Grand Cayman Vs Costa Maya

I am just looking for opinions on what port people prefer as part of the western Caribbean itinerary. My wife and I are looking at a western Caribbean cruise and I am trying to decide if Costa Maya is worth $80pp more thanGrand Cayman since it is only on western itineraries and Grand Cayman is on several. Thanks!

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I think it really depends on what you want to do in port! GC and CM will have different offerings...so decide WHAT you'll do ashore and then pick accordingly!

No problem with either and really do enjoy both ... but if someone "put a gun to our heads" we would pick Grand Cayman ! :D

Grand Cayman for sure!

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We enjoy Costa Maya MUCH more than overcrowded Grand Cayman. We had 25,000 cruise ship passengers in town with us. It was miserable, compared to our lovely trip there in 1992, when there were no tall buildings there, either.

Costa Maya was a wonderful surprise. We walked outside of the large cruise port with its overpriced shops, exited the gates and hailed a cab for $2 pp to the town, and beach, where the cabbie took us to a cute little restaurant and we hung out there on the beach. Beautiful water, pesty vendors though. A simple no thank you was all it took. We were charmed by the basically undeveloped Costa Maya.

Grand Cayman was just awful though., elbow to elbow. We are going to GC in Oct, but only one ship will be in port, so a huge difference from 7 ships.

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One visit was enough for Costa Maya, but we liked Grand Cayman so much we bought a vacation home there.

Grand Cayman, hands down. Costa Maya was probably one of my least favorite port of all times.

Thanks again for all the replies! Say if we didn't do Sting Ray City, would most of you still recommend Grand Cayman? I just know we will be going to Grand Cayman on a future cruise and there just aren't many that go to Costa Maya. Thanks again!

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Thanks again for all the replies! Say if we didn't do Sting Ray City, would most of you still recommend Grand Cayman? I just know we will be going to Grand Cayman on a future cruise and there just aren't many that go to Costa Maya. Thanks again!

 

 

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For us, absolutely! We've been to Cayman on land stays and probably 10 times on cruises. I have been to Costa Maya twice and don't need to go back. I definitely would NOT choose an itinerary because Costa Maya was on it.

Again, it's a matter of taste and what you want to do. We love to snorkel, love the white sand beaches and clear blue water, love that the ship tenders right into the middle of town. Plenty of bars, restaurants close by in Grand Cayman. In Costa Maya you dock at a cruise port (shops and restaurant built just for the ship). If you want to go to the little "town" you take a shuttle or taxi. Not a big deal, but the town itself is small with really only a couple of beach clubs and that's about it. If you are interested in Mayan Ruins and such, this might be more of your choice.

Don't miss going to Costa Maya if you're a beach person!

Mahahaul is quick $2 taxi/shuttle ride away. Beautiful calm water with restaurant/bars on the beach there. It's a wonderful way to spend the day. :D

Thanks again for the replies. I really appreciate all the help. We are all ready planning on doing excursions in Belize and Roatan so we wanna have a couple of relaxing days so thanks for the help!

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Costa Maya , booked online Maya Chan Beach resort. All-inclusive great service and limited people. Great food and drinks. Grand Cayman is over priced and wall to wall people. Beach is beautiful but crowded.

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Interesting replies. Grand Cayman is our least favorite port. We now refer to the beach there as "the world's most crowded beach." We weren't interested in seeing turtles that were about to be slaughtered or going to Hell. We eventually wound up at a restaurant near the port with a nice view but terribly overpriced sandwiches and drinks. Our cruise this spring is going there, but we won't get off the ship. Usually we can find something we like about a port -- if not a lot of things we love -- but this was the exception.

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We visited both last week. I like Grand Cayman but for me the only downside is the tendering. However, now that they have their own tenders it is a much better process than when using ship lifeboats. We went to the waterpark right outside the Costa Maya cruise port. For those looking for an active vacation the ziplining and lazy river are excellent. For me the fact we could dock was a big plus. If I had to choose it would have to be equal based on what you like to do and if you mind tendering.

Grand Cayman is my least favorite port.... just too much like sailing to Florida. Busy, expensive, and modern with snooty locals.

I much prefer more rustic and "caribbean" vibe.

Weighing in on this thread since I last posted above, I just went back to GC last month, and although we were the only ship there and it was not crowded, we still aren’t as impressed with GC as we are with Costa Maya. For starters, we needed water shoes to get in the ocean at Cemetery Beach, lots of rocks to traverse while trying to get in the ocean I don’t get why so many rave about the beaches at Grand Cayman. Costa Maya beaches were way nicer, IMHO

Weighing in on this thread since I last posted above, I just went back to GC last month, and although we were the only ship there and it was not crowded, we still aren’t as impressed with GC as we are with Costa Maya. For starters, we needed water shoes to get in the ocean at Cemetery Beach, lots of rocks to traverse while trying to get in the ocean I don’t get why so many rave about the beaches at Grand Cayman. Costa Maya beaches were way nicer, IMHO

The Cemetery Beach section is more well-known for its snorkelling, not for its beach. What makes for great beach makes for lousy snorkelling and vice versa. Had you gone to one of the other sections of Seven Mile Beach, you would have had a much different experience.

Thanks again for the replies. I really appreciate all the help. We are all ready planning on doing excursions in Belize and Roatan so we wanna have a couple of relaxing days so thanks for the help!

 

 

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We have been to both and have done the "relaxing day" at both. I preferred CM over GC. The beach was nicer, the people were friendlier, the prices were cheaper, and I felt like we had a more "local" experience in Costa Maya. I would recommend Yaya Beach Club there.

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I have been to both and will be visiting both again next month. I enjoyed both places but if I had to pick just one it would be CM. It is way less commercialized and people are much friendlier.

I like Grand Cayman for the stingrays, so that doesn’t help much.

I only go to Maya Chan Beach Resort in Costa Maya and love it. Most people I hear their say it is their best port stop on their trips. Good Buffett lunch fajitas chicken , beef, fish. Chips and guacamole on arrival. Bring you drinks to your assigned chairs with shade or palapa. Or bring you drinks in the water, as you float in these kind of tube chairs. If you don’t drink, probably not for you. They take really good care of you there. They might also be booked up, so you have to get them early.

Costa Maya is a “fake port” manufactured by the cruise industry to revitalize the area following a devastating storm some years ago. That said, they have done a nice job with it if you like beach/pool/drinking activities and don’t mind paying for it. Grand Cayman does get crowded if you stay close to the port - best excursions take you away from the port for water activities like diving, snorkeling, and Stingray City. Just depends on what you want to do.

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