#CaymanTime #IslandTime
Traffic
The first set of times you should be aware of is traffic times:
- cruise ship traffic on the water front (anytime cruise ships are in),
- 7am-9am -Going to work Traffic
- lunch time traffic— and going into 3pm traffic when some parents opt take their lunch to pick up kids from school.
- 5:00pm (time to go home traffic) you do not want to get caught in this while on vacation.
5:00pm on Friday is the easiest because a lot of people are heading to happy hour and this is actually the best time to get meet local experts and people who actually “DO THINGS”, that you can actually network with. Other locals who you will meet during the week are those trying to get by who may be your driver, server or housekeeper—you’ll probably ask them for local advice and they will probably send you to a place where you can purchase a plate of food for $3 down in Eastern Avenue, if that’s your thing, have fun! But be sure to check with your concierge first for a third opinion!
Opening and closing hours
Most places open at 9am and close and 5pm unless otherwise specified, with extended hours during Christmas times. Sometimes some companies won’t answer their phone until 9:30 although the doors are open at 9am.
There are exceptions for tours but these must be made in advance for example, if you wanted to do a 7am boat tour! As long as your Captain agrees, know that he will be on time, so you should too!
Sundays
This is something that all visitors should know. On Saturdays Supermarkets close at 11pm, liquor stores 7/or 10pm depending on the location, retail between 5-9pm , banks 12pm and all re-open on Mondays. 90% of companies are closed on Sundays.
This is a gentle reminder 90% of companies are closed on Sundays— YES, even super markets!
This is not some Sundays or every other… Its EVERY Sunday! The only places that are open for business is restaurants and the hospitality industry and gas stations and bars.
[Ring, ring, ring, ring, apologies, I have to get that! that’s my phone ringing on a Sunday, and my guest just arrived at the supermarket— Oh no, how do I say it nicely that I’ve only reminded them 600 times before they arrived to the island?]
This is the way the island has been, from the very conception of the economy. There is absolutely nothing we can do about, and to be honest, locals actually enjoy that the “Island is closed” on Sunday so we can have staycation as well. Its nothing personal against visitors but it’s a small place and back-in-the-day it was a tradition for families to spend half the day at church and then head down to the beach.
So; if you are arriving to the island on a Sunday, please give your concierge a small grocery list or alcohol list to have in your condo for Sunday. Its likely that your unit is occupied on a Saturday so your groceries may be in your concierge’s office fridge over night! (no exceptions, unless the condo is vacant the Saturday before your arrival)
This also applies if you have rented a boat with us and you opted for alcohol or snacks onboard your boat on a Sunday.
PS. No one answers their phone before 7am or after 8pm… but if you have a good concierge she’ll respond to your whatsapp or text message right away!
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading so far and I’ll continue to make these blog entries entertaining with a hint of seriousness, because this is a serious business!
