Caribbean Dives Sites with Baby

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Allibelle

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I've been a ScubaBoard lurker forever, but I finally registered to seek some travel help. Here's the deal. My husband and I have about 40 dives each and we've been based in Asia so all of our experience is in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Australia. 10 months ago we had our first baby (which means I haven't dived in 19 months) and moved back to the US. I am dying to get back in the water and we're finally recovered enough financially from the move/baby-born-abroad to plan a trip. We'd like to go with friends we've dived with before; they are of a similar experience level, and they have a 4 month old. We're both nursing (though she more frequently than me).

We're looking to plan a trip this summer (after mid-June) that we can do a baby/buddy share arrangement. Here's our wishlist.

1. About 5 days total.
2. Fairly painless flights from the Eastern US--we will be flying with lap babies.
3. Nice shore dives would be awesome, since we'll be trading off the diving and baby duty. Or maybe childcare at a resort?
4. We like marine life, reefs, etc.
5. We want reputable, safe dive establishments, but... I really don't want to have to be retrained because of my forced hiatus. :/
6. As always, less expensive is better. We've definitely roughed it before.

I looked at Bonaire for the shore dives and marine life, but the once a week flights from Atlanta are a little expensive and make for a slightly longer trip than we were thinking.

Are we crazy? Is this possible?
 
When I price Bonaire against competing options, I tend to find that while airfare is higher, the resort/dive package (when you factor in the roughly 20 dives I try to get in a week there)/truck rental cost evens out. I have to buy food & a tank of gas, but I don't boat dive there so not much tipping.

What I'm saying is, if you compare destinations, compare the package price, not just the plane tickets.

Shore diving offers maximum versatility. Not many destinations offer a lot of it. Bonaire, Curacao, some in the Cayman islands (I suspect your trip bill will be higher there, though) and if you stay at CocoView in particular then Roatan (not the only resort there with shore diving, but from what I've read the most reliable?).

Did you consider the Florida Keys or West Palm Beach diving (boat diving, not shore, I'm afraid)? I imagine daycare or other arrangements might be fairly easy in the U.S., and without such a long plane ride. And you can tailor your trip duration for whatever you want, since you'll likely pay by the daily boat trip.

Richard.
 
Traveling with infants I wouldn't even consider Roatan. There's Malaria, Dengue Fever, lots of Mosquitoes, Sand Flies, Sand Fleas on the beach etc. Most people use Deet or some other product continuously to keep from getting bitten up. Sometimes it actually works. Also it's an offshore island in a third world nation that has the highest murder rate in the world. Not much of a hospital, many locals use Sister Mary's Clinic. We bring her bandages/aspirin etc. when we visit so they're not exactly state of the art medical facilities. Roatan seemed pretty safe but not exactly where I'd want to take my kids...

Bonaire is an option but the hospital facilities there again are marginal if needed. Also outside of the resorts none of the shore dive sites have any sort of facilities - most don't even have shade. So the babies/sitters would be sitting in the sun while the other couple dove. And most don't have much of a beach either. Or I suppose you could trade off driving/diving at the shore dive sites - most are within about a 15min. drive of town. There at least you could "dive the resorts" part of the time also. Bonaire also has Mosquitoes and Dengue Fever is a possibility. So maybe not the best for the kids either.

Curacao would be better for that. Same diving as Bonaire, but most shore dive sites have on-site operators, tank rentals, snack bars/restaurants or some sort of shaded benches etc. Also many of the best beaches are also the best dive sites. The only downside is that some of them are a farther drive - it typically takes about an hour to drive the length of the island. The better diving is out west or via boat east - most of the civilization is in Willemstad.

It's also easier/cheaper to get to than Bonaire typically - a lot of the flights to Bonaire actually stop there first. You can find pretty decent accommodations reasonably also. We stayed in a 2BR/2BA condo at Piscadera Bay Resort. Across the street from the Marriott and Hilton but where the Marriott was $400/nt. the PBR is $150. It's also a mile to a major market and there's some quick meal options - Pirates Bay beach bar, the outdoor restaurant at the Hilton or there's a Denny's just down the street. About a 10min. drive to everything downtown from there. You don't want to stay downtown, there's no nearby diving and a lot of congestion since the cruise ships moor there also. There's also the Sunscape AI south of town, it's close to diving and very kid friendy - a former Breezes Family resort. They may even have babysitting services there.

They also claim to have the best hospital in the Southern Caribbean there if needed - we were there one night, it seemed like a decent facility. Curacao Travel- Caribbean, Curacao, Dutch Caribbean for everything.

Some areas of Curacao are a little lower-class though, there's both a deepwater port and oil refinery near downtown and some theft issues. You won't notice it at the resorts but almost all of them in town are gated. PBR has 24hr. gated security with a night watchman. So did the others we saw.

Compare/contrast the dive site differences here: Scuba Shore Diving Region: ABC Islands

For shore diving you might consider St. Croix also. They have good shore diving off Cane Bay Wall on the north side and there's some condos for rent there on vrbo.com. Also a couple of dive resorts and other hotels/resorts etc. Frederikstad Pier is another option for shore diving. It is a little pricier there but it's also the U.S. They also have a world class medical facility should there be a problem. AA flies direct there from some U.S. cities also IIRC.

Grand Cayman might be another option but it's a lot pricier. In fact it's probably one of the most expensive dive locations there is. Being the offshore banking capital of the Caribbean means a developed infrastructure, lots of condo options on Seven Mile Beach. Boat dive operators will pick you up there daily and none of the shore dives are more than 15-20 mins. drive away - or less. Also all of them have a developed resort with food options on-site. And a dive shop for gear rental.

I could easily see taking the kids to a site like Turtle Reef and having one couple dive while the other watched them. There's both a Tiki Bar and an upscale restaurant with A/C and shaded outdoor tables there. That way both could get a couple dives per morning in. There's also the Turtle Farm nearby but at 4 months, they probably wouldn't get much out of that yet. It's also a little sad as it's a working farm. And the Butterfly Gardens. Sunset House is another option, there's a decent shore dive, covered bar, indoor restaurant etc. onsite. Just south of downtown.

Downside to Cayman is that everything is really expensive - the CI$ is .80 to the US$ and food is very high - in restaurants or markets. You can save some by cooking in your condo and some of the US chains (Subway, Burger King, Dominos, a Hard Rock Cafe) are there. To dine on the beach in an upscale restaurant can easily be $50pp. or more though. Accommodations are equally pricey but some of the condos along south SMB are reasonable if shared. Many are 2-3BR and more set up for family use. Again vrbo.com is your best source.

Cayman also has two world class medical facilities - all that tax revenue gets put to good use. And it's safe, crime isn't allowed there...lol.
 
Shore diving in the Bahamas is a bigger reach once you leave Bonaire or Coco View.

The obvious alternative: Bahamas
 
The Brac Reef Beach Resort is offering 5 night "Best of Cayman Brac" packages starting at $1016. Their packages include boat dives (2 to 3 per day) and 2 or 3 meals per day; depending on the package you get. Airport transfers, taxes, and gratuities are also included.

There is shore diving on the Brac but I have not tried it. You would mostly be boat diving and would have to check with the resort regarding child care availability and cost. The Caymans are expensive, but this is all-inclusive dive resort and the prices are reasonable, in my opinion, and you will know your costs in advance.

The Caymans are near Jamaica so they are closer than Bonaire and Curacao, but you will have to take a short flight from Grand Cayman to Cayman Brac. The resort is lovely, the food is delicious, and the diving and dive operation are excellent. Everything is easy, pleasant, and convenient. The junior suites come with a frig, or you can rent a small frig for a regular room.


Here's the link, good luck!
Cayman Specials & All Inclusive Packages | Brac Reef Resort
 
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No way I would go on a long plane ride with a young baby unless I was staying at destination 7+ days. Otherwise you are spending half your trip traveling.

I think you might want to consider Key Largo, Florida. Fly into Ft. Lauderdale or Miami, rent a car, and drive south for an hour. There are also dive ops in the Lauderdale area. Would be cheap, and Key Largo diving is easy and plenty of fishlife.
 
I tend to concur with robint and drrich2 here, Allibelle. Traveling with an infant for an overseas dive trip will be challenging and costly, not to mention long flights (4 hours minimum or more) from East Coast USA to Caribbean destinations such as ABC Islands, Caymans, etc. We've traveled to many of these islands and connecting flights, travel delays, etc., are difficult for adults, let alone someone traveling with a nursing infant.

I would also be leery of childcare at the hotels overseas. Most hotels do not offer childcare in all of the places we have stayed through the years as these facilities cater more to adult divers. That's not to say childcare is unavailable, but you would need to really research this beforehand. I would bring my own non-diving nanny/child care provider with me on an overseas trip if I had to. But this will cost more, of course, for your trip.

Definitely check out the Florida Keys as mentioned above. Traveling somewhere closer to home may make more sense.

Otherwise, it will be worth it to wait until your sweet baby is a bit older and you can leave him/her with a trusted caregiver and enjoy your dive trip for 5 days without worry.

Lastly, before any dive trip, since it's been 19 months since your last dive, it would be prudent to go to your local pool and/or hook up with your local dive shop to do a couple of refresher dives so you are thoroughly comfortable underwater before you get into the ocean. You won't regret this.

Good luck and safe travels, wherever you decide to go!
 
I agree with others that traveling with a young child is miserable for the child, the parent and the other passengers. I did travel with my infant daughter from Denver to Anchorage a few times, but it was either late at night when she would sleep the majority of the time or on a military C-130 and the prop noise blanked out all crying (that at least helped the other passengers). But then travel to Anchorage we had multiple flights to choose from daily.

I still travel the world and I have seen countless miserable children that then make everyone around them miserable...walking in the aisles just works for so long. One that comes to mind was when a young father was taking his very young son on a 2-hour flight from Kuwait to the Red Sea and the child screamed the entire flight and most passengers thought the father was going to lose it. In customs that is all that anyone could talk about.

Also while it might not be a prevalent as it once was, the child's immune system could face a challenge that it, the child or you are not up for. And some of these countries’ health care leaves a lot to be desired. I have heard of several nice places in the Florida Keys that meets your criteria...that is where I would look. Put a post on SB and you will get plenty of destinations.
 
Thanks, all! This would be baby's fourth trip abroad in 10 months, so the travel part doesn't even phase us anymore, but our travel companions aren't quite so foolish. :wink: I will look into the Keys and see what we can find for shore diving there. (Leaving the girls with strangers is what most worries us about the whole idea, so shore diving would let the couples take turns watching the girls and diving, and no nursing pair would have to be apart for too long.) Thank you all so much for your thoughts and suggestions. I really appreciate it.
 
No, there is no shore diving in Keys. Honestly, you are better off doing boat dives at this point. Some dive ops actually do 2-tank morning boat, then 2-tank afternoon boat. You could switch off that way.
look at:
Silent World Dive Center
Conch Republic Divers
Dive Key Largo, Florida Keys with Rainbow Reef Dive Center;scuba diving:diving, Florida keys, florida diving
Quiescence Diving Services, World Class Diving in Key Largo, FL
Key Largo diving, SEA DWELLERS DIVE CENTER, a PADI scuba dive resort facility, Welcome

I have not used any of these. My only trip to the area was many years ago and the 2 dive ops we used have gone out of business.
 

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