Reviewers Rating: 
Excellent
Review- Spanish Bay Reef Resort, Grand Cayman I just spent five days, four nights at the Spanish Bay Reef Resort on the Northwest Tip of Grand Cayman. Since I never found a really adequate description of the place online, I would like to offer one. Personally, I loved it and it was the best trip I ever took. However, it is the kind of place that elicits different reactions from people --- some people there loved it, and some didn’t love it. I noticed three main factors that caused these reactions.
FIRST, the resort is best for those who are certified divers. I found the diving there excellent, but the snorkeling and swimming was weak (the reef is too deep to snorkel over, and the beach was a bit rocky, at least in the places I tried to enter). If you dive, though, it is perfect. The first morning, you simply go by the dive shop (which is right there) and they give you all the equipment you need. You take it with you and keep it in your room for the duration of your trip, and can even take it off the property to dive at other locations (at least some people did this; expect to pay only about $7 for a tank at another location for a shore dive). Otherwise, all you need to do when you’re ready to dive is tell them and they bring out filled tanks. When you’re done, you just sign back in and leave the tanks. It was perfectly efficient. The reef is reached from shore after a fairly rigorous swim (especially if the surf is choppy). The reef starts about a 10-minute slow swim away and is about 35 feet at that point. A short way up, the reef drops off to 20,000 feet at about 95 feet. We dove twice a day and never saw the entire reef. There were excellent “mini-walls,” canyons, fish, and wildlife (besides seeing most types of fish, we saw a stingray and a turtle). Visibility was about 80 ft.
SECOND, people’s reactions depended largely on how much they paid! We found the price discrepancy to be huge (some couples paid 2.5X what other couples paid). The best deals seemed to come through Adventure Tours, which flies out of Dallas and Phoenix. One couple paid under $1,000 for four nights, including airfare, which is an incredible deal for what you get, and we paid slightly more (diving and equipment rental alone would have cost us a good $500, and the equivalent meals and drinks easily could have topped another $500 – easily).
THIRD, Spanish Bay Reef Resort is not a “luxury” experience like you will find at some of the ungodly expensive resorts and hotels on Cayman, and people expecting that kind of service and comfort seemed a bit disappointed. I would consider it to be “old school” Caribbean. The staff is not a bunch of butt-kissing locals determined to fulfill your every whim. They were just ordinary people who did their job and were friendly enough (but without losing their dignity by acting like slaves). For example, nobody is going to come take your drink orders at the pool – you have to wait like the rest of the people while the one bartender slowly takes orders and makes drinks (he was a bit too relaxed). Also, food is served buffet style only, so you’ve got to pretty much serve yourself. In addition, the rooms were far from luxurious, but were good enough. On the positive side, the grounds are fantastic for having a true “Caribbean” experience. The view from the resort is excellent, there are no crowds or cruise ships anywhere near (thank God), there are plenty of chairs and hammocks to hang out in, and the bar was the best one I saw while on the island. Also, because of its smaller size and clientele (typically, well-seasoned travelers [many from England], families, and honeymooners here and there), you get to meet and converse with about as many interesting people as you want. Practically everybody, including the staff, seemed to be in the talking mood at most times. That was cool. There were several teenagers and pre-teens there, and it didn’t take long for them to find and entertain each other for the entire trip. The place is perfect for older kids, all of whom seemed to enjoy it greatly, and is very safe from both crime and accidents.
ABOUT THE ROOMS: The website for the resort shows only the “villas,” which are simple, square structures. Most people stay in the main lodging structure, which is a very motel-ish two story building that overlooks the “garden” (well, it wasn’t much of a garden, but who cares?). We supposedly had a “superior” room, but I don’t see how that would have been possible. Rooms in the main building were tiled with two queen sized beds. The bathroom and plumbing were a bit old and tired (the toilet ran and the sink squealed). The front door was screened with slats, so people could hear what was going on in the room (honeymooners, beware!). One of our slats was sort of broken, so you could actually SEE into our room, too (#47)! The t.v. only picked up about six channels. In other words, if you’re looking for a luxurious room with a great view, these won’t satisfy you (I didn’t see the villas inside, but I can tell you the view of the ocean is not unobstructed; for the money, I’d stick with the regular rooms unless you have a large group). We didn’t care the slightest about the room, so it was no big deal (it was actually funny). The resort is typically listed as three stars because of the rooms (but, I’d say, four or five stars overall).
ABOUT THE GROUNDS: I loved the grounds. There are boardwalks which lead from the rooms to the main part of the resort (it’s a pretty small resort). The dive shop will be on the left right next to the water. It was very nice and had a gift shop in it; the staff was very cool and professional, and they were all young people from England and the U.S. There is a huge slab of concrete next to the water where divers gear up and others hang out. There are stairs leading into the water, and a jetty which you can walk out on. Next to the dive shop, there are a couple of shade structures with lawn chairs. Following a nice path, you hit the dining and pool area. The dining area was completely outside and was very nice (there is also a large, two story indoor dining section used in the winter and when it’s more crowded). Dinner was by candlelight (if they got around to lighting them) and tiki torches. The pool sits high with a veranda overlooking the ocean (you can see that on the website). It was a very basic pool (4 to 8 feet deep), but very clean. The hot tubs sit next to them and leave a bit to be desired. Next to the pool is a beautiful wooden bar. You take steps down from the bar to get to the beach which lies next to the resort. In terms of looks, the beach is only slightly less impressive than 7 mile beach, but without all the people and the hundreds of buoys, ships, and waverunners that block the view. The beach is lined with beautiful homes. Again, you need to be very careful when swimming on the beach because there are a lot of rocks in the water. Music plays at a fairly low volume on several speakers throughout the main part. It was mostly reggae, but someone there loved Barbara Streisand.
ABOUT THE FOOD AND DRINK: The food was simple and delicious, though not “gourmet.” Breakfast options included bagels and muffins, juices, eggs, bacon, fried potatoes, fruit, and cereal, plus an “omelet bar” manned by the staff. Lunch was usually one main dish (some sort of pasta or meat), a “hamburger bar” manned by the staff (Cheeseburgers in Paradise), plus cookies, a salad bar, fruit, and several sides. Dinner was usually a fancier dish (e.g. Curry Shrimp, Red Snapper) and a large hunk of meat (cut by the staff), plus a salad bar, several sides, and several pies and cakes (but there was always only one serving utensil for dessert – very strange). The bar had pretty much everything, including frozen drinks (made one or two at a time from scratch). The Pina Coladas were the best I ever had. I can’t imagine that everybody couldn’t find something they liked in their buffets, but then American tourists never cease to amaze me in being so spoiled and pathetic.
JEEPS AND BIKES: These were not “Jeeps” in the sense that they were made by Jeep. They were beat-up Daihatsu SUVs. Warning: They are all standard transmission and the stick shift has to be operated by the left hand. With the right attitude, the vehicles can be fun. They have no radio or AC, but they run ok and look cool. You pay $7.50 for the Cayman license, and then $7.50 each time you take them out (either from 9:00-12:00, which is more like 8:30-12:30, or 1:00-4:00, more like 12:30-4:30), billed to your room. Insurance is $10 if you want. Seven mile beach is about a 10-15 minute drive, and shopping in Georgetown is about 15 minutes. Hell and the turtle farm are only about 5-10 minutes away. Although the island is only 22 miles long, it took us an hour each way to get to the QE II botanical park. The bikes are even worse than the “jeeps,” but they were fun, too. They were one-speed beach cruisers with cushy seats and few guests took advantage of them. However, if you go, take a left on the street and go about five minutes. The paved road turns into sand and, if followed, leads you to some of the best beaches and views we saw on the trip – entirely secluded and shaded by beautiful grape trees. This is where a lot of the locals hang on weekends and where the “bike tours” (which people actually pay to go on) take you. It was a lot of fun and less than 10 minutes from Spanish Bay Reef Resort. We also rode the bikes to the turtle farm (15 minutes or so), which led us through some great, “authentic” neighborhoods. Next to the turtle farm, there’s a great dive shop that will let you snorkel off their deck (way better snorkeling than Spanish Bay) or you can do a tank dive for $7.50 if you have the equipment.
NIGHTLIFE: At least when we were there in July, there was no entertainment or activities available (these are probably in the winter only). Not only that, there is basically no way to get to anywhere unless you take an expensive cab or rent a car. Jeeps have to be in by 4:30, and the shuttle to their sister resort, “The Beach Club” returns at 4:30, too. So, we resorted to star gazing on the beach (great view), long dinners with other guests, and, of course, tv. Heavy drinkers could always keep busy at the bar, which stays open until 2:00, but the mood there is quite reserved (I think I even heard Barbara at 11:00 at night!). The English people tended to congregate together, as did the Americans.
ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE THE RESORT: Shopping in Georgetown was fun, but the number of cruise ship people was unbelievable and made me tense. Still, great shops and the prices were not bad. We went to a “Stingray City” dive with the resort’s dive shop, which cost us $60 each. It was cool enough, I guess, but I would recommend doing the cheaper, shallow trip in four feet of water (you can find some trips for about $20, but they aren’t convenient if you are staying at Spanish Bay). Getting accosted by stingrays is about the same whether in 4 feet or 12 feet – and they do bite (no kidding). The turtle farm was lame but, again, a “must do” and worth the $6 admission. You will get to hold and pet hundreds of miserable turtles, so I guess you gotta do it. The place is sort of a joke, though, because it’s mainly a breeding ground for endangered turtles destined to be slaughtered for food. Only a small percentage are released, yet they make it sound like this is some great conservation program. Go early to avoid the obnoxious cruise people (it opens at 8:30). We didn’t go to Hell (ha ha), but I heard it was worth the price of admission ($0). It you’re at Spanish Bay, you might as well go if you have a bike or jeep. Spanish Bay Reef Resort has a “sister resort,” the Beach Club, which is apparently the only other all-inclusive on the island. I do not recommend staying there at all (in fact, some of their guests switched their vacation to Spanish Bay after coming over and seeing it). It is ground zero for cruise people who buy lunch vouchers there. The building and grounds are nowhere near as nice as Spanish Bay, and the beach was the most crowded thing I’ve ever seen (think Woodstock on the beach). It sits next to the Hyatt, which also seemed to really suck in terms of crowds and a perfect beach ruined by waverunners and thousands of obnoxious tourists. Anyway, you can take a free van from Spanish Bay to the Beach Club which runs only twice a day. Theoretically, you could stretch out the trip from about 9:30 AM until about 4:30 PM. We rented a sunfish sailboat at the Hyatt for a mere $25 an hour (it was great), but waverunners will cost you $69 for a half hour. Spanish Bay guests get vouchers for two drinks or, if you want, for lunch. One thing we didn’t try was the ferry that leaves from the back part of the Hyatt (the vast majority of Hyatt rooms are WAY far from the beach across the street overlooking the bay) and goes to “Rum Point,” which apparently is a pretty neat place. I don’t know the price. If you have time, we also recommend the Queen Elizabeth II Botanical Gardens ($7.50/person), although it is quite a drive away. We originally planned to do the free “Mastic Trail,” but that was a bust. It is entirely unmarked; you see a dirt road called “Mastic Rd.” and go down it; you run into a barbed wire fence that says, “Please Keep Closed.” Was that it? It was ridiculously confusing given the fact that it’s listed in tourist guides. As it turns out, you have to go to QE II park and buy a $5 “guide” which tells you how to actually get to the trail. Even still, it didn’t look worth it. The Botanical Gardens are very nice and have a great Caribbean homestead and nice fauna. It provided some of our best pictures, too.
CONCLUSION We highly recommend Spanish Bay Reef Resort, provided you are aware of what you’re getting yourself into and you got a good deal (or, as with some of the guests, money isn’t an issue). I don’t think there is any place on 7 mile beach I could have enjoyed (and, the beach itself isn’t even as nice as Cancun). The all-inclusive part of Spanish Bay is its best feature unless you’re very wealthy. In the airport on the way back, I ran into another couple on our plane who had paid the same amount as us to stay at Sunshine Suites. They seemed stressed and pissed off, especially at how much they had to pay for food and cabs. To eat and drink like we did would have cost so many hundreds that we never would have done it (we would probably just have eaten at Burger King and would have drank sparingly). When discussing our trips, they seemed incredulous at how much better our deal and trip was then there’s. Ha Ha. We felt like we had “beat the system” of the Cayman Islands by having a great, relaxing trip at about the same price as Cozumel, plus we dove more than we had ever dove before. There are probably better, more “authentic” islands in the Caribbean than Grand Cayman, but, if you’re going, Spanish Bay Reef Resort is the place to go to experience the best the island has to offer (beauty, nature, and the Caribbean spirit) without the worst (ridiculously priced food and drinks, and a horrible number of “tourists” in the worst sense of the word). We would love to go back, this time with the kids. Ya, mon.
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