Grand Cayman Day 3: Starfish and Blowholes

For our family’s third day on Grand Cayman, we set out to explore where we left off the day prior. After spending nearly an entire day at Rum Point, we elected to drive the southern route and make our way counterclockwise around the island ultimately landing back up near Rum Point.

The first tentative strop was the visit the rather cheesy Pirate Caves. However, upon pulling into the facility, it appeared closed for good, and apparently by the online reviews, it was for good reason.

So we drove further down the road before coming to Heritage Beach. This was a very small little area that gave us our first shot at finding some shells on the island. Luck must have been in our favor, as for the first time we found several conch shells. Even later in the day after visiting several other beaches, we were not able to find any more conch like we did at Heritage Beach.

Next on the loop was Lovers Wall. We are not really sure what the significance of it is, but it allowed for the wife and I to take a quick picture since it is our anniversary trip and see the rocky shoreline. We had thought this might be where the blowholes were located, but it was not.

In an attempt to try and turn around the vehicle, we pulled into an abandoned house that must have been destroyed in a hurricane. The home was located right on the rocky shore overlooking the ocean, and provided some great shots of the environment, though a bit eerie realizing this was once someone’s home.

The blowholes were located a little further down the road and were marked with a sign on the opposite side of the road. The wind and waves were not procuring the best conditions to experience them, so we did not spend a long time here.

Nestled between two private residences if this excellent little beach that was perfect for kids, as well as secluded. I am not sure there was a specific name for this beach. During our visit for about an hour, we were the only ones there, allowing for the kids to play in the sand and take a quick stroll out onto the dock. They also have wooden cabanas which were excellent for shade, and a restroom building with shower. This proved to be an excellent beach, giving us some time to “waste” until lunch.

We spent lunch at Captain Herman Fish Fry, a small stand right on the ocean. After ordering our lunch, the shaded tables provided amazing views of the shoreline. Reminiscent of Hawaii’s shrimp stands, we ordered both Garlic Shrimp and Curry Shrimp, as well as Sweet and Sour Chicken and Chicken and Fries for all to share.

The food was great, but particularly good were all of the sides, two each with each meal. The potato salad was made with a variety of veggies and the coleslaw was slightly sweet, both great accompaniments on a hot day.

Further around the loop we made a quick stop at Davinoff’s Concrete Sculptures, a small yard with lots of concrete animals like crab, iguana, and crocodile.

Finally, to end the trip, we landed back near Rum Point and scoped out Starfish Point. You pull your vehicle right up to the ocean, step right in, and find starfish everywhere. It was our first time experiencing such a beautiful environment where the starfish naturally like to live. No cages or zoo, but nature the way it is supposed to be. The waters were very calm, making it excellent for kids and such a surreal experience and great way to end our day.

Grand Cayman Day 2: Rum Point Beach

RUM POINT- One of the really exciting aspects of this particular trip to Grand Cayman was the idea that nothing was planned ahead of time besides travel logistics. We had no pre-arranged ideas of where to eat, where to go, or what to eat. The idea was to travel stress free and go where ever our family’s relaxation may take us.

So upon waking up on our first full day on the island, we had the entire 22 miles to openly explore and determine what we wanted to do. After a quick discussion, we elected to head out of town to the other side of the island and visit Rum Point.

Located in a less populated side of the island, Rum Point is an awesome little area with trees and shade overlooking some spectacular pools of water that are perfect for kids. The water happen to be very calm during our visit with practically no waves. The sand was great, though one still needed to be cognizant that there were rocks and corral in the area.

We happen to arrive at the area around 9:00 in the morning, at which point there were very few people in the area. What we did not realize is that even with the cruise ships docking on the other side of the island, lots of those passengers pay for excursions over to Rum Point by ferry boat. So at times there were a lot of people there, though it was never unnerving and there were plenty of lounge chairs and seating. Part of the beach even had shade cloths overhead to help shield the sun, again making for an excellent environment for the kids.

Since we were at Rum Point for over 6 hours, we also elected to eat right there on the beach. Besides making fresh island drinks, they offer a large menu for which to choose.

We elected to try both the Jerk Pork and Jerk Chicken platters, which were served with rice and beans, corn on the cob, and coleslaw, all for a bargain $12CI. Our boy also ordered kids versions of fish and chips and a grilled cheese.

The food was fantastic and fresh! While I may not always be a huge fan of legumes, the rice and beans were excellently prepared as was the coleslaw, which was made fresh and not the cheap stuff you can buy at the grocery. Both the pork and chicken were excellent! As for the kids meals, again, freshly made from scratch with fresh ocean fish which was outstanding! Overall, it was well worth eating right at Rum Point, though we did talk to other guests who ordered the fish of the day and standard burgers and hot dogs and were really disappointed.

Grand Cayman, Day 1

Back in August 2014, our family got in on an amazing mistake fare between our home airport of Cleveland and Grand Cayman for under $200 per person. While we had to work quick to secure the flights, it made out summer 2015 travel plans an easy and quick decision.

As the months got closer, we secured some amazing deals on hotels, as well as rental vehicle, which we will get more into later.

Flights

Perhaps the most unnerving aspect of travel for any parent is the process of flying. Between waking kids up earlier than normal, and dealing with an onslaught of people at all points of the airport adventure, flying can surely be a major trial for parents.

It is amazing how when your kid starts to throw a little cry, people immediately say things like “I hope I’m not sitting next to that kid” or when you try and walk your child around to get them to stop crying, and get told to “shut up.”

Traveling with kids is always an adventure, and it is quite amazing the amount of people that feel compelled to not have any compassion for parents that are working it and trying to alleviate any situations that arise.

Travel is not always pretty, and certainly not with kids in small, cramped spaces. However, our 6, 4, and 2 year old did an amazing job on both flights coming down with minimal instances. As a parent, we certainly could not have asked for a better travel day.

Upon our arrival to the island, it is always amazing to see a one runway airport where guests depart via rollaway stairs into a small little airport. Though truth be told, this is our families first international travel experience, and first time experiencing small airports outside of the U.S.

Rental Car

We had secured a reservation for a mini SUV with Budget rental car months in advance of the trip. The original reservation was in the $450 range for 9 days of rental. After inputting the data into AutoSlash, our reservation had been rebooked several times, bringing the cost down to $266.

However, after realizing we forgot our travel booster seats at home, adding two boosters and a car seat quickly shot the booking up to over $500, plus guests are required to get a $25 permit license to drive.

The sticker shock only starts there, as you quickly realize that driving in Grand Cayman is nothing like in the U.S., since you drive on the opposite side of the road. Seeing as we had never done so before, it was quite the surreal experience and takes some getting used to for sure.

Hotels

We really tossed around a lot of ideas where to stay when in Grand Cayman. First, we had some US Bank points we had been sitting on for several years, and needed to use them. So we booked two nights at one of the better rated hotels on the island, the Comfort Suites, which we will be staying at later in the trip.

For the rest of the trip, we decided to book the Holiday Inn, as we were able to secure a great rate of around $100 per night. We also had hopes, which really worked out well, that our Platinum status would get us an upgrade.

Upon arrival, we were given the option of an upgraded suite, with not that good of a view. However, when we got into the room, we were REALLY impressed, as the room had a large kitchen, dining room, seating area with sleeper sofa, king bedroom, double sink large bathroom, and a balcony overlooking the ocean.

Really, the Holiday Inn Grand Cayman is probably one of the nicer hotels we have stayed in, and a true bargain at only around $100 per night by Grand Cayman standards.

Following checking into the hotel, we elected to drive down to the Georgetown area and visit Margaritaville. We had heard they had a pool and slide, so we went well prepared with bathing suits and towels.

What an experience! We had the whole place practically to ourselves, the food was fantastic, though service was rather terrible, and we all spent several hours using the pool and slide.

After a short stop at the grocery store to stock our fridge, we were back at the hotel discussing what an amazing time we had already on Grand Cayman.