Grand Cayman discovery scuba and snorkeling?

[lhhoback]

In April we are traveling with our extended family of noncertified divers. I have three of them that have done discovery scubas before and would love to dive again while in Grand Cayman along with my husband and I.
But I also have about 8-10 not sure about diving folks that want to snorkel.
We really like to stay as a family on these trips. So I am looking for an operator that could accomodate this.
My preference would be from a boat for some portion of the excursion.
And if they also stopped by stingray city that would be a bonus. Any ideas?

 

[scoobydrew]

There are many operators that could get you what you want but most likely Red Sail would be easiest

 

[diversteve]

Are you staying on the West Side? If so with a group that size you should look into a private charter - that might be cheaper per person.

Here's one that may be suited to your group - IDK much about them: Cayman private charter and boat rentals | Living the Dream Divers

Our boat is dedicated just to you with a minimum of 2 highly qualified crew on board. We offer private dive charters, private snorkel charters and a combination of both. Often, we have families or friends who have a mixture of divers and snorkelers. Reserving a private charter means we are able to select sites to suit both. We can incorporate a BBQ on board, any special requirements for Junior divers, depth preferences, site selection, special needs, timing etc.

Most dive operators also offer both trips - often SRC in the afternoon. Sandbar is also nearby so it's possible the divers could dive SRC and the snorkelers be taken over to Sandbar first. If they had a problem all they'd have to do is stand up and wait for the boat - it's 4' deep. There's probably going to be a dozen other boats there in an emergency.

We had snorkelers on our SRC dive trip - they floated near the boat then swam down to participate. It's 14-15' deep there.

You want the opposite of what most people do - a lot of operators advertise 6-8 or less per trip. So Red Sail or Don Fosters have bigger boats for a group your size. Ambassador Divers also has a big boat - IDK if they use it for combo trips. There's others - these are just ones I know. I've also seen the Divers Down boat pick up off Seven Mile Beach with their pontoon boat but they may not go to Stingray City with it. Many of the operators keep an SRC boat on the Sound. Everyone has a van shuttle also.

Partly it's going to depend on where you're all staying. Red Sail is on Seven Mile Beach, at Rum Point and at Morritts. So they've got the North side of the island covered. Ambassador is based out of Comfort Suites mid West Side so they do also. Fosters is downtown. Everybody seems to offer private charters starting around $650 with add-ons above 4 divers/snorkelers. Since a 2-tank dive is $100-125 it may work out to be a better deal. I'd guess the Discovery Dives are extra also since they have to provide an Instructor for them.

A convenient list of dive operators with links is on the Kittiwake dive page. Down the right side: The Official Website for the Kittiwake Shipwreck - Home I think they snorkel it also - it just about breaks the surface.

 

[Jxh2297]

I took a discover scuba course with red sail in 2010 and lets just say im addicted. 4 years and 300 dives later.

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[BigRedDiver1]

Recently got back from Grand Cayman where I did 13 dives with Ambassador Divers. I can't say enough about the tremendous experience I had diving with them they truly were a first class dive op! Not only were they good for more experienced divers, they were also great with discover scuba folks. I did a mix of morning/afternoon two tank dives with them, the afternoon dives always had somebody doing discover scuba. Sarah and Ollie were the Instructors/DM's and they both were very good with these new divers. Additionally not once did I feel like I was on a cattle boat even though we did have a few days of 10 or more divers and even then the boat wasn't crowded. After talking with different folks during the week I got the impression that Red Sail runs primarily "Cattle Boats", so that may translate into a more chaotic experience. Also in relation to mixed groups Ambassador does indeed allow non diving family to snorkel while the divers dive, they always have somebody in the boat and two to three in the water. Hope this helps!

PS: Please take me back with you!!!!


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