Dive sites for beginners in Caribbean

[MarsAg99]

Hello,

It's been a little more than four years since I went diving. And I only did two open water dives in Cancun after I got my PADI certification in 2001. So, needless to say, I'm a bit rusty, but I plan to take a few refresher courses. Can anybody recommend some good dive sites in the Caribbean, specificically Cozumel and Grand Cayman, for novice divers? Any tips would be appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[PaulChristenson]

@Journey's End...ask for Manuel

Paul in VT

 

[Damselfish]

You can do some shore diving on Grand Cayman (and the usual places are fine for beginners) but you will probably do mostly boat dives. Same on Coz, you're talking boats. So rather than asking about specific dive sites, what you might want to look for is a dive op that will be good for a newbie or even runs separate boats. (Really most will be fine.) You can request specific sites but if they don't have a schedule they are also going to take into account where others on the boat have been or what they've already done that week, where conditions are best at the time, etc. More important to let them know you are a beginner and they will keep a closer eye on you, may take it into account when selecting sites or some will have a separate boat going to easier sites. For example, I know Sunset House on GC usually runs one boat designated deep/shallow, and another shallow/shallow.

If you're open to other places, Bonaire is a great place for a new diver though it's a bit of a nuisance to get to, you can get lots of easy practice. Or Curacao, which is similar diving and easier to get to, though unlike Bonaire you need to pick your hotel more carefully for the best diving experience.

 

[RadRob]

Most of the places have a long shelf. When I went on my first "returning to scuba" dive after the refresher course, I did shore dives to get comfortable again. It isn't too deep, so you can feel at ease if trouble arises. Plus, most resorts have free shore diving. Once you are comfortable, hit the boats. The boat dives, often drift dives in Cozumel, are awesome.

Just my $.03 (inflation these days, geez)

 

[Damselfish]

I just noticed this thread is a dup of http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=125380, a mod may want to merge the threads.

 

[cleung]

Both Cozumel and Grand Cayman have good beginner sites. For Grand Cayman, there's even two really good shore dives off Eden Rocks. See the article about it at;

http://www.FreeSpiritActivewear.com/scubaartedenrocks.htm

Have fun

 

[fracchiam]

Its not exactly what you asked for, but I was in St. Lucia last year and was surprised how relaxing and "easy" the diving was. Definitely good for beginners....I highly recommend the Anse Chastanet Reef which can be done from a boat or from shore.