Grand Cayman or Cozumel or Bahamas snorkeling

[pdxstudent]

Hello - would snorkeling conditions be better in Grand Cayman or Cozumel?

 

And how do these conditions compare to the bahamas? I have never set foot in the caribbean so I appreciate any help?

 

thanks

[scubaran]

Hello - would snorkeling conditions be better in Grand Cayman or Cozumel?

 

And how do these conditions compare to the bahamas? I have never set foot in the caribbean so I appreciate any help?

 

thanks

 

Grand Cayman and the Bahamas (assuming Nassau) are very similar. More like snorkeling in a pool than the ocean. The water is generally crystal clear and calm. Cozumel is very similar near shore but to see the "good stuff" a lot of people opt for a drift snorkel. In this case a boat will drop you in the water with a guide, you'll float along on a current (like floating down a river) and the boat will follow you at a distance and close in to pick you up when your guide signals it. These are three of the top snorkeling places in the caribbean (you're very lucky).

 

Something also unique in Grand Cayman is "stingray city". This isn't exactly a snorkel, the boat goes out to a 3-4ft. sandbar where wild, "tame" stingrays swim around and you can feed, and even hold them (not the Steve Irwin experience). Everyone should do this at least once to see how timid and fun these creatures are and I recommend this to anyone 8 years and older (more than 3ft to keep their head above water :p).

 

Randall

[RedSectorA]

We went snorkeling over Easter break in both Grand Cayman and Cozumel. Very different experiences for me, as in GC it was snorkeling off of seven mile beach (which is a wonderful beach!). We basically put our snorkel gear on and waded/swam out from shore a bit to see stuff. The water was about 10 feet deep (in most places), and the variety of small tropical fish was great. Water was crystal clear, and there weren't many people around, so you didn't feel crowded. We saw loads of colorful fish, a flounder trying to camoflauge itself, and a stingray partially buried in the sand!

 

In Cozumel, we opted for a drift snorkel tour, and it was really cool! We took a boat ride (about an hour) out to an area about a quarter mile offshore (guessing on the distance, but it was too far for people to swim from shore), and jumped in at the spot selected by our guides. The water was about 30-40 feet deep, with some neat coral formations rising up to about 10 feet deep. There were colorful fish swimming around us the moment we jumped in (awesome!), and you could see schools of fish hanging out near the bottom. More of a variety of tropical fish here than in GC, and the guide would dive to the bottom at times and bring up animal life for us to see (conch shell with a crab in it, stuff like that). Don't worry, he returned it unharmed! There was even a nurse shark that made an appearance!

 

All in all, both snorkeling tours were great, and I'd say the conditions were pretty similar (not sure how they would compare to the Bahamas, as I've never been there). One point to consider is how comfortable you are with snorkeling. My wife and daughter were a bit nervous about snorkeling, as they had never done it before, so starting out in GC with wading out from the beach was great for us, as it allowed them to get accustomed to the equiment on their own terms. That helped them IMMENSELY when we did the drift snorkel, since you can't "take a break" unless you go back into the boat (which no one did).

[Lsimon]

The drift snorkel that RedSectorA referred to in Cozumel is most likely Palancar reef. We did the ships Palancar Reef by Boat excursion - it was great for a ship's excursion and we really enjoyed the snorkeling.

 

In Grand Cayman I'd suggest any newcomer do a Sting Ray City Sandbar tour that includes a stop at the Sting Ray Sandbar area and one or two reef snorkeling stops. If you look in the Cayman forum you'll see lots of private excursion operators that are popular - including Captain Marvin's and Captain Bryan's. These trips are great. Be sure to check the timing and leave at least 90 minutes between your ship arrival time and your excursion time so you won't be too rushed with the ship's tender process. If you don't want to do an excursion there is great shore snorkeling at Eden Rock a 5 minute walk from the tender docks (exit the boat and walk to your right down the street). They rent equipment and such too. Be sure to ask them to point out the reef. While there are some fish close to shore the real fun starts at Eden Rock Reef marked by buoys about 100 yards out.

[RedSectorA]

The drift snorkel that RedSectorA referred to in Cozumel is most likely Palancar reef. We did the ships Palancar Reef by Boat excursion - it was great for a ship's excursion and we really enjoyed the snorkeling.

Yep, that's what it was. Couldn't remember the name, so thanks for the clarification!

[Lsimon]

Some photos:

Palancar reef (it looked better live than in the photos)

 

Eden Rock and an earlier Eden Rock trip

 

Sting Ray City and Reefs Nearby -(pictures are not great but give as rough idea)

[DEwoman]

I've never been to the Bahamas. We have our own gear, but both of these places rent and were shore snorkel spots. Not as nice coral I would guess as boat trips, but lots of fun. Our first stop, we went to Eden Rock over spring break in Caymans. Very kick back and nice parrot fish- some of my favorites. You can walk there from the dock and have time to shop and grab a drink at Margaritaville etc. We even had time to grab a cab to the 7 -mile beach. In Cozumel, the weather had kicked up a few days before we got there. The owner of the boat at Palancar Reef sent us to the Money Bar. It was beautiful and quiet there and I think was off the Dzul Ha reef. We spent the day snorkeling and sunning. Nice fish! We saw snorkel boats stop where we were all day. There's nice bathrooms, showers, and music playing. A waiter brought us a huge plate of nachos and we had a couple beers for less than $14! Not what we planned- but an outstanding day. Thanks scubaran for the tips!

[Ron_L]

I, too, can't comment on the Bahamas, but we snorkeled in Grand Cayman and Cozumel last week. In GC we did the Rays, Reef and Rum Point tour with Native Way. Stingray City was a great experience and snorkeling on the reef nearby was very nice. At Coz we went to Chankanaab and snorkeled off of the shore. The coral was damaged by the hurricane a few years ago so there wasn't much coral but we saw some nice fish including a beautiful angel and some huge parrotfish.

 

Picture are here...

 

Grand Cayman

 

Cozumel