When we took a cruise of the Western Caribbean, it included Grand Cayman as a port. We were able to scuba dive one of the shore dives there. There are actually two shore dives off the downtown area of Georgetown which were recommended to us. For cruiseship passengers, it is fairly easy to locate. As soon as the tender boats arrive at the pier, we walked to the right and less than 5 minutes, we arrived at Eden Rocks Dive Centre. Don't be fooled by a new competitor they have just before it. Eden Rocks Dive Centre is closer to the dive sites than their new competitor.
Cayman Islands are relatively expensive for diving with an average of $85 US for a two tank boat dive trip. However, with limited time as with cruiseship passengers, we were able to do decent diving for much less. If you are bringing all your gear except for tanks and weights, you can rent them for about $10 US. Even renting complete gear will run much less than a boat trip. Eden Rocks has a patio with lockers in the back and an area with a ladder where the entry to the water is. The two dive sites are called Eden Rocks and Devil's Grotto. They are reached with a short swim out towards some various buoys that mark the sites.
We ended up doing Devil's Grotto which had some nice coral formations. The maximum
depth was about 46 feet with a water temperature of about 80 degrees. The visibility was even better than what we experienced in Key Largo just a few days prior. There was a very nice large swim through tunnel and several smaller ones throughout the site. Inside the large tunnel, we saw a large resident tarpon. The fish life including parrotfish, groupers and tangs was healthy at this shore dive and it is interesting to note that it even exists so close to the cruiseships. Other divers said they saw some turtles too.
We would like to do the other shore dive site, Eden Rocks which is to the right of Devil's Grotto during the next time we are in Grand Cayman. These sites are ideal for beginner level divers. My partner was a newly certified diver and had no problems with this shore dive.
About the Author
Clint Leung is a NAUI certified Master and Rescue Scuba Diver. He is also owner of Free Spirit Activewear (http://www.FreeSpiritActivewear.com) , an online retailer and designer specializing in premium quality activewear with specialty sports themes including scuba diving, skiing, snowboarding and martial arts. Free Spirit Activewear has numerous information resource articles on selected specialty sports as well as free eCards.
Written by: Clint Leung
