Grand Cayman -Snorkeling + Beach Chairs + Fun Beach Activities? All 3 possible??

[Toddcan]

Here's the puzzle:

 

We are arriving at Grand Cayman aboard the Liberty of the Seas (not that this matters?), and we are a family of 4. We all have varying interests, and I'd like to find a single "spot" where all 4 us us can meet our needs. I don't want to run around to different spots.

 

Need #1: My Wife.

She loves to walk the beach, and take an occasional dip, but mainly likes to sit and relax in a nice beach chair. Umbrella optional, but some shade will be required over a 5-6 hour period. If there is some shopping across the street (typical souvenier stuff, not high end shopping), then that's a bonus.

 

Need #2: My 2 teenaged boys

My guys are 13 and 15, so they are all about fun. If there are beach activities, they are there. They do not enjoy lounging about like my wife does.

 

Need #3: Me. :)

I want to snorkle. I also like to relax on the beach a little bit, and I also would spend time with my boys goofing around on the beach.

 

 

Now, I know there is no single area that provides an A+++ experience with any of those 3 needs, so I am willing to sacrifice great snorkling with "decent" snorkling.

 

Where can I go? Advice?

 

Thanks in advance!

[bookbabe]

The closest I think you're going to get is Royal Palms, and unfortunately, it's probably you that's going to lose out. :( What makes a good beach is pretty much the same thing that makes lousy snorkelling.

 

Royal Palms - http://www.reefgrill.net - has free showers & restrooms, a great restaurant/bar, chair/umbrella/watersports rentals, etc. It's right on Seven Mile Beach, and there's some shopping across the road if your DW doesn't mind walking a bit to get to it (the Royal Palms parking lot is pretty big, and you have to cross it to get to the road). It's the perfect spot for 3/4 of your family, and it's only about a $4 per person cab ride from the pier.

 

The downside of Royal Palms - the snorkelling isn't great. You can snorkel, but you're not going to see as much as you would if you went somewhere like Eden Rock or even Cemetary Reef. However, neither of those spots have what the rest of your family is looking for.

 

Now, if you want to rent a car and go further afield, you'd probably all be happy at Rum Point. There's a nice beach with hammocks and lounge chairs, restrooms/showers, snorkelling, watersports, beach volleyball, a beach bar with great food, a small souvenir shop, etc. Unfortunately, it's a 45 minute drive from town, so a rental car is really the only way of getting there.

 

There's lots of threads on all the places I've mentioned, so if you do searches in this forum you should find more details that might help you with your decision.

[Dickster1]

The closest I think you're going to get is Royal Palms, and unfortunately, it's probably you that's going to lose out. :( What makes a good beach is pretty much the same thing that makes lousy snorkelling.

 

Royal Palms - http://www.reefgrill.net - has free showers & restrooms, a great restaurant/bar, chair/umbrella/watersports rentals, etc. It's right on Seven Mile Beach, and there's some shopping across the road if your DW doesn't mind walking a bit to get to it (the Royal Palms parking lot is pretty big, and you have to cross it to get to the road). It's the perfect spot for 3/4 of your family, and it's only about a $4 per person cab ride from the pier.

 

The downside of Royal Palms - the snorkelling isn't great. You can snorkel, but you're not going to see as much as you would if you went somewhere like Eden Rock or even Cemetary Reef. However, neither of those spots have what the rest of your family is looking for.

 

Now, if you want to rent a car and go further afield, you'd probably all be happy at Rum Point. There's a nice beach with hammocks and lounge chairs, restrooms/showers, snorkelling, watersports, beach volleyball, a beach bar with great food, a small souvenir shop, etc. Unfortunately, it's a 45 minute drive from town, so a rental car is really the only way of getting there.

 

There's lots of threads on all the places I've mentioned, so if you do searches in this forum you should find more details that might help you with your decision.

 

And you can walk along the beach to Cemetry Reef from here.

 

Beach Club might be better. Cheap food and cheap drink too plus the staff are friendly. It is close to the Hyatt. Ask for Donovan, Dunn or Keith at the bar.

[Toddcan]

I've been doing a little digging around and see some nice pics of the cemetery reef, which I assume is at cemetery beach? (right?).

 

So, if we grab a taxi and head to Royal Palms, I can try snorkling there, and if it's absolutly garbage, I can head for cemetery reef.

 

How far away from Royal Palms is Cemetery Beach?

Is "Royal Palms" a beach name, or just an area (ie, if I ask the taxi driver to take us to Royal Palms, he'll know it?)

 

Thanks!

[robtx100]

For Royal Palms, do you go through the hotel to get to the beach or down one of the beach access trails beside the hotel? We are planning to go there in 2 weeks. Also, do you need to make some sort of reservation before?

[bookbabe]

I've been doing a little digging around and see some nice pics of the cemetery reef, which I assume is at cemetery beach? (right?).

 

Yeah, that's what I was thinking, but for some reason I just typed reef instead of beach. :o

 

How far away from Royal Palms is Cemetery Beach?

 

It would be a pretty far walk...couple of miles anyway. If you're wanting to be a bit closer to Cemetary Beach, try Sea Grape instead, which is just like Royal Palms only it's a bit further along Seven Mile Beach from the port. It's still a lengthy walk, though.

 

Is "Royal Palms" a beach name, or just an area (ie, if I ask the taxi driver to take us to Royal Palms, he'll know it?)

 

The various sections of Seven Mile Beach all have their own names, but it's one long stretch. Royal Palms and Sea Grape are very common destinations...the taxi driver will know them.

[bookbabe]

For Royal Palms, do you go through the hotel to get to the beach or down one of the beach access trails beside the hotel? We are planning to go there in 2 weeks. Also, do you need to make some sort of reservation before?

 

There's no hotel there. It's just a restaurant on the beach. Just tell the taxi driver you want to go to Royal Palms and he'll know exactly where to take you.

 

No reservations are needed, because there's no charge to use the beach (all beaches are free in Cayman). The facilities are there and free to use at the restaurant, in hopes that you'll buy your food/drink there. :D

[country-elegance]

We just got back from Grand Cayman last week on the Ecstasy. We went to the Reef Club and will probably not go there again. The can drinks are $5 each, Chairs $5 each, and the umbrellas are $10 each. We rented two chairs and a umbrella. My hb wanted sun and I wanted shade. What we found out was the chairs where tied inplace with a metal wire and we could not move them. So it was to be all sun or all shade. He ended up with a towel on the sand. You do need to get a taxi in town to take you there. we made the mistake of doing a little shopping on the strip and ended up too far down the road where know taxis pick you up. We had to walk to the Reef Club with our backpacks and it was a long ways. We got off the ship around 8 am and a lot of the shops did not open to later.

[bookbabe]

The chairs will be chained to something almost everywhere...otherwise people steal/borrow/move them down the beach and they all disappear. :D