Grand Cayman (the first time) vs Cozumel (the second time) on a cruise

[clipgoal234]

I realize this has been discussed to some extent here, but...

We just booked a cruise last minute to Cozumel, Roatan, Costa Maya and Grand Cayman.

We will be diving for two of those days. We wont be diving Costa Maya and we definitely will be diving Roatan.

We've been to Cozumel and loved the diving. I went to Grand Cayman when much younger and snorkeled, but didn't dive there. I'm not planning on doing Stingray City even if I do dive there.

Here's my thought process:

I know where the cruise gets in on Cozumel is not a place we want to hang around all day (I prefer the south end/beaches and quiet), so I'd probably prefer to spend the day diving in a place we already know is great. That being said, we always want to dive new places. What I've read says the diving is "not as good" in Grand Cayman as it would be in Little Cayman/Brac. That being said, would we be missing out by not diving there? In my opinion, the reef structures in Cozumel are amazing. The only thing lacking is "big" life, beyond the eagle rays. What is the draw, if any, to Grand Cayman?

Any help is appreciated!

 

[dmoore19]

The Kittiwake.

I have been to both Cozumel and Grand Cayman. While different places for diving, I truly enjoyed the diving of Both.......

If possible when on Grand Cayman the Kittiwake is a must.

I would go back to either place to dive again.

 

[clipgoal234]

Thank you for the response. Another point-I'm not totally sold on wreck dives. We have a lot up here, so when we travel somewhere warm, the draw is coral/formations and marine life. What do you think about larger marine life? Are there reef sharks and such to be seen in Cayman?

 

[HDRider10]

We did a cruise last year and stopped in Grand Cayman. We walked down to Sunset House and did a great shore dive. We only brought along a few of our dive items and rented everything else. This worked great because of the lack of storage in your cabins on a cruise ship. Depending on how long your shore time is, you could probably get two shore dives in. We only did one because we wanted to walk around town also.

 

[Mark Derail]

Just came back last Sunday from GC. Dive the Kittiwake.

I don't know how long (days) the cruise ship stays at GC. If just for one day, do a wall dive (deep first) followed by the Kittiwake.

Closest place to where the boats shuttle you, there's at least two different dive ops. The one at the Lobster Pot seems well organized. They're all good dive ops.

If staying overnight, try to do a night dive (from shore with guide) from the Cracked Conch. It's way up North at the end of 7MB.

Remember to tip the DM's who basically work for free...

 

[Doc]

....I'm not totally sold on wreck dives. We have a lot up here, so when we travel somewhere warm, the draw is coral/formations and marine life. What do you think about larger marine life? Are there reef sharks and such to be seen in Cayman?

Many such intentional sinking reef-wrecks have been done to entertain divers. Such "structure" does indeed draw fish, critters, and coral. Yes, the diving on Cayman has degraded because of development, much less an issue on Little Cayman or Brac. My first trip there was in the early 1970's, it is absolutely unrecognizable- but that is endemic to the Caribbean and most established dive destinations.

You say you were going to Roatan, along the South shore you will see a very unique structure that is known to have the largest concentrtrion of soft and hard Coral varieties as well as the greatest variety of Macro creatures remaining extant in the Caribbean. A very few dive ops can take you there from a cruise ship, most will acquiesce to the demands of the day-diver and dump you on the over-blown "Mary's Place". Skip it, do the reefs of the South side instead.

In Cayman, contrary to what you desire, I would send anybody to a Stingray City dive , which is a really different experience than the "snorkel". If you have-to see big stuff, consider "Tarpon Alley".

Roatan does offer one of the better Shark Rodeos, but if you do any searhing on these forums, the dive is not for entry-level divers.

 

[clipgoal234]

Thanks for the response guys. The cruise will be in each place one day.

Roatan Man- do you know any places that would take me there (South Shore)? I'm looking at Barefoot Divers, but that would definitely involve Mary's Place. Feel free to PM me if you'd prefer. We'd arrive at 8:30am local time.

What's special about Stingray City? I snorkeled there when younger, but you say it's a different dive. It was interesting, but stingrays themselves aren't a huge draw for me- is seeing so many enough to sway anyone who has already seen a lot of them? I can go without big critters- it's just the only thing I can think of that's missing from Cozumel. I also lean towards diving Cozumel because I don't have much desire to wander around the town but haven't gotten to explore GC. If I had more time and money, I'd definitely do both. If I could just do a one tank wall dive in GC, it might change things because we could still explore a little.

HD: What'd you see on your shore dive?

 

[clipgoal234]

Also, Mark, I see that you have been to both recently. Did you prefer GC? Only because of the Kittiwake?

 

[dmoore19]

I didnt see any sharks. The weAther was up while we were there so most of our dives were on the south side. We stayed at sunset house. The shore dive there is good, I didnt do it because my wife is not a diver and the shore dive was only open our last day. Town is ok, lots of expensive jewelry stores. The turtle farm was fun. What trip would be complete without a visit to Hell? I liked the diving in GC but then I like diving the Caribean. If you don't want to dive the Kittiwake and don't want to walk around Coz I would dive in Coz and walk around GC. I would find a way to dive all 3 if it was me though. Have a great trip.

I realize this has been discussed to some extent here, but...

We just booked a cruise last minute to Cozumel, Roatan, Costa Maya and Grand Cayman.

We will be diving for two of those days. We wont be diving Costa Maya and we definitely will be diving Roatan.

We've been to Cozumel and loved the diving. I went to Grand Cayman when much younger and snorkeled, but didn't dive there. I'm not planning on doing Stingray City even if I do dive there.

Here's my thought process:

I know where the cruise gets in on Cozumel is not a place we want to hang around all day (I prefer the south end/beaches and quiet), so I'd probably prefer to spend the day diving in a place we already know is great. That being said, we always want to dive new places. What I've read says the diving is "not as good" in Grand Cayman as it would be in Little Cayman/Brac. That being said, would we be missing out by not diving there? In my opinion, the reef structures in Cozumel are amazing. The only thing lacking is "big" life, beyond the eagle rays. What is the draw, if any, to Grand Cayman?

Any help is appreciated!

 

[Mark Derail]

Cozumel - Feb 5th 2011 - air temp low 70's, water temp 75-72. Hardly any sun, beautiful beaches but was too cold. Would not do again in Feb, earliest would be March.
Outstanding dive conditions. Viz=10/10 Life=10/10 Reef quality 9/10

GC - First week of March, air temp 80-85 constant, water temp 80-79 constant. Windy, cloudy with many sunny intervals. Some pleasant beaches.
Great dive conditions. Viz=9/10 Life=9/10 Reef quality 8/10 (for Seven Mile Beach area - other remote locations better I was told)

Price-wise, GC costs 1.5x more than Cozumel for just about everything.


I would not recommend GC or Turks & Caicos for same-sex couples. In GC the week before, a young female couple were arrested for kissing on the public beach. They were from a cruise ship. Not my case, but these island-countries need to get with the times.
Same sex couples are notoriously richer and spend more.

As if it were contagious!