Hello all. Where to go; Bonaire, Belize, Roatan, Caymans?

[domino22]

Cayman great but $$. Bonaire good ,easy ,good shore dives. Avoid the plaza and toucan diving. Food well we only found one real good one over a two week period. Ate there 7 nights.Rent a condo and cook at home, and dive by yourself. Oh ya do a search on the security for your rental car.But people swear by this place I never did understand that.

 

[marisa-t]

RoatanMan,

I am planning a trip to Grand Cayman in late August and wondered if you thought that was a little risky with the Hurricane season approaching and the researchers expecting a heavy season? My second question is this, I am going with my girlfriend who is not as excited about diving as I am so I have to split my time with diving and other island tourism. Does Grand Cayman have enough for both of us to be satisfied or are there better options for that time of year. I have also considered Cozumel and Costa Rica. Any suggestions would be great, you sound like you have a lot of experience down there.

In my adventure to Grande Cayman in 2002 August 23-August 31st I did not have any issues with storms. I know we can not predict the weather but the last 3 years at the same time my friends have gone again and again and they did not have any weather trouble. To answer your question about Grand Cayman having enough, well it all depends. If she likes to sunbathe and just relax, with the occasional shop at places and check out a few sites then you will be fine, but if she expects more than that, then it might be a tad unsatisfying.
There are plenty of things to do, like Stingray city, you can do that with Non-Diver and there is The turtle Farm, along with the many shop in Georgetown, I will say though, once you have seen a few of them they all start to look the same. There are some wonderful restuarants there and you can wine and dine her in that department, a favorite place of mine is the grandoldhouse (www.grandoldhouse.com) this is a beautiful spot on the island and the food is spectacular. I dove either a 2 or 3 boat tank dive everyday, so therefore the rest of the afternoon would be just hanging out by the pool resting until dinner time. If your girlfriend isn't excited about diving I promise you she may change her mind, that's if she is a diver already. If I could become a mermaid the place to live would be Grande Cayman. The diving is so easy and relaxing, and the colors you will see are fabulous, it's like someone melted a million boxes of crayons down there. I never wanted to come up!


Yissak

"Live it while you can"

 

[nbdiver]

In my adventure to Grande Cayman in 2002 August 23-August 31st I did not have any issues with storms. I know we can not predict the weather but the last 3 years at the same time my friends have gone again and again and they did not have any weather trouble. To answer your question about Grand Cayman having enough, well it all depends. If she likes to sunbathe and just relax, with the occasional shop at places and check out a few sites then you will be fine, but if she expects more than that, then it might be a tad unsatisfying.
There are plenty of things to do, like Stingray city, you can do that with Non-Diver and there is The turtle Farm, along with the many shop in Georgetown, I will say though, once you have seen a few of them they all start to look the same. There are some wonderful restuarants there and you can wine and dine her in that department, a favorite place of mine is the grandoldhouse (www.grandoldhouse.com) this is a beautiful spot on the island and the food is spectacular. I dove either a 2 or 3 boat tank dive everyday, so therefore the rest of the afternoon would be just hanging out by the pool resting until dinner time. If your girlfriend isn't excited about diving I promise you she may change her mind, that's if she is a diver already. If I could become a mermaid the place to live would be Grande Cayman. The diving is so easy and relaxing, and the colors you will see are fabulous, it's like someone melted a million boxes of crayons down there. I never wanted to come up!


Yissak

"Live it while you can"

Thanks for the info. She is already a diver so I am sure she will like it. She just wants to do something other than diving for a 2-3 days. If it were up to me we would dive every day we were there but she is not up for that. Sounds like we'll be fine. Any recommendations on Dive sites or Dive Ops? Thanks again for your feedback.

 

[Wrangler]

New to forum and stumbled on this site while researching a dive trip for this summer.

Would love to hear anyone's opinions or comparison's between these four possible dive locations. Wife, daughter, and I are recreational divers with wife being the less adventurous type of diver than daughter and I. Wife also less willing to rough it when it comes to accomodations or amenities when diving. Let me hear from anyone.

P.S. I love what Roatan Man writes and would love to do a trip with him, but unsure how my wife would feel about activities other than diving.

Ok I'm really prjudice towards the Caymans, great diving from cattle boat to Iron shore dives, Stingray city or sandbar will make your wifes life a delight, Shopping, great food sure some expensive ask the DM they know when where and how long all the deals are take one to dinner for a special tip and find all the happy hours and best entertainment on Island.
I like Seaview small On the Iron shore good food friendly folks.
Just my.02 worth

 

[H2Andy]

cayman diving is very nice. the reefs are not in great shape on the West, but rather
nice in the South and North walls, and very very good on the East.

the marine life is really teeming.

love the caymans. but, yes... they are expensive.

 

[marisa-t]

Any recommendations on Dive sites or Dive Ops? Thanks again for your feedback.


I dove with www.sunsethouse.com I however stayed with that dive resort the whole time of my trip. They are located 1 mile south of the Georgetown. I know that they offer great deals for those who just want to dive a couple times with them as well.. Just remember to go to the Original Stingray Ray City and not the one where all the CRUISE people are. Sunset House will take you to the original one. She will want to Dive this one, I PROMISE YOU! The Stingrays are huge and they are like big puppy dogs, they just want to be fed and loved!!! :11ztongue The price of the Stingray City trip is 50.00 pp. It's totally worth it! I know that right now rentals are at 15.00 for Regulators, BCD's 10.00 , Computers 15.00 , Weights 5.00. Fot the AM 2 Boat Tank Dive is 85.00 pp. This is all US prices. Good Luck and have a blast.. I plan on buying property there someday.. that's how much I love it! :07:


Yissak

 

[DiverDusty]

Bonaire gets my vote. My wife was a newly certified diver a couple of years ago. After she received her C-Card we booked a trip to Bonaire and it made a complete diver out of her. The shore diving ranges from the Super easy to the moderate. There are only a couple of dive sights that may develop a current that will make you work and put a strain on newbies. The marine life is healthy and abundand (except no big stuff and phelagics) with macros galore. We graduated from big stuff to macros and an appreciation for Tunicates, Corals and Sponges on our 3rd trip to Bonaire. Leaving on the 30th for our 5th trip. If there is any dive destination that will make your wife a more compete and confident diver Bonaire will do it. It is easy to get 3, 4 or even 5 dives a day with the "grab a tank and jump in" type of diving available in Bonaire. Check out this thread>>>www.Bonairetalk.com

 

[AllanHarr]

1. Caymans
2. Bonaire
3. Belize
4. Roatan

 

[vladimir]

New to forum and stumbled on this site while researching a dive trip for this summer.

Would love to hear anyone's opinions or comparison's between these four possible dive locations. Wife, daughter, and I are recreational divers with wife being the less adventurous type of diver than daughter and I. Wife also less willing to rough it when it comes to accomodations or amenities when diving. Let me hear from anyone.

P.S. I love what Roatan Man writes and would love to do a trip with him, but unsure how my wife would feel about activities other than diving.

I have been to Bonaire twice, Belize twice, and Little Cayman once in the last 2 years. Belize is the best if you dive the atolls. I recommend the Turneffe Island Lodge or the Aggressor, both of which should pass muster with your wife. I saw dolphins, hammerheads, reef sharks, lots of eagle rays and turtles, schools of jacks, mackerel, and permit, plus a good assortment of smaller reef life. And a crocodile topside.

Bonaire is very nice if you don't mind not seeing bigger fish. The diving gets a little repetitive if you're not a macro photographer. I stayed at Harbor Village Resort, which will nicely satisfy your wife's lodging requirements. This is where I go when traveling with my snorkeler girlfriend (who thinks she's roughing it if there's no room service). I personally enjoy the freedom of diving whenever I please, which is easily done in Bonaire, and makes it seem a lot more like vacation to me.

Little Cayman's Bloody Bay wall is great. I would rank it above Bonaire, below Belize. However, there is nothing to do on this island but dive, and the accommodations, while adequate, are not fancy. I stayed at the Little Cayman Beach Resort, and found the dive operation to be a little regimented.