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Dive Review of Divetech/Cobalt Coast in
Cayman Islands

Divetech/Cobalt Coast: "dive shop below our expectations, but with nice room accomodations", Jul, 2015,

by Christopher Elko, PA, US ( 1 report). Report 8283.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 4 stars Food 4 stars
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 2 stars Shore Diving 4 stars
Snorkeling 3 stars
Value for $$ 2 stars
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 3 stars
Comments Cobalt Coast - The resort is as advertised. We had a 2br unit ocean view on the 2nd floor. Room was clean, furniture was in good condition, and A/C in all the rooms with ceiling fans. The week we visited the day time temp was in the 90’s with humidity so the rooms were a welcome break from the heat. The rooms had a refrigerator and sink, but no microwave.

Cobalt Coast is in the west bay area so you are outside of the 7 mile beach area, but with a car you can get to 7 mile beach in 10 minutes. We were happy to have the car to visit other area of Grand Cayman due to the limited options outside of the Cobalt Coast resort.

Pool was nice, but warm so we swam off the dock to get refreshed. Nothing can be done about the pool temp when the sun is shining. My watch registered 91 deg for the pool and 84 deg for the ocean.

Everyone was friendly and the food was good. We ate breakfast (included in our stay) every morning. Options were basic, but tasty. We did also eat 1 lunch the 2 dinners at the resort and the food was very good.

The reef off the resort was very good and would rank it the same or better than some of the reefs visited from the boat. The swim out to the reef is worth it. Coral is in good condition, but with most of Grand Caymans sites not a lot of marine life compared to other places we have visited.

We would return to the resort.

For the dive operation – Divetech.

The weather did not allow for them to bring the boat to the dock most days during our stay due to waves so we left in a shuttle from the shop to another location on the island to board the boat. While the staff was helpful is getting everyone on the boat, it definitely took something away from the experience. Again nothing you can do about the weather and they made the best of the situation. Also no matter where you left from may not be where you will be dropped off even if you left from the resorts dock.

Boats were typical dive boats for 16 divers + crew so it depending on where you were seated on the boat, you may have to wait for the others to get in the water while you are geared up. Briefings were informative, but they are group dives to 60 min max. Boats were showing their age and are in need of some updating. Also morning boat departs at 7:45 am and don’t be late.

The shop is basic. Rentals, batteries, and t-shirts are their specialty. If you are looking for something more, you will have to go to one of the dive supply stores on the island to get what you need. We needed more moisture packs for our camera housing which they did not carry and had to go elsewhere.

Everything is an upcharge. If you shore dive outside of your boat dive day, weights are not included with the tank and are $4 extra with each tank rental. Tanks on non-boat days is an upcharge, Nitrox is an upcharge, Kittiwake is an upcharge, etc.

Overall the staff is accommodating (somewhat disorganized at times), but we always felt the business came first and the customer 2nd. Move as many customers as quickly as possible and more on to the next group seemed to be their business model.

Probably would dive with someone else if back on Grand Cayman
Websites Divetech   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 101-250 dives
Where else diving NJ, Bonaire, Bahamas, Florida, Curacao, Bermuda, Turks & Caicos, & Roatan
Closest Airport Grand Cayman - Owen Roberts Getting There Other than a 3hr flight delay returning home, no issues otherwise

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas choppy
Water Temp 84-84°F / 29-29°C Wetsuit Thickness 2
Water Visibility 50-100 Ft/ 15-30 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile ?
Enforced diving restrictions 60 minutes for each dive. All dives from the boat were guided. Limited ability to do your own thing unless shore diving.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? no

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles None Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 3 stars
Small Critters 2 stars Large Fish N/A
Large Pelagics N/A

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

Subject Matter 3 stars Boat Facilities 2 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 3 stars Shore Facilities 2 stars
UW Photo Comments Dive boat had a rinse tank and table.
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Subscriber's Comments

By Craig A Wood in PA, US at Jul 09, 2015 17:30 EST  
My son and I have been to Cobalt Coast twice and used DiveTech. We dived as a buddy pair without the guide on all our AM dives. Our run times were in the mid-60s minutes and nobody ever said a word. I would be surprised if that has changed but it's possible. Shore dives at the resort and at Lighthouse point were generally very good. DiveTech offers several interesting PM options such as the West Bay Express, a DPV dive from the resort to Lighthouse Point, and the Rebreather Experience, a humbling but fun half day. After 10 trips to Grand Cayman, Cobalt Coast/DiveTech is my 2nd favorite combo after Compass Point/Ocean Frontiers. There are many fine operators to choose from if you stay elsewhere on SMB or West Bay
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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