 at the hospital. (Bolongo bay)

We would hop over to the Cartanza Sr...is it still there?

Cartanzar is still there, a little beat up, but a decent beginner dive. Not sure when you were here last, but they have placed a plaque on it in memory of Bill Letz who died last year.

 

[chauncy19]

Bonaire and Cozumel would be my vote for first dive caribbean vacation. But I haven't gone to Belize or Cayman Brac or Little Cayman ( others I have interest in). I have loved all my dives in the Caribbean -Jamaica, Bequia,Tobago, Cozumel,Yucatan,Virgin Gorda,Puerto Rico and Bonaire.

 

[Doc]

If I got shot, I would want to go to a hospital with a busy ER in a rough neighborhood.

The same logic applies to this question.

I would want to go to the dive destinations that sees the largest quantity and greatest influx of absolute incompetent dunderheads that were a hazard to themselves and those about them. Just like I was.

Our first "few" dives in paradise are beyond chaotic. I would want a DM who could anticipate my next stupid move and if I wasn't smart enough to warn him that I was a newbie- he had seen it all before and would know that I was about to drown us both.

Where to go for your first Caribbean dives? Nassau, Freeport and the like... just pick a good dive op that has a better than even chance of bringing you home to mom.

Once you get past the point of whooooooo! I'M DIVING!, once you get past the point where you are beginning to notice rocks, crabs, lobsters and squirrel fish- then... then~ worry about "seeing pretty fish". Until then, just learn to be in the water while breathing through a tube.

It will all come in time. Log some dives.

 

[Mossman]

I would want to go to the dive destinations that sees the largest quantity and greatest influx of absolute incompetent dunderheads that were a hazard to themselves and those about them. Just like I was.

It sounds like they've already gone through that phase, having done 30+ dives in the Keys. Nothing satisfies your "influx of absolute incompentent dunderheads" requirement more than the Keys, at least in my thankfully brief experience there.

 

[ronrosa]

If I got shot, I would want to go to a hospital with a busy ER in a rough neighborhood.

The same logic applies to this question.

I would want to go to the dive destinations that sees the largest quantity and greatest influx of absolute incompetent dunderheads that were a hazard to themselves and those about them. Just like I was.

Our first "few" dives in paradise are beyond chaotic. I would want a DM who could anticipate my next stupid move and if I wasn't smart enough to warn him that I was a newbie- he had seen it all before and would know that I was about to drown us both.

Where to go for your first Caribbean dives? Nassau, Freeport and the like... just pick a good dive op that has a better than even chance of bringing you home to mom.

Once you get past the point of whooooooo! I'M DIVING!, once you get past the point where you are beginning to notice rocks, crabs, lobsters and squirrel fish- then... then~ worry about "seeing pretty fish". Until then, just learn to be in the water while breathing through a tube.

It will all come in time. Log some dives.

Wow Doc, I thought I was harsh and blunt. You would fit right in here in NYC.

IMHO, the Caribbean has plenty of easy diving suited for beginner divers. Why not log some dives and get experience in the warm crystal clear waters of the Caribbean ?

 

[Doc]

Wow Doc, I thought I was harsh and blunt. You would fit right in here in NYC. IMHO, the Caribbean has plenty of easy diving suited for beginner divers. Why not log some dives and get experience in the warm crystal clear waters of the Caribbean ?

I'm answering the question not so much for the original poster, but for other readers of this thread as well. And yes, my mind wandered as well!

I had 125 cold water dives logged before I went to the Mar Caribe. I was still a walking yard sale.

By my taking one step out of the cold, turbid waters where I became a rough tough "advanced diver", and I was a warm-water stumbling clueless newbie.

Every condition is different. Before throwing down big money on exotica~ learn the basics of the new environment. There was even a mention here in passing of Tobago. You gotta be kidding me!

Go easy breezy, get your "sea legs" first. Discover "warm water/pretty fish" diving slowly and gently. That's what I was trying to convey.

 

[ronrosa]

Fair enough Doc.

Good point about experience in different conditions, but that experience needs to start somewhere/sometime. Being honest with yourself and others is a good beginning.

BTW, I only have around 200 dives, so I still have plenty to learn and experience.