Rodale's Scuba Diving Cayman Travel Guide

As you wait to clear customs at Owen Roberts International Airport on Grand Cayman, you may notice the portraits of Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip smiling down at you--and for good reason. In all the realm, there is probably no more prosperous a spot than the Cayman Islands.

The success of these three islands--Grand Cayman, Little Cayman and Cayman Brac--as a tourist destination is due in large part to recreational diving. When the Caribbean's first dive shop opened on Grand Cayman in 1957, the colony was a quiet backwater. But as diving boomed in the '60s, '70s and '80s, Grand Cayman boomed with it, to become one of the most visited islands anywhere.

The Cayman Islands still hold a special place in the hearts of divers, and not for sentimental reasons. These islands still boast some of the clearest water, deepest walls and a well-deserved reputation as a safe, clean and effortless destination.

While all three of the islands have excellent diving, each offers a slightly different twist on the Cayman experience.

page 1/4