Dive Review of Reef Divers/Cobalt Coast in
Cayman Islands/Grand Cayman

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Reef Divers/Cobalt Coast: "Moderately good diving; delightful, small resort; wonderful people.", Feb, 2020, by Samuel B Johnson, NC, US ( Contributor 17 reports with 7 Helpful votes). Report 11456 has 2 Helpful votes.
Photos Submitted with this Report Click on an image to see an enlarged version and captions
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 husband and I had a delightful, one week vacation at Cobalt Coast in Grand Cayman. We dove with the in-house dive operation, Reef Divers, which functions smoothly as an integrated part of the resort. This is a resort only for divers. We had such a good time and so liked the people and the atmosphere that we may go back. Unfortunately, honesty requires that I admit that the diving is simply good, not exceptional. Part of that, I think, is the general deterioration of the reef environment throughout the Caribbean over the decades that I've been diving there. Grand Cayman is no better, but also no worse, than the "good but not great" diving of the Dutch Antilles or the Bay Islands of Honduras. There are two drawbacks to Cobalt Coast, both of which flow from its location. It is on the northwest corner of the island, facing north. When there are strong on-shore winds, which is apparently about half the time, the breakers coming up to the shore are so strong that shore diving is impossible, and dive boats cannot approach the dock to pick up divers. (I'm a pretty aggressive shore diver, but even I had to admit that there simply was no way to make a safe entry when the waves were up.) When the dock and shore are unavailable, divers are taken by van to a beach and dock (I think on the north shore) to transfer to the dive boat. During our week, there were days we could get on the dive boat at the resort's dock and other days when we had to be transported by van. The dive sites to which we were taken and the quality of the diving were much the same either way. If I were sure that there was going to be weather that would allow using the local dock and doing shore dives the whole week I was there, it would make a big difference in my interest in returning, but apparently there's no way to predict. In particular, based on what I was told, it's not a function of the time of year. The other drawback, resulting from the location, is that there is nothing to do or see around the resort. The resort is in a residential area and, among other things, there are no accessible restaurants. If one does stay at Cobalt Coast, one definitely should contract for the full board option. Luckily, the food is quite good, and one has varied choices at every meal, if one is on the meal plan, so having to sign up for that is no drawback. I believe the normal fare for a one-way trip to or from Georgetown is $45 US. One can walk in about 10 minutes to a main road where buses will stop, and the fare into town is $2 (I am told that, for an extra tip, a bus driver may be persuaded to take someone coming back from town to the front door of the resort.) Once one is in town, one has access to shopping and restaurants and some tourist attractions. Also, a 20 minute to half hour walk from the resort is Hell, a so-named neighborhood of Grand Cayman, whence one can send back to friends at home "postcards from hell." The dive sites are reasonably enjoyable and the reef life is in acceptable shape. Some of my photos can be viewed at [flickr.com link]. For those who enjoy wrecks, there is the "Kittiwake," which is a good dive with easy penetration and the usual interesting sights of a wreck. (The "Kittiwake" 's claim to fame is that it was the ship that recovered the data recorder "black box" from the "Challenger.") Another dive site that's enjoyable to visit is the so-called Stingray City. Despite the misleading name, this is merely a dive site in the north sound with a buoy marking it. Stingrays, however, have learned that it's a place where they're fed, so when groups of divers are led there, they get to have a very up close and personal encounter with the rays. Petting is allowed and apparently the rays have learned not to mind that. It is interesting to see their eyes and spiracles from inches away. The shore dive at the resort, if it's accessible, is pleasant and reasonably varied. The resort does need to lay out a line on the bottom to help divers navigate out to the reef. Until they do that, plan on a surface swim or be good at using your compass. The layout of the reef, once one reaches it, is neither a straightforward, easy-to-navigate wall nor equally easy tongue and grooves. It's actually good navigation practice to not get lost on it. The dive masters and the dive operation are excellent. They were friendly and helpful, in the water and out. Dive briefings were very clear and made it possible for one to follow the dive master or go off with one's buddy on one's own. Generally they were good at pointing out interesting finds. Bernie was ecstatic to find and share his career second gaudy clown crab. (See photos mentioned above.) They offer "valet" service, which means they take responsibility for your BC and reg from when you arrive until your last dive, not only transferring gear from tank to tank between dives, but also setting you up in the morning and, after the last dive, rinsing your BC and storing it until they set it up on the boat the next morning. (Obviously, one makes other arrangements, if one is going shore diving.) The public storage shed with its shelves is available to all guests and, when locked, one's room key opens it. (The room keys are plastic wrist bands with electric code built in, which made me feel a little as if I'd checked into a hospital.) I was especially grateful to Curtis . My (ancient) BC tore, just as I was about to go into the water, and was unusable. Not only did they find a back-up BC on board to loan me, Curtis was able to rearrange some hoses and connections so as to connect my reg and computer to the borrowed BC, a task that was not trivial. I did feel that one of the dive masters paid insufficient attention at the wreck to some nervous, novice divers, which could have been regarded as a safety issue. In general, the dive staff absolutely strikes the right balance between the importance of safety but not being mother hens or failing to respect the competence of experienced divers. In addition to the food being good, the general layout of the resort is appealingly small and very pleasant. In connection with food, one should mention that guests are asked not to bring in outside food or drink, which is somewhat problematic. But the bar stays open pretty much as late as needed and wine at least they will sell by the bottle, so we found the restriction not really a problem. They physical layout is pretty much as pictured on the website. The small, sandy "beach" below the level of the pool area and behind the rocky coral at the edge of the water is actually a very pleasant place to lounge under an umbrella in a beach chair. Thursday night is a trivia contest night and Friday night features a live, local band. I would have preferred that the layout of the seating of the public area had been such that it was easier to opt out of these entertainments, but I may be an old curmudgeon. In the spirit of full disclosure, I need to add one anecdote which hopelessly biased me in favor of this resort and its staff. The first evening we were there, my husband dozed off in his chair out on the patio, and as he fell out of his chair, he managed to crack his head against the edge of the table. As is often the case with scalp wounds, the result was a horrifying bloody mess. The resulting cut was long enough and deep enough to require stitches, which meant an ambulance ride to the emergency room in Georgetown. In every respect, the resort handled this "emergency" superbly. They quickly called 911, they were appropriate and supportive until the ambulance arrived, and for the rest of our visit, the entire staff, from cleaning people to the manager, could not have been more helpful and solicitous. Among many other things, that included helping my husband to go to buy medications and to get to follow-up appointments. These are just really nice people!
Websites	Reef Divers Cobalt Coast
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Almost all of my diving has been in the Caribbean and Florida. I've dived a half dozen times in California, and once each in North Carolina and the Mediterranean. Caribbean diving includes Dominica, Roatan, Utila, Curacao, Bonaire, Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, Saba, Cozumel and Grand Turk
Closest Airport	Owens Roberts Airport (GCM)	Getting There	Several major airlines serve GCM. We flew American.
Dive Conditions
Weather	windy, cloudy	Seas	choppy
Water Temp	78-80°F / 26-27°C	Wetsuit Thickness	5
Water Visibility	35-50 Ft/ 11-15 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Strict buddy requirement for shore diving.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	[None]

Report currently has 2 Helpful votes

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Dive Review of Reef Divers/Cobalt Coast in Cayman Islands/Grand Cayman

Reef Divers/Cobalt Coast: "Moderately good diving; delightful, small resort; wonderful people.", Feb, 2020,

Photos Submitted with this Report

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 Reef Divers/Cobalt Coast in
Cayman Islands/Grand Cayman