Dive Shop Recommendations for Roatan Island and Grand Cayman

[ncgirl]

I am a bit of a novice diver, 1 to 2 dives a year. On my cruise in December, I would like to get in 2 dives, one in Roatan and the other in GC. I have been researching on and off for a couple months for dive shops, but I have not be able to make a choice on who to go with. There are two other certifed divers in the family, who may or may not dive. So I may be alone. Any recommendations would be extremely helpful!!

[bruce-r]

http://www.neptunesdivers.com, http://www.redbarondivers.com or a shore dive at either http://www.divetech.com 's turtle farm site or at http://www.sunsethouse.com resort.

[sportsterjohn]

I dove with Subway Watersports in Roatan. Good outfit and personal attention esp if you are new or don't dive much. I dove with Neptune divers in GC just last week. They pick up on the beach in thier boats and use small boats. I would use both dive ops again.

[Snorkelcat]

Try Bay Island Beach Resorts in Roatan. www.bibr.com. (i think). They will send you a CD of the place. Be careful, you'll drool on it.

[caribdiver]

NCGIRL:

 

As a novice diver, and if you have a dive-buddy with some experience, you might also want to consider a shore-dive at "Eden Rock Dive Center" in Georgetown. see "www.edenrock.com"

 

I prefer to boat-dive the Cayman walls, but when we're cruising we often opt for the Eden Rock shore-dive. It doesn't take alot of time and fits well into any port-call schedule. And it's inexpensive if you're watching your nickels and dimes.

 

Their dive shop is only a 5-minute walk from the tender pier. You get off the tender, hang a right, and walk for 5 minutes...can't miss it.

 

You can do a great surface dive from their shop. The grotto and surrounding reef are at 40-50 feet; so you'll get lots of bottom time. Usually great vis, lots of marine life, and no current. Lots of buoys to mark the safe area. It's a safe, fun dive.

 

Total cost to rent everything is around $35.

 

Have a safe, fun dive!

 

Bill Grier

Waynesville MO

[Texas_Diver]

NCGIRL:

 

As a novice diver, and if you have a dive-buddy with some experience, you might also want to consider a shore-dive at "Eden Rock Dive Center" in Georgetown. see "www.edenrock.com"

 

I prefer to boat-dive the Cayman walls, but when we're cruising we often opt for the Eden Rock shore-dive. It doesn't take alot of time and fits well into any port-call schedule. And it's inexpensive if you're watching your nickels and dimes.

 

Their dive shop is only a 5-minute walk from the tender pier. You get off the tender, hang a right, and walk for 5 minutes...can't miss it.

 

You can do a great surface dive from their shop. The grotto and surrounding reef are at 40-50 feet; so you'll get lots of bottom time. Usually great vis, lots of marine life, and no current. Lots of buoys to mark the safe area. It's a safe, fun dive.

 

Total cost to rent everything is around $35.

 

Have a safe, fun dive!

 

Bill Grier

Waynesville MO

 

Wow...that sounds like a great option! Is the dive site beside the dive shop a close walk? The last thing we want to do is walk in sand with full gear!

 

:)

[bruce-r]

Wow...that sounds like a great option! Is the dive site beside the dive shop a close walk? The last thing we want to do is walk in sand with full gear!

The dive site is right there and you won't have to walk on any sand to enter the water. The shoreline there is all rock. There are 2 dive shops there, http://www.edenrockdive.com and http://abanksdivers.com.ky

 

If Eden rock looks crowded, you can walk a bit further past it to http://www.sunsethouse.com They have an on-site dive shop and I would bet the shore dive will be less crowded.

[ncgirl]

Thank you, guys, for all the suggestions! I am pretty sure that I am going to give West End Divers a try, since they have boats dives at 9a and 11a. And either Divetech or Eden Rock in Grand Cayman.

[billeelou]

gc dive shops for Jan 2006????

[bruce-r]

gc dive shops for Jan 2006????

All the shops I recommended Here are still in business.

[billeelou]

I just emailed Edenrock about reserving me a spot.:) ..What is the "best" :confused: Dive site in GC????Also, do you know of a good Dive shop in Majahual? Maya Ha has been taken over by the cruise ships, I am looking to save a buck or two....:rolleyes:

[jetskier]

In Roatan, we used subwaymotorsports.com They schedule your dive around the time that your ship docks. They also will pick you up at the cruise ship dock and bring you back. We dove Jill's Spot and Mary's Place and enjoyed both.

Dave

[bruce-r]

I just emailed Edenrock about reserving me a spot.:) ..What is the "best" :confused: Dive site in GC????

You couldn't ask a more subjective question. Best dive site for what, beginners, advanced divers, shore diving, big things, macro life, or topography? "Best" will depend on what you want to see and your ability level.

 

If you want a better shore dive than Eden rock, you could walk a couple of blocks past it and go to http://www.sunsethouse.com and do their shore dive. They have an on-site dive shop. Also, the turtle farm site by http://www.divetech.com would be a good choice. You will need to take a taxi to get there.

 

Also, do you know of a good Dive shop in Majahual? Maya Ha has been taken over by the cruise ships, I am looking to save a buck or two....:rolleyes:

I can't make a personal recommendation for diving in Costa Maya, but from what I do know, there are 3 dive operators there; Dreamtimediving who appears to be the cruiseline contract dive OP, Maya Palms (used to be Maya Ha) who you can book directly with or use http://costamayacruiseexcursions.com/CostaMayaScubaDiving.htm, and the last guy, someone you wouldn't know about unless you've been there is a fellow with no website. He has a shop in Mahahual, his name is Arturo I think. Do some searching on the Costa Maya section of cruisecritic and you'll find a bit more info.

[drew sailbum]

What is the "best" :confused: Dive site in GC????

 

IMHO, Snapper Hole off the East End is THE singular best dive site in Grand Cayman. However, this is a very long way from the cruise ship terminals and the East End sea conditions can be less than favorable. Summer season the winds are more favorable on average. Based upon the schedules of the dive companies in that part of the island, this site is usually only workable for stay-over guests. Think of it as incentive to come back for a longer stay! :)

 

Perhaps a better question is "What is the "best" Shore Dive site in GC????" That has an easier answer - Turtle Reef in West Bay next door tot he Turtle Farm. There is an onsite dive operation that can rent you everything you need.

[scubamargie]

Another option in Roatan is Coco View (http://www.cocoviewresort.com). If you arrange it ahead of time they will pick you up at the cruise pier for a small fee. The reef in front of their resort is great and the Wreck of the Prince Albert is just a short swim from their front door (saw frog fish, green moray eel and lots of fish). Not only was the cost very reasonable ($35 for 2-tank boat dive), but our non-diving friends went with us. They enjoyed the day at Coco View for $8 (taxi & lunch included) a piece. Quite a deal considering others paid over $60 for a beach day through the ship. ;)

[jmpserve]

I used Fantasy Island in Roatan last December. I dove, my wife stayed on the beach. You can book directly with Fantasy Island. Since they do not have a contract with the cruise ships for diving. They will pick you up at the dock along with the people that booked through the cruise ship for a beach day and you will return with them so there is no worry about missing the ship. They charged us $60 for the both of us and I did one dive. I think they will throw in lunch for another $10 per person.

[kimala]

NCGIRL:

 

As a novice diver, and if you have a dive-buddy with some experience, you might also want to consider a shore-dive at "Eden Rock Dive Center" in Georgetown. see "www.edenrock.com"....

 

Bill Grier

Waynesville MO

Hey Bill, or others who know Grand Cayman. Do you think its unrealistic of me to think that after doing a jeep safari which gets us back to the ship at 12:30 we could do a 1-tank shore dive with EDENROCK and be back to tender by 3:30 Thats 3 hrs? What do ya think?

[caribdiver]

Hi Kimala!

 

Happy New Year!

 

3 hours is absolutely no problem. It takes us approx 2 hours for a one-tank shore dive. 30 minutes to sign up and gear up. 50 - 60 min of dive time. 30 min to clean up and pay up.

 

It will take you 5 - 10 minutes to walk from the tender pier to Eden Rock, and the same to get back. See, plenty of time! : )

 

Take a camera if possible; some of the pics you can get inside the grotto are cool.

 

Have a great cruise and a fun/safe dive.

 

Bill

[w&k]

Bruce - Are you sure about Dreamtime in Costa Maya being the cruiseline op? The website still lists instructions for cruise passengers on how to get to the shop. http://www.dreamtimediving.com/faq/index.php#diving

 

Dreamtime was independent when I booked them a few months ago. Unfortunately, we missed our dive there because our ship did not dock due to rough sea/wind conditions.

 

Of course, the only thing constant is change (sigh).

 

Great diving to all!

 

Wendy

[bruce-r]

Bruce - Are you sure about Dreamtime in Costa Maya being the cruiseline op? The website still lists instructions for cruise passengers on how to get to the shop. http://www.dreamtimediving.com/faq/index.php#diving

I got that impression from reading what others have posted on the Costa Maya section of CC. More than one person has posted that dreamtime told them they couldn't book a dive trip with them if they were on a cruise, they had to go thru the ship's excursion.

[kimala]

Thank you!

[cmdchiefthom]

Subway in Roatan is absolutely the best outfit going. Been diving with them for the past six years and they're fantastic. Personal attention and smaller dive groups are their forte'. :D

 

In Cayman, the Eden Rock route is the way to go. Hit the tender dock, make a right on the main drag, hit the dive shop a couple of blocks down, get your gear and hit the water. Great dive, nice canyons, a great dive map posted at the entry site, so simple anyone can do it. A no-brainer!:)