My wife and I have been to Grand Cayman a number of times and have dove with three different operators. Our favorite, and the one we keep returning to over and over is Cobalt Coast Resort and Divetech.
Cobalt Coast is a good ways from Georgetown -- although, not nearly as far away as the East End. If you're part of the party-hardy set, you're much better off at Sunset House. But, if you're coming here for magnificent diving, and a lot of it, you can't do much better than Cobalt.
The hotel itself is very nice. Most of the rooms are suites -- very neat, very clean, with refrigerator, microwave and coffee maker. The restaurant is also very good with a great variety ranging from burgers and fries to local seafood to Indian curries. There is an excellent breakfast buffet in the mornings. If you opt for the meal plan -- which, after our first stay, my wife and I have done -- you'll be able to select an appetiser, soup or salad, entre and dessert. We rarely had room for dessert. Price wise, while it may seem expensive at $60 per person per day, we found we were spending at least that much at local restaurants.
Now for the diving. It's excellent! If the seas are calm, you'll get to go to the North Wall. There are some spectacular dives there like Ghost Mountain, Tarpon Alley and Hepps Wall and Hepps Pipeline. If the seas are rough, you'll be transported to nearby West Bay for diving on the West Wall. Our favorite West Wall sites are Trinity Caves, Victoria's Secret, Orange Canyon and Chain Reef.
Divetech operates two boats from Cobalt Coast. Both are roomy, and we've never felt cramped or packed. Three DMs accompany each boat, one staying on board while two are in the water, one leading and one trailing. The dive briefings are very good, with well-drawn maps and good descriptions of what you'll see. We found that the DMs are very professional and very fun. They'll give you just as much help and assistance as you want. And, they'll also give you plenty of freedom. Often, my wife and I went our own way on the dives.
That's the two-tank morning dive.
In the afternoon, evening and night you can do all the shore diving you like. With the dive packages, it's unlimited. There are two excellent shore locations. One, right at Cobalt Coast. The other is at nearby Lighthouse Point where Divetech has another shop. When Cobalt Coast is too windy and the sea is rough, Lighthouse Point is more protected and it's usually very easy to get in and out. The staff will ferry you to and from Lighthouse Point, usually right when you're ready to go.
The daytime and nighttime shore dives are great for critter watching. I've seen turtles on nearly every dive at both locations. There are also squid, octopi, green and spotted morays, drums, snappers, parrotfish, angelfish of all varieties, trunkfish, cowfish -- plenty to keep you watching.
Enjoy your trip!
