Dive Review of Indigo Divers/Plantana Condominiums in
Cayman Islands/Grand Cayman

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Indigo Divers/Plantana Condominiums, May, 2011, by Walter Brodrick, VA, US ( 1 report). Report 6122.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	My dive buddy and I spent five dive-days in May 2011 with the owners of Indigo Divers, Chris and Kate Alpers, and we both agreed we couldn’t have been more pleased. On some days it was just the two of us, on other days maybe three, or four, but never more than six divers on board. Both Kate and Chris are laid back and, as such, are easy to talk to, easy to joke with, and just a fun couple to share a boat with. They made us feel relaxed from the minute we boarded “The Cat’s Meow”. When asked, they’re free with diving advice you can count on, since both are seasoned pros with thousands of dives between them. And sometimes, they offered great unsolicited advice, but always in a friendly, non-intimidating way. Thanks to them I’ve personally made permanent changes to my gear and weight configuration. Chris gave us a good pre-dive briefing before each dive. Prior to entering the water, the diver sits on the stern platform and then Chris hands the gear to the diver. When ready, it’s an easy forward roll into the water. Chris leads the group while Kate follows. There were some great wall dives and some nice swim -throughs. Seeing a “flock” of eagle rays was a highlight. We also saw a couple Hawksbills and a Green Turtle, some nice sized morays and a few large lobsters. Chris did his share of reducing the lionfish population and Kate did a fantastic video of my dives on Hepp’s Wall and the USS Kittiwake. Safety was paramount. My buddy and I agreed that we thought we were watched carefully the first few dives until we felt Chris and Kate seemed comfortable with our diving abilities. Then we could freelance, while still following Chris’s lead, with Kate not far behind. On exiting the water, Chris would first grab the diver’s unbuckled BCD at the stern prior to the diver climbing up the boat ladder. The tank was changed out immediately for the next dive. After each dive Kate offered cold water, cookies and orange slices. There was always enough for seconds or thirds. During the surface interval, we all shared our funnier dive stories with plenty of laughs to go around. Gear was stored on the boat for the next day’s dives. Our morning boat rides departed pretty much on time and we returned in the early afternoon, which left us with more than enough time for any non-diving activities. Since we couldn’t dive the day before flying out, we decided to take a separate snorkeling trip to Stingray City. (There is a shallow dive available at SRC, but our wives aren’t divers.) I thought a trip to SRC would be “touristy” and a waste of time. I was half right. It was touristy but we had a blast! There were plenty of boats with tourists swarming the decks. Our boat, about half full (15 snorkelers) anchored about a fifty yards from the nearest boat and within minutes at least a dozen, if not more, Southern Stingrays converged around us looking for a free meal. The deck hands provided frozen squid which many of us used to attract and feed the rays, some having “wing spans” three feet across. Our trip operator was “Captain Marvin’s,” which offered a half day trip to three sites, the last being SRC. I was very satisfied with Captain Marvin’s, but if you decide on another operator, look for one with a small boat. I felt the large and mostly crowded boats (probably from the cruise ships) made it hard for many on board to attract their “own” stingrays. Those on our boat, who wanted to, could each attract stingrays as there were fewer people with plenty of frozen squid. My wife and I, and my dive buddy and his wife, booked separate units in the Plantana Condominiums. Mine was a beachfront on the third floor (no elevators) but worth the climb for the nice views. We stayed in unit 40, a one bedroom (second bedroom was locked), which was very clean and nicely decorated. The staff provided daily light cleaning, replaced towels, soap and made up the king-sized bed. There’s a washer and dryer in the unit. We were very happy staying there and will ask for the same room on our next visit. My dive buddy stayed in a less expensive ground floor unit with a nice garden view and was also pleased. The staff is very friendly. The Plantana has a nice beach and pool. A grocery store (closed Sundays) is located about a mile away. Great restaurants are within a 20 minute walk. A town shuttle stop is located across the street, although we didn’t use it. We rented a car from Andy’s Rental which seemed reasonably priced. Andy’s picked us up at the Plantana the first day and drove us back the last.
Websites	Indigo Divers
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	101-250 dives
Where else diving	Bonaire; Curacao; Saba; Hatteras, NC; Myrtle Beach, SC; Florida Keys; Cooper River, SC; and local quarries.
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	choppy
Water Temp	80-85°F / 27-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	80-100 Ft/ 24-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	Squadrons
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish	N/A
Large Pelagics	N/A
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter	N/A	Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's	N/A	Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of Indigo Divers/Plantana Condominiums in Cayman Islands/Grand Cayman

Indigo Divers/Plantana Condominiums, May, 2011,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Indigo Divers/Plantana Condominiums in
Cayman Islands/Grand Cayman