Grand Cayman in 6 days!
 

Any last minute advice we should know about? We're staying at the Reef on the East end. We're bringing our own snorkel equipment. We'll stop at the grocery store after we leave the airport in our rental car. We plan to spend a day at Rum Point and a day or so exploring the 7-mile Beach area. We're also planning on going to Stingray City and maybe an Ecoventures tour. We also want to just veg out on the beach at the resort. Thanks for any advice.

It sounds like you have an excellent plan already laid out. I own a place on Grand Cayman and everything you mentioned is exactly what I would do if I were you and staying only a week. It looks like you did your homework... good for you! Make sure you leave extra time for you to go back to things you enjoy. For us, we never get tired of Stingray City or Rum Point. Also, there are SO MANY great restaurants on 7MB that you may choose to go there more than once or twice. Just make sure you avoid the cruise crowds. It sounds like you're going to have a great time. Enjoy!

Stayed at the Reef back in Nov-- you will absolutely love it! Its the best on the island, and you can snorkel right on their beach. We saw so many different fish, and even caught a glimpse of a few sea turtles. We were trying to escape from the crowds, but its a quick drive to Georgetown, or turn right out of the hotel and drive up to Rum Point\North Shore. Although- I think you may find the beach and pool at the Reef to be better than anything else around!

Logline: Thanks for the reassurance. Yes, I definitely do my travel homework! My husband and I are going to Aruba without the kids to in July, and I've done so much research on Aruba that I feel I've already been there! For me, the research is part of the fun.

kg: We also like to avoid the big crowds, but we do like to go out in the evenings to dinner; we don't need anything fancy, but we definitely don't want fast food for dinner. We plan to eat breakfast and lunch in the condo or take picnics. We can't wait -- now it's 5 days!

Hello, Samsaf.
How was your trip? I'd love to hear about the Reef. We drove by there about a year and a half ago, and it really looked nice. Did you snorkel? How was the beach area? Would you recommend staying there?

Hope you had a GREAT time!

We had a WONDERFUL trip. The Reef Resort was even better than we had anticipated. They had built a brand new pool right by the new units (Castaway Cove). We stayed in a 2-bedroom/2 bath unit; it was very clean, although we had a problem with little, tiny ants. We had a full kitchen with granite countertops and all appliances. I am very picky about where we stay, and I loved it. All units are oceanfront, and I watched the sun rise every morning from our balcony. We felt like we were on a deserted island, because usually we had the pool to ourselves (and even the beach). We snorkeled off the beach (saw stingrays and barracuda), and it was great (although hard to get in and out of the water because of the rocks and small waves). We decided to charter a boat for the 5 of us, and the snorkeling was wonderful. We went to an area that had lots of lobsters, the sand bar, the barrier reef and coral gardens. At the barrier reef we swam with a nurse shark and barracuda. The two guides even let our 15-year-old son "drive" the boat, and he was thrilled. We drove to Georgetown/7-Mile 3 times for dinners; once we had been snorkeling around the island, ending up at Cemetary Reef, and so we just stayed in the area for dinner. We would definitely recommend staying at the Reef, although if you have small children the trip into Georgetown might be too long, about 45 minutes to an hour (our kids are ages 20, 17 and 15). The water was so clear and beautiful. Just writing about it makes me want to be back there right now.
Sherry

I've had a very busy day at work and have to go out now to a busy evening of meetings, just checking bulletin boards before I head out... and seeing your note definitely gave me a lift !

Next time you come to visit us at The Reef, do pop in and say hi, I'm here most of the time, tucked in my office deep in the bowels of the building :)

Hey, Tom! You know, I was wondering if you were around. I meant to ask somebody, but I never did. I had done lots of research re Grand Cayman, and I knew your name from several boards. Maybe next time we'll get to meet you. We definitely want to come back.
Sherry

Samsaf - I'm considering the Reef for next year, but am concerned about the windy conditions I keep hearing about. Was it a problem for you?

The Reef uses Ocean Frontiers for their diving trips. In Feb, my family, to include my 11yr. old son, took the resort dive and loved it. I had some trouble and the staff was great. One of the instructors stayed by my side the whole time. It's definitely worth checking out.

BarbaraS: It was windy, but we didn't think it was any more windy than Florida beaches. The wind kept us really cool. When we went snorkeling on the 7-Mile Beach side of the island, it wasn't as windy, and we all felt it was much hotter over there. At the Reef, it was windy but it was never a problem. We left bathing suits, towels, etc., on our balcony to dry, and nothing blew away. We read books and drank softdrinks/water at the pool and beach, and the wind never blew anything over. It was just very refreshing! (However, you do have to be aware of the sun -- because it's windy, you can get burned before you realize it!)

We have already tentatively planned to go back to Hawaii next year; otherwise, we would return to The Reef because we liked it so much.

You can e-mail me at [email protected] if you have any questions.

Sherry