Grand Cayman
The ship anchors fairly close to the dock, so the tender boat ride is not long. Also, 2 gangways are used, speeding things up. We had done the stingrays before (excellent), and this time planned to snorkel a nearby wreck and then hit a resort for lunch and drinks around a pool. Two wrecks are walkable, the Cali and the Gamma, and we picked the Gamma over the Cali because the Cali has been broken up, and its site can be crowded with ship tours.
We rented equipment including inflatable vests at Divers Down beside Hammerhead's Bar, a 5 minute walk left of the dock (when facing inland). Then we walked 15 minutes further north to the Gamma which is at The Wharf restaurant, took the path at the right side of The Wharf down towards the beach, and then took the path along the beach through the trees to the Gamma freighter, some of it visible out of the water. It's visible from the ship if you have good eyes.
It's about 25 yards off the beach, a stone's throw, listing with one side above water and the other side submerged, which is the snorkelling part. The best entry point is a little square sandy beach with low concrete walls on the cruise ship side of the Gamma, which a dive or kayaking tour might also be using, and where they leave their water containers. This beach faces away from the wreck, so after entering you swim about 25 yards toward the cruise ships, then turn right and swim through a rocky channel (lots to look at there), and when out of the channel turn right again toward the wreck. Lots of interesting underwater sights on the way. There is no reason to swim around to the side of the wreck above water, nothing to see. The underwater side is interesting, parts shallow enough to stand on with your flippers if it's calm enough, great for shots with a cheap $8 underwater camera from Walmart. The ship sold them for $14, better than the $30 other ships used to charge. You can snorkel right into the middle of the wreck, but how close you get would depend on how calm the water is, you don't want waves pushing you against the wreck, you could get cut. A 2-3 foot barracuda watched us for a bit, then took off. We heard the prop is still in place, and we wanted to get a shot of us with it, but the stern was in the shadow of the sun, bad for a shot, and it looked to be more than 20 feet down, and we couldn't see the prop from the surface, so we gave that up. Took shots of each other along the wreck, easier to get down if you deflate the vest. It only takes 3 or 4 blows to re-inflate. Had lots of fun there.
We planned to have lunch and drinks at the Comfort Suites resort on 7 Mile Beach, who offer cruisers free day passes if ordering drinks, but we got shopping back in town and ran out of time (4pm sailing). Only stopped to eat the room service wraps we ordered before we debarked. Don't tell the room service kitchen you're taking food ashore, they say it's illegal, but no one looks in any bags, it's no prob.
Cozumel
Our ship tender boats used the Puerta Maya pier south of town. Sit on the right side of the tender boat for a good view and shots of the hurricane damage to the pier, huge concrete sections thrown all over. A section of the pier at the shore has been repaired enough for the tenders to use. For another good shot after getting off the tender, walk to the end of the pier, wreckage in the foreground and ships in the background. Cute little shopping area at the pier, looks new, probably built after the hurricane.
$6 cab to town. Going into town along the coast you'll see lots of hurricane damage, buildings, many under repairs, some abandoned, lots of dead vegetation, stripped trees, broken and tossed around. But San Miguel looks good, pretty, trees replaced, everything repainted. Cheap internet, $1-2 per half hour everywhere. We planned to do the town in the morning and hit a resort in the afternoon. The Coral Princess is free for cruisers, the El Cid La Ceiba is $15 p.p. non-inclusive, the Fiesta Americana is $39 all-incl lunch and drinks all day, and a bunch of other ones are around $50 p.p. all-in. We picked the Fiesta but again ran out of time and didn't make it.
So we decided to have lunch in town, and wanted somewhere with a view of the ocean and boardwalk. We found a great place at the corner of the boardwalk and the huge ferry pier, lots of ocean view tables but busy at 12:30, we got the last table. Two good entrees and lemonade for $21. There are other cute sidewalk cafes off the boardwalk. Beers are $1-1.50 everywhere, $2-3 in better places. Lots of cute shops around the central plaza at the ferry pier. No insects of any kind, no need for spray.
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