All 3 Cayman Islands Single Specials - Singles Pay Same Rate as Doubles

[KathyV]

Re-checking your link to the deal. Cobalt Coast "Travel mid April - June 30, must book by Feb 28 "
Thanks for the heads-up.

Here's some information about the renovations recently posted on Trip Advisor, it is great that they are ensuring that you will have good, individually-controlled AC in your room!

Renovations in Progress Still a Nice Place to Stay
Stayed week of Jan 13th ~ 20th, 2018. Greatly enjoyed interacting with ALL staff as they were friendly and easily engaged. As mentioned by other reviewers, the AC units and Windows are in dire need of replacement. GOOD NEWS is this IS being done and AC units should be replaced by April 1st. Aside from that, everything else was up to par and comfortable.
NOTE! There are lots of wild chickens and roosters on the island and they may crow at night. We found it mildly amusing.
The Pool and Hot Tub are especially nice. Food was very tasty, plentiful, and good variety. Our room was very clean and comfortable. Reef Diver team also very good. Their level of 'Valet Diving' was fine with me. Bernie, Rowan, and Oli get kudo's. Collin, Lavern, and rest of staff were great. I would definitely consider coming back to this resort. BTW, resort is within walking distance of the Turtle Farm and Hell!


Dive_and_Resort_Team, Guest Relations Manager at Cobalt Coast Grand Cayman Resort, responded to this review, Responded 4 days ago
Thanks for your visit and review, Dnorris12. As you've noted, the resort does need renovations. We purchased about 2 years ago, just figured out what we wanted to do last spring (and discovered other surprise projects that had to be done), and got started last July. All rooms in the main resort will have new individually-controlled AC units by mid-April. We continue working on updating the rooms and putting in new bathrooms. By the end of 2018 - it will be like a brand new resort. We look forward to your return!

 

[Kharon]

Wowzer. Flight from Albany to GC - $1300. Looks like the keys fo' sho'
Update: Different search engine got it down to $800+. Still Florida at <$200 direct flight.

 

[KathyV]

Wowzer. Flight from Albany to GC - $1300. Looks like the keys fo' sho'

That's crazy! We flew from Chicago to Grand Cayman to Little Cayman for $650 per person round trip, just a couple of months ago!

I keep reading about cheap, non-stop fares from NYC to GC; if you could find a reasonable fare to NYC then it should be okay.

 

[Kharon]

I keep reading about cheap, non-stop fares from NYC to GC; if you could find a reasonable fare to NYC then it should be okay.

NYC is definitely out. It adds a very large amount of cost (tolls, gas, parking for a week, hotel) not to mention the 4 hour drive each way. Round trip flights to NYC are near impossible to make good connections and it's about $400 round trip from Albany (NY capital to NYC - tons of travelers - they can charge what they want).

Just not worth it. At ≈$200 and a direct flight just over 3 hours and no customs, florida is kind of a no brainer.

 

[KathyV]

NYC is definitely out. It adds a very large amount of cost (tolls, gas, parking for a week, hotel) not to mention the 4 hour drive each way. Round trip flights to NYC are near impossible to make good connections and it's about $400 round trip from Albany (NY capital to NYC - tons of travelers - they can charge what they want).

Just not worth it. At ≈$200 and a direct flight just over 3 hours and no customs, florida is kind of a no brainer.

Florida is great, have a good trip!

 

[KathyV]

NYC is definitely out. It adds a very large amount of cost (tolls, gas, parking for a week, hotel) not to mention the 4 hour drive each way. Round trip flights to NYC are near impossible to make good connections and it's about $400 round trip from Albany (NY capital to NYC - tons of travelers - they can charge what they want). Just not worth it. At ≈$200 and a direct flight just over 3 hours and no customs, florida is kind of a no brainer.

I don't mean to interfere, but since NYC is only a 4 hour drive away from Albany it occurs to me that there may be reasonably-priced and convenient rail or bus transport available? Not necessarily to take flights to Cayman, but New York is a nexus for national and international air transportation, so you might benefit from flights to many destinations without having to pay for the tolls, gas, hotel, and weekly parking - or deal with the heavy traffic, either. Maybe that could help you to get back to Bonaire, which I know is a favorite destination for you.

I am not very familiar with New York but I am very familiar with Chicago, another major metropolitan transportation center. I traveled in and out of the Loop via Union Station for many years to go to work. So I know that the Amtrak trains come into Union Station from all across the country and that some passengers often transferred to the local Metra commuter train to travel quickly to O'Hare - where they boarded planes to destinations all over the world. I imagine that there are similar options available in New York City?

I have no idea how expensive or convenient the train might be between Albany and NYC, but it might be worth checking it out. And I have no experience at all with overland bus routes, but that might be another option. After all, 4 hours away doesn't sound all that distant to reach an international gateway.

When I worked in the city I used to complain about the trains frequently - but in retrospect it really wasn't that bad; most of the time you can just sit quietly and read a book and enjoy the ride and you will get there soon.

Just an idea, good luck!

 

[Kharon]

Thanks KathyV. Trains are expensive (same gov employees and business people traveling that corridor as by air). Though it costs less less than airfare the difference isn't a whole lot. No good way to get to any airport except taxi = expensive and still a 4 hour ride each way and the hassle of getting to the airport from Penn or GCS in time to catch a flight. When I was working I used to get sent to the city frequently by train. Don't think I want that experience again.

I rode down to Newark with club members on the GC trip and really didn't enjoy the ride. I'm getting old and stiff and crotchety. If it ain't fun, I ain't interested - lol. I'd rather pay more and sit less. If the travel times were reasonable to Bonaire I could suck-it-up on the airfare.

If I get creative I can sometimes find a direct from Albany to somewhere that I can hop a direct to Bonaire (or somewhere else). Sometimes (often) it involves different routes and airlines each way. It's a lot of work and time but sometimes worth it - if I can find the right connections.

I'm also looking into Dominica. I would love to get back there for both the topside and diving. Last time I looked I could fly into Puerto Rico and puddle jump to Dominica from there. That's probably no longer an option since the hurricane but there might be another option. Maybe a circular route with diving on Dominica and somewhere else - or two somewhere elses with short travel times between each. I need an assistant.

Right now I've settled on the keys for my next trip, specifically the Key Largo area. I want to give it a try this fall, after my shoulder is done. It may very well turn out to be the perfect option for me even without shore diving. I'm running out of steam as I age and would love a place that I can get to easily and frequently.

Hopefully the travel times to Bonaire will come down by winter and I can get back at least once more. Divi-Divi has started regular flights from Curacao and Aruba. That might give me some options. The only good thing about flying back through Aruba is that you clear customs there - I do hate that airport. I have family that I can visit and fly out of Rochester or Boston. Jet Blue flys to Aruba and Curacao one stop and some flights from Boston are direct to Curacao.

Sorry to get so windy and off topic.