Grand Cayman has great accommodations, beaches, restaurants, shopping, and friendly people - both native Caymanians and transplants. It is a flat island, with a main ‘ring’ road, so driving - on the left - is easy here.

Grand Cayman is a former British colony, gaining its independence several years ago. Georgetown, the capitol of Grand Cayman, is a clean, quaint town. There is a safe feeling here as you walk the streets and visit the many shops and restaurants. Don’t worry about being hassled here. Leading north out of Georgetown is West Bay Road which runs along Seven Mile Beach. This is where many of the island’s hotels are located.

If you are shopping for jewelry - especially gold, Grand Cayman can provide some very good values. Also, black coral is a local product. It is fashioned into almost every shape imaginable - often overlaid with gold. It can be stunning if crafted well. As with any purchase abroad, be sure to work with reputable dealers.

The food here is amongst the best I’ve had in the Caribbean. Excellent seafood can be had at The Wharf (expensive, but be sure to catch the tarpon feeding at 9:00 PM even if you don’t eat here), the Almond Tree and Sea Harvest - to name a few. Sea Harvest is just a few minutes south of Georgetown and was reasonably priced by Cayman standards. It was underutilized but gets raves from me and the locals. I had the plantain and ginger soup and grilled grouper. Both specialities that day and both great. Also, the Cracked Conch at Turtle Reef had pretty good cracked conch and jerk chicken. For a fun bar/restaurant, don’t miss the Lone Star Bar and Grill.

To be honest, I was too whipped from diving, sun, and grub to party at night. We tried though and got pocketfuls of recommendations. Ask anyone about anything in Grand Cayman and they’ll always take the time to talk to a visitor. But, after a big dinner, I just hit the hay.

ACCOMMODATIONS

I will not stay "the staff was extremely helpful and friendly" with each review, because it was not true for every property I visited.

Marriot: On Seven Mile Beach. Home for my most recent stay here, the Marriot was .... well, the Marriot. There is a lovely lobby area and garden. Wait staff attend to your every need on the beach which is good enough. The water along Seven Mile Beach - as on all of the Grand Cayman - is crystal clear with fish swimming right up to the shoreline. The room was nothing special, but was well-maintained and kept clean. Red Sail Sports is on the site to arrange dive excursions. I went with them my second day of diving and they gave a super orientation prior to diving. Nightly entertainment is very limited here.

Westin: On Seven Mile Beach. Like the Marriot, you pretty much know what you’ll get with a Westin property. This was a bit nicer than the Marriot in terms of its public areas and rooms. Again, very nice, but familiar - so you need to be clear on your needs and expectations. They had a very good children’s program, although there is a fee. The Westin will accept children from other properties as well. Essentially, although they have a schedule, they are flexible in order to accommodate the number, ages, and desires of the kids. Their perspective is that it’s the kids’ vacation too, so they should enjoy themselves. Red Sail Sports is located here. The beach and water - of course - are beautiful.

Treasure Island: On Seven Mile Beach. This is the only moderately priced property since the Holiday Inn closed down (which incidentally, is being converted into a Ritz Carlton. Talk about change!). Treasure Island had the only open air lobby in Grand Cayman which gives it a real Caribbean feel. Live music is performed here in the evening. There are shops and a Bob Soto dive center here. The rooms needed a bit of updating and I was told that they were in the process of doing so. None of the rooms overlook the beach, which is accessible through Treasure Island condominiums. The two pools here are large, with one shaped like Grand Cayman Island. There is nothing terminally wrong with this property and for the vacationer looking to save money while willing to sacrifice a bit in the way of amenities and "spit and polish", Treasure Island is a very good choice.

Villas of the Galleon: On Seven Mile Beach. Once you get past the trailer park-like reception area and into a room, you are okay. This is a fine property for those looking for more than just a room, but willing to sacrifice amenities - of which there are none. The room I saw was a two bedroom villa with a kitchen and dining and living areas. It was very clean and bright. You may not have room service and turn-down service, but if you want to spread out in your room, you should consider staying here. This is a good choice for families who want to save money by cooking some or most meals for themselves or for friends traveling together.

Hyatt: This is a big property located across West Bay Road from Seven Mile Beach and is a bit of a hike to the beach. They are building some oceanfront and ocean view rooms which hopefully will be ready for the 1999 season and are constructing a pedestrian bridge over West bay Road. How did they get approval for that?

You name it, they’ve got it. There is a nine hole golf course (one of the few on the island) and guests get priority on tee times. The rooms were very clean, but, still, a room is just a room. The suites are large and very well-maintained. The largest suites are incredibly big - complete with pianos and loft bedrooms. One of the most striking aspects is the lovely courtyard with real grass. Not sawgrass as ones sees in tropical climates, but genuine soft grass. Try to maintain that in Caribbean weather! The Hyatt has their weddings here and it is truly a lovely spot. Also, there is a kids’ club available for a fee. They have a daily schedule and the kids I saw all looked to be enjoying themselves.

If you’re looking for amenities, restaurants, golf, meetings, or kids’ facilities, while willing to sacrifice some immediate proximity to the beach, the Hyatt is truly grand.

Spanish Bay: An all-inclusive property north of Seven Mile Beach, this is frequented by scuba divers and non-divers alike. The rooms needed some updating (a work in progress I was told). This is a property to visit if you are going to Grand Cayman but want to be away from the hustle and bustle of Seven Mile Beach. They dive the whole island, but frequent the North Wall here. There is a nice pool, beach, and restaurant here and Seven Mile Beach is about a 15 minute car ride away. If you stay here, definitely consider a car or jeep rental if you want to go off the property to eat, dive, or for some night life.

DIVING

In the words of my friend, Barney, "Super-dee-dooper!"

The only problem is that the locals are all spoiled, so they complain when the visibility is 75 feet, rather than 150 - 200 feet! The West Wall, where I dove, is incredible. You can see large tarpon, rays, and turtles here and octopus and squid at night. As I was diving through passes and along walls, I kept thinking that this is what Disney would construct if they designed a dive site attraction. It was almost too perfect. They have it all here - wall, deep, night, shore, and drift diving. Most hotels have dive desks, with Red Sail Sports and Bob Soto’s being the two largest outfits. My first day, we did three shore dives up at Turtle Reef, north of Seven Mile Beach (go to the "Hell" post office and hang a left). There is a shallow wall right off the shore to a depth of about 60 feet. After that, there is a sandy area for about 100 yards and then a deep wall which will take you to your diving limits. My instructor rated our night dive his best ever.

The second day, we dove with Red Sail Sports. Like most outfitters, they guided us at deep depths and were conservative with our air and depth - although we had computer and would have stayed longer. They gave us a great briefing and orientation before each dive so we really had a feel for the dive site before we got into the water. Not like the usual "the reef is 50 feet port side. This is 50 feet for 45 minutes. Return with 500 PSI. See ya." They were very professional and I would certainly use them again.

Cayman is what diving is all about and is very definitely on my list of destinations to be revisited.