Gerogetown, Grand Cayman

[wines60]

We are booked for a Panama Canal transit next April aboard the Zuiderdam. Our first port out of FLL is Georgetown, GC. Is this worth a visit? Any excursions not to be missed?; or would we be just as happy taking the tender over, strolling around a bit and then return to the ship; or perhaps should we just stay aboard! We love days at sea, so the need to get off just for the sake of beinjg on land for a while is not an issue. Would love some imput from any who know this port. Thanks a bunch!

[wittrott]

Very nice beaches in the cayman islands.

[Himself]

Grand Caymen is one of my favorite ports of call. There is a place on Grand Caymen which is called hell. You can go there and send your friends a postcard from Hell. There are also beatiful beaches and if you are up for adventure, book a tour to Stingray City. You can also sample Totuga Rum or the Tortuga Rum Cakes. They are delicious.

 

I love Grand Caymen

[RuthC]

Either take a tour, or stay aboard the ship. Going ashore just to walk around is a big nothing, IMO.

If you've never been to Stingray City, book that tour---either with HAL, or a private operator. It's so much fun out there!

[randych]

We love Grand Cayman!

 

Last time there we rented a car and drove to Rum Point on the other side of the island. Had an incredible time away from some of the 7-mile beach crowds. Truly paradise.

[OCruisers]

We are booked for a Panama Canal transit next April aboard the Zuiderdam. Our first port out of FLL is Georgetown, GC. Is this worth a visit? Any excursions not to be missed?; or would we be just as happy taking the tender over, strolling around a bit and then return to the ship; or perhaps should we just stay aboard! We love days at sea, so the need to get off just for the sake of beinjg on land for a while is not an issue. Would love some imput from any who know this port. Thanks a bunch!

 

Help us out a bit by telling us what sort of things you like to do .... water sports, etc.

 

You mentioned just getting off an walking around a bit. Hope you will at least do that. It's a very clean nice place ... sometimes very crowded with lots of traffic ... still nice and safe!

 

:D If you don't like it, you can always take the next tender back to the ship ... but, it's worth seeing for your own self!

[iancal]

We did a private snorkel tour. It was very good and from what we heard afterwards, much better than the ship's tour. We are not big shoppers so we never spend much time in the shops. Last Feb, we rented a car and had a great time. Hard to get lost. Went to Rum Point, 7 Mile beach, etc and had a fabulous lunch at a lighthouse restaurant. Keep in mind, right hand drive. We had a standard but I assume automatic transmission must be available.

[wines60]

Thanks to all for your replies and good suggestions. We are not much for snorkeling, etc. , but do enjoy the beach. The idea of a rental car and a drive around the area is quite appealing; this is something we have done on other cruises. Quick and friendly replies are always the best thing about this board. Our favorite line is HAL, and we always look forward to sailing aboard their ships. Hopefully we will encounter fellow CCers on future trips.

[Texas Tillie]

If you decide to rent a car, don't forget that the Cayman Islands are British, so they drive on the "wrong" side of the street!:eek:

[Krazy Kruizers]

Check cruiseTT and/or cruiserreport and see how many other ships will be in port with you. Though neither site is accurate -- you get an idea of about the number of ships there the day you are.

There are tours to Hell and the Turtle Farm -- we loved them.

Also went out to sting ray city -- even though I can't swim -- got some beautiful pictures of DH petting 2 stingrays at the same time.

Beaches are great here.

[randych]

If you decide to rent a car, don't forget that the Cayman Islands are British, so they drive on the "wrong" side of the street!:eek:

 

Yes! This does take a bit of getting used to. Although the car rental company was on the outskirts of Georgetown so there was very little traffic. Once we were on our way there were almost no other cars at all, so it makes driving on the "wrong side" less intimidating.

[wines60]

Which rental agency did you use, and will aaathey pick you up at pier?

Thanks for the heads up re: "driving on the wrong side" !!

[jacketwatch]

Absolutely! See Stingray city to be sure.

[randych]

Which rental agency did you use, and will aaathey pick you up at pier?

Thanks for the heads up re: "driving on the wrong side" !!

 

Avis. They have their own website at aviscayman dot com, with special cruise passenger rates. They picked us up right near the pier, drove us to the airport location, and we were on our way within minutes. Friendly service and very easy!

[booboo29]

We enjoyed the tour that took us around the Island, to Hell, the Turtle Farm (my favorite stop), and the rum cake factory. We have also done some great snorkeling there as well.

 

While I do enjoy the Island, I never get my hopes up as we have not actually made it there half of the time due to the weather. There is no dock and all ships must tender, therefore if the weather is at all "wavy" the port is called off.

 

Jennifer

[usha]

Another enthusiastic vote for Stingray City!:D

That was the most exhilirating excursion I've ever gone on!:eek::o

[bodget]

we did stingray city + rum point which were excellent,as for the driving for some of us its just perfect

[Krazy Kruizers]

Grand Caymen has built a new pier -- we used it 2 years ago -- very nice -- lots of shops right at the pier.

Also there are many shops right outside the new pier area.

This area has really been built up -- lovely.

Also not far from the new pier is Jimmy Buffets -- great food and drink -- we sat out on the verandah on the second level for great views.

[Jade13]

We are booked for a Panama Canal transit next April aboard the Zuiderdam. Our first port out of FLL is Georgetown, GC. Is this worth a visit? Any excursions not to be missed?; or would we be just as happy taking the tender over, strolling around a bit and then return to the ship; or perhaps should we just stay aboard! We love days at sea, so the need to get off just for the sake of beinjg on land for a while is not an issue. Would love some imput from any who know this port. Thanks a bunch!

 

 

We scheduled a private tour and had a taxi driver take us to the Botanical Garden to see the Blue Iguanas. The Cayman Blues are not found anywhere else in the world.

[cb at sea]

GC is easy to wander about, go to the beach, whatever...on your own. You don't need to PAY for an excursion there!

Get a guidebook on your ports, so you'll know everything that there is to do, how to get there, what it will cost....research a bit! It can save you big bucks!

[wines60]

Thanks again for all the great input and ideas. One can always count on CCers to help eachother!!