RanMan

planning on vacationing in Grand Cayman April of 2007. Can't decide between Hyatt or westin. Has anyone stayed at both. What are the pros and cons? thanks for the help

lerasp

we just came back from GC. Stayed at the Westin and walked around Hyatt (although didn't see the rooms). If prices are similar, I would vastly prefer Westin. The pool is huge, while Hyatt pool is rather small. Overall, there's a feel of more space at the Westin. Hyatt everything feels cramped in. The lobby in Hyatt is small - Westin is rather spacious. Don't know anything about service or food at Hyatt. But can speak to Westin - we loved everything! our room was well-appointed, new with nice furnishings. loved the pool and the beach is perfect! the brekfast buffet was $15 - not too bad by resort standards and it included everything (omelletes, potatoes, sausages, other hot food, pastries, fresh fruit, all usual stuff). there's also a good sports bar across the street for reasonable lunch fare (good food!) and huge TCs (all the better to watch World Cup). there's also a diner next door (didn't try). Service was great - nice staff,e verything was speady, no issues with anything. We were upgraded from cheapest room (island view) to oceanfront, but it was June and slow season. the beach alone is worth the trip! happy to answer any other questions.

RanMan

Thanks lerasp, did your ocean-front room at the westin have a nice sized balcony? Did they happen to have a shuttle into Georgetown or did u have to use a taxi? If taxi was it expensive

VegasM

<b>I give another vote for th Westin! We had a great time there. Their pool is great - with a great swim-up bar! They also sit on a great stretch of beach and there's some decent snorkeling down the way a bit. We didn't care much for the restaurants over there, but that didn't matter because there are so many great places to eat on the island. We rented a car for the week - which we were glad we did. It gave us freedom to go wherever whenever. Although driving on the left side of the road took a little getting use to, but we got the hang on it pretty quick. One thing to do.... try to avoid Georgetown on the days the cruise ships come in. It is ridiculously crowded!! You can ask around and find out what days the ships come in. Believe me... it's body to body then!

Be sure to do the Stingray City excursion - what a great experience!

Good lunck and have fun &gt;</b>

lerasp

yes, we had a great balcony. not huge, but big enough for 2 chairs, table and some extra room. we took taxis - from airport to hotel was $20 for 2 people. we never made it into georgetown, but took taxi couple times to different restaurants. it was around $10-$15 each way. we didnt' ask about a shuttle, but i didn't see/hear of one. Stingray City is a must! we were there only fri-tuesday. but if staying longer would rent a car. don't know if westin charges for parking.

VegasM

<b><font color="green">Westin does not charge for parking </font></b>

Knowing

We stayed at the Westin and would never do so again. The week that we were there the hotel was full of convention people. They closed down the pool area three times so the companies could entertain. I was suffering from a bad sunburn and had no choice except to go back to our room as there was no other place for any shade. They also didn't move us until our second day even though I had an asthma attack our first night because of the mold and mildew in our room. Very bad public relations. The Hyatt is hard to judge from the outside. The ocean view suites are very plush and the view is dazzling. The bathtubs are built for two and it really is a nice property.

caribtraveler

RanMan: I topped my trip report for you so you can see our thoughts on the Hyatt.

LvSun

Re lerasp's post &quot;Hyatt everything feels cramped in. The lobby in Hyatt is small&quot;: This is the beach section of the Hyatt. The main Hyatt is/was across the road, was wiped out by Hurricane Ivan, and has not yet been rebuilt.

Stayed at the beach section of the Hyatt a couple years ago - the suites are huge and gorgeous.

filter14

I was glad to see another poster point out the difference between the Westin and Hyatt at this moment is the size of the rooms. Suites at Hyatt and regular rooms at Westin. We had always stayed at the Westin prior to switching to condos and never had any major problems. Back then we chose it over the Hyatt(when Hyatt was fully operational) because of being directly on beach(talking rooms not suites). I have read more than a few times though that they have closed off the pool for private things like conventions. We never experienced that but it most definately would have turned us against the place.

We always rented a car but were able to walk to a few places nearby. It's a plus that Eats is open again.

And to further confuse you , I agree with the poster who mentioned the beach area being cramped in at the Hyatt. Every time any of us walked by the place, we would comment that we were happy to not be staying there--even this past Jan. I'm sure there are less guests now but they still had all the chairs lined up like sardines in a can which takes away from being able to stretch out. And I think I'm accurate that next door is where cruise ship passengers can hang out which also leads to many, many people when the island isn't packed!

lerasp...are you sure the buffet price was $15 US? I thought it was a bit more from when we were there last. We did feel it was a good value.

RanMan

So filter14 are you saying you would pick the Hyatt suites over an oceanfront room at the Westin? Sounds like beach is better at the westin, what about the pools?

lerasp

pool is better at the westin. is it much larger and has swim-up bar. lots of loungers around.

RanMan

OKAY. I've decided on the Hyatt. More spacious rooms and walking distance to groceries and 4 or 5 restauarants did the trick.

Knowing

Please do a follow up trip report when you return. It is a good point to mention that you will be more within walking distance to other restaurants as the Hyatt is more centrally located.