I am sorry to hear that. I also have lower back problems and my husband has some medical restrictions and diving has gotten more challenging as we have gotten older.
We loved Bonaire's shore diving in the past and also liveaboard diving, but we haven't tried either in several years because it's just not fun anymore. The Clearly Cayman resorts have become our favorite choices and they've made it easy for us to continue enjoying very good, Caribbean diving.
They've just announced a new program with Cayman Airways, starting in November 2019, that includes flying directly from Miami to Cayman Brac, without the need to stop on Grand Cayman.
After you arrive on Brac you will go through immigration and customs and then you can either stay at the Cayman Brac Beach Resort or get on a Twin Otter for a 5 minute flight over to Little Cayman to stay at the Little Cayman Beach Resort.
So if you can get to Miami fairly easily from Albany, it should be pretty easy to get to the Cayman Sister Islands. At this time, as they are launching this new partnership with Cayman Airways, they are requiring a 7-day resort stay from Saturday to Saturday. But if you want to travel before November (or if it is easier for you to fly to Grand Cayman and then over to the Sister Islands) that should also be an option.
Reef Divers is the onsite dive op at the Clearly Cayman resorts and valet diving is an integral part of their every day service and it makes things so much easier. When we arrive at CBBR or LCBR, we head to the onsite dive shop to show our C-cards, do the paperwork, and get our boat assignment. At that time they give both of us a numbered mesh bag. We go back to the room and we each put our dive gear in our bags (except non-integrated computers and cameras) and leave them in front of our hotel room door early the next morning for the dive staff to pick up.
After a delicious breakfast we head down to the boat for orientation and find that our tanks and gear have already been set up and we are invited to check everything over and make sure that it is all okay. During each dive, we pick up our fins and mask and head to the back of the boat. We sit on one of the available seats and they bring our tanks rigs to us and put them on our backs and open the tank valve. Each diver puts on his/her fins, mask, and places the reg in his/her mouth and checks to make sure the tank is open. Then we stand up and take one giant step into the water to enjoy weightlessness and some very lovely Caribbean diving!
If you'd prefer and if it is calm, you can get in the water first and they will hand your rig down to you and after the dive you can take it off in the water and they will haul it up.
They have nice big ladders for getting back on the boat and the dive staff removes your tank and gear and switches it out for the next dive! After the dives are done for the day, we all leave our gear on the boat except our wetsuits, booties, cameras and non-integrated computers. We rinse those items in the available tanks and hang stuff in the convenient drying room and head to our room to clean up and then go to lunch. When we get back on the boat for the next dive our gear will be all clean and dry and set up for us so we can do it all again!
They offer 2-tank dives in the mornings, an optional 3rd dive in the afternoon, and during the week - depending on interest - they may offer night dives or boat trips to the neighboring island (LC to CB; CB to LC) to check out the diving.
If you are diving Nitrox, there is an area where you can analyze and label your tanks for your next dives.
The reefs are close to shore and the boat trips are fast, especially around Brac, and they have big, stable, comfortable Newton 46 boats. The waters are usually pretty calm but of course that varies with the weather. The boat crew always tries to find the best spots for good, easy diving.
The resorts are clean and comfortable, the dive staff are excellent, and the food is plentiful and delicious. I really think that you should check out the CBBR or the LCBR if you want to keep diving. The reefs are healthy and beautiful and Little Cayman's Bloody Bay Wall is some of the best diving we've experienced in the Caribbean.
I've only done a couple of dives with Reef Divers at their new Cobalt Coast resort on Grand Cayman, but that might not be best choice for you because you might have to do more gear hauling, and shore diving on the house reef is a popular attraction at that resort. I'm not sure, check it out, but the diving is generally better IMO in the Sister Islands than around the west side of GC - although there is still good diving available especially on the north wall - and the west side is usually very calm and the reefs are close.
Here is a link for a special they've just announced, the details of the new MIA to CYB flights are not yet published, but if you call the Reef Fantaseas Booking agents for the CC resorts they can advise you about that option and other flights from Albany.
https://www.clearlycayman.com/FreeHolidayHome/
Here is the link for the CC home page:
https://www.clearlycayman.com/
Once you decide which resort you'd like to try (if any) then you can look at the other packages offered and see if there is something you like better than the Holiday Special. You can also customize a package to your preference for an additional charge, like adding on lunch if not included, or a drinks package, or a 3rd dive per day to a 2-dive package. We usually take the 3 meals per day, 2 daily dives, and we skip the drinks package.
The package prices include accommodations, transfers, meals, taxes, and hotel service charges but not nitrox or the dive shop tips. Will you be traveling alone or with a companion? I ask because there may be a single supplement if you are alone, I don't know. I think that they are going to be trying hard to make this new direct flight to Brac from MIA a success, so they may be willing to offer some good deals.
My advice is to give CBBR or LCBR a try, good luck!
