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I just completed 10 dives (4 shore, 6 boat) off Grand Cayman with my daughter. I first dove here 21 years ago and remember the coral as perfect, the visibility 50 m, even from the town pier. I came back 7 years ago and the coral was largely destroyed and the viz in the 25-30 m range. That was the situation this week as well.
We did one evening shore dive (Devil's Grotto/Eden Rock) and three dawn entries (various West Bay sites). Shore dives are challenging in Grand Cayman, because the sites are either unmarked and unstaffed or staffed, but often inaccessible because the operator is closed on vacation, it is too early or too late, etc. The rule is to use only operator rental tanks at staffed sites, but it is difficult to find out if the operation will be open when you want to dive (the operator may not be clearly identified with the site or answer the phone, for example).
The best site was Spanish Wreck Reef, a closed but accessible area. We were able to drive onto the beach and dive through a sandy entry and about 350 m over fans to the reef. Spent most of the dive being escorted around by a friendly turtle. Viz around 25 m.
We decided to do boat dives on the weekend, but it was difficult reaching the operators. Many use cell phone numbers, which were not accessible from our hotel phone. Skype is blocked in parts of the Caymans (depends on the Internet provider), so my backup was my Canadian cell phone with limited local calling. Usually I hit voicemail.
Two tank boat dives are $100-$110 (or more) and, based on the ones we did, not much different than shore dives in terms of viz and sea life. There are fascinating swim-thrus in the Caymans and a bunch of great green morays and turtles--they certainly made my trip. But the visibility is mediocre (operators say "unusually low"; but this is what I've seen in Bonaire and the Caymans over the past 7/8 years) and the coral is severely damaged.
Stingray City may seem kitsch, but I could've spent all week there. The stingrays sweep over you, blanket you and follow you about like puppies. The shallow (2-4 m) coral there is in much better shape than anything else we saw, but still nothing approaching Red Sea standards. Watch out--the yellow snappers may bite you when you're trying to feed the stingrays.
We did one evening shore dive (Devil's Grotto/Eden Rock) and three dawn entries (various West Bay sites). Shore dives are challenging in Grand Cayman, because the sites are either unmarked and unstaffed or staffed, but often inaccessible because the operator is closed on vacation, it is too early or too late, etc. The rule is to use only operator rental tanks at staffed sites, but it is difficult to find out if the operation will be open when you want to dive (the operator may not be clearly identified with the site or answer the phone, for example).
The best site was Spanish Wreck Reef, a closed but accessible area. We were able to drive onto the beach and dive through a sandy entry and about 350 m over fans to the reef. Spent most of the dive being escorted around by a friendly turtle. Viz around 25 m.
We decided to do boat dives on the weekend, but it was difficult reaching the operators. Many use cell phone numbers, which were not accessible from our hotel phone. Skype is blocked in parts of the Caymans (depends on the Internet provider), so my backup was my Canadian cell phone with limited local calling. Usually I hit voicemail.
Two tank boat dives are $100-$110 (or more) and, based on the ones we did, not much different than shore dives in terms of viz and sea life. There are fascinating swim-thrus in the Caymans and a bunch of great green morays and turtles--they certainly made my trip. But the visibility is mediocre (operators say "unusually low"; but this is what I've seen in Bonaire and the Caymans over the past 7/8 years) and the coral is severely damaged.
Stingray City may seem kitsch, but I could've spent all week there. The stingrays sweep over you, blanket you and follow you about like puppies. The shallow (2-4 m) coral there is in much better shape than anything else we saw, but still nothing approaching Red Sea standards. Watch out--the yellow snappers may bite you when you're trying to feed the stingrays.
