Rum Point - How big is it?

[cdfl31]

I am contemplating taking the Rum Point Beach excursion through our cruise line when we visit this May. From the photos I have seen, the beach looks like a relatively small and confined area. Is there more to it than that? Can you walk to adjacent beaches or are you stuck in that one area? I am asking because my Husband and I are more interested in hiking and exploring the coast than swimming our lounging around. I just want to be sure that this excursion is right for us before committing to it.

 

Thanks!

[bookbabe]

There are adjacent beaches, but they're just the small strips in front of people's houses, so I'm not sure if that's what you're looking for in terms of "hiking and exploring." It's a nice walk, and you see lots of beautiful houses, but it's not a nature hike by any stretch of the imagination...

[cdfl31]

There are adjacent beaches, but they're just the small strips in front of people's houses, so I'm not sure if that's what you're looking for in terms of "hiking and exploring." It's a nice walk, and you see lots of beautiful houses, but it's not a nature hike by any stretch of the imagination...

 

Thanks for the feedback! Its so hard to tell just by looking at photos. I've seen so many reviews on the net about how beautiful it is but it just looks so small. I guess I'm spoiled by my Florida beaches! If we weren't limited on time, I would love to rent a car and explore on my own but I don't want to risk missing the ship.

 

Thanks again.

[bookbabe]

I've seen so many reviews on the net about how beautiful it is but it just looks so small. I guess I'm spoiled by my Florida beaches!

 

LOL! :D You've got to remember that Grand Cayman is only about 28 miles long in its longest direction...it's a pretty small island. And Rum Point is just one beach out of the dozens of great beach areas...

 

There are lots of sections of coastline that aren't extensively developed, just not really at Rum Point. Generally, as far as I can tell, the nicer the coastline, the more developed that section of the coastline is. :D Rum Point (Cayman Kai) is effectively a very nice subdivision full of beachfront (or canal front) houses. The beaches in that area are gorgeous, probably some of the nicest I've seen anywhere. (I'm a little biased, since we have a house there, but hey, the nice beach is why we bought it.) But, because it's so nice there are lots of houses in the area...it's a bit of a catch-22 situation, unfortunately...

[lovevacadays]

Bookbabe - I am seeing several posts by you for Grand Cayman and now know why. You have a house there. Lucky you. I heard there are some tour companies that do bird watching and more land based tours. Do you recommend anyone or have any suggestions for Land tours besides Hell and the Turtle Farm which I did back in 1999.

 

Thanks

[bookbabe]

Bookbabe - I am seeing several posts by you for Grand Cayman and now know why. You have a house there. Lucky you. I heard there are some tour companies that do bird watching and more land based tours. Do you recommend anyone or have any suggestions for Land tours besides Hell and the Turtle Farm which I did back in 1999. Thanks

 

Unfortunately, having the house and car there means we don't do a lot of excursions with tour companies. :D And we're not experts on the island, by any means...the real expert is Drew Sailbum, who lives there year-round.

 

However, I do know there's lots of great attractions other than Hell and the Turtle Farm. (Besides the stingrays, that is.)

 

Pedro St. James - http://www.pedrostjames.ky/

Botanical Gardens - http://www.botanic-park.ky/

 

You could easily rent a car and do Pedro St. James and the Botanical Gardens on your own if there wasn't a tour hitting those spots. They're both in the same direction, and you could possibly even squeeze in a stop at the blowholes for photos as well.

 

In that same direction is also the Mastic Trail. http://www.nationaltrust.org.ky/info/mastic.html

I've never hiked it, since I'm more of a lounge-on-the-beach type myself, but I've heard good reports from those who have.

 

Closer to the port area is the Butterfly Farm - http://www.thebutterflyfarm.com/

 

I've also seen ads for companies that do horseback riding along the beach, kayak tours of the mangroves and general island sightseeing tours.

 

I don't recommend the Pirate Caves unless you have small children. They're a bit cheesy if you're over the age of 10... ;)

[poopbag28]

Bookbabe:

 

Nice! We also own a property on GCM albeit a tad different. We actually considered the cai area but decided on a residence at the Ritz. Since we can't be there as often as we would like the Ritz fit our needs quite well. What is the name of your house ? My wife was quite enchanted by the names. Are you on the island often? It would be great if we could meet up sometime. Dinner would be our treat :).

[bookbabe]

Sorry, Poopbag, our house doesn't have a name yet, since we can't agree on what to call it. :D Everyone in the family has a totally different favourite, so for now we're still nameless. My FIL and DH want "Hai Kai" (Shark Kai) and I'm leaning towards "Pirates' Cove" or "Polar Kai" or some other wintery name. I'm almost ready to give in, though...any name is better than no name at all, especially when no one really uses street addresses.

 

We thought about getting something on Seven Mile Beach, but we totally fell in love with the Rum Point area and the beaches there. I do sometimes miss being closer to town, though.

 

I won't be back on the island until Christmas break (I'm a teacher) although others in the family will be visiting sooner. Dinner sounds great, or we could go out for a boat ride or to Stingray City or something. If you're going to be around, PM me in early December and we'll make arrangements to get together.

[poopbag28]

That sounds great and I'll PM you closer to December. I do envy you as I think once you get a name for your property it will be official :D. I am forever analyzing things so it would probably be years until we found a name that fits!

[lovevacadays]

Thanks for the suggestions

[imsailinaway]

Can you take the public bus transportation? or how would you get there? to Rum Point

[bookbabe]

Can you take the public bus transportation? or how would you get there? to Rum Point

 

There is no bus service to Rum Point. It's about a 45 minute drive each way from the port area.

 

Your only real options for visiting Rum Point are either to take an excursion that includes a stop there (such as Nativeway's "Reef, Rays and Rum Point") or rent a car and drive there on your own.