"Spend-a-Grand-a-Day" Cayman
Written: Aug 20 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Seven Mile Beach is beautiful
Cons: Eating out is very expensive in general
The Bottom Line: Grand Cayman is a beautiful island. Seven Mile Beach is lovely. But eating out, even at KFC, tends to get expensive.
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| LynnSchneider's Full Review: Cayman Islands |
My family and I just returned from 10 days in Grand Cayman. We did not dive. If you want info on diving, this is not the review to read. If you want info on the island in general, and snorkeling, you'll probably find this review helpful.
Seven Mile Beach
In my opinion, the nicest beach on the entire island is 7-mile beach. A long, soft sandy beach with turquoise water, it curves around the West Bay location of the island. The water is gentle enough for children, but in some cases there is a 1 to 2 foot drop-off quickly off-shore. So be careful.
Although the sand is soft, there are often many pieces of coral or rocks in the water or on the beach. So, surf shoes or Teva sandles are recommended.
The entire beach is one of the most beautiful I've seen anywhere, and if you read my other reviews, you'll know that I've been to a lot of beaches! You will not be disappointed. It is truly lovely.
The snorkeling from 7-mile Beach varies depending on your location. We stayed near the top of West Bay, at a condo complex called the Anchorage. The best snorkeling site in that location was next door, opposite the Christopher Columbus condos. There, several rocky shelves and outcroppings flank the water, only a short distance from shore (you can still stand in the water, so it's good for kids). There were brain coral, branch and fan coral, lots of colorful fish, and interesting marine life to see.
We snorkeled at Cemetary Reef, further up the beach, and had a rather scary afternoon. Stupidly, we did not have floatation devices on. Our kids did, but my husband and I did not. You must swim at least 100 yards out to see anything interesting. It is about 12 feet deep. Needless to say, if you get tired, you can get into trouble. There were no boats or buoys around. Nothing tragic happened, but at one point I got very tired and the gravity of the situation scared the crap out of me. So, if you're going to snorkle in ANY spot were the water will be over your head, take my advice and rent a life vest. You won't regret it; don't be stupid like I was!
Anyway, the snorkeling at Cemetary Reef was very nice. You must park on the road in front of the cemetary and walk down a short beach access road. There are numerous shade trees, but no facilities.
We did not explore any of the resorts on 7-mile beach. But the entire beach looks beautiful. It seems to me that the north part of West Bay is the quietest. To save money, we stayed in a "garden view" 2-bdrm 2-bath at the Anchorage. This was fine and basic, but still rather expensive at $170/night. An ocean-front unit is $250 and up, depending on where you stay. However, let me tell you something: spring for the ocean front! Even though we saved money by getting a "garden view," I really wished that we had faced the ocean (for the first time EVER in my travels). It is so beautiful, with lovely sunsets. Also, if you don't face the ocean, your bedroom may have traffic noise from the street instead of the calm sound of ocean waves. I don't usually recommend spending more to see the ocean, but on 7-mile beach, you'll be glad you did.
Bodden and East End
We drove around the island, and I have to wonder whether I missed something, or is everyone hyping the place beyond what it is? No other beaches that I saw rivaled 7-Mile Beach. Many of the beaches, including the one in front of Morritt's Tortuga Club and Caribbean Reef Resort (on the East End), had a profusion of yucky seaweed in the water. Snorkeling was ok, but the seaweed made it a less than optimal experience. Still, it is interesting to drive around the island. There is nothing going on in Bodden Town, but you get a taste of real island life there.
We had lunch at a restaurant called The Edge near Bodden Town. It is right on the water. The food was good and (for Cayman) reasonably priced. Really a beautiful location. Very laid-back. Very enjoyable. I'd recommend it, if you drive to Bodden or the East Side.
North End, Rum Point, Cayman Kai
On the North End is Cayman Kai and Rum Point. I don't see what the big deal is with this area. We were thinking of taking a ferry to Rum Point and spending the day. I'm glad that we drove there first to check it out.
The beach isn't very nice (compared to 7-Mile Beach). It's sandy, but not very big. There is a roped-off shallow area for kids. You are discouraged from bringing your own food or drink (they want you to eat a one of the several restaurants there). There are about a dozen hammocks hanging between palm trees. I dunno....it looked just so contrived to me. If you are in your 20s or early 30s, single (or married couple) and you want to hang out with a crowd, drink, and watch the sunset, then Rum Point will probably be fun for you. For me, it just didn't ring my bell. Too crowded.
Cayman Kai consisted of many lovely rental houses and condos, but there is nothing going on there, and from what I could see, the beach was ok, but (again) not as lovely as 7-Mile Beach. It would be a good place to get away from everything, if that's what you want.
Food
The exchange rate with the US Dollar is poor; 80 cents to the Cayman Dollar. So, everything is 20 percent more expensive in Cayman dollars than US dollars. This really hits home when you eat out. If your meal was $30, you really pay US$36. Look online at some of the menus, and you realize that you'll be paying US$25 for a pizza. Lunch for a family of 4 (with two KIDS meals) will easily run US$50, and that's without extra drinks (just water).
Speaking of water, it's safe to drink all over the island.
Anyway, getting back to the food...if you want to save money, stay at a condo and make your own breakfast and dinner. Lunch, if you want to eat out, MIGHT be less expensive than dinner. You can find many of the same convenience foods in the supermarkets that you have back in the States, so you can get a box of mac and cheese for the kids, for example. The supermarket also has some interesting local items, like Jamaican raisin bread or ginger beer soda, and many English import items. Buy some chicken parts, marinate them in a bottle of Jerk seasoning, and fire up the grill (or the oven). Yum, and not too expensive!
I also bought us some Strawberry Daquari and Pina Colada mixes, and made them with orange juice and ice in the blender for a tasty tropical treat for the kids. My husband and I don't really drink much, so we had them, too. I would whip them up in our condo and then bring them poolside. Very refreshing!
The local Cayman-made ice cream (found in the supermarket in white tubs) is really good! We loved the Coconut and the Mango. There was also Rum Raisin and Baily's!
If there is one item you MUST order at a restaurant, it is conch fritters. They are really tasty!
Shopping
Truthfully, I wasn't into shopping on this trip. I'm not one to splurge on jewelry, but if you want to, you can find some decent buys in the Duty Free shops or the British Outpost shop. The two things to buy in Cayman are Tanzanite and Black Coral.
The tee-shirt shops sell the usual do-dadds. There are really no bargains to speak of. A Cayman tee-shirt will cost you at least US$15. There is a J. Michael outlet store about halfway up 7-Mile Beach in West Bay. They were having a sale and had prices to rival the US outlet stores. But that was the only place I found the was any kind of bargain.
Sometimes, in Georgetown, they close off a stret and make it pedestrian shopping market. They do this for the cruise ships.
Speaking of Georgetown, they roll up the sidewalks after 8 p.m. No stores are open, because Georgetown caters mainly to the cruise ships. The restaurants and bars, of course, are open.
Snorkeling Trip
We went with Soto's Cruises to a half-day snorkeling trip with the family. Our kids are both under age 10, and I was a bit concerned about being in the open ocean with them. But it wasn't a problem. Soto's put them in life vests and they did fine. The motor boat had a canvas cover, so you could sit in the shade.
We went to three stops: "Coral Gardens," "Stingray City", and "Barrier Reef." It takes about 20 minutes to motor out there in the boat. The snorkeling was really great and the water was very calm. We saw moray eels, various corals, lots of fish.
Stingray City was fun for the kids, because they got to "pet" and feed a stingray. But I seriously don't like the way the crew was man-handeling the rays. It seems to me that they should have handled them less. I felt sorry for the creatures. Still, it was an interesting experience for the kids. I had alreay swam with rays in Moorea several years ago, so it was nothing new to me.
A videographer came along on the cruise and took video of everyone in and out of the water, and video of the marine life. On the return journey, she showed the video in the cabin of the boat. All the kids watched. You could buy a copy of the video for (get this price...) US$42! Are they nuts? Do they think I'll spend THAT kind of money on a video my kids will watch twice and then get tossed into the cabinet for eternity? Believe me, if it had been $15-20, I would have considered buying it. But give me a break!
All things considered, it was very pleasant half-day. I recommend it, especially for kids. Bring your own snorkeling equipment, if you have it. Remember, the silicone kind is ALWAYS better than rubber!
The Turtle Farm
What a rip-off this place is! We went because of the kids, but let me tell you, the brochure and web site make it look so much more interesting than it really is. There is one touch tank where you can take a 20-inch turtle from the water and hold it. There are lots of turtles in the tank. Everything else is strictly view-only.
The place consists of about 30 large concrete cisterns of water filled with turtles of all sizes and ages. There are few signs with information, but nothing very detailed. No "exhibits" or anything. They could make this place so much better, and for the money you spend ($24 for a family of four), you would expect more.
It was memorable for the kids, but I considered it a big scam.
Rum Cakes
Who could resist something called a Rum Cake? It tastes very good, no matter what brand you buy. But take my advice: don't buy it at the Rum Cake factory or at any of the tourist shops. Go to the supermarket (Fosters or Kirk's). They sold the same rum cakes for 25% less than the other stores!
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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