Cayman Will Re-Open Borders to Visitors in March 2021

[tridacna]

How are the 2 tests a PITA, especially when 1 will be administered on arrival? It will suck if you test positive and have to quarantine - but that’s going to be the risk one must be willing to take when traveling for a while, it appears.

Some assumptions:

1. All airline passengers are vaccinated against Covid 19.
2. All pax have tested negative (PCR) hours before boarding.
3. All CI residents are vaccinated.

Why the need for another test upon landing? Who is PAYING for all the testing? Why not have a daily morning and evening test too? Why not a test before boarding the boat? Or having a meal? Where do you draw the line?

 

[Joneill]

Some assumptions:

1. All airline passengers are vaccinated against Covid 19.
2. All pax have tested negative (PCR) hours before boarding.
3. All CI residents are vaccinated.

Why the need for another test upon landing? Who is PAYING for all the testing? Why not have a daily morning and evening test too? Why not a test before boarding the boat? Or having a meal? Where do you draw the line?

My thoughts on why it’s not a big deal to get a test on arrival if that allows one to travel to the Caymans to dive:

1. It’s not yet proven that being vaccinated means that you can’t be a carrier - and no vaccine is 100% effective.
2. There is an incubation period, so a single test a few hours (it’s actually usually up to 3 days/72 hours so it is more than a “few hours”) before boarding a plane does not necessarily mean you might not be infected if the exposure was very recent.
3. Again, no vaccine is 100% effective and I have not seen a proposal where ALL Cayman residents would be vaccinated prior to border opening - just the most vulnerable.

So I really don’t see the issue with Cayman requiring a test on arrival. I’m actually surprised they don’t require a test 4 or 5 days after arrival like in French Polynesia.

If one is confident they they are not bringing COVID in as you seem to be suggesting, then what’s the concern with getting a confirmatory test in arrival?

Also, I would also expect the travelers would pay for the test - after all, they are the one’s who want to enter and are presenting the risk. Cayman is not a cheap destination, so paying for a test should not be a big deal in my opinion.

In the end, it’s also their country and their rules. If you want to visit, you have to comply - it doesn’t mean you have to agree with their approach. Otherwise, just go somewhere else that has entry requirements that match up with what you are willing to deal with.

Just my view on this - not a big deal for me.

 

[tridacna]

My thoughts on why it’s not a big deal to get a test on arrival if that allows one to travel to the Caymans to dive:

1. It’s not yet proven that being vaccinated means that you can’t be a carrier - and no vaccine is 100% effective.
2. There is an incubation period, so a single test a few hours (it’s actually usually up to 3 days/72 hours so it is more than a “few hours”) before boarding a plane does not necessarily mean you might not be infected if the exposure was very recent.
3. Again, no vaccine is 100% effective and I have not seen a proposal where ALL Cayman residents would be vaccinated prior to border opening - just the most vulnerable.

So I really don’t see the issue with Cayman requiring a test on arrival. I’m actually surprised they don’t require a test 4 or 5 days after arrival like in French Polynesia.

If one is confident they they are not bringing COVID in as you seem to be suggesting, then what’s the concern with getting a confirmatory test in arrival?

Also, I would also expect the travelers would pay for the test - after all, they are the one’s who want to enter and are presenting the risk. Cayman is not a cheap destination, so paying for a test should not be a big deal in my opinion.

In the end, it’s also their country and their rules. If you want to visit, you have to comply - it doesn’t mean you have to agree with their approach. Otherwise, just go somewhere else that has entry requirements that match up with what you are willing to deal with.

Just my view on this - not a big deal for me.

I have no problem with a test on either side. Just not with both sides. That’s plain dumb.

 

[drrich2]

If one is confident they they are not bringing COVID in as you seem to be suggesting, then what’s the concern with getting a confirmatory test in arrival?

Potential issue; risk of a false positive result ruining your vacation. Even with a good test, mass testing of a population where the big majority don't have it can generate a lot of false positives. Then you've got the the contact tracing aspect. So, let's say you and 3 other people (a spouse and 2 kids, or a dive buddy and your spouses, etc...) fly into Grand Cayman. That's 4 opportunities for a false positive, and even one might throw your whole little group into quarantine.

I'm not saying the con.s outweigh the benefits of testing on arrival. Haven't done that math. I'm just saying there are potential con.s. Might be worth it.

 

[Joneill]

Potential issue; risk of a false positive result ruining your vacation. Even with a good test, mass testing of a population where the big majority don't have it can generate a lot of false positives. Then you've got the the contact tracing aspect. So, let's say you and 3 other people (a spouse and 2 kids, or a dive buddy and your spouses, etc...) fly into Grand Cayman. That's 4 opportunities for a false positive, and even one might throw your whole little group into quarantine.

I'm not saying the con.s outweigh the benefits of testing on arrival. Haven't done that math. I'm just saying there are potential con.s. Might be worth it.

Understood. It’s a risk assessment that each person will need to make if they want to visit certain destinations like the Cayman Islands this year, it seems.

However, there are other destinations that don’t have these requirements so, if concerned, folks have other options.

 

[mi000ke]

As someone who has been "stranded" (mostly voluntarily) on GC for a year, it is hard to overstate the value folks here place on being one of the few (essentially) covid-free places on earth. Having put the country through a few months of extreme lockdown earlier in the year, the government naturally has been very concerned about not reintroducing the virus into the community.

But if you do end up going through the hoops to vacation here (and really they won't be that onerous, if all those in your party are old enough to get vaccinated), you will get to experience what life was like before Covid hit (remember no masks, packed restaurants and bars, no social distancing?), plus the diving, the beaches, great food, perfect weather, and great entertainment (including yours truly, the 3rd best gigging sax player in the Caymans. Ok, so there's only three of us, but whose counting? )

 

[caydiver]

There are already many people and families that have done the quarantine quite happily. I would not advise anyway to be running out to buy their tickets yet. There was already some talk last week of limiting the already limited BA flights because of the situation in the UK right now. Also they are “hoping” to start the first stage of the airport reopen in March It is not written in stone. They are using 20% as a hypothetical for the number of visitors to be here for Easter in the best case scenario. It is to give venues a chance to plan and try to prepare. Sadly the watersports Industry has been brutalized and hotels thereafter but other sectors are holding their own. They are not going to throw away the efforts to get a few more people here. I would wait and see what happens before worrying about it. Although our vaccine just arrived last week, the roll out has been orderly and is well underway. IMO that will be a big factor locally as well as what is actually happening overseas.

 

[scubadada]

As someone who has been "stranded" (mostly voluntarily) on GC for a year, it is hard to overstate the value folks here place on being one of the few (essentially) covid-free places on earth. Having put the country through a few months of extreme lockdown earlier in the year, the government naturally has been very concerned about not reintroducing the virus into the community...

You are absolutely correct, look what is currently happening on Bonaire, a real shame.

 

[Alucard]

Once my partner and I get vaccinated, Grand Cayman is absolutely going to be the first place I go. I don't mind getting tested at all.

All the reasons folks have been giving of why they feel that Cayman is being so overly controlled with this are precisely the reasons I want to go there first. Going to an island that is COVID-19 free and being able to not worry about masks, eating at restaurants, not having to maintain social distancing, being able to go inside people houses... that is what I call a vacation, at least compared to what I will have been going through for a year.

I don't want to go to a place that has lax rules, where I have to be concerned about whether I am going to get infected, or have to wear a damned mask, thanks. I am willing to spend my money on that feeling of being safe.

 

[mi000ke]

Got our vaccination today. Easy, convenient, fast and free. Cayman seems to have its act together regarding Covid. At our location they were handling over 100 people per hour- and there are several locations on island. At this rate should have most people done by February