avalon
 

We're planning a trip to the cayman islands in Feb. and I've heard the Avalon is very nice. Can anyone comment? I have 3 kids less than 1, 2 and 6 yr olds. Will we have to go far for restaurants and is it safe to drink the water and buy milk for small kids?

The Avalon is a luxury class condo resort. One of the nicest on 7 Mile Beach, but it is hard to get a reservation there (especially during the busy winter season), so I'd recommend you try to book soon if they still have availability.
http://www.cayman.org/avalon

There aren't any restaurants in that immediate area though, so a car rental is recommended. You can also just take a taxi, but that is probably less convenient with 3 small kids.

Another to consider is The Meridian condos, which will probably be even nicer, as they are brand new this fall and are more centrally located, within walking distance of shops, restaurants and a supermarket. They are built by the same developer as The Avalon, Brian Butler, so the quality is top notch.
http://www.caymanvacations.com/properties/meridian.htm

Cayman is very modern... it is perfectly safe to drink the water, though you can also buy a wide variety of bottled water in the supermarkets if you prefer. The supermarkets are large and fully stocked, so buying dairy products, meats, etc is absolutely no problem at all.
Cheers,
John

We stayed at The Westin which is next door to The Avalon. It looks like a fabulous property, and if we ever return to GC, we'll try and book the Avalon. While it might be a tad bit further to restaurants, etc., you CANNOT beat this stretch of beach on 7 Mile. The Hyatt, etc. is closer to town, but IMHO, I'd rather be in the area of The Westin/Avalon. Then again, 7 Mile is pretty fabulous no matter where you turn! There is also a small strip mall across the street from Westin/Avalon with a very good, very inexpensive restaurant (the name escapes me right now). Our kids loved it and so did we. The Caymans, to me, seem to be the most 'upscale' of all the islands we've been to in the Caribbean. It didn't feel much different than Florida in some respects as far as accommodations, shopping, main roads, etc., compared to Turks and Caicos, Jamaica, Virgin Islands, etc. You should have no worries about buying food products/safety. Good luck!

Ummm... the Avalon is not adjacent to the Westin. It's about a half mile north of the Westin. It's walking distance, but not directly adjacent.
The restaurant across the street from the Westin is "Eat's", which is a great value and one of the few restaurants that serves breakfasts too. It was flooded during hurricane Ivan and has yet to re-open, though they are planning on re-opening as far as I know.
John

thanks for the info. I am going to check out the Meridian if it is centrally located. I am a little hesitant to stay somewhere that hasn't opened yet... you did say it was in a good location? have you seen it? is the pool big enough do swim serious laps?

thanks cayman4me for correcting my bad info. That's what happens when 2 years goes by and the memory fades! I know there was a condo property next to the Westin and i THOUGHT it was Avalan -- we even almost booked there earlier this year thinking it was the place we saw when we were on GC. Glad you're more up to date than me!

I think the condo you may have been thinking of is the Sovereign, which is a luxury residential condo - it is gorgeous and just north of the Westin. They don't allow tourist rentals though.

The Meridian is starting to confirm reservations now through CaymanVacations.com and the resort is scheduled to open in September, so it is almost open now. Yes, I have seen it. It's a beautiful building - the 1st condo resort that has opened since they changed the building rules allowing up to 6 stories high. It's not a huge property though, as there are only 28 condo units and I hear that a number of those will be owner occupied (usually by absentee owners, so they are not really "occupied" very often).
Absolutely perfect white sand beach, very much like the Westin's. It's located about midway between the Westin and the Hyatt, so the beach is still fabulous and uncrowded, but you are within easy walking distance of shops, restaurants, etc.
The pool is a typical size, so yeah, it should be fine for laps. The beautiful Caribbean is also right there, so if it is calm, you can swim as far as you like along the shore too.
You can see construction photos of the Meridian from the link I posted above.
I'm sure you'll love it there.

John

Hi John, you seen very knowledgeable about the Caymans. What do you know about the Regal Beach condos? are they nice and how do you think they compare to the meridian?

Regal Beach Club is nice, but definately not in the same class as the Meridian. Most of their condos are only oceanview as well, as the buildings all angle back (a lot) from the beach. Only the very end units are really oceanfront.
Good location, nice units, but a narrower section of beach. One nice thing for you might be that they have a shallow kiddie pool, which is quite rare on the island.
John

Hi cayman4me,
I wanted to know if you knew if the Avalon had opened yet and what you thought about it.

The Avalon has been open since January, and as I mentioned in my 1st post above, it is a top quality condo resort - one of the very best on the island.
If you are looking at February, ALL condo resorts fill up quickly for that time, so don't waste too much time trying to pick one, or you may end up with zip.
The 3 best are (north to south) Avalon, Coralstone Club and Meridian. Avalon is furthest of the 3 from shops and restaurants. Meridian and Coralstone Club are more conveniently located. All 3 have perfect beaches and are top quality. There is really no difference in quality between the resorts, so I think you would be perfectly happy with any of the 3 !!!
The Ritz Carlton condos will be the "creme de la creme" but are a) not open yet, and b) really really really really ridiculously expensive.
John

Don't rule out Plantana. It's close to the Westin, on a great stretch of beach and has washers and dryers in the units.

Yes, Plantana is "nice" but not luxury.
John

Hi John,
I actually wanted to know about the Meridian. Have it opened yet, and what is your impression of it? did the last hurricane do any damage to the Caymans?

Westin, Coralstone and Meridian are about a 5 minute walk along the beach from each first to third condo. Plantana is farther north than these three. Meridian looks to be a lovely property and has the advantage of being closer on the street side to restaurants and shops.

Meridian is gorgeous, luxury and directly on the best section of beach. Plus as Joanie433 pointed out, it is close to the majority of shops, restaurants in the central 7 Mile Beach area.
Meridian is now open.
Wilma caused a bit of damage from high seas, but no wind damage. Some minor flooding in George Town and parts of the south coast of the island. A couple of the more exposed waterfront businesses in George Town harbor were damaged a bit by big waves. Not much else though, so overall damage was minimal.
Cheers,
John