It’s true that we were rather ambitious thinking that we could fit everything into 3 days in New York, however we did manage to see almost everything that we set out to in that time. It wasn’t a relaxed trip by any means, which you’ll soon see once you see our itinerary but it shows that it is possible to do it if you’re short on time!
The Cayman Islands are located in the Caribbean Sea and are made up of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. All of them are super popular destinations with tourists and it is not hard to see why when just looking at photos of these beautiful islands is enough to make you want to book the next flight there. With everything they have to offer, it is hard to know where to start and what are the best ways to experience the Cayman Islands. This guide is here to prepare you for your next trip there and help you make the most of your time there.
Seven Mile Beach is, as the name suggests, seven miles long. The beach is public property in its entirety and you can walk along the full length of it. It stretches almost the whole length of western Grand Cayman and it is definitely a great way to experience this beautiful island. The beach is covered with pearly white sand that meets the crystal clear blue waters of the Caribbean Sea. You can enjoy your day just relaxing by the water and sunbathing while listening to the sound of the waves gently splashing the shore. Take a dip and make sure to walk down the beach to enjoy the scenery and work off some of that amazing Carribbean food you’ve no doubt been enjoying.
Mastic Reserve is the largest tract of native dry forest on the Cayman Islands. It is named after yellow mastic and black mastic, which are the most common trees to be found there. It is also the highest part of the island, but don’t let that worry you as the island is pretty low-lying. The reserve is known as an important bird conservation area, but it became popular thanks to the Mastic Trail, which has been restored as a walking track for anyone wanting to get in touch with nature and experience the reserve up close. The trail includes a walk across the beautiful 550-foot-long Mastic Bridge. This trail is a great way to see the untouched nature of the island and enjoy a day away from the hot sunny beaches in the shade of the mastics.
All of the Cayman Islands are popular for their scuba diving and snorkeling locations. However, the most popular location amongst tourists has to be Stingray City, where you can actually go swimming with the stingrays. Here you will find the spot where stingrays gather and with the proper guidance, you can get to know these beautiful creatures properly. Cayman Turtle Divers offer great tours during which you can pet and swim with stingrays underwater. This is a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience and you should make sure not to miss your opportunity to get to know the island’s friendliest creatures.
Cayman Brac is known for M/V Captain Keith Tibbetts, the only Russian shipwreck that divers can explore in the Western hemisphere. This striking scuba-diving spot is popular with tourists because it offers the possibility to explore the wreck and see how it has been changed and adopted by the marine life of the Caribbean Sea. The fact that the ship broke in half in the past also means it is now even more accessible for scuba divers to explore the interior. If you are a scuba diver and a history enthusiast, you are bound to have a great time exploring this wreck.
Point of Sand is the only sandy beach on Little Cayman. The currents are often strong but the beach has a shallow area suitable even for non-swimmers. The sandy beach is great for relaxing and frolicking in the sun, but it is also extremely popular for the view overlooking Cayman Brac from the beach. For a unique day at the beach, visit Point of Sand on a work day as it is likely to be deserted, so you will be able to enjoy the view in privacy.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Roxana is a travel enthusiast and lifestyle consultant from Sydney and she loves to write about her adventures. She is all about the healthy lifestyle, loves to run with her husband and dogs and has fun cooking exotic meals for her family. Being a typical Aussie, she often hits the waves and loves beaches and sunshine! You can find more of her writing by following her on Twitter and Facebook. She is also one of the editors at Highstylife Magazine.
If you keep your eye on Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel list that comes out at the end of every year you might have noticed Cape Town sitting (very) pretty at number 2 on the top cities to visit in 2017 and as it so happened I began the year there myself… where I soon discovered exactly how it had earned the position. Now because a picture says a thousand words I’ll leave the beauty of Cape Town and the surrounds to speak for itself through a selection of photos I took over the course of our trip.
Just before the end of the year during our Christmas family trip to Cape Town we took 2 days out to travel to Aquila Game Reserve and fulfill that lifelong dream so many of us have… to go on safari. While the number one place to safari in South Africa is of course Kruger National Park, our limited time meant we couldn’t reasonably travel that far, so we opted to spend 2 days/1 night at a smaller game reserve around 2 hours from the city. Of course this made the experience a little different as all of the animals are in a much more closely confined area (although it is still HUGE and not at all like seeing them in a zoo) which makes the job of finding them for the tour guides a lot easier. However we still didn’t see everything they claim to have there, which does show the scale of the area where the wildlife lives, and what we did see we were lucky enough to get really close to… especially the big cats (more on that later).
When we were looking for somewhere to stay in Fiji we mulled over our decision for quite a while. You might have gathered that I’m not an all-inclusive type of holidaymaker but if you go to the Yasawas that’s pretty much your only option because most of the islands are so small that the resorts are the only things on there. This certainly proved to be the case where we ended up – Mantaray Resort – but the experience so far surpassed all of my expectations that I wanted to give it a little plug before I finish up writing about my time in Fiji.