4 march days in grand cayman

nyc cold weather escape: 2017 edition took us to grand cayman, simply because we looked at my days off and what the cheapest plane tickets were. once you arrive there it’s not the most inexpensive of caribbean islands (fancy people hide their money there for a reason, i guess) but we still had a great time and didn’t spend too much money. we were fortunate enough to be treated to a beautiful room at the wyndham reef resort, which is on the quieter, more rural east end of the island. from the airport it took about an hour to drive there, and renting a car that has to be driven on the opposite side of the road requires a certain level of forgiving patience on the part of the driver and the passenger…so…glad we made it out of there still married.

to stay:

• the wyndham reef resort
  • all rooms face the ocean and have patios
  • they offer some fun stuff like feeing the frigate birds and the fish off the dock
  • you can rent paddleboards, snorkle equipment, and book your activities through the concierge
  • all the staff were super nice and friendly.
  • all the rooms have at least a kitchenette if not a full kitchen and dining area
  • there’s a little grocery store right across the street for snacks and booze

eat & drink

• kurt’s korner: (it took a surprising amount of time to find somewhere to eat between the airport and hotel that was open, but this place was a perfect spot with a local feel.)
  • authentic cayman cuisine, as boasted on their website
  • tasty daily vegetarian special, excellent seafood dishes
  • there’s a bar next door that serves the restaurant’s patrons. there was a table next to us at which a woman place this order: “long island ice tea. TOP SHELF.” i’ll never forget it.
• tukka:
  • australian/carribean fusion (so unexpected, right?)
  • they picked us up in a van from the hotel, which was great because it was just far away enough to not want to walk, and also we shared a bottle of wine
  • really beautiful back patio with some tables downstairs right on the water
  • they have a lot of theme nights advertised on their website. there were a lot of families there and it appeared to be group friendly.
• eagle rays:
  • bar/grill/casual dining kind of spot
  • same chef as Tukka and right down the road- they picked us up in the same van!
  • good tacos, great outdoor space

to do:

• stingray city
  • feed tiny squid to stingrays then go snorkeling!
  • we went with white sand watersports – they were who the hotel worked with and they offer a very early morning group (7:30) which was rough to wake up for but so worth it. we were the only boat out there so it was peaceful and nice. i envision later groups with hoards of shrieking tourists and i was glad to be the only one doing the shrieking, thankyouverymuch.
  • it was equal parts interesting and terrifying. i laughed a lot but also probably peed in the water a lot because those floppy giants make me nervous AF. steve irwin RIP.
• check out the seven mile beach
  • we spent the afternoon at royal palms beach club. it was surprisingly empty (no cruise ships that day?) so we just rented some chairs, went swimming, chatted with the canadian bartender, had cocktails, ate poutine (yes, poutine).