Grand Cayman sandbar snorkeling trip?

[jo8243]

Going to GC with some non-divers. Want to do a snorkeling trip to the sanbar (stingrays). Who is a good operator to use for this?

[jpep]

Have gone with Soto's. Good service and not crowded. They will take you to the Coral Gardens and the Sandbar. Will pick up/drop off along Seven Mile Beach. I recall they usually depart about 9:30 am and you are done by about 11:30 - noon. Select the date when the fewest cruise ships are in port to avoid crowds at the Sandbar. It is a must do in GC. Enjoy!

[RECDiver]

Setup your snorkeling trip in the afternoon. That way, you don't have to worry about cruise ships since they would all be on the morning boats.
We have used Capt Marvin's Watersports, located in the Falls shopping center on West Bay road. There are other boats that also run the trip. Have a great time!

[diversteve]

How good are your non-diver friends at snorkeling? On our dive, there were several families who had their kids snorkel above. It's only 14' so they were able to swim down briefly also. I've heard the DM's now are the only ones who feed the Rays (post Steve Irwin) so the appeal of doing that at Sandbar might be gone now also.

Have gone with Soto's

Soto's closed in 2005. They took a hit during Ivan and never recovered. Grand Cayman & Bob Soto’s Diving - End of an Era : Eyes On Living

[CaptainRon]

I second the recommendation for Captain Marvin's. Great trip leader and boat captain. Captain Marvin's Watersports - Grand Cayman

[csky]

I went there as the third tank on a three-tank trip with Off the Wall Divers. Good outfit, interesting dive but watch out for the yellowtail snappers, who ended up eating an awful lot of my skin along with the squid.

[kyfriedchipper]

Checkout the link Cayman Islands Discount Guide
they have a forum also where you can ask virtually any question about the Caymans and someone's always got an answer! The activity guide actually has coupons in it for Stingray City trips too. The Cayman Islands are awesome - have a great trip!

[kyfriedchipper]

here's a link to the actual complete coupon book also http://www.caymanactivityguide.com/Pdf/Layout.pdf

[jpep]

Originally Posted by diversteve

How good are your non-diver friends at snorkeling? On our dive, there were several families who had their kids snorkel above. It's only 14' so they were able to swim down briefly also. I've heard the DM's now are the only ones who feed the Rays (post Steve Irwin) so the appeal of doing that at Sandbar might be gone now also.

Soto's closed in 2005. They took a hit during Ivan and never recovered. Grand Cayman & Bob Soto’s Diving - End of an Era : Eyes On Living

Bob Soto's the dive op did not re-open after Hurricane Ivan on September 11, 2004. The Soto's Cruises Stingray snorkel cruise (run by one of Bob Soto's children) to the Coral Gardens and the Sandbar is open. I took the trip in Ocober 2005. Their tel no. is (345) 945-4576.

As indicated above, go to Cayman Islands Discount Guide and you can get a coupon for a discount. Think it is $30 CI per person.

[jpep]

Originally Posted by diversteve

How good are your non-diver friends at snorkeling? On our dive, there were several families who had their kids snorkel above. It's only 14' so they were able to swim down briefly also. I've heard the DM's now are the only ones who feed the Rays (post Steve Irwin) so the appeal of doing that at Sandbar might be gone now also.

Soto's closed in 2005. They took a hit during Ivan and never recovered. Grand Cayman & Bob Soto’s Diving - End of an Era : Eyes On Living

The Sandbar is the snorkeling site (about 3 1/2' deep) and Stingray City is the 14-15' dive site. Regardless of whether you can still feed the rays, the experience of interacting with these remarkably docile creatures still makes it a must do trip.