Cayman Islands is a cluster of islands in the Caribbean Sea. It is located to the south of Cuba, to the northwest of Jamaica, to the northeast of Honduras and the the east of the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. It covers 264 sq km (102 sq mi) and has a population of 55,000 people (2012 estimate). The capital is George Town.
Guide to Cayman Islands Hotels
Here's a list of hotels in Cayman Islands that you can book online, listed by city, with full description, star rating, address, location map, evaluation, and prices as offered by different booking sites. This helps you to make your room booking with the site that offers the best price.
Memorial to the Wreck of the Ten Sails placed in 1994 during the visit of Queen Elizabeth II
Author: Lhb1239 (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)
More on Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands comprise three main islands namely Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. It was sighted by Christopher Columbus on 10 May 1503, during his fourth and final voyage to the New World. He named it Las Tortugas, meaning "the turtles" in Spanish, as he saw some sea turtles from his ship.
Archaeological excavations do not yield any proof of human habitation in Cayman Islands prior to the arrival of Europeans. The islands was not settled until the 17th century, with the initial group of settlers being refugees fleeing the Spanish Inquisition. It was also the time of the English Civil War, and the islands received deserters from Oliver Cromwell's Parliamentarian army fleeing Jamaica. Added to this mix were those who survived shipwrecks off the coast.
Cayman Islands National Museum
Author: Lhb1239 (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)
For as long as there was recorded history, Cayman Islands residents have enjoyed tax exemption. This is traced to 1794, when the islanders rescued the crew of the HMS Convent, which carried Prince William, son of King George III, an incident remembered as the Wreck of the Ten Sail. In gratitude, the king decreed that income tax would never be introduced to Cayman Islands.
The Cayman Islands is today a British Overseas Territory headed by a Governor and a Premier. One of the wealthier countries in the world, it enjoys a per capita GDP of $47,000 (2010 estimate). This gives it the highest standard of living in the Caribbean. The official currency here is the Cayman Islands Dollar (KYD), pegged to the US Dollar at 1 KYD = 1.25 USD.
Cayman Islands experiences a tropical marine climate. The wet season runs from May to October while the dry season from November to April. The island is prone to tropical cyclones between July to November.
Beach on Grand Cayman
Author: Poco a poco (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)
Planning your trip to the Cayman Islands
Visitors who do not need a visa to visit the Cayman Islands include nationals of Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark (including Associated Territories), Dominica, Ecuador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France (including Overseas Collectivites and Communities), Germany, Greece, Grenada, Guyana, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Latvia, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Netherlands (including Associated Territories), New Zealand (including Associated States and Overseas Territories), Norway (including Associated Territories), Oman, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, United Kingdom (including Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories), United States of America, Vanuatu, Venezuela and Zambia.
The Owen Roberts International Airport (GCM) is the airport serving the capital, George Town. It receives flights from Atlanta, Cayman Brac, Charlotte, Havana, Houston, La Ceiba, London-Heathrow, Miami, Montego Bay, Nassau, New York-JFK, Phoenix, Tampa and Toronto, among others.
Preparing Money for your trip to the Cayman Islands
The currency used in the Cayman Islands is the Cayman Island dollar (KYD). The following are the latest rates for Cayman Island dollar in the last 24-hours.
Recommended Travel Guidebook
My favorite travel guidebook for further reading in preparation of your trip is the Caribbean Eyewitness Guide, because it follows a format that I find useful to users, not to mention I have also contributed to some of the titles in the Eyewitness series of guidebooks.
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