After our unexpected day at sea yesterday, Holland America Line’s Nieuw Amsterdam has arrived at her first port of call for this 7-day western Caribbean cruise, Georgetown, Grand Cayman.
Since we skipped Costa Maya, Mexico yesterday due to sea conditions, our original 11am arrival time in Grand Cayman was moved up to 8am so it gave us a full day to do some exploring, as our all aboard time remained at 4:30pm.
Visiting Grand Cayman is a bit different, as there is no dock for cruise ships to pull up to and unload passengers. Instead, ships are assigned anchorage spots just offshore where they deploy their electronic anchors, a combination of GPS and thrusters, to remain in position. This protects the seabed and reefs below from being damaged by dropping anchors on them.
Passengers are then ferried to the island via a fleet of tender boats operated by the port authority. These tenders can accommodate up to 250 passengers each and run continually to and from the ship all day. Smaller vessels may use their own lifeboats as tenders, but they carry far fewer passengers.
Lido Market Breakfast
For those waiting to go ashore, breakfast was being served in the Lido Market, the ship’s buffet and here’s a peek at what was being served:
Tendering Ashore in Grand Cayman
At 8am, the announcement was made for those wanting to go ashore to proceed and grab a tender ticket and wait for their group to be called to board. It wasn’t long after the first passengers were taken ashore that tender tickets were no longer needed, and you could just proceed to the gangway on A-Deck at your leisure.
Joining us in Grand Cayman was Royal Caribbean’s Brilliance of the Seas, Carnival Horizon, and Celebrity Eclipse.
Shore excursions were offered for those looking to take the short drive to the famous Seven Mile Beach, do some snorkeling, hit up the dolphin encounter, or do a helicopter tour. For those like myself who just wanted to do some exploring around the downtown, it was just a quick three-minute tender ride ashore.
Once you arrive on land, you’re right in the heart of Georgetown, and there are plenty of things to do right at the port. While there is technically not a beach in the immediate vicinity, there is a small spot were a few people decided to dip their toes in the water, but it’s not one of those places you’re going to want to camp out at and call it a “beach day” as there are no amenities, it’s rocky, you have to wriggle yourself through barriers, and be brave enough to make it to the water.
So, if you want to get to spend time in the sun and surf, get a taxi or book an excursion to Seven Mile Beach.
If you’re winging in on your own, there are several stand-alone shops and at least three different shopping malls to grab some souvenirs, get your fix of Effy Jewelers or Diamonds International stores that litter all the Caribbean ports like cigarette butts in an ashtray.
Right along the not-so-scenic waterfront, restaurants and bars line the street if you’re daring and your stomach is strong enough to weather any potential food poisoning from experiencing the local flavors from some places that look like cleaning isn’t something that happens very often.
Oh, and of course there’s a Margaritaville in case you just have to have one more margarita or want to totally feel like a tourist. Senior Frogs fans, sorry there’s none here. However, if you just can’t live without a Whopper, there’s not one, but two Burger Kings within walking distance of the port.
So much for Micky D’s.
Lido Market Lunch Menu
For those staying onboard the ship, or those looking to have a bite to eat before heading ashore, lunch was being served in the Lido Market, the Dive In which serves burgers and dogs, and New York Pizza. Here’s what was on the lunch menu in the Lido Market:
My Time Ashore in Grand Cayman
I ventured off the ship around 1pm and there was no line for tenders and the boat taking me ashore only had myself and three other passengers on it. Once setting foot on land for the first time in four days, I gathered my sea legs and set out to do some walking around.
With four ships in port, the downtown wasn’t bustling with people, so it was obvious that most either stayed on their respective ships or were out on excursions.
Georgetown is a very safe area to walk around and explore, either by yourself or with a group. For as many times as I’ve been here, I’ve never been afraid to venture off on side streets or detour from the downtown touristy area.
The locals are very friendly, and you won’t get any high pressure sales pitches from taxi drivers, tour operators, or pan handlers begging for money, which you’ll definitely experience in varying degrees at nearly every stop in a western, eastern, or southern Caribbean cruise. So being left alone without having to say, “no” every 30 feet is a welcome relief.
It’s important to pay attention if you are walking around as sidewalks tend to exist, then they disappear and you’re in the middle of the road, then they come back again. Cars are driven on the “opposite” side of the road from the United States, however, drivers are very keen to following the crosswalk signs and will stop and let you cross, unlike in America where those flashing lights are an indication to speed up and hit pedestrians.
You’ll also find police directing traffic to allow pedestrians to cross in groups in busier intersections around the port.
With Christmas just a few weeks away, decorations started to appear in various areas around the port shopping area.
As I wandered around, I saw a sign for a cigar store, Le Casa del Habana, which only sells Cuban cigars as it’s a franchise of the Cuban government. So, without hesitation, I popped in. It’s a very small store with a limited selection, nothing like the variety you’ll find at their store in St. Maarten.
Prices on cigars were listed in both Cayman and United States dollars, with the US prices (of course) being higher. Prices for a Cuban cigar ranged anywhere from $20 – over $100… each. A bit pricey, but I bought some nonetheless.
There was also a gentleman hand rolling cigars right inside the shop entrance. Having just been told that “we only sell Cuban cigars,” he told me he was rolling cigars with Nicaraguan leaf. Those were priced much less, starting at just $11 a stick. I was wondering if there was some type of bait-and-switch going on with people thinking those were actually Cubans, but since he disclosed they weren’t, I’ll give them a pass.
After about 90 minutes of wandering, I headed back to the port, where Holland American crew were handing out cold face towels and water for those returning to the ship. It was just a short wait for the tender to begin loading passengers, and we were off for another three-minute ride back to the Nieuw Amsterdam.
Now, let’s take a look at some of the things going on around the ship:
Morning Highlights
- Tai Chi at the Lido Pool
- Basketball
- Coloring for Adults
- Ping Pong tournament
Afternoon Highlights
- Cornhole
- Trivia
- Pickleball
- Oragami
Evening Highlights
- Mass
- Trio in the Ocean Bar
- Poolside dancing at the Lido Pool
- Main production show called In Tandem
- Rock and dance hits in the Rolling Stone lounge with the band
Casual dress is the theme tonight, and like I’ve mentioned before, for the most part, on Holland America it’s business casual all the time. The casual dress theme fits in well with the dinner them at the Lido Market where a Caribbean dinner was being served.
I was very excited to see that there would be suckling pig offered, so I headed up around 6pm to get some… but… that little piggy didn’t come to market as there was no pig! I was really looking forward to some juicy pork with some crispy skin, but no!
What a tease!
Main Dining Room Dinner
After having a few pre-dinner cocktails at the Ocean Bar, I made my way to the main dining room. I have open seating so I can arrive at any time for dinner, while traditional early and late seatings are also offered.
Here’s a peek at the main dining room menu:
I started off with the Quinoa salad and the duck breast, which were both delicious, especially the duck which was so tender and had a nice smoky flavor to it. I could have asked for more!
For my main course, I went with the prime rib. My server asked, “how big?” I said, “big!” Which, when it arrived, lived up to the expectations. Very tender, quite delicious, and I got the farfalle pasta to go along with it. A real treat!
When it came time for dessert, there wasn’t much room, but I got a scoop of ice cream to round out the night.
Before heading off to bed, I did a walk around the ship, stopping off at the Rolling Stone Lounge and caught the last few minutes of the band’s set, then headed up to the Sea View Pool to end the night with one of those Cubans I bought earlier.
We’re heading to our next port of call, Ocho Rios, Jamaica, where we’re schedule to arrive at 8am tomorrow. Stay tuned for more, and as always, thanks for following along!
Personal Day-By-Day Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam Cruise Review: