cobalt coast resort grand Cayman Trip planning first timer

[divingmoose]

We are planning to go to Grand Cayman
The dive club we are with is setting it up for next year
staying a Cobalt Coast resort 10 days I think .
any recommendations or advise about diving or accommodations?
We not newbies. we been diving 10 years fresh cold and warm and salt cold and warm.
but not in the Caymans.
Tried goggling the resort and trip adviser not much help. it all looks nice but we would like more divers comments and referrals

 

[Doctorfish]

I've stayed at Cobalt and it was quite nice. The accommodation we had was a suite with a kitchenette and it was clean, well furnished and spacious with an ocean view. Cobalt is on ironshore, not sand beach. The included breakfasts were good and the shore diving at Cobalt and Lighthouse was excellent. The on site dive op, Divetech, was adequate but the boat was sometimes a bit too crowded and they tried to accommodate students, vacation divers and tech divers all at the same time which led to some compromise with regard to the sites dived.

Cobalt Coast is on the north coast in the middle of nowhere so one needs a car, at least for part of the time. Few restaurants in walking distance so either take the all inclusive package or a vehicle. It is about 30 minutes from Georgetown.

Would I stay there again? Yes. Would I stay there for 10 days? Probably a bit too long in view of isolation.

 

[divin'dog]

Depends on when you are staying there, but the water can be pretty rough. I have heard that they will sometimes shuttle customers by bus to other boats... It's good that they have a plan in place. It's bad that they need to have a plan in place. Shore diving could be rough also. I visited and talked with the dive shop... Very nice and knowledgeable. I have heard that the diving on that side of the island is very good. As for what Doctorfish said, it is somewhat isolated. Again, that is both good and bad. If you stay there, rent a car.

 

[scoobydrew]

Hey there, if you are doing a group package with Cobalt Coast then most likely you will be diving with their on site dive op - Divetech.

I work for Divetech so obviously my opinions will be biased, that said, if you are looking for us on trip advisor then search for Divetech or look here Divetech, Ltd. - West Bay - Reviews of Divetech, Ltd. - TripAdvisor

If you want any info then feel free to respond to this post or PM me, other than that, see you when you get here

 

[tridacna]

Highly overrated resort. Food is not great and rooms are so-so. Make sure that you get your own boat for your group. Dive op is good but not great. Remember that restaurants in GC make NYC look like a bargain.

 

[KathyV]

I have never stayed/dived with Cobalt Coast, but we love the Caymans and have visited several times. When we are on Grand Cayman, where there are lots of restaurants and food choices, we rent an apartment or kitchenette so we can prepare some meals because eating out 3 times a day is very expensive.

When we stay on one of the smaller out islands of Cayman Brac or Little Cayman, we usually opt for an all-inclusive meal plan.

We like to find accommodations away from Georgetown and the seven-mile beach areas on GC because of traffic, heavy tourism, and all the cruise ship passengers. We always rent a car for the week on GC, but on CB we usually rent one just for a day to tour the island. You can rent scooters on tiny LC. We usually visit the Caymans for 2 weeks, spending one week on GC and one week on CB or LC or a liveaboard. Cobalt Coast is located away from the GC tourist sites so they probably won't take you to Devil's Grotto and other spots that have been beaten up by lots of divers - so that's good.

Check the currency rate for the Caymans, the US dollar is usually worth about 0.80 cents in the Caymans. I see that you are Canadian and I know that the Canadian dollar took a hit recently.

The Caymans are expensive but I think they are worth it and if you plan in advance you can reduce/control costs.

Why is it worth it? Anywhere in the Caymans you can eat the food and drink the water without concern about getting sick. The government takes mosquito abatement seriously so there is less risk of dengue, chikungunya, and malaria than you may encounter elsewhere in the Caribbean. The roads are well-maintained, the crime rate is low, and the health facilities are very good.

On GC there are lots of topside attractions and shopping if these activities are of interest. There is excellent diving available and many reputable dive operations. You can have the best of both worlds "vacation attractions" and "undeveloped nature that's off the beaten path". The water and the sand are gorgeous and seven mile is truly a "world class beach" so you should plan to visit it. The people are very friendly and nice, too.

I agree with your dive club, since the airfare is so expensive why not spend more time visiting the islands? A week is too short, you hardly have time to get over the jet lag and relax and enjoy yourself. Since your group is thinking of a 10-day trip why don't you consider chartering a liveaboard for a week? You could spend a few days on GC at a resort (within walking distance to 7MB and other attractions) and then get on a liveaboard for loads of great diving that includes all your food, drink, and accommodations. I don't know what the group charter rates are for the Cayman Aggressor but we've found it to be a fantastic liveaboard trip.

 

[Doctorfish]

I don't agree with KathyV
I would generally not take a liveaboard charter in the Caymans as you can get to all dive sites land based. If the weather is bad, the boat would not do the crossing from GC to LC anyway. Better IMO, if spending 10-14 days in Cayman to divide trip between 2 islands. If going for one week, one island.

Little Cayman arguably has the best diving but not much else to do. If I personally had to choose between Cobalt Coast and Little Cayman Beach Resort. LCBR wins hands down. Prices aren't much different.

 

[divin'dog]

Little Cayman arguably has the best diving but not much else to do. If I personally had to choose between Cobalt Coast and Little Cayman Beach Resort. LCBR wins hands down...

Spot on! I would also worry about rough surface conditions at CC. From people who live on and dive the Cayman Islands, almost all say that Little Cayman is the best of the 3 for diving. If you want restaurants and other activities at night, LC or Brac may not be the place to go.

 

[divingmoose]

the trip is planned for late October Halloween dive in costume in the plan.our plan is land based.we aren't sure about being on a boat for a week we've heard good and bad experiences on live aboard.
we were told the shore dives are limitless our dive buddy's told us the boats are available pretty much on request ? is that because the pack us like sardines on the boat ?
Is the rough water and weather depending on the season or is it just rough ?
we were in Cozumel a few years ago and the weather in Feb. was great not what we were expecting

 

[Doctorfish]

Very unusual for a dive op to offer boats on request. Divetech usually does a 2 tank AM dive plus/minus a one tank PM dive.

The shore diving is unlimited at Cobalt Coast and Lighthouse point.

If the weather is bad on the north side, the boat dives would be west.
The dock at Cobalt Coast is relatively shallow so if there is any chop, dive boats would be loaded and unloaded from other sites and they would take you there by bus.
If Cobalt Coast is blown out for shore diving, Lighthouse is sheltered and west and is almost always open.


I've never been to Cayman at end of October and cannot comment on weather.
Overall, the wind on GC tends to blow from the NE so that Cobalt and all of the north wall is prone to waves if it is windy.