Carnival Dive operator in Cayman? Roatan?

[danashops]

We are leaving on a cruise in about 3 weeks. My kids (18 and 21) are suppose to complete their certification dives the week before we leave. Currently they are booked through Carnival for Grand Cayman and Cozumel but I am rethinking the Cozumel after reading about drift diving. I tried to contact the much raved about Allison but she was already booked. Does anyone know who Carnival used as the dive operator in Cayman so I can research/contact them? Would I be better to only let them do a beach dive in Cozumel (15 feet at Uvas?) or changing ports all together to Roatan?

[booth22]

First, definitely have them dive Roatan! Get a hold of the folks at CoCo View Resort, a perfect place for new divers. They can get several dives in great conditions and see some amazing stuff!

 

That said, have them dive Cozumel, you'll all be glad they did as the diving is amazing! The ops are really good about managing the drift dives, so I'd not be too worried. We used Eagle Ray Divers and for cheaper than the ships excursion, we were able to get a private boat and DM for the day. They were fantastic, several dives, lunch on the beach... a delightful day indeed!

[Canuck2008]

Hi Danashops,

 

I sailed the Carnival Valor on January 20-27, 2008, and dove at all 4 ports utilizing the excursions through Carnival and I was completely satisfied with all the dive operations, except for Don Foster's in the Caymans. The DM/Instructer at Don Foster's (Sally) insisted on seriously underweighting everyone on the first dive, but on the second dive after complaints from everyone onboard the boat, the second DM/Instructer allowed everyone to properly weight themselves which made the second dive an enjoyable experience.

 

As a general overview, I think Carnival did a good job in selecting it's dive operators, and I would have no problem in booking any future excursions through the Carnival Cruise ship. I found that when we arrived at each port, we always met early at pretermined locations on the ship and we were usually given priority in being the first group off the ship.

 

The 4 ports, dive operators and diving site were as follows:

 

Port - Grand Cayman / Dive Operator - Don Foster / Short Tender 1000'

Good Equipment / Excellent Dive Boat

 

1st Dive - Eagle Ray Rock - Max Depth 80'

2nd Dive - Arm Chair Reef - Max Depth 60'

 

***************

 

Port - Roatan / Dive Operator - Anthony Key Resorts / Dock at Port

Good Equipment / Excellent Dive Boat / Well Organized & Divided Group Based on Experience

 

1st Dive - Mandy's Ell Garden - Max Depth 70'

2nd Dive - Romeo's Elbow - Max Depth 60'

 

***************

 

Port - Belize / Dive Operator - Hugh Parkley's / Long Tender to Port

Good Equipment / Excellent Dive Boat / Picks you directly from Carnival Ship using their own boat as the ship must tender passenger a good distance to the port / Well Organized & Divided Group Based on Experience / Suggest using the Carnival Excursion as we were given priority and were the very first off the boat, and arrived back 15 minutes before departure.

 

1st Dive - Aldo's Armchair - Max Depth 80'

2nd Dive - Creek Ozeen - Max Depth 60'

 

***************

 

Port - Cozumel / Dive Operator - Sand Dollar Sports / Dock at Port

Good Equipment but dated / Good Dive Boat but crowded compared to the previous 3 Dive Boats/ Well Organized & Divided Group Based on Experience

 

1st Dive - Santa Rosa Wall - Max Depth 80'

2nd Dive - San Clementa - Max Depth 60'

 

***************

 

P.S. Had a great time aboard the Valor, the cruise ship staff really go out of their way to give you an enjoyable experience.

 

:)

[danashops]

Thanks for all the great info, that is extremely helpful. I am not sure what it means to be properly weighted since I am a non diver but hopefully the kids have learned about that.

Thanks again.