Rae La Soul

If you can recall from my previous post, I spent Memorial Day weekend in Grand Cayman on a solo trip and had an amazing time. And I think at this point, I’m giving myself a medal for figuring out how to enjoy vacationing in a different country for a short amount of time. So here is how I managed to get the best out of Grand Cayman in 3 days.

Grand Cayman is a relatively small island with so much to offer. I stayed in an Airbnb in West Bay. Something simple since I was only on the island for a short time. My lodging was nice and clean and described as expected and in my opinion, it was located in the perfect spot to enjoy the local culture.

 
  

I decided to rent a car to make it easier to get to all of the activities and excursions that I had planned. Driving in Grand Cayman is easy, although it may take a few minutes of driving to get used to driving on the opposite side of the road.

I decided to rent through Apex car rental, which is a short walk out of Owen Roberts International Airport, and spent about $110 for the weekend. Public transportation is available and really cheap, but I enjoy being able to move about freely so renting a car made more sense.

Day One —

I spent the most part of the day getting settled and driving around to get used to the change and what was close in my area. I enjoyed a wonderful Cayman grouper lunch at Heritage Kitchen which was about 5 minutes away.

 

And I got a chance to visit Hell. Literally. I read about this on TripAdvisor and the reviews were absolutely correct. Hell is no place to really call home about but the rock formations were pretty cool to see. I just wouldn’t make it a point to visit Hell if you’re not already on the west side of the island.

 

Later on that evening, I went on a tour to a bioluminescent bay. I raved and raved about being able to experience this and I can’t say enough about it. I booked through George’s Watersports for about $79, enjoyed drinks, and jumped in the warmest, calmest water ever. It’s nearly impossible to capture bioluminescence without the proper camera equipment, but just take my word for it. And even though I couldn’t capture that, the ride along the way to the bay suffices, in my opinion.

   

Our group was so social which made me completely forget about how I came to the island as a solo wanderluster. So many laughs and stories shared. I met a girl that was vacationing with her mother. Their relationship reminded me a lot of the relationship I had with my mother. In hindsight, I should gotten her contact info to stay in touch, but perhaps we’ll cross paths again. Life’s funny like that.

Day Two —

My second day started early so I’m thankful Vivo was a few minutes drive away from Iron Shore House. I think a cool attribute is that it is next to a company’s dive site. The view was amazing while dining on the best toast, eggs, potatoes, and coconut bacon I’ve ever had.

 

I had a sea excursion tour planned for the first part of the day that included a visit to Starfish point, Stingray city, and snorkeling. I enjoyed Stingray city the most. Even got a chance to hug and kiss one named Rusty.

I’m not sure what has gotten in me, but I enjoy all of these animal encounters. I’m learning more about sanctuaries so in the future, I’ll only be visiting centers that offer animal encounters where the animals are in their own natural habitat or in a sanctuary. That whole story about those tigers and then discovering the treatment of elephants in tourist attractions, I just can’t be a part of that.

Anyways, after the excursion, I went back to West Bay, grabbed a few snacks from The Foster, which is a grocery store in West Bay, and headed out for a drive to Rum Point. Rum Point is much more laid back than Seven Mile Beach. I’m pretty sure when I return, I will spend at least one night in a rental property in Rum Point. The properties are extremely beautiful.

   

After a full day, I initially went home to take a nap and then head out to dinner later, but once I got home and ate food I picked up from Rum Point, I didn’t wake up until the next morning. But if you’re wanting to know where I was going to eat, it was at the Cracked Conch. So perhaps I’ll eat there when I return.

Day Three —

I got up early to visit Seven Mile beach since this was my last day here. And I wanted to be able to enjoy a quiet morning on the beach before the crowd assembled. It’s beautiful to say the least. I packed my bags early since I wanted to get some shopping done at Camana before I returned my car and headed to the airport.

  

I had breakfast at a little spot in the city, Coffee & Bite, and I absolutely hated it. Staying in the area with locals with local cuisine spoiled me the few days I was there, so I was just completely unmoved by such a mediocre meal.

 

I decided that after that meal, I’d just grab something from the airport and that seemed to hold me over until I made it to Atlanta. Initially, I chose a long layover in Atlanta because I wanted to go out a explore a bit, but I was just too tired to do all of that. I sat in P.F. Changs, shopped around a little bit, and just spent my time relaxing and reflecting on a wonderful weekend in Grand Cayman as a solo traveler.

Grand Cayman is the absolute perfect place to visit if you want to get away, visit another country, and have time to relax. Even if you’re not ready to go solo, Grand Cayman is definitely a place to visit.
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