Scuba recommendation

[cpayne]

Itinerary change and now headed to G Cayman instead of KW in 5 wks.  Had our cruise all planned so this throws a wrench in the plans.   Normally would be enough time to find an alternative in the new port, but I’m in the midst of busy season at work and between now and when we leave we have 2 full (26.2) marathons + out of town company + 2 half marathons.  Too much going on!  Need a recommendation for a dive operator: 

 

hubby has advanced certification

 

prefer boat dive instead of shore dive

 

prefer slightly bigger dive boat as opposed to small fishing like/panga boats

 

prefer someone close to ship pier or shuttle to dive shop included 

 

 

Suggestions? 

[Capt_BJ]

problem with your plan is most of the major dive operators had their morning trips leaving on a schedule for those on land based vacations and that doesn't mesh well with the typical cruise schedule (except for the cruise excursions).  Boats are heading out by 8AM

 

On the other hand there are good shore dive options in the Georgetown area.

 

I'm a fan of Sunset House myself .. about 1/2 mile south of the tender landing. There is a dive shop right near the water and it is easy to do a dive or two on the house reef.  Over the years I have nearly 100 dives logged here.  The first reef line will see depths of up to 60 feet or so.

 

Between the tender landing and Sunset you'll find Eden Rock and Devil's Grotto, another popular shore dive site.  Many 2 tank boat trips even use this as the second (shallow) dive of a 2 tank trip.  Only bad point here - and why I prefer Sunset - is that it is so close to the tender area it is as far as many want to walk and hence can be crowded with snorkelers.  FEW will walk down to Sunset which also has the advantage of "My Bar" post dive!

 

One comment tho ... if going soon or thru the spring, this is the time of the year when the wind and seas is sometimes from the west and that can make shore diving on the west side impossible because of the swell.  If it is bad enuf, this is also why the port may be skipped as tendering is not possible.  If you get ashore under these conditions most diving will be on the north side of the island near Stingray city.

 

You may also want to look at discussions in the SCUBA part of this board

[cpayne]

Thank you for all the detailed suggestions.  My initial research of a few dive shops showed issues with the time the dives departed vs when the ship arrives + tender.   I've reached out to Lobster Pot Dive Shop per another recommendation.  They are located in Georgetown and supposedly offer dives that accommodate cruise ship passengers for this exact reason.  Waiting to hear back from them. 

 

We've been to GC many times and fortunately only once has the port stop cancelled due to high winds.  I know it's common, though, so hope I didn't just jinx ourselves! 

 

 

[ABQrobin]

Because of the tendering and no guarantee getting to shore and transport to a dive shop, we booked our dives at GC with our ship.  They took us by bus from pier to their dive shop, got those not bringing gear all set up, then we loaded up on a decent sized boat with shade cover (mandatory for me).  Dives were good, would use them again in future if we needed.  

I think they are the dive op for all cruise ships, so if this helps, video I shot:

 

This shows you the boat... we were divided into 2 groups, each with a DM and a safety diver.  Easy dives, nothing challenging.  

I am sure the independent dive ops would have taken us to better sites, but since our ship was later arriving that others, they had to take a site where another boat was NOT tethered.  

Second dive, I also shot a video, a shallow wreck and reef.  We were back at port by bus in plenty of time to have lunch before we took tender to ship.

 

robin