kcsunshine

Thank you to all whose wonderful posts I have read.

My husband, 15 year old son and I are going for a quick four night trip right after school is out. We have gone the last two years (and have reservations for this year) to the Ritz in Cancun. Love the property, love the service, love the hub-bub of Cancun, love Isla Mujeres just a ferry ride away for a nice calm beach for a day, but the sound (& body surfing for the guys) of the Ritz's property in Cancun.

HOWEVER, hubby and I (son is perfectly content) are wondering if we shouldn't try something different. We've done Puerto Rico, didn't love Jamaica, Bahamas is too hard to get to for such a short trip...but we wonder about some other islands that might be direct from Houston (we fly Continental generally), or maybe DFW?

We like: luxury, a suite for the three of us, great service, things around to do (both husband & son go crazy without some "stuff" to do), good food, good beach, beach service, no all-inclusives, thank you...

sorry to be so long...thanks in advance.

travelerfromtx

Continental has a direct flight to Grand Cayman. GC has a Ritz Carlton at a good location on Seven Mile Beach. I haven't personally stayed at that property but it gets good reviews. We stayed at the Marriott and really enjoyed our trip.

Other than the usual beach activities there is plenty of snorkeling to do. A must-do is a trip to Stingray Sandbar (or Stingray City).

kcsunshine

Thanks traveler(from tx - we're in OK) -

Besides water activites, is there anything else - town, sightseeing, etc., to be had on Grand Cayman? I'm content to go relax, but the guys like to "do" some stuff.

luvtotravl

I'm not sure what you're looking for, but in Grand Cayman we've done horseback riding, golf, deep sea fishing, etc, in addition to snorkeling, diving, etc. There are also "pirate ships" that are fun. Anything from a booze cruise (free drinks) to a romantic sunset cruise. Lots of shopping too in George Town. If you're more specific I can answer your questions, we go there for 2 weeks every winter.

kcsunshine

It sounds pretty low key, but horseback riding & some shopping sounds good. Best places to eat, luv?

myfavblueberry

You may want to rethink GC if you plan on doing anything other than an AI...the food $$ there is insane!

20 years ago we ate at a BK for brekky--30 freakin $$!!

Subsequent visits over the years only showed prices increasing !

travelerfromtx

There is more to do on Grand Cayman than you will have time for with a four night trip. Georgetown is the main town and area with shopping. You can also take a submarine ride there in Georgetown. Afterwards you can eat lunch at one of many places there and shop.

There's also Boatswain's Beach. They offer a "wet" package and a "dry" package, i.e. turtle farm only aspect of Boatswain's Beach. Seeing the big turtles is interesting and holding the little ones is fun.

There's the Botanical Park that also has the endangered blue iguana's on exhibit. It can be combined with a trip to Rum Point.

There is a skate and wave park there. I don't know much about it but it sounds like something a 15 year old boy might enjoy.

There are lots of great places to eat. One of our favorites was the Cracked Conch. Good place to view the sunset. We also enjoyed the Wharf. They have a tarpon feeding at 9pm that was fun to watch. There is also a buffet at the Marriott on Fridays with music and a fire eater and limbo dancing.

Y'all wouldn't get bored.

kcsunshine

thank you - I'm very tempted to do GC this year. It looks like the Ritz there is more expensive, but I'm checking that out right now. Thank you!

girlonthego

We went to GC and stayed at the marriott this past June. We were two families with 5 teenagers and my DH may as well be the 6th teen.

The Ritz there is beautiful. The best restaurant we had dinner was at their "7"restaurant. Very good food and service.

Lots of watersports activities kept everyone busy. The town was small and quiet, but we aren't big shoppers.

Everyone enjoyed their trip. We were there for 7days and thought the water was beautiful and the sand very white and soft. Food was good. People were very friendly.

TnTWalter

I would also recommend the Ritz GC since you like luxury. The Ritz is really nice. What do you typically do in Cancun? So I can think about activities...

If you are into snorkeling at all, GC will be WONDERFUL. It really is incredible water. Stingray city is a must do and your 15 year old will think it's cool. You can cruise around and go to "HELL" to say you've been there. I'm not a shopper, but hear the shopping's great. There are no ruins, no jungle, etc. so it really depends on what you'd be looking for.

The food is OUTSTANDING. Really really good. Fantastic places.

It's a beautiful island, friendly people, really safe. Easy to rent a car and roam about with no worries.

Trish