Scuba Diving
 

I am planning on scheduling a trip so my husband can utilize his newly received certification. I am not a diver (nor snorkeling), so I am looking for some place good for his diving, but also has alternative things for me to do. Any location suggestions? Thanks for any and all input.

Cozumel, Mexico
Grand Cayman
Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao

I second Grand Cayman. It is an easy island to navigate - we did it on bikes year ago. Good shopping, nice beaches and he will be well taken care of by the dive folks. Maybe I'm being silly, I would prefer that my husband not dive in Mexico as a newbie.

I agree. Grand Cayman is a great place to go. Good accomodations and things to do for the non diver.

I would second Cozumel, Cayman, or Bonaire.

Cayman is very nice but the most expensive. It is the only one of the suggestions where their money is worth more than ours. A fancy drink like a mudslide will run you $10 US. Most folks who go there rent a condo and try to do some cooking to save money, but a condo may be too big for just the 2 of you. Nevertheless it is a lovely island, good snorkeling and scuba, very safe, few panhandlers. The main city Georgetown can be very busy when the cruise ships are in port. The best snorkel trip is Stingray Sandbar. There is snorkeling off 7 mile beach. My sister just got back from their honeymoon there, they are not divers but loved the snorkeling. Wall diving can be a challenge for a newbie diver, unless his buoyancy is good, but I loved the wall diving myself.

Cozumel is very easy diving even for a newbie. My 70 year old father did his first post-certification dives in Cozumel and loved it. My mom is a non diver and she snorkeled, sunbathed, etc. They took a jeep tour to the ruins, and went into town shopping. There is great snorkeling at Chankanaab National Park. They stayed at the Reef Club which is an all-inclusive at the south end of the island closest to the best reefs and I know they would go back in a heartbeat. Cozumel is probably the least expensive of the 3 and clearly has the best duty free shopping. It too can be busy when the cruise ships are in port but the whole island is geared toward the dive crowd.

Bonaire has great easy diving and some snorkeling. It lacks broad sandy beaches if that is important to you. It is probably midway between Cozumel and Cayman as far as price, but would be much harder to get too - has significantly fewer flights. American Airlines has just 1 flight in and out of Bonaire via San Juan. It too has fewer topside attractions altho there is a nice national park and a cute little town. If you consider Bonaire, try the Divi Flamingo. It has a small beach, a great dive staff, and is only 6 blocks from town so you can walk in for meals and not require a rental car. There are some good deals to both Cayman and Bonaire on aavacations.com which include airfare, airport transportation to and from your hotel, and hotel package.

If he is newly certified, please do not consider Cozumel until he is at an advanced level - the currents are extremely tricky for new divers and can be dangerous.

Choose an island with moored dive sites and little current. The British Virgin Islands is our favorite. Bonaire and Grand Cayman have good diving too.

As I have mentioned before in another post, there are several top of the line easy dive sites in Cozumel that have zero current and are perfect for newbies.

They include:

Palancar Gardens - 20-40'
Chankanaab Parque - 30-35'
Paradise Reef - 30-35'

If Cozumel has everything else you are looking for in your vacation, just be sure to tell whomever you dive with that you do not want to deal with depth or current. The above sites are some of the easiest and best diving we have ever done with amazing coral formations and a huge array of fish life in a low-stress environment in a world-reknowned location.