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Just got back from Grand Cayman & still in awe of the perfect, perfect beaches & beautiful island. Stayed at Westin on points. We loved the hotel & the location. Would definitely stay there again but will probably stay at condos next time because plan to bring our 3 kids & just seems to make more sense.
Snorkeled lots in front of hotel & Governors Reef next door. Shocked how much I saw. Took snorkeling trip with Capt Marvin's. Unbelievable!! Did a catamaran sunset cruise from hotel. Pretty enjoyable & lots of locals too.
Went into Georgetown shopping one day & used buses. Very easy & enjoyed lunch & shopping.
Mostly just hung out on that beautiful 7 mile beach, took long walks & floated around in the ocean. We made a point to catch the sunset every night...best one was watching it from Calico Jacks...which we loved. Nothing like sitting barefoot, drinking a cold Caybrew, eating fabulous jerk chicken & watching the sunset. Words can't describe how clear the water is in Cayman. Really as clear as a swimming pool.
We talked to so many very friendly local people. Felt safe at all times & we walked home from restaurants / bar every night on beach in the dark.
Thanks for all of the great advise from you experts. We are DEFINITELY going back!
Grand Cayman...we are hooked!!
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So glad you enjoyed GC. It is stunning. Sounds like you had lots of great beach time. It's been too long since my last visit...this report plus airfare going down...tempting.
just curious, how crowded were the beaches? are there any quiet beaches there?
Not crowded AT ALL. I think the waitress at Westin said they are at 30% & it definitely felt like it along 7 mile beach. There was never anyone near us on the beach or in the water. The Westin has a very wide piece of beach front though so can't imagine it is ever crowded. I normally listen to my ipod at some point on beach but never turned it on...we kept commenting how peaceful & quiet it was & didn't want to spoil it. Would have loved to venture to other parts of island but didn't want to rent a car this trip...next time though. They are running good deals through fall...we got in on 1 free night since we stayed 4 nights. Many condos seemed to be doing, pay for 5 nights get 2 free type of things.
We are staying at the Westin on a business trip in January. What rooms would you recommend? I can find nothing specific on their website. My husband and I prefer quiet, non-adjoining room (when not with our children)and a good view.
Thanks for your help.
We were on the top floor..don't remember what number that was though, overlooking the pool and beach. It was perfect place to sit out & have our coffee every morning. I think we were upgraded to that room because we are starwood members (whatever their frequent stay club is called...spg??). YOu can probably sign up online if you aren't already a member. Enjoy! We are trying to bring kids back with us this year. We loved GC!!!
Would you recommend Grand Cayman, and the Westin in particular for a family of four (two kids - one 16 and one 20)? I know they'd like to be kept busy.... Are there any island excursions you'd recommend? We climbed down a cenote in Mexico, used a zipline in St. Marteen, etc. Things like that.... snorkeling, maybe jet skiing or pararsailing, boating, or an island adventure. Are there other teens around that you saw. Don't want the kids to be totally bored with "mom and dad".....
I would definitely recommend the Westin for kids. We went early May so weren't tons of teens due to school but I would imagine it would be hopping over breaks/summer. Pool is great! Beach is awesome! Great, great location on 7 mile beach too. Plenty of water sport rentals at the hotel. We went on a great snorkeling tour (about 3 hrs) from dive shop across from Westin. Restaurant by pool was good, 3 restaurants all by same owner across from Westin are best deal going. Took us to Coral Gardens, the Reef and Stingray City. Kids would love it! We have friends who took their kids last summer & they did a lot more exploring of the island. Went to Hell, Blow Holes, Turtle Farm, Skateboard park, water slide in Margaritaville, etc. We were going to take our 3 to GC this spring but got great deal in Turks & Caicos & so decided to try a new place. I would go back to GC in a heartbeat though.
There is just about any activity/excursion that you can imagine. (but not zip-lining - we did that this summer in Canada
In Grand Cayman we have gone horsebackriding, parasailing, swimming with the dolphins, turtle farm, snorkeling, scuba diving, golf, etc. We will be going back to Grand Cayman for our annual January 2 week vacation next week, and this time we will go parasailing, snorkeling, scuba diving and deep fishing. Your kids won't be bored! (ours never are - they just want to keep going back!)