SeaTrek - Grand Cayman - Help!!!

[Pooh's-Honey-Pot]

Hi everyone,

Am starting to narrow down which trips we are going to do next year on the Western Cruise. DH really likes the look of the seatrek thing at Grand Cayman (where you walk on the seabed with the big hat on!!). I am not the bravest with water (don't even do the kiddy rides at Blizzard Beach) but want to try it for him!!! I have looked on Seatrek's website but didn't find it much help . . .

How does this work? Do you jump in the water from a boat or walk in from the shore? How do you stay on the bottom without floating up? How do you get back on the boat? Is it deep / far from shore?

I have so many worries . . . has anyone done it before who can tell me what its like?! And most importantly . .. what's the temperature of the sea going to be like in May? I hate the cold as well!!!!!!

Thanks for any help you can give!

 

[Selket]

Well...I think I found their website that shows pics: http://www.seatrekcayman.com/
There is a Gallery there - click on the gallery.

I did a google search since I'm curious about it too as we're stopping there on our cruise in Sept. I just want you to be aware that there is a tourist who died recently using the dive helmet with that company - so if you google it you'll find info on that. It seems they think the company was not negligent but there is the info: http://www.cdnn.info/news/safety/s080613d.html

I hesitate to post that to you as you said you are not comfortable about it to begin with - but perhaps it is better to read that and make your own conclusions rather than perhaps discover that happened right before your cruise or something. It could be one of those things where the tourist died of natural causes unrelated to the helmet dive - which is what it sounds like.

 

[CruiseBoundnKY]

Hi everyone,

Am starting to narrow down which trips we are going to do next year on the Western Cruise. DH really likes the look of the seatrek thing at Grand Cayman (where you walk on the seabed with the big hat on!!). I am not the bravest with water (don't even do the kiddy rides at Blizzard Beach) but want to try it for him!!! I have looked on Seatrek's website but didn't find it much help . . .

How does this work? Do you jump in the water from a boat or walk in from the shore? How do you stay on the bottom without floating up? How do you get back on the boat? Is it deep / far from shore?

I have so many worries . . . has anyone done it before who can tell me what its like?! And most importantly . .. what's the temperature of the sea going to be like in May? I hate the cold as well!!!!!!

Thanks for any help you can give!

We did this last May (2007) and loved it!!!

You meet your tour guide who takes you on a short walk to the 1st boat. That boat takes a 2nd boat. That boat is the one positioned over the site. You get an instructional course in hand signs and how to pop your ears as you go down.

You walk over to the ladder and take a few steps down, right as you shoulders go under water they put the helmet on because out of water it is heavy. There is a guide that stays beside you all the way down the ladder reminding you to pop your ears and if you cannot get them to equalize you have to go up. There are several tricks to try to get them to do this.

Once you get down there is a guide/spotter that stays with you until everyone gets down there. You walk around a bit and they put fish food in your hands. It's really neat as the fish swarm you.

We played games with a football like thing. We jumped up and down. Our guide took his helmet off, filled it up with water and then put it back on to show that the air coming from the surface would force the water back out in just a couple seconds. He talked a few of our group into holding the helmet over their heads and taking pictures.

I absolutely love my pics taken with a cheap underwater camera. The guide took pics of me and my dh.

This excursion is WELL worth the money. You still have a lot of your day to tour the town when your done.

The crew was really great and I felt completely safe. If you have any other questions just pm me.

 

[CruiseBoundnKY]

Oh...your 22 to 24 feet deep.

Your in a little harbor with lots of other boats around doing their own thing.

There is a machine that pumps more oxygen down to you than you actually need. (Don't remember the rate)

You don't float away. Jumping feels funny.

The area you are walking in has been roped off.

You have people down with you and people on the boat that are watching all operations. Very safe.

The water temp was fine in May. Very tolerable

You use a very long ladder off the boat to get in and out.

 

[Pooh's-Honey-Pot]

That is all SO helpful, thank you ever so much! I feel so much prepared for trying it when I know exactly what is coming to me!!

The news report nearly talked me out of it , but we're going to try it now -makes me feel even braver after reading that! I will be living off this story for years too come!!!

 

[WDWLVR]

We didn't do it in Grand Cayman but we did Sea Trek at Coral World back in 2004. I loved it and would do it again!