My First Boat Trip

My First Cayman Boat Trip

I never dreamt the day I’d be enjoying my first boat trip, let alone my first Cayman boat trip. 

Owning boats or going on boat trips is quite popular in the Cayman Islands.

Whether you’re a local or tourist, if you haven’t been on a boat trip while in the Cayman Islands, what are you waiting for? haha

As a first-timer, I wasn’t sure of the ins and outs when going on this adventure, but thank God I had my hubby D to make it all easy. 

In the past, I did plan a whole birthday boat trip once, but it didn’t work out as planned. Oh well, bummer, right? 

I was disappointed then, but now it’s even better because D’s birthday is coming up, and what better way to celebrate it than with a trip to the beautiful Cayman waters?

So let’s get right into it – My First Cayman Boat Trip.

What You Need For a Boat Trip? 

As I mentioned before, I’m a first-timer for this, but D, on the other hand, was a natural. 

When D had previously lived here, he’d go on numerous boat trips, whether for a party or just chilling with friends. 

So he has the right idea of packing and being ready for this. 

Tips When Packing For a Boat Trip: 

• ALWAYS have a bathing suit ready. Since you’ll be out at sea in the Cayman Islands water, there are some beautiful spots to enjoy the water. I’ll share those details later on. 
• Keep HYDRATED! It’s vital to keep a bottle or two of water nearby. As you’re out at sea, there’s a lot of salt air and water to take in, and while that’s all fine and dandy, it can leave you dehydrated. Especially if you’re drinking (like we were, haha.)
• Using water-proof phone cases is a MUST. Everyone wants to capture each moment of the day, and you wouldn’t want your phone to get wet. So, water-proof cases will definitely come in handy. 
• SUNSCREEN or SUNBLOCK – another essential thing to have. 
• I cannot stress this enough, but shades is so VALUABLE here. All this sun is great for catching a tan, but don’t forget to pack a pair or two of sunglasses. 

Cayman Boat Trip Itinerary

After going over our packing, we were ready for our adventurous boat ride. 

We were able to plan this trip through a friend of ours who had relatives who owned a boat out by the George Town Yacht Club. 

We met our captain there, Captain Ricardo Galeano-Ebanks, and onto the boat we went. 

On this trip, we had a few fun activities planned out for the day. 

And so we started with conch diving as it was the last day of the season. 

Unfortunately, I’m no diver, so I was happy to stay on the boat and see our friends go diving for conch. 

What Is Conch?

Think of a conch as a sea snail living in large shells at the bottom of the ocean. 

Don’t worry, as these snails of the sea are not as gross as they sound and are delicious once prepared correctly. 

I tried conch for the first time here at a restaurant bar called South Coast Bar & Grill. 

We ordered the Marinated Conch, served cold with crackers on the side. 

I was pretty impressed with it, and if you didn’t know, conch is also known to be an aphrodisiac.

Back to our exciting trip, after conch diving, the captain, a well-experienced boating commander, took us to our next stop, Stingray City. 

Stingray City – Home of Stingrays

Home to clear waters and magnificent stingrays, this was my favorite part of the trip. 

I’ve never seen stingrays before, and it was fascinating to see a fever of stingrays swimming along us humans. 

Stingray City is a known tourist attraction in the Cayman Islands. You’ll see other boaters enjoy the waters and these spectacular fish almost any day of the week.

They were so gentle, friendly, and soft to the touch. 

We even fed them with waste leftover from the cleaning of conch that our captain completed as we enjoyed the waters. 

Tips When Visiting Stingray City

• While these creatures are friendly, one must be careful not to provoke them. If triggered, stingrays use the spinal blade(stinger) at the tip of their tail to ward off their attackers. 
• Try to be calm and relaxed when they pass you in the water. 
• When feeding stingrays, allow them to “suck” the food from your hands to prevent your hands from entering the fish’s mouth.
• Kiss a stingray for seven years of good luck.
• NEVER attempt to lift or remove a stingray from the waters. 

Rum Point Beach

After feeding and kissing the stingrays, our next stop on the agenda was Rum Point Beach.

Throughout this entire experience, I had no idea where in these Cayman waters I was, but it was interesting to be journeying along Grand Cayman. 

Once we got to Rum Point Beach, it was all about pure relaxation. 

Located in the northern section of the island, this was another popular tourist attraction on the island.

We even saw more stingrays – even bigger than those at Stingray City.

After enjoying the warm waters of Rum Point, we decided to head back to the yacht club. 

George Town Yacht Club

Once we were back on land, we decided to pop in and check out the club. At this time, they were having an annual fishing tournament. 

Now, this was no ordinary fishing tournament. These guys were bringing in 70, 80-pound fish just to be judged. 

I’ve never seen fish of these sizes, so I was a bit fascinated thinking about these men and women going out deep-sea fishing to catch these suckers. 

After a long day of exploration, we retired to our friend’s place for a home-cooked dinner and good vibes. 

This trip was one for the books, with many firsts happening. 

I look forward to owning a boat one day to set sails out to sea and have adventures to share with my family and friends.

Thanks for being here and I hope you enjoyed the content. You can follow me for more content and recipes on Pinterest, Instagram, and TikTok.

~ TheShyFoodBlogger