The largest among the three islands, Grand Cayman is highly popular among SCUBA divers from all over the world. View thelive availability of some of the best liveaboards in the Cayman Islandsand book online at the best price or check out our sidebar for land-based options! Click the link below to read our article about Eden Rock: Deep Stingray City is located in Grand Cayman. From 5 star restaurants to fish frys at the local gas station. As of 2023, you can renew your passport online. 1. Exploring its underwater habitats allows you to see an incredible reef that starts at 6 meters (20 feet) deep and slowly slopes down towards a vertical limestone wall that drops down up to 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) deep. There is also a small restaurant and dive resort. Still great for diving with great walls for all levels of divers and the walls and the Russian destroyer 356 aka Russian destroyer. The three islands that make up the nation, Cayman Brac, Grand Cayman, and Little Cayman, are diverse and have distinct diving. Cracks in the ceilings let in plenty of natural light making it easy to search the nooks and crannies for the many crustaceans and other marine creatures that occupy the tunnels. Grand Cayman, the main island, is often one of the most popular destinations in the Caribbean, especially with western Caribbean cruises. From Rolex watches to Caymanite earrings to a shell necklace. Northerners also want to get away from the cold and snow of winter. Trinity Caves is a popular dive site that is located off the coast of West Bay in Grand Cayman. Their sister company, Tortuga Divers, operates from Morritts Tortuga Club in East End. Despite the name, you arent guaranteed to see tarpon here. Little Cayman, Cayman Islands. Theyre not timid and as they surround you, these rays seem happy to receive a gentle stroke or two. Water Temperatures: Ranges from around 22C (72F) in December to 29C (84F) in July. I thought it might be too touristy, but it was a lot of fun. 1. [What You Need to Know]. Exploring this site requires you to initially descend to 18 meters (60 feet) deep where the wall starts. Some of the nicest dive resorts in the Caribbean are in the Cayman Islands, and many of them have great shore diving and boat diving. But they are sometimes the cheapest months to visit. This is a must do dive. The course includes a 2-hour pool and theory session, and an . The water drops over a hundred feet. Seven Mile Beach 4. For beginners or those who get nervous in enclosed spaces, there are plenty of decks around the exterior to check out. Press the question mark key to get the keyboard shortcuts for changing dates. Frugal travel planners can look for good deals during these months while keeping an eye on the 10-day weather forecast. Often you can see massive tarpons, barracudas, and schools of silversides. Grand Cayman is a beautiful dive destination with many options for accommodations and for diving. Best time to dive When to dive in the Cayman Islands entirely depends on your own personal preferences. Usually you will see at least a few tarpon at this spot. Enjoy 20% OFF select PADI eLearning programs, FREE ReActivate online refresher, subscription to Scuba Diving magazine + so much more when you join PADI Club. Located near a popular resort is a vertical drop off that is filled with all sorts of marine life the North Wall. Drift dives are possible here depending on your operator. There is also a dive shop and restaurant. Get in touch with our specialists for even more in-depth travel advice. The Cayman Islands continues to receive global recognition and top the charts for diving. And as you might imagine, the coral-encrusted archway makes for a fantastic photo opportunity. Bay Islands, Honduras. All the information you need to plan your dive vacations anywhere in the world. It also does not lack of options to go visit some museums, art galleries, go on walking eco-tours or historical tours, do some shopping and even have a blast at some amazing festivals. Aside from corals, barrel sponges are sprawling in this vibrant reef that is also filled with tropical reef fish like groupers, butterflyfish, angelfish, moray eels and lionfish which is believed to be an invasive species. He is the author of four books about cruising in the Caribbean, Alaska and Mexican Riviera. This site is my attempt to live the adrenaline my life is missing and be able to live real-life storybook stories with my wife and children. Family Traveller Excellence Awards 2019 Winner. Courtesy of IreneCorti/Getty Images/iStockphoto. Our DSD is $99 USD per person and includes all equipment needed and a fantastic shallow dive to a max depth of 40ft. 10 Best Dive Destinations in the Caribbean Best diving in the Caribbean 10 Best Dive Destinations in the Caribbean Cecily Russell 25 February, 2022 Vast blue waters, plummeting wall dives and pelagic life are just a few reasons why you'll find some of the world's best diving in the Caribbean. This is a shore dive, meaning that you enter the water from the shore, and then swim to Cheeseburger Reef. 10 Go Scavenger Hunting At Seven Mile Beach. See and be seen at these stunning natural wonders. Find & Book Liveaboards Choose from a selection of more than 250 vessels and 18,000 trips worldwide. My favorite were the groupers who followed us like pets. Cathy Church has a shop at Sunset House where you can often meet her and see her beautiful underwater photos from the area. Sea temperature varies little, from a high of 86F/30C in August/September to a low of 80F/26.5C in February. This is one of the best dive sites in Cayman Brac, and is a must-do experience. 4. In effect, there are more registered businesses in Cayman Island as compared to its local population. Our Original Diving experts, made up of marine biologists, We conduct this course from our shore location where the water is ideal for new divers! Seahorses - While the Cayman Islands are best known for their stunning coral reefs and diverse marine life, don't forget about the amazing small critters that call these waters home . Photographers will love Greenhouse for its varied macro life. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Its also the historical rainfall patterns. 6. The majority of travel agents will advise you that the best time to visit Grand Cayman in order to get the most bang for your buck on a vacation to the Cayman Islands is between the months of March and June. Grand Cayman also offers accessible shore diving on great coral reefs with little to no current. With regards to transportation, you have to take note that there are no taxis in Little Cayman and the best way to explore the island is by renting a bike. This site is well-known and popular with divers, snorkelers, and glass-bottom boaters alike. Before the USS Kittiwake was sunk, the Oro Verde was the wreck dive of choice in the Caymans. Bloody Bay Wall is considered the epicenter of scuba diving in this marine park. If you want to enjoy these five dive sites . The chart to the right using data from the Caribbean Tourism Organization shows that March is the most popular month of the year to visit followed by December and July. Use Add to ideas + to collect your trip ideas, share with friends or make Elkhorn corals adorn the tops of the ridges while large gorgonians, tube sponges, and hard corals occupy the gullies. I am Dan, this site is my blog where I document my research on the best diving spots in the world. 5. Hotels, resorts and cruise ships dont like unsold rooms and cabins, so they are more likely to offer discounts to attract customers. Because the site is prone to strong currents, it isnt frequently dived which makes a trip to this very healthy reef even more special. Tourism volume is estimated based on in-market destination search query interest from Google and on travel.usnews.com in 2015-2016. Watch your buoyancy and head out into the blue, look back to really appreciate the Great Walls sheer size and impressive drop-off. From April to October water temperature are at least 27 o C (81 o F) and can . 1. 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. 7. . if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,100],'scubadivegeek_com-leader-1','ezslot_4',120,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-scubadivegeek_com-leader-1-0'); By descending down to 15 meters (50 feet) deep, you will arrive at what divers call the hanging garden which is a vertical limestone wall filled with black corals, barrel sponges, and purple sea fans. Drop us a comment below and tell us your favorite site! 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. 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. No crowds. We did see some nurse sharks, sea turtles and a few rays. Read more about diving in Bonaire. Grand Cayman is the most visited island in the Cayman Islands by Scuba Divers. Marine Life & Environment - Top Dive Spots - Diving Conditions, How to Get There-How to Dive Cayman Islands-Best Time to Dive, NEW! The prices of hotels and short excursions that would normally be prohibitively expensive fall to more reasonable levels during this time. an enquiry. I have been diving in Grand Cayman several times. Although this is a wall dive, the cut in the sites name comes from the swim-through many divers use upon descent. Black coral and colorful sponges decorate the near-vertical face and the shallows are dotted with large coral heads teeming with marine life. Penetration is encouraged but to get the most out of the experience, take a torch. Theres plenty to do if you are not diving. Not to be confused with the Anchor Point dive sites in Scotlands Loch Fyne, the Solomon Islands, or Sri Lanka, the Cayman dive site is located on Grand Cayman and is characterized by swathes of black coral. Under its 1986 declaration covering an area of hectares (23 acres) are dive sites that are popular to tourists and divers alike. Grand Cayman and Little Cayman are the main diving areas in the Cayman Islands which are recognized as having one of the best wall dives in the world. You will find Nassau gropers, triggerfish, and other unique marine life at the Bloody Bay Wall. We dived 3 days in February 2014, and they were all excellent and memorable dives. Stingrays, stingrays, and more stingrays is what draws divers to this Cayman site. The wreck can be penetrated in some parts but speak for your guide or instructor beforehand. link to Fiji: Dive the Soft Coral Capital of the World, link to United Arab Emirates: Unspoiled Dive Sites, Wall diving, drift diving, cave diving, shore diving, boat diving, deep diving, and wreck diving, 100 different species of hard and soft corals plus over 500 species of tropical fish like the South-Atlantic stingrays, eagle rays, manta rays, nurse sharks, Caribbean reef sharks, flying gurnards, Nassau groupers, tarpon fish, Grand Cayman: Snorkeling at Stingray City, visit Dolphin Cove, hiking in the Mastic Trail, Pedro St. James National Historic Site, Cayman Islands National Museum, and the Cayman Turtle Farm. Bloody Bay Wall- Most scuba divers will say this is their favorite dive site in the Cayman Islands. It does not make the product pricier for you. Despite being small measuring only 16 x 1.6 kilometers (10 x 1 mile), tourism is booming and tourism facilities are sprawling especially in South Town. Its land area is slightly bigger than Little Cayman with a measurement of 19 x 2 kilometers (12miles x 1.2miles). While the tropical vacation destination does see fewer crowds, this is the rainiest season in the Cayman Islands so you may have to contend with some showers. Best Time to Dive Cayman Islands Diving is available year-round. 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. Grand Cayman Monthly Weather: Rain, Temperatures, Grand Cayman Vacation Tips: Hotels, Attractions, Weather, Cayman Islands overnight visitor statistics; Caribeez.com. Over 200 permanent boat moorings are installed to avoid damaging corals with the dropping of boat anchors. September and October are clearly the least popular months to go because of a high risk of heavy rains along with hot temperatures. Do you love diving in the Caymans? It was named after the famous free-diver Penny Ventura. . Cruise lines can reduce the number of ships that visit Grand Cayman in the fall, but hotels and resorts cant reduce the number of rooms. The USS Kittiwake is an ex-US Navy ship that was purposely sunk in Grand Cayman to create a new dive site. I have stayed there several times at a dive resort with on-site dive operation. June to October brings . Diving is available year-round. StingrayCity. We'll whisk you through the security queues (where available). 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 . On Grand Cayman, I stayed at hotels on the west end along Seven Mile beach. Photographers can make the worst dive buddies. So, either way, the experience is well worth the money. 0 July has a jump in visits for families in part because school children are out for the summer. December rainfall drops back down to about three inches. Grand Cayman has dives for all experience levels, and our on-site dive shop Ocean Frontiers Diving Adventures offers a range of PADI dive courses and signature dive adventures. If you want to get rid of the tourist crowd in Grand Cayman and explore a dive site that is remote and that the diver to fish ratio is 1 to a million, then we suggest you head out northwest of Grand Cayman via a Cayman Liveaboard vessel in a site called Babylon. Boasting strong diving infrastructure, diverse types of diving, incredible walls and wrecks, and great visibility. Cactus coral, sea fans, great star coral, and tube sponges blanket the reef and provide refuge for a variety of sea creatures. Having done a lot of dives in Florida, one thing we did notice was that there were not as many fishes on the reefs in Grand Cayman as in south Florida, but after looking at my pictures after this trip I did notice many small fishes and critters. Along with the vertical structures of the wall are small cracks and crevices that have become the refuge of marine critters like crabs, lobsters, moray eels and octopus. The flight and hotel fares are discounted up to 50 percent this time of year. Grab your gear and dive into the crystal clear waters of Grand Cayman! This is a wall that drops 2000 meters to the sea floor. All levels of divers can enjoy the site as there is plenty to see at shallow depths or at deeper parts. The best dive site is either Bloody Bay Wall in Little Cayman or the USS Kittiwake in Grand Cayman. 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. You can spot eagle rays, reef sharks, sailfin blennies, tilefish, peacock flounders, garden eels, or yellow-headed jawfish. All content is copyright protected by either DIVEIN.com or respected copyright holders, Disclosure: We are reader supported, and earn. Both are wonderful underwater. With virtually no currents and outstanding underwater visibility, Cayman has amazing wall dives, coral reefs and wrecks for you to explore and discover. Answer 1 of 11: Does anyone have firsthand experience with any of the dive operators on Little Cayman that they will share? The water depth here is around 18-meters. Topside, the community is expanding with ongoing construction. Best Time to Dive in Little Cayman. Grand Cayman is a sophisticated Caribbean island with great nightlife, great resort options, and the wonderful attraction of stingray city, and very good wall diving. At night, this popular Caymans dive site is great for spotting octopus, lobster, and shrimp. With world class conditions and a robust dive industry, the Cayman Islands is one of the best places to learn how to dive. It does not make the product pricier for you. Sunset Reef is a popular shore dive just 60 meters (200ft) off the Sunset House Resorts pier. Resident Nassau groupers often keep divers company and if you look closely, you may be rewarded with seahorses and lettuce-leaf slugs. 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 Cayman Islands are home to some of the best spots for scuba diving and snorkeling in the world. 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 Cayman Islands are one of the Best Liveaboard Destinations in the World. Get certified to scuba dive. The Cayman Islands boasts world-class beaches, luxurious properties, worldwide culinary influences, high-end shops, local stores, and everything in between. The non-divers with us were content to lounge by the pool, visit the spa, ride bikes, and go for walks. We understand that annual leave is precious so we can ensure that The ship has been opened up with large access holes so that you can swim through the interior of the ship. The seven mile beach area is beautiful for walking and photo opportunities. [CDATA[ Find & Book PADI Adventures App Please Sign-in or Register Aside from being outside the high season which means that Grand Cayman dive resorts all-inclusive hotel prices and Caribbean dive packages are cheaper, this is also the months that the diving parameters are at its best. Its a very easy and fun dive, we saw some angelfish and eagle rays. Overall it is a place worth seeing. And, thanks to a keen focus on conservation, many of the country's famous underwater spectacles are still well worth a visit today. 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. While at first the Oro Verde was a complete ship, rough seas and tumultuous weather have dispersed the wreckage. The 6 Best Dive Sites in the Cayman Islands Cecily Russell 3 April, 2022 The trio of Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory situated in the western Caribbean Sea. As well as healthy coral and large pelagic species, you can expect to catch sight of Nassau groupers, stingrays, angelfish, snappers, horse-eye jacks, and turtles. These Florida Keys resorts are ideal for family getaways and romantic retreats.
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