Diving ‘Round the Rock

We've met a few naysayers who didn't consider diving in 10' of water a "real dive."  That was before they made a shore dive around the Rock!  This dive is a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Moreover, it won’t interfere with your safe dive profile! Or any concerns about air consumption!  Unless of course you can't stop hyperventilating with excitement over what you are seeing!

Schools of squid hang midway in the water column. Needle Fish swim just under the surface. The rocks and coral heads that encase the circumference of the Villa are home to many juvenile fish, including drums, wrasse and queen angelfish. Purple sea fans wave in the shallows in every direction.

Investigation into the turtle grass reveals all sorts of invertebrates.  Seek out nudibranchs, crabs, octopus, and shrimp.

All of this just steps off the sandy beach. Moreover, you can dive it as often as you wish. It makes for an incredible night or day dive. For those who like to rise early, give a dawn dive a try.  Tanks for shore diving the house reef are included free of charge in your dive package.

We should also mention the reef provides for an equally amazing snorkeling experience!

If you are a certified diver and haven’t been diving in a couple of years, you can't beat the house reef for a safe place to pop in and refamiliarize yourself. If you have been out of the water for some time or are using new dive gear, we encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity.  You'll be happy to took this time to check your buoyancy and dive equipment within a safe distance of the dive staff and facilities.

Diving the circumference of the Rock got “two thumbs up” from Mickey Charteris. Mickey is an underwater naturalist, photographer, and author of the marine species identification book Caribbean Reef Life.  We had the good fortune to have Mickey stay with us a few years back.

In his TripAdvisor post, Mickey wrote, “The shallow shore dives from the Rock, day or night is incredible, with a variety of healthy hard and soft corals and too many species to count, from nurse sharks and multiple rays to the craziest decorator crabs and macro life.”

"A mix of sand, turtle grass, concrete, and natural boulders, isolated coral heads and sea fans galore, the “critter list” in this 10′ – 15′ of water keep mounting. Unlimited tanks for diving this area are included in the dive packages, so be sure to give it a go on your next stay with us both during the day and as a dawn or night dive."

Here are just a few of the creatures spotted during Mickey’s shore dives around the Villa. These are just a taste of what you can see!