Best all inclusive resort with good shore diving?

What's the best place in the Caribbean to go with non-divers, including small children? I don't mean on the same trip and sleeping in the same hotel, but spending minimal time away from each other during the dive day.

My ideal is to have the family together with everyone playing in the water or snorkeling or whatever, then I descend with a buddy, do the dive, and do surface interval with my family.

I know there are operators who bring non-divers on the boat (and charge them a lot "bubblemakers") or maybe I just need a really good shore diving location, ideally one with an all inclusive resort.

Does anyone have recommendations on where we can enjoy a full luxury top-side experience with relatively guilt-free diving?

I think you're after too many different things in one trip. The main shore diving destination in the Caribbean is Bonaire; Curacao has some similar diving, with locations more spread out to get to, but it's a larger, more populous island said to have more 'other stuff' to do. While Bonaire has a number of resorts people enjoy, most wouldn't be called 'luxury' and aren't all inclusive. Grand Cayman has some shore diving, but is most known for boat diving, and has a rep. for being expensive.

I'm thinking Curacao might be as close as you're likely to find in the Caribbean.

Richard.

I agree with Richard. Curacao is probably the closest you will find. Not high end, but good for what you are looking for is Sunscape. They are all inclusive, have loads to do for non divers, and you get free shore dives from the beach at the resort. You have the option of diving with the onsite operator who runs boat trips (Ocean Encounters) or you can do shore dives with the Dive Bus down the road.
We actually have a special running for this resort with diving packages, or I can tailor a package to fit your exact needs.
Really think it is your only AI option with shore diving.
Cheers
Bryan

Go to Brac Reef Resort, Cayman Brac. Beautiful beach, safe, good shore diving all around the island. Facebook has a fan page for Cayman Brac Shore Divers. They probably can help you find buddies etc. The kids will enjoy the shallow areas for snorkeling, kayaking and swimming. It is in protected area with a lot of critters to look at. The dive operators are first rate, and no one will be disappointed. Above all, you don't have to worry about being raped, robbed, killed or mugged on Cayman Brac. Enjoy

I would hae to agree with the reference to the Sunscape Curacao. They have the car pile dive site within swimming distance of the dock and a marine park within walking distance.

Here are photos I took while staying there Scuba One Travel - Curacao Underwater photos

A little nicer near Sunscape is Lions Dive. It's not a full AI but they do have a meal plan option. It's also right by the SeaQuarium (think small Seaworld) for the non-divers. One advantage for your group is they have some larger 3-4 bedroom villas. Ocean Encounters main shop is there, so the boats leave from it. Also the dolphin dives are done 5mins. off their beach. They're adjacent to Mambo Beach which is one of the nicer ones in Curacao. Besides their dive, there's 3-4 others within 5 minutes. As mentioned the Dive Bus nearby does shore diving/snorkeling all over the island.

One advantage to a lot of Curacao dive sites is that they're on beaches so you could shore dive there while your family plays on the beach. Porto Mari, Cas Abou, Playa Lagun, Playa Jeremi, Varsenbaai/Kokomo, Jan Thiel - all have a beach, facilities (except Jeremi), food and are some of the better shore dives. None are more than a 1/2 hr. drive from town.

Curacao also has the famous shopping district downtown (also the cruise port) an Ostrich farm and other attractions. Lots of better restaurants - often beachfront/ocean view and there's about a dozen casinos for the adults. The one at the Renaissance is like one you'd find off-strip in Vegas. There's also more people, it's more crowded and the areas north of town around the container port and the refinery aren't as nice. (or probably safe) It became a Dutch Protectorate again fairly recently so I think some of that has been cleaned up. www.curacao.com

Sunscape is the former Princess Beach Resort, before that it was a Breezes so it's a little older and tired. I've been there but not in the rooms. IDK what the Sunscape people did to it since they've taken over since I saw it last. They did have a trapeze and other kids activities also. When I think full luxury, it wouldn't make my list...

---------- Post added February 23rd, 2013 at 02:13 PM ----------

Harbour Villlage is the Luxury resort on Bonaire. The villas are beachfront, it's a nice wide, beach, they have a great restaurant. It's not an AI though.

Their dive isn't so good, mostly coral rubble with the wreck of a small wooden boat nearby. But five minutes or less away are some of the better Bonaire resort shore dives. Most of the shore dives on Bonaire are within about 15-20 by boat/car either.

There's not a lot of non-dive things to do on Bonaire though unless you work at it.

Do Curacao, but I wouldn't do AI, as you will end up limiting yourself to the same house reef the whole time because you won't want to go anywhere else lest you need to pay for a drink or a sandwich. Personally, I would never do AI no matter what, but for the moment the negative impact on diving potential/variety is the only part that's germane here. Below is the content from a recent reply I made to post asking about where to go with a non-diving spouse...

I would dive five times a day, every day, my whole life if I could. My wife doesn't dive, nor do my two children. Family trips to places like Hawaii or Cayman Islands can be difficult to dive, since diving in such locations usually means being gone before they wake up and being absent for 2/3rds of a day out on a boat. However, one of our favorite family vacation spots is also one of my favorite dive spots - Curacao. Been there three times, and will be back many more. With plentiful shore diving, most of which can be done from some of the islands nicest beaches, I'm able to get a fair bit of diving in on a "non-diving" family vacation. Goes like this...

Nice, leisurely breakfast at hotel before heading off to a beach like Playa Porto Mari. Set up camp at the beach with the wife and kids, and then tell the dive op on site I'm looking for a shore dive buddy and point out where I'm sitting. Play with the kids in the sand and the water for a while. At some point a single diver or buddy pair will approach me and ask if I want to join them for a shore dive. Before grabbing my gear I turn to my wife and say "I'm going for a quick dive... want me to grab you a pina colada on the way back?" and walk into the water. 45-60min later I'm back on my lounge chair with a cold beer and happy wife. Typically I can get 10 or so dives in during a one-week trip without anyone really noticing/caring that I did a fair bit of diving.



Everyone in the family loves "Daddy's Night Dive" at the Marriott house reef. There's a bar right on the ocean. We sit down for a few drinks and appetizers as the sun sets. When I see my buddy walking over to the dive shop 50ft away, I tell my wife what to order me for dinner and then I head over, throw my gear on, and walk into the water. The kids play "follow daddy's dive light" as we dive the reef that essentially wraps around the point where the bar sits. 45min later I'm back on my bar stool with a cold beer, BBQ ribs, and a happy wife.

And, we've met some great people that we ended up spending time with during the trip. One guy I dove with in Curacao had two kids same age as mine and a non-diving wife. We ended up spending most of the week with them and still keep in touch.

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