Pelagics are attracted to the wall while schools of reef fish populate the shallows, swimming around the many purple, red, and yellow sponges. Get certified to scuba dive. Lighthouse Point is located in West Bay in Grand Cayman. Exploring this site requires you to initially descend to 18 meters (60 feet) deep where the wall starts. Even though July is a popular month, it is not necessarily a good time to go because of the reasons below. Tarpon Alley is part of the North Wall with depths between 15 to 25 meters (50-80ft). Bert Brothers Boulders is one of the most beautiful dive sites on Cayman Brac. 20 Best Dive Sites In The Cayman Islands (2023) In this article, we review the top 20 scuba dive sites in the Cayman Islands. We gave our Gear Lovers one job: This pristine wall on the south side of Cayman Brac features an abundance of hard corals, gorgonians, and massive red, orange, green, and purple sponges. This site is well-known and popular with divers, snorkelers, and glass-bottom boaters alike. It should not be a surprise that January through April also happen to be popular months to visit the islands via western Caribbean cruises because of their ideal combination of cooler temperatures and low rainfall. A highlight dive is the Tibbets wreck with great structure and lots of life. Grand Cayman Diving - Scuba Diving in the Cayman Islands It's the kind of peaceful place where you will make your own fun. Divers can observe the bow guns and go along the rails to make some great photos. Around the coral fingers, stingrays, eagle rays and yellowhead jawfish rest on the sandy patches. Though scuba diving in the Cayman Islands is mostly known for close encounters with stingrays, it has much more to offer. This dive site first became popular in the 90s when it was featured in the film The Firm, starring Tom Cruise. They were all guided dives. Stingray City is in only 12ft (4m) of water and is a huge draw for divers and underwater photographers. Located in Little Cayman, the Bloody Bay Wall dive site is noted for its high visibility, rich marine life, and the presence of a sheer wall that drops 2000 meters into the deep ocean. Dive N Stay Vacation Packages - Compass Point Dive Resort - Cayman Islands (1st January 2023 - 31st December 2023) We offer pre-set Dive & Stay Vacation Packages for 3, 5 or 7 nights, and can also customize your package for any number of nights and for various group sizes. There are lots of other fish and coral. Located south-east of the Gulf of Mexico and close to Jamaica, Cuba, and Haiti, diving in the Caymans offers classic Carribean underwater scenes and the chance to spot both large and small marine life. Click the link below to read our article about Eden Rock: Deep Stingray City is located in Grand Cayman. Everything most divers want. Diving in the Cayman Islands | PADI Little Cayman is a lovely, quiet little island with a population of less than 170. The Eden Rock Dive Center has everything you need for an unforgettable day underwater in the Cayman Islands. There's much to discover beyond theme parks in this Southeastern state. Also, check out our article where we review the top 25 things to do in Grand Cayman. Most of the units for rent are 2-bedroom and 2-bathroons units. Exploring its underwater habitats allows you to see an incredible reef that starts at 6 meters (20 feet) deep and slowly slopes down towards a vertical limestone wall that drops down up to 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) deep. Macro photographers should seek the banded coral shrimp and divers licensed to 30m/98ft will enjoy the gorgonian fans in the cavern at this depth. If you like diving in caves and grottos, Trinity Caves on Grand Caymans west side is the site for you. The rainiest months in Grand Cayman are September and October during the height of the annual hurricane season. While the tropical vacation destination does see fewer crowds, this is the rainiest season in the Cayman Islands so you may have to contend with some showers. Greenhouse is a nice medium-depth reef dive with plenty of grooves and gullies to explore. "High Season" at the hotels is mid-December to mid-April, so rates will be higher then. As well as healthy coral and large pelagic species, you can expect to catch sight of Nassau groupers, stingrays, angelfish, snappers, horse-eye jacks, and turtles. When diving through the cut itself, look under and in crevices, plenty of little critters make homes for themselves here. And when you have the right product, youre a little bit happier which affects the people around you! From full scuba certification courses to one-day experiences for those who've never breathed off a regulator, the Cayman Islands qualify as an scuba diving shrine. Head to around 30m/98ft for some of the best wall views. Our reviews: We can make the world a little bit better with great in-depth reviews. This is one of the deepest sea-walls in the world. As the name suggests, this Cayman dive site is known for eagle rays. 5. Perhaps because of this, the coral isnt looking a healthy as it could. We are proud to off-set 100% of the carbon generated by our clients' flights. There are also lots of tarpon and small silver sprats in this area. They can offer up their first-hand My favorite were the groupers who followed us like pets. Theres good diving, with great Walls and of course stingray city, where you can see and feed stingrays. You will also notice that this tunnel system has a healthy population of whip corals and sponges that are all tall in size.if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'scubadivegeek_com-large-leaderboard-2','ezslot_0',126,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-scubadivegeek_com-large-leaderboard-2-0'); Scuba diving in Grand Cayman is not just only about wall diving. The prices of hotels and short excursions that would normally be prohibitively expensive fall to more reasonable levels during this time. Press the question mark key to get the keyboard shortcuts for changing dates. This area is an international tourist destination and can be crowded. Enjoy the comfort of an airport lounge with free drinks and snacks, even if you're flying economy. The water depth here is around 18-meters. When to go Best time Low season Off season Where to go when Over a 30-year history, the islands have averaged less than two inches of rain from January through April and a little more than two inches in December, according to the Cayman Islands National Weather Service. dive in each month of the year. Best Time To Dive The Cayman Island Do you love diving in the Caymans? Scuba Diving in the Cayman Islands | Explore Cayman Press the question mark key to get the keyboard shortcuts for changing dates. Bloody Bay Wall Bloody Bay Wall is located in Little Cayman. Before she was decommissioned in 1994, the USS Kittiwake was a Navy Chanticleer-class submarine rescue vessel. Courtesy of IreneCorti/Getty Images/iStockphoto. Bloody Bay Wall. Grand Cayman is the most commercial island, with cruise ships visiting, but it has some wrecks and the wall dives are close boat rides. Best Time to Dive Cayman Islands. Overall it is a place worth seeing. Having a less touristic crowd, Cayman Brac still has several tourism facilities like Cayman Brac Dive Resorts that are scattered along its narrow coast. If wall diving is your thing, check out diving in Turks & Caicos. The visibility at Donnas Delight on Little Cayman is typically good and the relaxed and easy diving here is suitable for all levels. The Cayman Islands are a premier diving destination, boasting 365 dive sites, as well as the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame . Located just a short walk from George Town, the Sunset House Hotel is home to Sunset Divers, and both resort and dive center are favorites of divers. Find & Book PADI Adventures App Flights to Grand Cayman arrive at Owen Roberts International Airport. Now it has become a beautiful artificial reef and home for colorful sponges, groupers, barracudas and other marine life. With over 365 dive sites, clear waters, coral reefs and abundant marine life, the Cayman Islands are one of the best diving spots in the world. On Grand Cayman, I stayed at hotels on the west end along Seven Mile beach. This is a wall that drops 2000 meters to the sea floor. Little Cayman, best time of year for diving | Page 2 | ScubaBoard December rainfall drops back down to about three inches. info@bluewaterdivetravel.com, Visited on 04/2018 - Submitted on 02/04/2020, Visited on 03/2013 - Submitted on 08/31/2014, Visited on 02/2014 - Submitted on 04/19/2014, Visited on 02/2014 - Submitted on 03/01/2014, Visited on 08/2013 - Submitted on 02/21/2014, Big savings on 7-night group stays at Little Cayman, Cayman Brac and Cobalt Coast Resorts, live availability of some of the best liveaboards in the Cayman Islands. Fiji: Dive the Soft Coral Capital of the World. Web Visit website. 2. Devilishly deep drop-offs, wicked wreck dives and some of the coolest coral in the Caribbean have made the Cayman Islands a world-class dive destination. We highly advise you ask your local dive shop on the dos and donts in diving a particular dive site. Little Cayman was first discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1503. We did not make it to Stingray city, but did get to the other must do dive in Grand Cayman - the USS Kittiwake, a submarine rescue vessel. 6. You can even make a side trip to "Hell", a small area with black volcanic rocks, a few curio shops, and an actual post office you can send mail from with a postmark from Hell. You will find the Cayman Islands to be very diverse, from quiet Little Cayman, to bustling Seven Mile Beach on Grand Cayman. iFrameResize({log:true, enablePublicMethods:true}); Its a very easy and fun dive, we saw some angelfish and eagle rays. The Cayman Islands dollar is legal tender in these islands. From April to October water temperature are at least 27 o C (81 o F) and can . A 50% deposit is required at the time of booking with the final 50% . There is also an air pocket in a decompression chamber that you can pop into and chat with your buddy!! Scuba diving in Little Cayman and Cayman Brac | ZuBlu June to October brings . In the Cayman Islands, spring is in full force. It also does not lack of options to go visit some museums, art galleries, go on walking eco-tours or historical tours, do some shopping and even have a blast at some amazing festivals. While the gazebo itself is actually an arch, this small dive site never fails to please. If you enjoy diving, then you need to visit the USS Kittiwake during your vacation to Grand Cayman. The heat may be less of an issue for anyone planning to spend a week there mainly on the beaches during the day and shopping or having fun in the cooler evenings. Lionfish have become an invasive species and some of the dive operators offer culling excursions. Exploring this site requires you to descend to a depth of 18 meters (60 feet) where the entrance of this elaborate tunnel system starts.