Dive Review of Brac Scuba Shack/Brac Caribbean Beach Village - VRBO in
Cayman Islands/Cayman Brac

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Brac Scuba Shack/Brac Caribbean Beach Village - VRBO: "Wonderful Service But Sadly Degraded Reefs", Jun, 2023, by Sandy Falen, KS, US ( Top Contributor 31 reports with 24 Helpful votes). Report 12469 has 1 Helpful vote.
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	N/A
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	This was my fifth visit to Brac over more than three decades of diving, and my first in nine years. It was a pleasant week, but the state of the reefs left me heartsick. All of my previous visits were spent at BCBR, but this time my friends and I decided to switch things up: we rented a privately-owned condo through VRBO and spent six days diving with Brac Scuba Shack. We all agreed that we'd do it again. Brac Caribbean Beach Village is an excellent property, right next door to the Captain's Table restaurant/bar. Our unit (#5) was superbly comfortable, with en-suite bedrooms situated on opposite sides of the living/dining/kitchen area. A bonus bathroom was situated off the common area, and each room had its own a/c unit. The front doors were just off the parking lot, and each room had a patio overlooking the beach. Brac Scuba Shack provides a much more relaxed experience that's particularly well suited to experienced divers. No maximum bottom time was dictated, so we always had long, leisurely dives, usually exceeding an hour. Boat snacks were provided, as well as a cooler with a refillable water bottle for each diver. We enjoyed the crew, all of whom we found professional and fun. Briefings were excellent and the boat was pleasantly uncrowded. Regs and BCs were rinsed and stored by the crew each night, and we were able to rinse and dry our suits in the locked dry room at the condo after the short walk down the beach from the boat dock. Booking prior to travel was handled smoothly, with excellent communication. All in all, I give Scuba Shack a strong recommendation. The diving in Brac provides warm water, great visibility, and seldom a current of any consequence. But as someone who has seen the reefs change over the decades, the decline is tragic and undeniable. The good: Brac has enormous barrel sponges dotting the walls, smaller vase and tube sponges in a technicolor palette, an amazing number of spiny lobsters, and some interesting wrecks that make for terrific photo ops. The not so good: many of the reefs are almost entirely covered with algae, and the fish life is a fraction of its former glory. When it takes six dives to spot an angel fish, that tells you something. Even the smaller reef fish are sadly absent. I saw fewer lion fish than on my last visit, but they lurk in the deep and their effect on the native reef fish is obvious. Some dive sites are definitely better than others, with the western end of the island in better shape than the sites further east. Brac has several excellent, family-owned restaurants, and we indulged in jerk, curry, and other local delights nightly. It's worth having wheels for trips to the markets and visiting the parrot reserve and the museum. The locals are warm and hospitable, and we enjoyed our stay. Cayman Airways service was just fine, but if you can travel mid-week, do it – you’re less likely to encounter crowded planes that could cause your bags to be delayed.
Websites	Brac Scuba Shack Brac Caribbean Beach Village - VRBO
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	Over 1000 dives
Where else diving	Most of the Caribbean, Turks & Caicos, Costa Rica, Palau, Sulawesi, Kosrae, Fiji, Raja Ampat
Closest Airport	CYB	Getting There	Cayman Airways from Grand Cayman to Brac, multiple flights daily
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, rainy	Seas	calm
Water Temp	78-83°F / 26-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility	80-120 Ft/ 24-37 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	[Unspecified]
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 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	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

Report currently has 1 Helpful vote

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Dive Review of Brac Scuba Shack/Brac Caribbean Beach Village - VRBO in Cayman Islands/Cayman Brac

Brac Scuba Shack/Brac Caribbean Beach Village - VRBO: "Wonderful Service But Sadly Degraded Reefs", Jun, 2023,

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 Brac Scuba Shack/Brac Caribbean Beach Village - VRBO in
Cayman Islands/Cayman Brac