The Cayman Islands enjoy a rightly deserved reputation for world-class diving.  The topography is stunning, the wildlife is plentiful and the cerulean seas offer maximum visibility year round.  Diving in the Cayman Islands is scuba diving at its best.  Conditions are rarely challenging and each foray beneath the gently undulating surface is rewarded with a smorgasbord of tropical aquatic life, a movable feast for the eyes. 

 

Scuba diving is a prominent sport on the island and there is an array of professional dive companies to choose from.  There are three dive resorts located around the island; The Cobalt Coast resort in West Bay, Sunset House between George Town and South Sound (also home to the Cathy Church photo centre) and Ocean Frontiers, located in the sleepy east end – all offering accommodation and dive packages.  A plethora of other dive companies offer a range of services, and prices, for both boat and shore dives.  All hotels can arrange diving trips for you, and it is easy to make your own reservations once you arrive.  Two high-end live-aboard boats also operate out of Grand Cayman for people who just want to dive, dive, dive! 

 

Thanks to the ideal conditions, Grand Cayman is a perfect place to experience diving for the first time.  If you are pressed for time, or unsure of whether diving may be for you, take a DSD ‘Discover Scuba Diving’ course.  Dive companies offer a range of courses, from open-water to instructor training and everything in between.  If you are not an experienced diver, or have not dived for more than 6 months, it would be wise to consider a refresher course, or to ask for to guided shore dive, so you can renew your skills in a safe and closely supervised environment. 

 

Dive shops are fully stocked with everything you could possibly need, rental equipment is kept in good condition and staff will explain any idiosyncrasies of the dive gear they have.  There are also two excellent diving supply stores on the island, both located along Seven Mile Beach. 

 

Unlike many destinations, where divers tend to stick with just one dive operator, it is a good idea to take trips with a range of companies and dive the sites around the island.  The topography and marine life can change in a surprisingly short distance and ‘sharing the wealth’ will reward you with a varied and memorable profile of dives. 

 

The reefs and wall, which drops to thousands of feet, provide an abundant array of coral, sponges and marine life - both large and small.  With an abundance of beautiful, extraordinary and amazing creatures that inhabit these waters a list of possible encounters would be too lengthy; but keep a look out for tiny juvenile damselfish, or ‘disco fish’ as they are known to many divers, and keep your fins crossed for an encounter with larger marine life; eagle, manta and southern stingrays as well as sharks, turtles and eels.  

 

The Cayman Islands government is committed to protecting the delicate marine eco-system and the reef and its’ inhabitants are conscientiously safeguarded.  There are strict laws protecting the underwater treasures, and these are very much enforced.  The main rules and regulations that divers need to b e aware of are: that gloves are strictly prohibited, and in these warm waters there is never a need for them anyway, it is illegal to import or use any form of gun or harpoon and you may not remove any marine life, living or dead, from the waters surrounding the islands.  Respect and maintain the PADI adage ‘take nothing but memories, leave nothing but bubbles’. 

 

Important things to remember:

Certified divers – don’t forget your cards!

Be honest about when you last dived, your skills do become rusty and you could endanger yourself and those around you.

Watch your buoyancy – the reef is fragile.  Damaging the reef or yourself is not cool!

Be very honest when signing your waiver form.  Some pre-existing conditions may not necessarily stop you from diving, but will enable your dive company to be aware of your specific needs and restrictions.  Not disclosing serious medical conditions you know will affect your ability to dive could endanger yourself and those around you; diving is amazing – but is it worth dying for?

Keep a careful eye on your depth.  Where visibility is this good it is easy to lose your bearings, particularly on the wall which drops to thousands of feet.