Cayman Islands

General Information

Destination Activities

Activity Details

Scuba Diving

Internationally recognized for legendary dive sites and the birth place of recreational diving in the Caribbean, the diving here is rich, exciting and diverse:

Grand Cayman, the largest of the three Islands, contains the capital George Town. Here you can enjoy some of the finest undersea ecology on the planet, along with superb visibility, almost no current and calm tropical waters. On the west side of the island, famous dive sites include Trinity Caves and Sand Chute and the Wrecks of the Balboa, the Oro Verde, and the Polson. The quantity and variety of fish life at Peter's Reef or Fish Reef is remarkable while the Spanish Anchor site, where you examine an anchor that has been dated to the time of Columbus, amid a rich complex of marine life, is amazing.

While visiting this island, check out Stingray City - a series of shallow sand bars found in the North Sound. It is a popular tourist attraction where southern stingrays are found in abundance and visitors can feed, pet, and interact with the animals.

Cayman Brac lies northeast of Grand Cayman in the Caribbean Sea. Its terrain is the most spectacular of the three Cayman Islands. "The Bluff", a massive central limestone outcrop, rises steadily along the length of the island up to 141ft above the sea at the eastern end. The island is named after this prominent feature, as Brac is a Gaelic name for a bluff. Divers don't want to miss the 330ft Russian Frigate ship built in the Soviet Union in 1984 for the Cuban Navy. It was purchased and sunk by the Cayman Islands government in 1996. The wreck sat upright in approximately 90ft with the deck at 60ft, until wave action generated by a hurricane tore the ship in two. The fore section tipped to about a 45 degree angle in relation to the remainder of the aft portion. The frigate is located north of the west tip of the island with very good visibility. There are numerous openings in the upper portion of the ship for non-wreck certified divers. Many more openings are available since the ship broke in half. The site also serves as an artificial reef.

While on Cayman Brac, don't forget to check out the Teignmouth Electron, the boat in which Donald Crowhurst attempted to sail round the world single-handed in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, which has been left to decay by the beach on Cayman Brac.

Teignmouth Electron

Little Cayman, the smallest of the three Islands, is located about 87 miles northeast of Grand Cayman and five miles west of Cayman Brac. Little Cayman has a permanent population of less than 170 and is less than ten square miles in area, about ten miles long and one mile wide. The most famous dive sites, Bloody Bay Wall and Jackson's Bight, are both located on the northwest end of the island. Bloody Bay Wall is consistently ranked as one of the world's top wall dives with the ocean floor dropping off from a depth of 15 feet to 5,000ft almost vertically.

Fishing

After scuba diving, the next most popular activity in the Cayman Islands is fishing, a year round sport, often called the unofficial national sport. Cayman fishing has lots to offer, from deep-water trolling for Blue Marlin to casting for Bonefish in the shallow waters of a lagoon. Cayman water temperatures vary by only 8 to 10 degrees through the year. The bait fish and game fish are here year-round. Prized gamefish like blue marlin, tuna, wahoo and dolphin (Mahi-mahi) are caught year-round.

Fly fishing on Grand Cayman: Fish for Bonefish, Tarpon, Snook, Permit, Jacks, Barracuda on one of the many flats located around the Island in crystal clear water. You will find a couple of guides who specialize in the guided fly fishing trips in the area. Many elements effect the art of fly fishing, like wind speed, current, angle of light, fly-weight, and water depth but most guides cater to beginners.

On Little Cayman, Tarpon averaging 20lbs are plentiful in Tarpon Pond, the land-locked brackish lake and natural phenomenon which offers excellent action for fly-fishermen. These fish once grew no larger than 4-8 lbs but now larger species are caught frequently. Best times for this action are very early morning and late afternoon.

Deep sea fishing: The Cayman Wall of Grand Cayman is renowned for the fantastic deep sea fishing and drift fishing. Popular gamefish such as blue marlin, yellowfin tuna, wahoo, dolphin (dorado) and barracuda are caught year-round. One of the Cayman Islands' biggest attractions for anglers is that big fish run close to the coastlines of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. Wahoo season runs November through March; yellowfin tuna season follows in spring months. Small blue marlin (100-150 lbs) can be caught and released year round.

Photography

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