drew sailbum

Blue Iguanas are endemic to the Cayman Islands - they are not found in nature anywhere else in the world. At one point their population dropped to less than 100 animals making them critically endangered.

The Blue Iguana Recovery Program based at the Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park has been highly successful at breeding the blues and saving the species from extinction.

You may see many iguanas all around the west side of Grand Cayman but those are green iguanas which are not native to Cayman and are considered an invasive pest that compete with our native blue iguanas for resources.

The easiest way to distinguish the common green iguana from the blue iguana is by looking at the tail. The common green iguana has large vertical dark bands along the tail. The blues don't.

To visit the Botanic Park and the Blue Iguanas it is easiest to rent a car. They are quite far from the port area and well away from the usual tourist stops. A few specialty tour providers do offer tours with a stop at the Botanic Park.

You can take a taxi. Sure.

Other spot along Seven Mile Beach to consider is the Seven Mile Beach Public Beach. There is playground equipment for the kids.

It is about a mile and a half long walk between Cemetery Beach and Calico Jacks.

Calico Jacks is immediately adjacent to the Seven Mile Beach Public Beach. There likely will be several taxis just hanging out there in the afternoon hoping to pick up a fare.

The closest grocery store to the pier is Kirk Market, nearly a mile north of the pier. On the way you would pass the small, hardly noticeable, Mr Arthurs - a former general store that is more of a convenience store now.

I am fairly sure the Ritz only provides such services for their guests. Sunshine Suites is not on the beach.

The northernmost such spot that comes to mind is Tiki Beach. That is just barely past Sea Grape and the Seven Mile Beach Public Beach which also have chair rentals.

Wonderful! SO glad you your camera back will all those memories!

A few tour operators get mentioned by name frequently but this goes to show that there are a lot of great mom-and-pop operators in Cayman as well. The tourism community wants ALL of you to enjoy your visit and come back for more!

Though a fabulous and unique part of the Cayman tourism scene, few cruise ship visitors make the trip out to the district of North Side to visit the Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park. Few cruise ship tours visit the site.

Each year around the end of February the Botanic Park puts on their annual orchid show. Even if you are not visiting on the dates of the show there are still a variety of orchids in bloom.

The Botanic Park is particularly known for its orchids. And to see the best of those it really helps to have a knowledgeable guide. I rarely recommend a specific tour provider, but as there are so few options I'll mention Silver Thatch Excursions owned and operated by wildlife biologist Geddes Hislop*.

Unfortunately the Botanic Park is far enough from other attractions so that it is not feasible to combine a stop there with a trip to the stingrays. You could combine a stop there with a stop at the Pedro St James Historic Site.

A rental car would be preferred to take in the Botanic Park and additional sites as the public buses are rare and taxis rather costly to make your way around the eastern districts.

* As per usual, I have no financial interest in this, or any other, Cayman tour provider. Heck, Geddes doesn't even know me.

There is a Public Transport Board that licenses the bus drivers and assigns routes. But each bus is a private business allowed to operate within the regulations of the PTB. So there is no overall coordinating body that owns the buses that would be needed to make a schedule work.

AFAICT the licensing does not include specific hours that a particular bus can or must operate. So if a given bus driver wishes, he can choose to start late, end early, or take a random day off. What he cannot do, as far as I know, is operate on a different route than the one to which he is licensed.

And, again as far as I know, a driver must carry a passenger to any point along the licensed route. But the East End and North Side buses are known to turn around and head back to town as soon as they are empty, even if they have only gone as far as Bodden Town. So relying on those buses in the outer districts is a bit difficult.

So why doesn't the PTB license more route 6&7 buses? I think it is a chicken-or-the-egg problem. Those routes rarely operate. Therefore the people in those areas do not look to the bus to meet their transport needs. So no one wants to operate those routes because there is no demand. So buses do not operate on those route. Repeat ad infinitum.

Capt_BJ's route link is basically correct. The standard caveat is that you are more likely to stumble across a pink unicorn that find a route 6 or 7 bus (around George Town route).

Based up the description, it is likely the Treasure Island Resort and/or the Treasure Island Condos. That is the only resort with swim-up bar closer to town than Plantation Village.

Technically it is two properties. The Condos are still there, same as always, but now named Sunset Cove. The hotel uses the Treasure Island name but was converted for long term rental to island residents.

The swim up pool bar, Billy Bones, sits right in the middle of those properties.

To elaborate a bit....

The buses do not service the airport. The cloest bus route reaches the intersection by Mango Tree Restaurant, about a mile. That is a bit far to carry your luggage. There is no guarantee that a bus would have sufficient room to carry your luggage anyway.

Bus service is spotty at best at Morritts. You may stand by the roadside there for an hour or more before a bus passes. DO NOT rely on a bus if you are staying at an East End resort.

If you are stayin in East End then you need to figure the cost of a rental car into your budget unless you just plan on staying at the resort the whole time. There is very little else in walking distance.

As this was a thread about Capt Marvin, the man, I thought it the best place to post news of his passing.

Capt Marvin died late in December 2014 at the age of 98. His funeral is today.

He was truly a legend in the Cayman watersports community.

The business bearing his name will continue to serve the island's residents and the many visitors to the Cayman Islands. Indeed in the days after Capt Marvin's passing his company hosted former US President Jimmy Carter on a trip to the stingrays.

So...just wondering....

 

We have been to stingray city twice and they obviously tell you no water shoes or anything there.

 

 

But...we just returned from Belize and did the sharks ray alley and you HAVE to wear water shoes there with the rays.

 

Anyone know why and what's the difference? :confused:

The difference is about 800km and a set of law books. :D

Both sites feature Southern Stingrays. Extensive research on the stingray population in Cayman has been carried out by the Guy Harvey Research Institute which has shown the Cayman rays are more closely related to populations from the eastern Caribbean than those from Belize. Perhaps there is some slight difference in the rays themselves?

More likely is that the soft sandy bottom of Cayman's sandbar provides a low risk for humans. The potential harm to the rays then is the priority factor.

IIRC the site in Belize is not in standing depth and thus the greater need for safety for people to have on flippers and such?

The Elmslie Memorial Church is right by the dock. It's roof was designed by local shipwright Rayal Bodden and is quite beautiful, though not actually built from a slave ship. The church was built in the 1920's, more than 100 years after the end of slavery ship era in Cayman Islands.

The roof is designed as an upside down ship's hull showing the craftsmanship that developed in support of Cayman's seagoing fore-bearers.

In the overnight hours, hammerhead sharks routinely come into the shallow waters of the North Sound to attempt to feed on the stingrays. The hammerheads are occasionally seen by boats visiting very early in the morning (around dawn) but are gone by the time the busy tour boats arrive later in the morning.

Years ago I occasionally worked on boats offering tours to the rays. In hundreds of trips during normal tourist hours I never saw a hammerhead, or any other kind of shark at Stingray City or the Stingray Sandbar.

There is only one helicopter tour company, Cayman Islands Helicopters. They offer a few different packages on their website.

The 15 minute tour is enough to make a loop around the west side of the island and the cruise ships. To cover the whole island takes much longer.

Some clarifications...

Cemetery Beach is about 5 miles from the port, not walking distance for most vacationers. It is adjacent to the second major cemetery you come to as you leave the port. The correct cemetery is directly across the road from the West Bay Fire Station. There is ironshore and little sand near Dixie Cemetery (the first cemetery you come to, which is MUCH closer to the port).

There is an Esso gas station perhaps a half mile up the beach from Cemetery Beach. It is not abandoned. There is nice sandy beach there. Not sure about the snorkeling close to shore but from overhead imagery it looks like the coral is closer to shore by the cemetery.

For fewer kids and families (and probably fewer cruise ship passengers as well) stop at Governor's Beach. This is directly adjacent to, and just north of, the Westin Hotel. As the name implies, it is located in the vicinity of the Governor's residence. There are no facilities (restrooms, chair rental, food vendors, etc...) at the location.

McCurley's Tours serves the East End resorts. They provide airport transportation as well as rental cars. They don't have a website, but a quick Google search should get you their cell phone numbers.

There are one or two other car rental options by the resorts in East End. Ask your concierge desk at your resort and they can get you set up with a car for a day or two.

The local bus depot is on Edward Street next to the public library. That is about one long block inland from the port area.

Public buses will pick you up or drop you off anywhere along their route, including on the road in front of the Marriott or Westin. Choose route #1 or #2, both of which pass those hotels on their way to and from West Bay.

To get picked up, cross the road in front of the hotel and wave down any passing public bus which will take you back to the depot.

Public buses cannot pick up or drop off directly across the road from the port. Only taxis and licensed tour buses may do so, and usually charge a premium for that service.

February brings perhaps the coldest water of the year. Expect water temps to drop to as low as 78F. Air temps will likely be a high in the low to mid 80s.

The shore diving sites do not have a sandy beach. And Seven Mile Beach is not known for shore diving as the swim out is too far.

You could instead go down to Sunset House. Great Shore diving. Nice bar to hang out at topside. Easy access via ladders if the non-divers want to swim or snorkel. But no sandy beach - it is all ironshore there.

There is plenty of free parking at Seven Mile Beach Public Beach.

There are no parking meters in Cayman. Parking in downtown George Town can be hard to find. Do not park anywhere other than a clearly marked spot as the police will issue tickets.

There are no zip lines in Cayman. Someone may chime in shortly about dolphin encounters.

I think you are referring to the tour offered by Cayman Food Tours. There is a write up from the local paper shortly after this company launched the tour.

I've not done this as a cruise ship passenger tour. I have eaten at all of the mentioned locations several times (well, not multiple times at the museum gift shop, but you get the idea). For a foodie it seems like a well thought out combination.

The tour stops take in some of the absolute favourites that George Town has to offer. The stops are at places generally favoured by locals and will keep you away a bit from the main cruise ship crowd.

Some of the stops mentioned in the article include Guy Harvey's, Singh's Roti Shop, and Casanova. Can't go wrong with any of them. My Caymanian boss chose Guy Harvey's for our most recent working lunch. Singh's is often packed with locals for lunch. And Casanova's brings you back to the waterfront with excellent fare - it's a popular for both lunch or a romantic dinner.

The main bus depot is next to the library on Edward Street. Edward Street runs parallel to the waterfront, a couple short blocks inland.

Generally US currency coins are not accepted. US$ bills or Cayman currency is accepted. Fare is CI$2 = US$2.50 per person to the beach by route bus. Drivers likely will not be able to provide change in US$. Pay when you are getting off the bus at your destination.

There are taxis lined up right at the port, but they charge more (US$5 or more per person) and tend to wait until they are full before departing.

Taxis and route buses look similar. Most are Toyota HiAce vans. Route buses have a circular decal with a number indicating the route. Route #1 or #2 go past Seven Mile Beach.