Reef and Kittiwake Snorkel Sail at Grand Cayman

[TamieH]

Has anyone tried this DCL excursion at Grand Cayman? Catamaran, Reef and Kittiwake Snorkel Sail

Was it good?

Was the water rough at the snorkel sites or calm? We took a catamaran snorkel excursion 2 years ago at Grand Cayman in May and the water so was choppy by the reef that it wasn't fun because you were constantly trying to keep water out of your equipment. I like calmer water so you can float and see all of the fish, but the kids are eyeing this one due to the shipwreck.


What time of day did you leave and return from the ship?

Did you see a lot of fish?

Any feedback would be great. Thanks

 

[jjje]

I just did this last week and it was AMAZING. We were with my father who has snorkeled all over the world and he said it's some of the best snorkeling he's ever done. My kids (8 and 13) were total noobs and they loved it as well. The water was crystal clear and just gorgeous. We actually liked the reef part better than the shipwreck part simply because we saw more fish but both were really nice. We saw a lot of fish in both places. There was a larger variety of sea life at the reef. They let you explore and go out as far as you want (within reason) so even with a full group of people you don't feel crowded. I forget exactly how long we were off the boat (sorry, I'm still a little land sick and my head is fuzzy) but I know we had plenty of time to eat a late breakfast, mosey off the ship, have a margarita and do a little souvenir shopping before we had to board the shuttle to take us to the catamaran. I would recommend this very highly to anyone who wanted to snorkle.

 

[TamieH]

I'm so glad to hear positive feedback. How about the water....did it seem very rough when you were out by the shipwreck? Was the reef like in a cove or something?

Thanks so much for responding. I booked it tonight when our window opened up. It said our time was 11:45am.

I'm hoping for beautiful weather.

 

[tukogirl]

Hope its ok if I jump in with a question!

How long was the catamaran ride between stops and then back to the mainland? Is there a potty on board the catamaran I get a little sea sick on smaller boats

 

[jjje]

The water at both sites was very calm, no real waves at all. It mau have helped that the weather was perfect the day we went, not even a whisper of a breeze. Neither site is in a cove. They're both just out in the ocean, a good ways out from shore.

As far as times, to my best recollection the boat ride out to the first spot was about 25 minutes. Then the ride to the second spot was maybe 15 minutes and then back to the beginning was another 30 minutes or so. (A fun thing about it is they let you sit on the back of the boat and dangle your feet in the water.) There are bathrooms on board. It's also a very smooth ride, very enjoyable.

 

[Jenlynn3]

Is 1145 the only time?

 

[bbn1122]

We did the REEf and Reck snorkel 7 years ago and that was great. Snorkeled many moons ago on my honeymoon in GC, it’s known for probably the clearest and best visibility of all of the Caribbean. My DH dove there and said he 100 ft or more visibility straight down. Incredible.

 

[awilliams4]

Is 1145 the only time?

It may be late because the Fantasy arrives later in the morning.

 

[natebenma]

I did the Kittiwake & Reef Snorkel in October.


The morning of our trip, it was raining so hard that we were held up from boarding the tenders to the island for an hour.


This was our ride to the beach where the boat was anchored

It rained on and off while we were on the catamaran, which made it pretty crowded as everyone tried to get under cover. It was overcast during most of the time we were snorkeling at the two spots, which impacted the clarity and bright colors. As you can see in the pictures of the dive spots, the water was not very choppy, even though it was a stormy day.
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This is the Kittiwake site. There wasn’t much marine life but the sunken ship was huge and impressive.

It was a very short ride, less than 10 minutes, I think, from the wreck location to the reef site: