ScubaDiveGeek.com is a participant in the Amazon.com Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Diving Season: The best time to dive Cuba's Jardines de la Reina is during the dry season, from November to late April, as this time has the most ideal visibility and sea conditions. You need to take a boat to reach this area. You can spot eagle rays, reef sharks, sailfin blennies, tilefish, peacock flounders, garden eels, or yellow-headed jawfish. Eden Rock has lots of coral and fish, and Devils Grotto has underwater caves that you can explore. Grand Cayman Dive Resorts I Packages I Wyndham Reef Resort Which Cayman island has the best diving? | ZuBlu Best Time to Dive in Little Cayman - Original Diving Rum Point Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned diver, Grand Cayman has a dive site for you. Twitter He is the author of four books about cruising in the Caribbean, Alaska and Mexican Riviera. East End 5. If you want to escape the crowds of cruise ship passengers, the East End is the place to go. A shallow dive site, the colors here really pop making it a good choice for photographers. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. You can enter different swim-through areas where the wall drops to great depths. Devilishly deep drop-offs, wicked wreck dives and some of the coolest coral in the Caribbean have made the Cayman Islands a world-class dive destination. This is currently number 20 on the 100 Best Dives list. Stingray City has very large, friendly stingrays. As said earlier, Grand Cayman has over 50 dive sites and we will not leave this section without mentioning other noted dive spots. Get in touch with our specialists for even more in-depth travel advice. Cayman Islands, as well as our suggestions for the best places to 310-915-6677 I thought it might be too touristy, but it was a lot of fun. In February, the cost is roughly $1,044 round trip . There is a lot of soft coral here, which makes for an interesting experience. They pickup from the Westin, Ritz and Kimpton Seafire beaches for their West Dives, which is one of their standout features. Cayman gives both the novice and the experienced some of the best diving in the world, as environmentally protected reefs surround each of our three islands. We gave our Gear Lovers one job: Located 133 kilometers (83 miles) northeast of Grand Cayman is its little sister island Little Cayman. It does not make the product pricier for you. While the Cayman Islands are famous for its encounters with stingrays in Stingray City where the rays are said to be almost tame, there are many more sites that the islands offer. Lionfish have become an invasive species and some of the dive operators offer culling excursions. Best Dive & Stay Packages in the Cayman Islands - Ocean Frontiers Sharks and turtles are frequent visitors as are snappers, groupers, and grunts. The entire experience is about 3 hours long from the time we pick you up from your hotel or condo along Seven Mile Beach to drop off. Everything here is very low key and there is a small local population. It was named after the famous free-diver Penny Ventura. Grab your gear and dive into the crystal clear waters of Grand Cayman! There are actually around two dozen dive sites within the bay, with Bloody Bay Wall top of the list. Get in touch with our specialists This is a wall that drops 2000 meters to the sea floor. Bloody Bay Wall- Most scuba divers will say this is their favorite dive site in the Cayman Islands. 390 S Church St, George Town KY1-1106, Cayman Islands. Roundabout is located along the North Wall in Grand Cayman. If you don't feel comfortable using my referral links, you can always go directly to their site and bypass me. Little Cayman, Cayman Islands. You can dive from shore because they have ladders that you can use to enter and exit the water. Stingray City is in only 12ft (4m) of water and is a huge draw for divers and underwater photographers. Average rainfall jumps to more than five inches in May, June and July. This wreck is the only Russian warship that can explore in the Western hemisphere. Cayman Islands Reservations Phone: (345)-947-0000 Our Reservations Office is located on site at the Dive Shop & Resort in the Cayman Islands. The Cayman Islands boasts world-class beaches, luxurious properties, worldwide culinary influences, high-end shops, local stores, and everything in between. Northerners also want to get away from the cold and snow of winter. Best Diving sites in Cayman Islands - Scuba dive reviews by Divezone Three long, wide tunnels, accessible to the majority of divers, extend from the sand flats to open out onto the reef wall. I created this website to help answer common questions about vacationing in the Cayman Islands, and to help tourists find the best things to do. From Grand Cayman, you can transfer to Little Cayman or Cayman Brac. If you make a purchase from our site, we may earn a commission. And as you might imagine, the coral-encrusted archway makes for a fantastic photo opportunity. Press the question mark key to get the keyboard shortcuts for changing dates. Welcome to my scuba diving bucket list. Best Diving in the Caribbean - Top 12 - Bluewater Dive Travel Marine Life & Environment - Top Dive Spots - Diving Conditions, How to Get There-How to Dive Cayman Islands-Best Time to Dive, NEW! The dive resorts are more expensive than places like Roatan or Belize, but given the reputation of the islands and the quality and ease of the diving, we find the prices reasonable. September and October are clearly the least popular months to go because of a high risk of heavy rains along with hot temperatures. Trinity Caves is one Cayman dive site that never disappoints. There is also a restaurant, bar and dive shop at Macabuca. A 2018 poll listed Bonaire as the best dive spot for beginners, conservation, freediving, macro diving, shore diving, and snorkeling. I have lived in the corporate world for a few years now with very little excitement in my life. There is also a small restaurant and dive resort. Cayman Brac is the last of the islands and also much less traveld than Grand Caymen. There is a separate fee to dive this wreck that goes towards conservation, and you also get a nice yellow diver medallion to keep. Reservations Office is open Monday-Friday | 8:30am-5:30pm Cayman Islands time. They are located in George Town in Grand Cayman. Little Cayman is a lovely, quiet little island with a population of less than 170. GOT QUESTIONS ABOUT DIVING IN CAYMANS? The Best Destinations for Underwater Photography | Scuba Diving However, there are large coral canyons that provide exciting swim-throughs for divers. December rainfall drops back down to about three inches. It exceeds six inches in August and jumps again to more than eight inches in September and October. The best dive site is either Bloody Bay Wall in Little Cayman or the USS Kittiwake in Grand Cayman. Part of the Bloody Bay wall, descending from the mooring here reveals a brightly colored vertical reef packed with sponges, corals, and vertebrate and invertebrate marine life. Diving in the Cayman Islands | Cayman Resident Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. Learn to dive in the Cayman Islands by Living the Dream Divers It sounds like the best time overall, based on the posts so far. 5 of the Best Scuba Diving Sites in the Cayman Islands . Enquire Everything most divers want. The Eden Rock Dive Center has everything you need for an unforgettable day underwater in the Cayman Islands. If you want to enjoy these five dive sites . There is a good amount of coral and fish here. The Seven Mile Beach area and the main city, Georgetown, are very developed with large hotels and resorts, restaurants, shops, etc. The best time to go to the Cayman Islands is in March and April because there is spring break from school and April has a combination of warm temperatures and a low risk of rain. It is rich with tunnels, chutes, cervices, and beautiful reefs. It was quite crowded with dive and snorkel boats when we got there, but it was no big deal once we got in the water. The three islands that make up the nation, Cayman Brac, Grand Cayman, and Little Cayman, are diverse and have distinct diving. Intermediate divers can begin their dive at the chimney, a narrow tunnel starting at 12m/40ft and ending at 24m/80ft. Drop us a comment below and tell us your favorite site! Swim throughs, ledges, overhangs, and an average depth of 12 meters (40ft) make this a Cayman dive site for all experience levels to explore. This is really a divers paradise. Along the drop-off, crevices and canyons cut through the reefs face. I've stayed at hotels and used independent dive operators and I have stayed at dive resorts with on-site dive operations. Web Visit website. A favourite stop for those diving and snorkeling lovers, the Bay Islands' important three islands are Roatan, Utila and Guanaja. Macro photographers should keep an eye out for the neck and decorator crabs who make their homes here. All content is copyright protected by either DIVEIN.com or respected copyright holders, Disclosure: We are reader supported, and earn. Black groupers, sergeant majors, yellowtail snapper, and moray eels are just a few of the species you can expect to see. Why? Best Diving Destination in the Carribean: The Cayman Islands Cayman Islands Diving | Scubago Besides the thick black corals, keep an eye out for tarpon, large yellow tube sponges, and ginormous barrel sponges. As a photographer, I never lacked for subjects both wide angle and macro and anything in between. When diving the Cayman Islands you can see a lot of large sponges, some good macro, and some tiny fish. Despite the name, there arent actually caves here. Its not often divers can see a mermaid on a dive, but at Sunset Reef they can. Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman house over 300 dive sites, making up the breathtaking Cayman dive map. Stingrays, stingrays, and more stingrays is what draws divers to this Cayman site. A huge pinnacle branches out, creating a corridor-like passageway that is used by large pelagics cruising up from the abyss. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Grand Cayman is the most commercial island, with a lot of resorts, great nightlife, and more tourist attractions. We could easily get to reefs and wrecks by ourselves from shore and take as much time as our tanks allowed. Stingray City- You can thank the local fishermen for this dive site as they used to clean their catch here that attracted the rays to the site. The Best Time to Visit the Cayman Islands in 2023 | Travellers There are lots of other fish and coral. Kittiwake Shipwreck and diver in Grand Cayman - photo from Canva. The 6 Best Dive Sites in the Cayman Islands - PADI Blog The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a country in Western Asia located at the northeast end of the Arabian Peninsula in the Persian Gulf. This is a must do dive. And, thanks to a keen focus on conservation, many of the country's famous underwater spectacles are still well worth a visit today. If you love nature, you can go hiking or explore some caverns and caves. The sea is always warm in the Cayman Islands, with surface temperatures never dropping below around 25 o C (78 o F). I know there are shore dives that can be done, and we plan to do some of those next time. Click here to learn more. Even if they are stingrays and have the potential to inflict painful wounds via their tail, do not panic as they are not in their aggressive or defensive mode. The water is about 10 to 20 feet deep. For deep divers, we highly suggest you explore the elephant-ear sponge laden reef of the Orange Canyon or go cave diving in Bonnies Arch. The best time to see whitetip reef sharks in the Cayman Islands is from May to August. The Cayman Islands are one of the Best Liveaboard Destinations for Beginners. That's is how we pay ourselves. Their sister company, Tortuga Divers, operates from Morritts Tortuga Club in East End. Choose from private or single rates, we will find you the best possible option to help you enjoy the famous Cayman Stingray City. My poker stick resembled the dive guides spears, so they followed me closely and would even "show" me where the lion fish were, confused when I didn't feed them. If hot temperatures are an issue, it is better to visit the islands from December through April when they average in the upper 80s Fahrenheit. The Cayman Islands hosts one of the best dives in the World: Bloody Bay Wall on Little Cayman. Family Traveller Excellence Awards 2019 Winner. This is brought to you by the paradise-features of diving Cayman Islands: three islands where the bounty of nature is amplified as you go underwater.if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'scubadivegeek_com-medrectangle-3','ezslot_3',115,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-scubadivegeek_com-medrectangle-3-0'); Who would ever think that at the peak of an undersea mountain range lies a country that has one of the Worlds largest financial centers? For big animals - you can find a good number of turtles and groupers, tarpon, nurse sharks, great barracuda, and stingrays. 1. Trinity Caves is a popular dive site that is located off the coast of West Bay in Grand Cayman. This is one of the top island destinations in the United Kingdom. With 365 named dive sites, the enchanting Cayman Islands is a year-round underwater paradise. In general, the best time to dive in the Cayman Islands is between January and April, when the water temperature is warm and visibility is excellent. Sidetrip: Visit Little Caymans Booby Pond Nature Reserve. "High Season" at the hotels is mid-December to mid-April, so rates will be higher then. This is one of the deepest sea-walls in the world. This is a wall that drops 2000 meters to the sea floor. Many divers who have been diving in this area said that this is really an up close and personal experience with stingrays as they are literally touching and surrounding you. Best and Worst Times to Visit Grand Cayman - Caribeez.com Matt Hampton was a guest of the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism (visitcaymanislands.com), British Airways, which has London returns from 688 (ba.com), and the Westin Seven Mile Beach, which . This site is a firm favorite among local dive masters, most likely because of the intriguing geological features but there is plenty of marine life here too. The best time to visit the Cayman Islands is between March and June when the hotel rates drop. The Cayman dollar is exchanged at a rate fixed to the US dollar (CI $1 equals US $1.25). 10 Go Scavenger Hunting At Seven Mile Beach. Flights to Grand Cayman arrive at Owen Roberts International Airport. Located in the Bloody Bay marine park on Little Caymans north side, Marilyns Cut is largely unspoiled and offers up pristine soft and hard corals. Best Cayman Islands Dive Centers and Resorts - TripSavvy Crabs and lobsters are among the critters hiding in the crevices. I have been diving in Grand Cayman several times. We conduct this course from our shore location where the water is ideal for new divers! But which Cayman Island has the best diving? Corals and sponges are plentiful. The waters here are 15 to 25 meters deep. Boasting strong diving infrastructure, diverse types of diving, incredible walls and wrecks, and great visibility. I stayed at an all inclusive where the food was exceptional, prepared by a world class chef. With a PADI Travel account, you can favourite dive operators to come back to later on any device or computer. In this article, we review the top 20 scuba dive sites in the Cayman Islands. From the mooring, divers often descend through a cut in the reef and out onto the wall. Photographers can make the worst dive buddies. The amazing diversity and dive sites for all levels are just one of the reasons why the Cayman Islands is also one of the top dive destinations in the Carribean. I quickly learned that if I poked at an area with my stick, the groupers would go right there, a great tool to get them to pose right where i wanted them in my reef scenes. The wreck of the Captain Keith is unusual it is the only Soviet-made warship that divers can visit in the western hemisphere. We dived 3 days in February 2014, and they were all excellent and memorable dives. The Kittiwake wreck as well as other wrecks in the close vicinity add variety and interesting structure which I really enjoyed. Were a free review guide run by passionate Divers, Sports, and Outdoor fanatics. Originally coined 356, this wreck is now called the M/V Captain Keith Tibbetts after a well-known Cayman Brac politician. Cayman Islands Diving - Caribbean Sea - Dive The World I hope my research also helps you make a decision on your next scuba diving vacation.if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[120,600],'scubadivegeek_com-large-billboard-2','ezslot_9',102,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-scubadivegeek_com-large-billboard-2-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[120,600],'scubadivegeek_com-large-billboard-2','ezslot_10',102,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-scubadivegeek_com-large-billboard-2-0_1'); .large-billboard-2-multi-102{border:none !important;display:block !important;float:none !important;line-height:0px;margin-bottom:15px !important;margin-left:auto !important;margin-right:auto !important;margin-top:15px !important;max-width:100% !important;min-height:600px;padding:0;text-align:center !important;}. Eagle rays glide past in the blue water, triggerfish, Nassau groupers, electric yellow sponges and much make this site popular with divers in the Caymans. The 5 Best Dive Sites In Grand Cayman - DesertDivers Boat rides were no longer than 15 minutes, with most being around 5 minutes. Answer 1 of 11: Does anyone have firsthand experience with any of the dive operators on Little Cayman that they will share? 4 of the Best Places to Go Shore Diving in Grand Cayman. Sign up to get the latest updates, offers and more. When we talk about Fiji, what immediately comes into our mind is a tropical dream holiday. Grand Cayman Island probably has the best diving as it has the North Wall deep drop-off dive and the USS Kittiwake wreck dive. Scuba diving in Little Cayman and Cayman Brac | ZuBlu I make money by sharing links to services that I personally use and recommend. The top is at 15m/50ft but the bottom is around 90m/200ft so diver ought to watch their depth gauges carefully as they circle the mountain. On Grand Cayman, I stayed at hotels on the west end along Seven Mile beach. Located in the western Caribbean, just 480 miles south of Miami, Cayman is perfect for scuba diving and snorkelling, boasting some of the Caribbean's best excursions. Indonesia. Cayman Islands Diving | Silver Thatch Water Sports | Breakers The Cayman Diving Season The islands are very much a year round diving destination. Ocean Cabanas Dive Resort: Great views, amazing stay - See 33 traveler reviews, 112 candid photos, and great deals for Ocean Cabanas Dive Resort at Tripadvisor. Ive been to Grand Cayman and Little Cayman. Replace or update your card, buy a Special Edition or Project AWARE version of your PADI certification card, or go digital with the purchase of a PADI eCard. 1 is a 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom unit. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Kittiwake- Though this wreck has been sunken rather recently and has not developed much coral yet, it is still a fantastic dive site for all levels. The wall dive also has several other topographical features including swim-throughs and tunnels. Besides scuba diving, there are plenty of other things to do on the Cayman Islands. Living The Dream Divers Diving Packages | Grand Cayman Read more about diving in Bonaire. Bloody Bay Coral Reef Wall - one of the most beautiful dive sites in the Cayman Islands It's time to head back underwater for another jaw-dropping location: the Bloody Bay Wall. but the best time to visit is between May and October. Data sourced from the National Climatic Data Center. We have put together a comprehensive collection of packages to suit your needs. Sidetrip: Grand Cayman is the biggest island and it is where most accommodations and restaurants are located. View Map. I would appreciate if you don't as these referral links are what keep me posting and sharing on this blog. Find & Book Adventures Book your fun dives, snorkelling trips and courses online with thousands of PADI Dive Centers. Along the wall you'll spot black coral bushes, barrel sponges and sea fans where barracudas, turtles, eagle rays and parrotfish like to show up. Drift dives are possible here depending on your operator. Diving the Cayman Islands - SCUBA Travel Just south of Seven Mile Beach and approximately 46 feet below the surface are Eden Rock and Devil's Grotto, two of the most popular diving spots on Grand Cayman. But its not just the heat that matters when visiting the Cayman Islands. Butterflyfish, triggerfish, shrimp, snapper, and more hand out in and around the large coral heads that sit nor far from the waters surface. Our reviews: We can make the world a little bit better with great in-depth reviews. Frugal travel planners can look for good deals during these months while keeping an eye on the 10-day weather forecast. September can bring rougher waters if there is a tropical storm, and that is also the month with a higher chance of a hurricane, although hurricanes are not common.