Greetings from the Caymans!

[KathyV]

We are on Grand Cayman and it is just as beautiful as I remember! The weather has been lovely but with occasional short storms.

Yesterday we enjoyed diving Turtle Reef shore dive; it's a great time for just $15 CI for a tank and weights - and the cracked conch dinner at Macabuca was good too!

The vis wasn't great, about 50 feet; but the reef was healthy and we saw a hawksbill turtle, some large barracuda, and the biggest school of tarpon I've ever seen, at least 50 of them! A storm hit that area last night and Sundivers was closed today with heavy wave action.

Today we finally got around to diving the Kittiwake. We went with Cayman University and we were the only divers and we had the wreck to ourselves. They gave us a great dive at a good price and with free pics! I would be happy to dive with them again. We didn't ask for it but they gave us valet service!

The vis wasn't the best but it was okay and it was a calm and easy dive. It's an
interesting wreck and we saw stingrays, barracuda, flame scallops, big midnight blue parrotfish and much of the ship's interior.

I hear that it is calm and clear on the North Wall but we haven't checked it out yet.

We will probably just go snorkeling tomorrow but there's a lot of sargassum floating offshore on the south sound and other areas.

We will leave for Little Cayman on Saturday and we have our fingers crossed for good weather! So happy to be back here again!

 

[scoobydrew]

If you are doing any more dives on Grand Cayman when you get back from Little Cayman you might wanna see what the reef recovery group are doing. It'll be free (as in no cost) but the intention is not to see pretty things underwater, instead you would be assisting in the repair efforts following a cruise ship anchor being dropped on the reef last year. Its an interesting project and worth a look if you have the time https://www.facebook.com/groups/654034504694437/

 

[jdcpa]

We probably crossed in the airport as you were coming in as we were departing.

I will add that you will experience a new treat when you leave.

You now check your bags in Little Cayman; pick them up from the baggage belt in Cayman Brac, go to the check in counter and re-check your bags in Cayman Brac, pick them up in Grand Cayman, go the check in and re-check your bags to the US. All of this even though your bags are tagged to your US destination in Little Cayman.

So, three flights on Cayman Airways/Express, three baggage check-ins. That is their new system. Yay!!

I am so happy they are making our trips so much more pleasurable!!

 

[AggieDiver]

It is probably because you switched planes in CB. If you are booking flights back to GC from LC, nearly all of the flights will go through CB these days, but if you look for the ones that keep the same flight number for both legs and show only the twin otter for equipment, you won't have to deplane in CB.

 

[jdcpa]

It was not that way a month ago, even with changing planes on the Brac.

This is their "new system".

 

[Damselfish]

What's old is new again. Long ago when Island Air was doing the route we once stopped on Brac, had to go pick up our bags on the belt, recheck them, and get back on the same Twin Otter. It was like they were pretending it was a real airport.

 

[AggieDiver]

Hmmm...must be a change from the end of August. We went through Brac at the end of August and stayed on the Twin Otter. Didn't have to deplane.

 

[jdcpa]

Yes, it is a change from the end of August!

That is why I brought it up.

 

[KathyV]

We just got back tonight. We had a wonderful trip but the journey home was long and rather hard. Harder than it needs to be IMO. We left LC on the Otter, but when we got to CB after a 7 minute flight we had to deplane, collect our bags and recheck them and go through security. Happily we had taken advantage of LCBR's offer to ship 2 bags at no charge to GC a day early so we didn't have too much luggage to drag around.

Then we got on the turboprop for the trip to GC where we collected our bags (including the 2 we had sent earlier). Went outside to re-enter the airport and recheck our bags as usual, grabbed lunch at the Hungry Horse, and went through security and Cayman Customs and Immigration and hung around the packed departure lounge. I had hopped that Sunday travel wouldn't be as busy as Saturday but it was crazy.

Of course when we got to Miami several hours later, we had to collect our bags and do it all again for US Customs and Immigration and it was a lot harder (we really should apply for Global Entry soon!) and then finally recheck bags and travel to O'Hare where we collected our luggage for the last time.

Chicago is a major hub and it isn't a great distance from the Caymans (1600 miles) and GCM is a large airport by Caribbean standards, and the Sister Islands are only a hop away - so the need to visit 5 airports, take 4 planes, check and recheck bags multiple times, and travel 12 hours just to get home seems a bit excessive. It only took one plane and 12 hours for me to travel from Chicago to South Korea and that's on the other side of the world (6500 miles!)

And I really wish that Cayman Air would offer non-stops from ORD to GCM all year long and not just during the high season. Even if they (or another carrier) only offered the direct flights a couple times a week it would be very helpful. Air Canada offers regular direct flights from Toronto to GC and it is almost the exact same distance.

Cayman's tourism leaders are interested in making the Sister Islands a more attractive destination and they are also worried about losing US travel dollars to Cuba, so they should do their best to make travel easy - but instead they've made it unnecessarily difficult IMO.

And I think that they should follow Nassau's example and arrange for a US Customs and Immigration facility right in the new (currently under construction) airport because that would certainly make things easier.

Oh well, I'll quit grumbling now - we had a great time and saw our first Goliath Grouper!