Cayman Islands, why aren;t you going?
 

I have been going to the Cayman Islands since the mid-70's. I have been on this board for years, trying to answer questions, especially about the North Side.
Why the drop in the posts about Cayman?

We love Grand Cayman. Been once in 2003 and have been venturing to other Islands since then. Would love to return for another weeks stay. However, Grand Cayman is very expensive compared to other Islands and doesn't offer any really good AI hotels. We did AI at the Holiday Inn in 2003 and it was great value.

We are returning next month to Grand Cayman, but on a cruise. The only way we'll get to afford to see it at this point in time. We'll eventually (hopefully) get to return for a weeks stay again in the future.

We are going in June for our first trip to the Caymans. I guess since we are going to Puerto Rico in April, I have concentrated most of my questions about that. I will be posting q's on Caymans mid april on! :)
We are looking forward as we have heard the Caymans have the most beautiful waters with a family friendly atmosphere. See you in June Cayman Sue!

CaymanSue,
My family went to GC in May 06 and we loved it!I would love to go back soon but want to go to other places that I have not been to yet.

For a family vacation..it is the best place to go IMHO..so many things to do and great snorkeling (which is a must for us).

I always recommend GC to someone who loves snorkeling and wants a safe location with plenty of things to do.

I think the posts about different destinations comes in spurts...right not it seems to be St John and Jamaica.

Christie

Hi there.

We have been to around 35 Caribbean islands but have not yet gone to GC for several reasons...

Too commercialized
Too touristy
Too Americanized
Too expensive

Now, there are a lot of wonderful things (safety, cleanliness, diving) about the Cayman's, but we just prefer more low-key, less-developed places.

I have a cousin who is a divemaster on GC, and she has had a lot of relatives down who have never left the U.S., and they have just loved it.

I know it is a great destination to a lot of people, so I am not knocking it, just giving the reasons we have not been. (I am sure some people who like GC would be bored to death on some of my fave islands. To each his/her own.) :)

Diana and I are on the same wave length on why we won't soon go back to GC. The number of people from the cruise ships was just too much for us. Everyone likes different islands for many reasons. We just prefer islands like Vieques, Culebra and Bonaire. Owa

CaymanSue,
People who like to go to places "off the beaten path of tourism" miss the best part of GC by not staying on the East End, don't they?

Grand Cayman is the only island we have been to twice. Obviously, because we liked it so much the first time. It has some amazing restaurants, great snorkeling from shore, incredible diving, safe, friendly people.

Down sides: It can get conjested in certain places at certain times. It's definitely americanized, and you will see fast food places that we didn't care to see. It is very expensive.

Would we go back? Yes, as we know how to avoid most of the downsides.

Thank God all of us have different opinions & tastes, otherwise certain islands would be even more crowded than they already are. Being that we all have different views and preferences, I think we are all searching for the island that suits our own needs the best.

Our top priorites are great snorkeling, good food, safety, and beautiful beaches. Our last trip was St John this past December, and for what we like in a vacation, it is by far the best we have been to yet. I'm pretty sure we'll be back many times.

We've been there. In fact, our airfare was actually pretty decent, something that is usually rather high for us. We stayed at the Westin, and were not heppy with the accomodations, which is part of the reason that we have not come back. Although we would consider staying at the Ritz. The cuisine was delicious on the island and is worth a visit. It just fell into the middle of our list of islands. Every place cannot be our favorite.
I agree with Christie though. I think the board just goes in spurts.

I went to Grand Cayman for the first time last year. While I enjoyed my trip, I wouldn't go back for the following reasons:
1. too congested/busy
2. crazy expensive
3. island landscape is plain
4. accommodation choices very limited (either big chain hotels, timeshare condo resorts or barebones motels).
5. weather is iffy

Went to Grand Cayman once. Absolutely agree with Diana and OWA. Prefer more remote non touristy islands. Try to steer clear of islands with cruise ships.

Too many places, too little time.
I agree with Christie's last line, and ScottB's "Thank God all of us have different opinions & taste".
:-)

My family started going to Cayman approximately 20 years ago. Back then we would go twice a year - a few good years we even visited three times. Now it's a once a year or every other year trip. The air fares can be outrageous. The congestion is awful from the cruise ship people (and I've been one on occasion). And the accomodation prices are really high in comparison to other beach destinations. My husband objects to the high price of getting and staying there. I'll continue to go back with girlfriends, but it won't be as frequently as in the past. And that's a sad thing.

IMHO...Aruba is way more crowded,commercialized and Americanized. Grand Cayman is congested in Georgetown but the rest of the island is not as busy.

Everyone is different in what they like (as Scott and others said)

I am the kind that really prefers less crowded and touristy places..but with the kids...they enjoyed Grand Cayman more than St John because there is more for them to do.

For vacations that include just me and my husband...I would prefer a a vacation to a place were I can explore off the beaten path and a more quiet location as the kids are not with us.;)

Christie

I don’t know exactly what the post-Ivan visitor numbers are as a comparison to what they were prior, but the period of reconstruction may have something to do with any non-cruise ship visitors decline. I’ll side with the majority as the prices are outrageous for similar beachfront (assuming 7MB) accommodations elsewhere in the Caribbean and the dining/drinking tabs are embarrassingly high. And traveling from Seattle, we normally try to go for 10-14 days. The additional cost of GC rules it out almost immediately. I think there is a “premium” placed on a Grand Cayman vacation as it is advertised as a “safe” destination in comparison to other island escapes. That may or may not be the case from a factual standpoint. I use the term “escape” loosely in Grand Cayman’s case. The Americanization of any Caribbean destination taints the “escapism” factor I desire in a vacation. I also desire an island with a strong local dose of culture, music, food and scenery. GC is lacking in those areas, as well. I think it is a wonderful destination for families and for those who desire a place that is more upscale and can afford to splurge without dipping into cash reserves. And, of course, it is a world class diving destination. We’ll consider it for a family vacation someday. But it is tough to pull away from other places you love, especially when you only have the vacation time for one or two long trips a year.

We visited GC and liked the less crowded areas. If I went back I'd stay on either the east end or one of the smaller islands. I also wouldn't stay at the Westin or anywhere near 7 mile beach.

Peace

We visited GC about 5 years ago the week between Christmas and New Years. We had so much fun and we went back as a cruise ship person 2 years ago. I admit, we are not fans of the cruise, and we won't do that again. We stayed at the Grandview Condos and they were excellent! Clean, right on the beach, and convenient to town. We learned which days the cruises would be in town and avoided town at those times. We had fun venturing to other parts of town, snorkeling other parts of the island, and doing town on off days. It is very expensive, and to combat that, we cooked dinners in, had lunch out and went out for drinks and an hor dourve at night. We would go back in a heartbeat, but want to explore other places first.

Thanks for all the feedback! You all said nothing I haven't heard many times before. I am a North Side girl, and agree that SMB is hugely overdeveloped.
Our building (North Pointe) was heavily damaged by the hurricane and we are now finally getting rentals after more than 2 years. I am probably an exception because I keep returning to visit the many friends I have made over the last 30 or so years.

Interesting thread... thanks for starting it Sue... I've found that numbers this year are a little down on last year, but I think the main reason is higher airfare... caused by huge amounts of corporate groups at the big hotels filling up the flights... so when leisure travellers look to book a month or two out the fares are very high for the remaining seats..... so they look elsewhere.

I do think that the development on 7MB and the cruise ship numbers (as some noted) are putting people off, but (as some others said) if one looks further afield on Grand Cayman (or Cayman Brac / Little Cayman) Cayman is still unspoiled and tranquil.

and still flat, expensive and uninteresting.