Three tiny islands make up the British Overseas Territory of the Cayman Islands, balanced precariously one side of the large Cayman Trench, the deepest part of the Caribbean. Whereas synonymous worldwide with banking, tax havens and seaside holidays, there’s much more to this tiny, proud nation, even for those who do must look fairly arduous to search out it. What’s so shocking concerning the Caymans at first is how un-British they are - it could be laborious to design a more Americanized place than Grand Cayman, the place the ubiquitous SUVs jostle for area within the parking numerous massive malls and US dollars change fingers as if they were the nationwide currency. Solely the occasional portrait of the Queen or a fluttering Union Jack ever begs to differ. This contradiction is just the primary of many you’ll uncover while getting to know these islands.
The important thing to understanding what makes the Caymans tick is getting away from the crowded commercialism of Grand Cayman’s long western coastline and exploring the remainder of the island. Better still, depart Grand Cayman altogether and go to the charming ‘sister islands’ of Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. Here life runs at a slower tempo and the pure delights that see people coming back time and again - from chicken-watching and climbing to diving and snorkeling - are never far away.
The Caymans may lack the dramatic scenery and steamy nightlife of much of the rest of the Caribbean, however of their place you’ll find a charming, impartial and deeply heat people unfold over three islands boasting many of life’s quieter charms.
To a lot of the world, Grand Cayman is the Cayman Islands, a glitzy shopping mecca and world financial centre where five-star motels line the fabulous white-sand Seven Mile Seashore and the wealthy from all over the world spend time sipping cocktails and discretely taking part in with their millions. Yet past George City and Seven Mile Beach the island does have its own quiet allure and Caribbean life nonetheless leaves its mark on what, in many places, may in any other case be mistaken for suburban Florida - whether it’s the island-broad cockerels crowing at daybreak or the impromptu parties that take place at a moment’s notice. The island is crowded, little question, and it’s removed from being an idyllic Caribbean hideaway, but with its excellent restaurants, buying, activities and issues to see and do, Grand Cayman is definitely not a spot to be bored.
