Cayman Islands

Summary

Our family visited the Cayman Islands as part of annual trip with close friends during Presidents Day weekend 2023. We went for four nights – which I think is a perfect amount of time for these Caribbean weekend getaways. It is just enough time to relax and escape, not too short where you feel rushed and not too long where it starts to get monotonous. The trip exceeded our expectations in every way. The flight is only about 3 hours from NYC (just past Cuba) and there are direct flights. There are so many fun activities to do on Grand Cayman with kids and the food options both at the hotel and off property were nice. The waters were pristine – making beach time and water activities a lot of fun. Not to mention we felt very safe. Pro tip: when you take your first taxi, each driver typically owns their own car and they just pay for a shared radio service for pick-ups. Get the driver’s card and their phone number add them to whatsapp. They will typically give you better deals than published rates and they are reliable when you are out and about on the island and need a ride.

Accommodations

We stayed at the perfectly wonderful Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman on the main Island of Grand Cayman. This hotel was perfect for our group. It was a short 20 min taxi ride form the airport (go for the taxi instead of the hotel transport – it is a fixed, cheap prie based on destination) and totally safe. Cayman is a British island and the infrastructure is quite good – the hotel was very child friendly which ensured everyone had a great time. The hotel’s food, activities, attention to detail for kids and quality of accommodations were wonderful. Not to mention the staff and service was outstanding. Pro tip: kids until 10 eat free everywhere so make sure you point that out wherever you go on property.

Select Favorites

• Dining
  • We enjoyed several nice meals throughout the island on this trip
    • Andiamo (Italian) at the Ritz-Carlton was wonderful – broad menu, kid friendly, outdoor dining
    • Casa 43 (Mexican) – a great casual spot which doesn’t take reservations near the Ritz-Carlton
    • Ragazzi (Italian) – a nice pasta place with great pizza options – perfect homestyle italian
    • Pani (Indian) – a wonderful location in Camana Bay on the water front; good standard Indian
    • Gelato&Co (dessert) – a perfect gelato place in Camana Bay next to Pani was a great end to an evening. The brownie gelato was the group’s favorite!
    • Andiamo Gelato (dessert) – Andiamo at the Ritz had a wonderful Gelato bar for after dinner treats
    • On our next visit to Grand Cayman, we will stop by at Coccoloba for street tacos at The Kimpton, Agua for Italian, Grand Old House for seafood and the views!, Southern Spice for Indian, Luca for italian and the newly opened Silk – the Island’s only Chinese restaurant.
• Activities
  • We enjoyed several unique activities in the Cayman Islands – the ocean water was amazing.
    • • We got to do a late night bioluminescent tour with Six Senses. Many people swam in the water – we just chose to watch from the boat. It’s an amazing little ecosystem near Rum Point where incredibly unique miniature light show can be seen
      • We go to go to Stingray City (and kiss them!) along with snorkeling in the coral reefs and visiting Starfish Cove to hold these creatures through Sapphire Watersports – exclusively serving the Ritz. The company Red Sail Sports is the vendor behind this so if you are staying elsewhere you can basically do the same trip. Half-day was a perfect amount of time
      • We did the full day adventure tour at the famous Turtle Sanctuary – this visit exceeded expectations. We got to watch them feed massive turtles, we got to pet turtles, we got to snorkel with turtles. Plus, the kids got to see sharks comingle with turtles and swim in the freshwater pool with water slides. All in all a fun day. And all the hotels tend to have a free shuttle to the sanctuary.
      • The days hanging out at the Ritz were wonderful too – the golf course and tennis is amazing and weaves through all the waterways around the hotel; the basketball court is fun! The beach is wonderfully fun and has a bunch of water activities to rent for the day. By far the best amenity for the kids was the compact but super fun little water park – Starfish Cay
      • On a future trip, we may visit the Dolphin Discovery Center

Recommendation

The Cayman Islands exceeded all expectations. We would certainly go back!