THE EAST END

Cayman Islands, BVI

When I think of a relaxing vacation I instantly envision sugar sand beaches, endless sunshine, and plenty of blended drinks. During our stay in the Caymans, we spent a majority of our time lounging and exploring in the East End of the island. The area is more relaxed and doesn't have as many resorts as the George Town and Seven Mile Beach areas. If you prefer a slower paced vacation I would definitely recommend checking out one of the timeshares in the area! The East End is about a 30-minute drive from the airport so renting a car is essential. Since we were there with family, we all piled into a suburban and made a pit-stop to stock up on food and booze for our weeks stay.

Our timeshares all came with kitchens, which was a huge plus! We ended up making breakfast and light snacks and enjoyed dinners out. If you're a seafood fan, then dinning out in this area would be like heaven. I'm pretty sure we ate our body weight in fish tacos, they were absolutely incredible! 

WHERE TO EAT

We took every advantage to enjoy the local seafood during our stay. There were a few stand-outs during our stay that I will still continue to have foodie dreams about. The first evening my parents took us to their favorite which happened to be up the road from our hotel* (they also offered a free shuttle to and from the restaurant. 

TUKKA RESTAURANT & BAR
898 Queens Hyw. Gun Bay, East End
Cayman Islands

We arrived on a Friday, and luckily were treated to Tukka's array of Fresh Fish Fridays; local fisherman drop their days catch off right to the restaurant! Kevin ordered the Snapper, which was included on the fresh catch, and I opted for the Lion Fish tacos. Both dishes were absolutely incredible, especially when paired with a mango mojito. 

EAGLE RAY'S BAR & GRILL
346 Austin Connoly Drive
 Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, East End

Eagle Rays is actually just a short drive from Tukkas and under the same ownership. The overall vibes is much more relaxed and open aired. We took full advantage and spent several lunches at Eagle Rays. The open deck tables provide the perfect ocean views and the food couldn't be more delicious! On our first stop in we had a mix of food, including lion fish tacos, fish & chips (my favorite), club sandwich, and trio of bites. I'd also recommend indulging in one of their many cocktails or local brews. The Bahama Mama was too good! 

BOMBAY CHOPSTICK
369 Austin Conolly Drive
Next to Ocean Frontiers, East End

don't let this small roadside local fool you, the food is out of this world! We opted to try a bunch of different items and share everything family style. Among our favorites were the vegetable egg roll, the fresh snapper, Tandoori Fish Masala, and Shrimp Tikka Masala. The restaurant carries an array of dishes that seem to be a mix of Asian and Indian cuisines. 

BIG TREE BBQ
503 Austin Conolly Dr., 
Gun Bay, Grand Cayman

After reading several reviews on trip advisor we knew this was a must-stop on our foodie adventure. We had driven by several times and kept seeing a crowd around both lunch and dinner and finally made a point to stop in for lunch. We kept our order pretty easy and just ordered one of everything, we wanted to be able to try the menu and I'm so happy we did! The standouts were definitely the lobster, short ribs, and BBQ chicken. Each order comes with a variety of sides including a piece of corn bread, that was absolutely delicious (more like spice cake!).

LEISURE TIME

SUNSET CRUISE
North Side KY1-1700 Grand Cayman

This was one thing that definitely stood out as a highlight of our trip! My parents had booked a sunset sail on our second to last day on the island. We left from rum point, so we arrived a little ahead of our departure and had a drink before setting sail. The boat actually had drinks for sale on board, which was a bonus. I should also note that the overall vibe was much more relaxed than your typical "booze cruise". Most people on board were older aged or families so no craziness, which made the experience much more relaxing! The only down side would be that they're advertised complimentary "food" was chicken wings - which was a bit of a bummer. If you plan on drinking definitely grab food before!
 

CAMANA BAY
10 Market St, KY1-9006, Cayman Island

In all honesty, I thought I’d be doing a lot more shopping than what we did. In general, I was a little disappointed with the shopping at the new Camana Bay. Don’t get me wrong the area is gorgeous and pretty much brand new. But, we found most of the shops to be very similar to stores we have in the Bay Area. I was hoping we could find a “surf-style” shop, so I could pick up a new hat or tank. The stores within the Camana Bay area are pretty high end and the one shop I did end up liking was pretty overpriced. We ended up hanging around since it took a good 40 minutes to drive (from the East End) and grabbed lunch on the bay. The restaurant was super cute and the service was awesome, so the shopping trip wasn’t a complete dud.

If you’re looking to do some boutique shopping for trinkets with more local flare I would suggest checking out George Town instead. The only downside to shopping in George Town is that it’s normally pretty crowded since this is where the Cruise drops off passengers. There’s also fun restaurants and bars along the ocean with great views, so you could definitely made a day of it.

THE PUBLIC BEACHES

RUM POINT
North Side KY1-1700 Grand Cayman

We took a drive to rum point early in our stay to have a drink and catch the sunset, which was gorgeous. The beach wasn't too packed and we were able to grab lounge chairs to sit down and relax. The sand at rum point is "sugar sand" which was a bonus! The drinks were a little over priced, but your paying for the experience, which we were ok with. If you happen to also be game for a little shopping, the gift shop on site has a ton of great momentous and clothing options.

STARFISH POINT
Water Cay Rd, Cayman Islands

I can't stress enough how nice having a rental car was! It made it so easy to take last minute trips without all the hassle of arranging a ride or taxi. I had heard/read that starfish point was a fun thing to experience. We decided to take a trip late morning, and drove towards the area (which is near rum point). The directions listed and given were super confusing and really didn't share the exact spot. Since some of the roads aren't as clearly marked it took us quite awhile to find it. If you are driving make sure your on the road with the yacht club, follow this all the way to the end towards the large cement arch (front of a private estate). The entrance to starfish beach will be designated in the round about.
 

xoxo,

Birdie