StingRay Dive or Snorkel?

[ilympt]

Hi,

We will be staying over at SMB for a couple of days after a week in LCBR and I would like to do a StingRay ??? with my kids. I understand you can either snorkel at the SandBar (around $45-$50, 4ft of water) or do a dive at StingRay City ($80, 15 ft of water). Is there any major difference other than shallow water and deeper water & scuba vs non? Any operator recommendation?

I remember doing the StingRay dive when I did the Aggressor in 1996 but I don't remember much anymore. Any info are welcome,thanks

 

[diversteve]

Sandbar has gotten a little more popular since you were last there....this is about half of it. Since you're on island there's a couple of operators who do a 6AM trip to avoid this. We did the dive as a group of about 12 one afternoon. Another boat moored nearby but we didn't see them u/w. Also Psycho or one of his descendants usually live in the coral outcropping nearby - be a good chance for the kids to see a relatively safe Green Moray Eel.



Take the kids shore diving at Turtle Reef also. Turtle Reef | Scuba Diving Grand Cayman | iDive Cayman
The Kittiwake is the new signature wreck also: Kittiwake Sites in Cayman, Kittiwake Wreck Dive - Kittiwake Cayman

 

[Spg01]

That looks like fun

 

[ilympt]

I didn't do the sandbar (not even sure if sandbar existed back then). We were at the original StingRay City with about 10-15ft of water and scuba with the rays. And I think we are the only divers there.

That picture look scary... I think I might go for dive instead of snorkel, any well known dive op do this dive?

 

[diversteve]

Most of them do. Usually they keep a boat at the marina nearby on the sound. Almost all do it starting around 1PM - they often use the same boat for 2 tanks in the morning. I don't have a specific SRC dive recommendation since it's been 10 years for me also but here's a list. Cayman Islands Tourism Association - Things To Do In Cayman, Cayman Culture,Cayman Islands Watersports

My usual dive operator suggestions are Wall-to-Wall, Ambassador Divers, Indigo Divers or Neptune's Divers. Also have heard good things about Deep Blue Divers, DNS Diving or Epic Diving.

 

[Bubbles below]

Ocean Frontier does it on Friday to avoid cruisers at sandbar. You met them at Kaibo at 6:30am for 90 mins for $60 or 9:30am and 1:30am for 60 mins for $45, maximum 6 snorkelers 1 crew, minimum age is 8yrs old. You can dive Stingray Deep which is 15ft at maximum depth. May want to shoot them an email for prices for dives and private charter. Also, No one is allowed to be at Stingray City after 2pm on weekend.

 

[Doctorfish]

Both diving and snorkeling with the rays are fun but the dive kind of gets boring after 10 minutes. I would go out for a snorkel. My family have used Fantasea Tours (Dexter) a number of times as he has a big catamaran and does not overload. He does AM and PM trips. Agree with suggestion for Friday PM or weekend to decrease the crowd on the sandbar.

 

[diversteve]

Since you're staying on SMB it makes no sense to dive with Ocean Frontiers since Kaibo is all the way around the island south of Rum Point.

So you can drive around the entire island (1 hour) over there or drive across the street to one of two harbors where the boats are kept on the west side of the Sound. A map makes it obvious which is the better option - unless you're stying in the East End.

There are a lot of operators that do the snorkel early - google can find them. I believe Captain Marvin's does also.

 

[Bubbles below]

Since you're staying on SMB it makes no sense to dive with Ocean Frontiers since Kaibo is all the way around the island south of Rum Point.
Sorry, Ilympt and thank you Diversteve for the correction! I forgot Ilympt is staying at SMB and I'm staying at Moritts East End and diving w Ocean Frontier and Cobalt Coast diving north side for boat/shore dives.

 

[ilympt]

Thanks for all the reply.

One quick question. Is the water in Grand Cayman safe to drink from tap or only bottle water?

Edit:

Just found my answer, looked like it's safe to drink tap water but some comments regarding taste