5-hr layover in GC on way to Brac -- what to do??

[KathyV]

@GrannyDiver here's a couple of videos and a travel article about Brac that you might enjoy:

https://vimeo.com/165357805

https://youtu.be/NTcZso-Zg80

http://caribjournal.com/2015/09/15/journey-to-cayman-brac/

And below is the link "Cayman Went" a sweet little "feel-good" movie that was filmed on Brac and includes gorgeous footage of the island and the reefs.

Cayman Went movie streaming on vimeo:

About Cayman Went:

"TV personality Josh Anders (Michael Lombardi) is a legend in his own mind … and even he has doubts. Ratings are down and the hottie star of Diver Down (a male Baywatch) can’t get arrested in Hollywood these days. When the smug pretty boy receives an ultimatum from an ultra-wealthy, powerful and unethical resort developer – who also happens to own the network that broadcasts his show – Josh finds himself the key player in a land grab scheme targeting the picturesque, unspoiled and tiny Caribbean island of Cayman Brac. The laid-back locals, most of them big fans, are putty in his hands, except for the eccentric Mr. Bowman, a cranky retiree who’s never even heard of the show. Secretly petrified of the ocean, Josh just wants to close the deal and go home. That is until Mr. Bowman, a parentless kid named Rodney and Darby Thomas (Susan Misner), the beautiful but opinionated owner of the local Sand Bar, change his mind about what really matters most. A romantic drama that proves It’s all good … if you just know what to look for."

 

[oly5050user]

@GrannyDiver, as you've said, you may not have 5 hours between flights because you will have to go through immigration, collect your luggage, go through customs, check in for the flight to Brac and recheck your bags.

Sometimes that process goes very quickly and sometimes there are lines and delays. What day of the week are you arriving? Saturdays and Sundays between noon and 3 or 4 pm are usually the busiest times, but you should still have time for a layover excursion. I wouldn't hang around the airport if I could avoid it.

When you say that "United arrives at 2:30 and Cayman Airways departs at 7:30" I'm assuming that you mean 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., is that correct? If you are travelling overnight and in the early a.m. then the choices will be much more limited.

Assuming afternoon and evening, I agree with the suggestion of going to the George Town Yacht Club. It is a nice spot on the marina in a lovely setting. It is only about 3 minutes away from the airport and they will send a gray-colored van to pick you up and bring you back. If you have some carry-on luggage they will stash it for you at the restaurant while you eat.

On Saturdays and Sundays the van makes regular rounds to pick-up and drop-off travelers, but we always call them when we are ready to leave the airport and they arrive quickly. You might want to check with your phone carrier about options in advance to make sure that you will be able to call without paying expensive roaming charges. Wi-Fi is readily available at the airport so you can also make a skype call.

You can relax and eat either indoors or outside at GTYC. Instead of Conch Fritters I recommend the Cracked Conch, it's the best on the island IMO. Whenever we have time between flights to/from the Sister Islands, we head over to the GTYC.

Tell the van driver the time that you want to head back to the airport and she will be waiting for you. If you are flying at 7:30 pm the airport shouldn't be crowded and going through Security to access the departure lounge should be pretty quick, but don't cut it too close because I think that is the last flight of the day to the Sister Islands.

Below are links for the GTYC. On weekdays they open at 11 am but on Saturday and Sunday they open at 8:30 am and serve breakfast. You might want to head over there between your flights back home if you have time.

https://www.gtyachtclub.com/

George Town Yacht Club

Something else to consider. Liquor is expensive in Cayman and at the CBBR; did you get a "drinks plan" as part of your package? Drinks ordered a la carte from the bar will be pricey and will include an automatic service charge of 15%. Pretty much anything you buy at the bar will have a 15% charge added - even a can of Coke.

Each adult can bring 1 liter of liquor into Cayman duty-free. We usually buy liquor at the airport duty-free shop before we leave the US. There's no problem bringing it through Customs when we arrive on Grand Cayman, but it is a problem if you are traveling on to Brac or Little Cayman or another destination. You have to pack it carefully inside your checked luggage before you recheck it for the flight to Brac because you won't be able to take a large volume of liquid through Security at GCM. They sell re-usable soft containers for padding bottles in luggage on Amazon.

There is an ice machine near the bar at CBBR that is available for guest use, and you can buy canned sodas at the gift shop near the lobby or at the dive shop. There is a small grocery store near the Brac airport and you can borrow a free bicycle from the resort and head over there to buy mixers if you wish. Bring a bottle of water and a hat with you because it is a hot bike ride. The store is closed on Sundays.

Have fun and please post a report when you return!

Agree going to yacht club marina. There is a pool there if you want to go for a dip, and there is a changing room with lockers. We made arrangements to have a boat meet us at the marina and went to sandbar/ stingray city to blow off some time. Operator supplied lunch of subway sandwiches and soda. Can use free shuttle or short walk to get there from airport.

 

[howswedeofme]

We had a ~5 hour layover on the way to the Brac and coming home. On the way there we went to the yacht club and had a really nice time. The drinks aren't too expensive for GC but it also wasn't a cheap visit On the way back we rented a car (not reserved, just walked in and asked if they had something we could use for a few hours) and drove up to get breakfast at Sunshine Grille, which I absolutely love. The car rental was only $25! Way cheaper than a taxi up that far. We also went up to the beach by Calico Jack's after breakfast because for our entire 8 days on the Brac we had no sun and I refused to leave vacation without at least some consolation prize sun during our layover. We had an easy time with customs when we arrived on GC thankfully and we checked our bags with Cayman Air before we left for the yacht club so all we had to do when we got back to Owen Roberts was go through security.

 

[Doctorfish]

5 hours. One hour to pick up luggage and go through immigration. One hour to check in to Cayman Airways and go through security. That leaves three. Go to the Grand Cayman Yacht Club for lunch or to Sunset House.
I do not think you have time for a car rental or the Botanical Gardens. Georgetown is a crowded, ugly tourist trap, Camana Bay is a newer tourist trap. steer clear of both.

 

[Damselfish]

5 hours is not really that much. We've never tried GCYC, but food and hanging out there or Sunset House is about as much as I would do, if you really want to get out of the airport. (For us, we'd likely just suck it up and hang out in the airport with a book. It's at least nicer than it used to be.)

If there's an earlier flight to Brac that has space you might just be able to get on that. I know sometimes people book a later inter-island flight in case something earlier seems too tight and risky to make, or the early ones were full at the time. But sometimes things work out.

 

[Damselfish]

Camana Bay is a newer tourist trap.

The mosaic tower there is worth seeing though.

 

[al248005]

5 hours isnt that long...if Customs still takes forever like it did a few years ago you won't have much time...if you get in line behind a big flight you could be there a while.

 

[KathyV]

5 hours isnt that long...if Customs still takes forever like it did a few years ago you won't have much time...if you get in line behind a big flight you could be there a while.

The new airport has opened and we have found that the immigration, customs, and security lines are much shorter. You can still get stuck in a crowd if several big planes are landing around the same time - but it general things have improved. When we were there late last year, the departure lounge was small and inadequate but it was still under construction, so I am hoping that it will be better next time we visit GCM.

 

[al248005]

The new airport has opened and we have found that the immigration, customs, and security lines are much shorter. You can still get stuck in a crowd if several big planes are landing around the same time - but it general things have improved. When we were there late last year, the departure lounge was small and inadequate but it was still under construction, so I am hoping that it will be better next time we visit GCM.

Yeah I was on Brac at the beginning of last year and ughh the airport construction was bad! Hopefully they get it completed sooner than later

 

[Hoag]

Do you maybe need to do some banking for which the unique "features" of an offshore bank in the Caymans are ideally suited? (Hypothetically of course.)