Cayman by car

[tcorley]

We are cruising to Grand Cayman next week. We have not booked an excursion yet. We were thinking of Island Tours for the East End tour that ends at Rum Beach. At $69 per person, my DH thinks it would be much cheaper to rent a van and drive ourselves around and then we would not worry about the 5 hour tour being late for the last tender. What is everyone's opinion on this? We want to see as much as we can.:)

[Toddcan]

Excellent question! I would like to know this as well. We are a famly of 5, and after reading all the posts on beaches and snorkeling, I think we might be best to rent a car once we are dropped off at the tender location, and then be on our own for the day. It seems a lot better and cheaper than grabbing taxis or the bus every few hours for 5 people.

 

Do any car rental companies have either shuttle buses or an office close to the tender location?

[LHT28]

Just remember they drive on the opposite side of the road.

 

http://www.caymanislands.ky/canada/

[twinkletoes4445]

Renting a car is a wonderful way to see the island. We've only visited GC once by cruise ship (and we loved the place), and now we only do land vacations there. We rent from Andy's, but there are a lot of other rental agencies. We always rent a car with the steering wheel on the left, which is what we're used to.

 

Driving on the island is very easy. The traffic does not move along that fast...and the drivers are very polite. I think we've probably been on every street on the island. We love visiting GC because it's safe to get out and do your own thing.

 

If you're going over to the East End and Rum Point...the blowholes are also over that direction...along with the botanical garden. The Lighthouse Restaurant is also over that way.

 

I'd vote for doing your own thing with your own rental car. :)

[gaw]

wife and i rented a car from avis last year and drove to rum point. i did not have any issues getting from car rental place to rum point but don't think i would have wanted to drive in georgetown. also, rent early and confirm car type. we though we aere getting a "normal" american type of car and when they took me to this tiny box i could not beleive it. luckly they were pretty cool and for a few extra bucks i got a brand new jeep with soft top. it was great. for about $40-50 US we had a jeep that had 12 miles on it. we actually followed the jeep tour for a few miles. of all the ports we have visited, this is about the only one i would consider driving myself. be safe and enjoy.

[alphakitty]

We've rented a car in GC and drove all over the island for the day. It was a great way to see a lot! Rum point is spectacular. Driving is on the left, but there isn't much traffic and you'll get used to it quickly. We didn't have any problems at all. We rented from Avis at the airport. The shuttle picked us up right near the cruise port and drove us to the airport where the rental office is. Very easy!

[crystalblue0610]

Where is the nearest place to the pier to rent a car? We leave Sunday and having booked anything. We were just going to stay on the ship now we want to explorer and a car sounds like a good idea.

 

After we tender which place is a good place to rent and car and for how much?

 

Thanks:)

[alphakitty]

There are several rental agencies..just google Grand Cayman car rentals and you'll find lots of info. Budget and Avis have offices at the airport. There is Andy's too...a local outfit. It really is a great way to see the island. Enjoy! :)

[shellhunter]

Don't stay on the ship in Grand Cayman!!

 

We were just there last week on the Legend and this was our best port. Wish we could have spent 3 days there. We rented a midsize car from Avis; they picked us up about 2 blocks away from the tender dock & took us to their office at the airport. By about 8:45 we were on our way to explore the island. We snorkeled in 2 locations: Cayman Kai (Kaibo) where there were many shells, and Rum Point. Rum Point has a beautiful beach with chairs, restaurant, shops and lots of SHADE. Here are some photos: