Dive spots

[badger10]

Which of these ports are the best spots to dive? This is our first time diving, so we'll only be doing shallow dives. We're planning to do two dives on our cruise.

 

• Grand Cayman
  
• Isla Roatan
  
• Belize
  
• Cozumel
  

Thank you for the advice.

[Sailfish]

Which of these ports are the best spots to dive? This is our first time diving, so we'll only be doing shallow dives. We're planning to do two dives on our cruise.

 

• Grand Cayman
  
• Isla Roatan
  
• Belize
  
• Cozumel
  

Thank you for the advice.

 

The scuba diving in all four ports of call have the potential to be the best in the Caribbean, but if you had to choose, I would dive in Cozumel. The best diving in each of these ports is probably going to be deeper than it sounds like you want to dive. Neither place has great shallow dive sites. I don't know if you are open water certified, but if you are, consider diving from shore in GC and skip Belize, as you have to go to the off shore islands for the best diving there. Roatan and Cozumel are both amazing places to dive. If I had to pick one port: Cozumel.

 

Good luck.

[zqvol]

Clearest water will be at Roatan. Best reef at Belize. Grand Cayman will be next best choice with Cozumel a very distant fourth and fading fast.

[nashwl]

Roatan is a great dive, and would be better than Cozumel is you arent an experienced diver. The best dive sites in Cozumel are more advanced and most people dont get to dive their best reefs because of that. Dont waste your time with Belize. Cruise diving in Belize is just horrible. You need to do a liveaboard to see the real dive sites in Belize.

[Sailfish]

Clearest water will be at Roatan. Best reef at Belize. Grand Cayman will be next best choice with Cozumel a very distant fourth and fading fast.

 

I agree 100%, however, as I lead cruise dive groups for Cruise Critic, I can tell you that all these ports are better suited for more experienced divers. The dives most cruise ship passengers get to do (whether you book them on your own or go through the cruise line) are relatively conservative, and those dives sites are not going to be the best the islands have to offer. In Grand Cayman, the off shore wall which you can swim to is just as good as where a dive op catering to cruise passengers will take you!

 

The more shallow dive sites in both Roatan and Cozumel are okay. The ones in Belize where the dive ops out of Belize City can take you are not great. You can hop a puddle jumper flight over to Ambergris Cay for slightly better diving, but that will cost you big bucks (which I have done) and you'll still come away not having dived the "best" Belize has to offer - which is substantial.

 

You will get the most bang for your buck in Cozumel - dive a nice reef and not pay too much and come away having had a great time. Just my two cents worth - your experience might be different. My only complaint with Cozumel is you do not see as many fish as you used to! And remember, to experience "real" diving in these islands, you have to book a land based dive trip.

[john mc]

i also have dived in all of those places. The only problem is you want a shallow dive. you can dive any of those dives and just go down as deep as you feel safe. you will have 80 to 100 feet of viz. I would rate them as #1 Roatan #2 belize# 3grand cayman # 4 Cozumel . Cozumel was very nice 8 years ago but it was wiped out by hurricanes as grand cayman was wiped out the year i was there and was disappointing .