We just returned from a 4 night stay at the Plantana. It was a great place for a family to stay. We stayed in the 2 bedroom/ 2 bath Garden View. One bedroom had a king size bed, the other a double plus a twin. The living area also had a sofa bed. There was also another sitting area, dining area, full kitchen, washer and dryer, and screened in balcony with table and chairs. There were 2 t.v.'s with U.S. channels and a VCR. Very clean and spacious. The pool was basic but clean. The beach had shade trees, lounge chairs and umbrellas. We saw only 2 other families the whole time we were there! The beach had a few rocks when you first go in the water, but other than that very, very nice! There was some great snorkeling a short swim off shore.
We walked 5 minutes down the beach to the Westin and booked all our activities through Red Sail Sports. Very friendly people. I was a little disappointed though when they talked me into the morning trip to Sting Ray City as opposed to the afternoon one. The morning trip is on a bigger Catarmaran than the afternoon one, however it goes to a site that is 9 feet deep, and with small children and the choppy seas my 3 and 6 year olds could not enjoy it . My 9 year old managed okay. The next day however we did the afternoon trip to the Sting Ray Sand Bar and it was much better for the children and even I enjoyed it better. We all could stand up in the water. I was cautioned not to go to this site in the morning though because it is very crowded then with all the cruise ship passengers. My 9 year old also took scuba lessons at the Westin and loved it. My 6 year old took lessons too, with the scuba gear but just stayed on the surface. (Like snorkeling with scuba gear).
We rented a car ahead of time, and I think I would do it again. We used it to get to and from the airport, grocery store (We bought groceries and ate breakfast and lunch in our condo.), and restaurants (The Lobster Pot and The Wharf - both had great food, great view and were a great expense). We also went to the Turtle Farm, and Pirates Cave (it was okay - but don't make a special trip). We took a drive to the East end, not much there. Overall The Caymans were great. They are slowly recovering from the storm last year but other than seeing damaged homes and trees knocked down it didn't impact us in any way. It was a great vacation!




Value
Cleanliness




