Question for Cayman Tom or Sue :)
 

My family and I WERE going to Negril.After many disagreements with my husband we have now chose to go to the Cayman Islands May 10-15th.

My question is what is the Spanish Bay All inclusive resort like?

Is the beach good (calm) and is it a good location to sites?

Did it have any damage from Ivan?If so, has it been repaired?

We are a family of 3 adults (my mom is going with us) and 3 boys ages 11,8 and 3..we decided on AI so we have a set budget so we decided to try an AI.

Thanks so much for any information! :)

Christie

Not Tom or Sue but..
I wouldn't recommend Spanish Bay, especially with kids. It's not located on 7MB and it really doesn't have a beach. It's on the north sound side and caters mostly to divers and snorkelers, not swimming and playing in the water. It was repaired afer Ivan and it is open but I also wouldn't recommend doing an AI in Grand Cayman. There are far too many great restaurants to be tied to an AI. It's also not really close to any sites as it's on the far north west point of the island. Grand Cayman isn't an island known for AI's. I think it would be a wonderful island for you to vacation, (this April will be our 34th trip) but look at other accomodations, mainly check out condos to save money.
Sandy

Thanks Sandy!
I definately want to be on a nice beach.Do you know anything about the Reef Resort?

Oops typo definItely

Reef Resort has no beach (does the website not make that clear?) It caters mainly to divers. Your best bet would be a condo on 7 mile beach. Google Cayman condos and you'll find lots of detailed info. There are dozens and dozens....

poss,
I checked out The Reef on Expedia and could not tell if it has a beach.Thanks for your information.

The Reef Resort has over 1400 feet of sandy beach!

Thank you Sue!Is the water pretty calm there?

I hear the Reef Resort is suppose to have some of the best off shore snorkeling around. It's also located on the east end. A good 20-25 minute drive to town I believe.

If you do stay there - you will get to see Barefoot Man play. He's awesome!! You'll have fun no matter where you stay! We loved Cayman!

Vegas- Thanks I am looking forward to the trip.I love to snorkel and will probably do it most of the trip. :)

Christie

When we went to Grand Cayman in 2003, we definatly wanted AI. Fortunatley, at that time, the Holiday Inn n/k/a the Courtyard by Marriot had an AI plan that we throughly enjoyed. They charged everything to our room and at check out they took it off our bill. Food and drinks came to a little over $1,400. I sure couldn't see not going AI with kids.

The only other AI hotel in Grand Cayman beside the Spanish Bay Reef is the Beach Club Colony. I understand they have been closed down since Hurricane Ivan, but has recently re-opened. They are located directly on a beautiful stretch of 7 Mile Beach. They only draw back I can see is their beach area was a cruise ship passenger sponsered drop off location. I don't know if they still do that now.

However, the beach for the Holiday Inn was also open to cruise ship passengers, but it wasn't a problem when we were there. They only came for about 3 hours a few of the days we were there and never bothered us or took up the entire beach area.

Check out www.caymanislands.ky for more info. I did a quick look for the Courtyard by Marriot and it says they offer "meal plans". Might contact them and ask them exactly what that entails.

If those don't work for you, a condo with a kitchen would be the way to go to save some money on food/drink. Personally, I refuse to cook on vacation so condos or villas would not be an option for us. We are going to T & C in May and since they don't have any good AI options, we are doing a non-AI hotel. It was either that or not go. We are really stressing over the cost of food and drinks. It will be like when we went to Maui. We spent $1,600 on food/drinks and since then have not done a non-AI vacation since. It does make a difference.

KVR,
Thanks for the website.I will be checking more into our options.

With kids try the Villas of the Gallleon. No pool but excellent beach and calm water.

KVR,
Have fun in T&C..that is a place that I would also like to go oneday!

KVR,

Don't know how else to get a hold of you to give you this information, and I apologize to other readers and the powers that be, but ...
Here are a few links to restaurants in TCI that we liked that didn't have what we considered expensive foods.

Tiki Hut [we actually didn't make it here, but it is one of the lesser expensive places listed...we will be eating here our next trip]
http://www.tikihuttci.com/Menu.html

Aqua. I personally loved this restaurant.
http://www.provo.net/Aqua/AquaMenu.html

Danny Buoys. We ate here, and liked it too.
http://www.dannybuoys.com/

Sharkbites has a wonderful Wednesday night fish and chips special for $8.95
http://www.thesharkbite.com/menu.html

Also look into Gecko Grill, the Salt Mill Cafe. Great breakfast and lunch spot.

Hemmingways on the Beach is also wonderful for lunch!

Here are some links to sites with other information on dining establishments in TCI
http://milk.tciway.tc/restaurants.htm
and
http://www.tcimall.tc/restaurant/index.htm

and again, my apologies for hijacking this thread. I didn't know how else to get ahold of KVR!

http://www.caymanvacations.com/index...orts.htm&2

This is a good website for info on most resorts/condos, including a snorkeling rating for each. :)

crusin tigger,
Thanks for the website.I have already checked it out and found it very useful! :)

Christie

lkemerson,

Thanks for the links. I have printed them all out and added to my other info. We are really looking forward to T & C.

BTW, my e-mail address is part of my sign-in name. :)