Our group of eight stayed at the BCC in April, 4 adults, 4 teenagers. We too, were nervous about the overbooking issue, and the hotel accommodations in general. We arrived, and everything was fine…one room was ready, the other being cleaned. We did arrive one hour earlier than check-in however. They asked us to sit and enjoy some lunch while we waited. After a long morning of traveling we were ready to relax. Our luggage was lost during our travels, so we had nothing to change into, and it was HOT!

ROOMS: Our room was basic: two queen beds, a small bath, a large closet and dresser for all of our clothes. The room wasn’t super clean, but we realized we would barely spend much time there anyway. The bathroom fixtures were old and stained, but clean. If you want your sheets changed during your stay, you must ask. The AC worked fine, and sometimes it was a little too chilly in the room. TV was OK with some basic American channels. We went to bed pretty early each night as the activities during the day certainly wore us out.

CRUISE SHIPS: On Monday there was one ship in, and it was fairly crowded. Our section of the beach was just for BCC guests, and we loved lazing about under the palm trees. Umbrellas were set up each morning. The cruisers left such a mess for the staff to clean up. It was heartbreaking watching these guys pick up the litter strewn everywhere~~no courtesy whatsoever. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday brought 3 ships per day, and honestly, it wasn’t that crowded, and they were gone early. The staff took care of us tremendously. JJ (sweetheart) brought the guests a huge fresh fruit platter each day at around 11:00 and left it on this bar-like structure with our own water cooler. The last two cruise days, our kids felt so bad for the clean-up crew that they all pitched in and helped clean up the mess and stack the chairs (see pic). Our kids were picking up orange and banana peels, cigarette butts, plastic cups and straws. It was ridiculous. I think the guys were pretty grateful to have the kids help.

FOOD: We thoroughly enjoyed every morsel at every meal. I cannot even say that there was anything that didn’t tickle our palates. They served lasagna one lunch, and it was honestly the best I had ever had. The kids usually ordered a burger from the grill and enjoyed their delicious pasta salad. Fresh fruit was a staple at breakfast, as well as made to order eggs/omelets by Ruth. One morning they had lots of local fare with names I cannot recall. It was interesting to try different things. They also offered cereals, breads, pastries. Dinners were something to look forward to each evening as the smells from the kitchen would waft over the area. Each night was something different. Most nights there was a fish dish, among other things, which was always delicious. They had several desserts to choose from as well.

BAR: Yes, we hung out here a lot. Caybrew was a nice drink! We also enjoyed their Pina Coladas, Rum punches and Daquiris. The kids loved getting the virgin drinks, kind of like a smoothie. Donovan, Calvin and Dunne were the main guys here, and they kept a smile on our faces the whole week. The kids loved interacting with them all.

BEACH: Out of a picture book. Crystal clear water, blue as far as the eye can see. Temp was about 80ish all week…perfectly refreshing. Not much waves, but perfect for kayaking and snorkeling. We snorkeled right out in front of the hotel; walked up to Governor’s Beach once; took a bus to Cemetery beach ($2.00 pp); and then kayaked to Governor’s one day (not recommended unless you are a strong rower!). The fish life was spectacular! All the kayaks and snorkel gear were part of the AI package, so take advantage of that.

STAFF: I cannot say enough about these wonderful people. I hope I do not leave anyone out: Alex, Andrew, Wayne, JJ, Joe, Ruth, Clifton (chef) Donovan, Calvin Dunne, Keith, Pryce…they were all super. The kids looked forward to seeing them each day, like old friends. Tipping is recommended, as it is not part of the package; but by no means were we treated differently the first day or so because we didn’t (a previous review insinuated this). Treating these very hard-working folks kindly will repay you ten-fold. We found that giving the bartenders money each day worked well, and at the end of the week, we gave the others all a little something.

SIDETRIPS: Our group really just wanted to get away to relax. We didn’t do any tours at all…we ventured into Georgetown by bus twice to do some shopping~~very crowded with cruise ships, but wonderful when there are none. My niece ran every morning on the sidewalk on West Bay Road, and felt very safe. We took the one short bus ride to Cemetery Beach. That was all we needed.

Overall, it was truly the trip of a lifetime for us. Know it’s not the Ritz when you book. Know that you’ll be treated like an old friend, and you may shed a tear when you leave.

So we booked our trip through Cheap Carribean and knew it would be only a 2 or 3 star hotel, read all the reviews on trip advisor and were ready for anything! HA HA . After booking two identical trips for my husband and I , and his sister and husband we got our first suprise that our rooms would not be near each other as requested. On line and in a e mail to the hotel. Ours would be an apt and theirs a standard room. Could we change that? NO. All booked. Ok we accepted that. We came in time for lunch so they showed us the small buffet. We ate a little of it. Then saw people with burgers and fries. We asked how you got those. tThey said you have to ask. We did. We go burgers, no fries. Fyer was shut off was their excuse. Twenty minutes later we saw some fries going to other people. Oh that's when we figured out we should have tipped! Ok we got the hint!. Other people asked us at another lunch what's with the burgers? We told them you have to either eat the buffet OR ask when you sit down if you can have a burger. You can't do both.My husband got yelled at by the cook who stands over his food watching what you take so he can make sure there's enough left overs for the help to eat. He was ruining the potatoes because they fell apart while he was taking them. Another morning he was told he could not take OJ before breakfast even though it was set up because everyone would want it!! We also saw another woman get yelled at for looking into the egg ladies pot of eggs. We asked the front desk guy, who wouldn't even look you in the eye and would not stay behind the desk to call a cab. Did one ever show up? No, guess we should have tipped him? The bus was convienent. We actually started having fun with it after the first few days. I was seriously going to see if Cheap Carribean could move us at first. But we decided they weren't going to ruin our trip. We'd take turns laughing about who was next to ask a question at the desk and see if we could get an answer. One day my sister in law had no water in their room. Went to the desk, they said yeah they knew, were working on it. We went to breakfast and laughed because there was an older man sweating , digging up a pipe in front of the restaurant, a small 2 inch pipe that was only a foot under the sand on the beach! We went back to them and said better not hold your hat on getting water any time soon. Guess he did find the crack and mend it because later in the day they did have a toilet again. The front desk was not much help when it came to activities or excusions. If you went to the booking place they would say come back in the morning at a certain time and you'll be able to go. Then my sister in law would go and they would say no you have to pre book! Needless to say it was frustrating. The best one was one evening we had seen other people be offered by the attendant to get them a drink from the bar at suppertime. We were never asked. So one night When the three others had not sat down yet I gave the waiter a tip. He asked me what I was drinking, and got me a drink. At the same time as he was putting it down in front of me the others sat down. He just walked away! He never offered to get them anything! We all laughed when we realized what had happened. He came back to the table 2 other times and asked me if I wanted another drink , which I did, but never got them one!
We had planned on tipping during our stay but never to the extent that they expected. Not on the first day before they had even done anything! I can say that there were nice waitresses that were nice all week without their hands out and we did tip them. The cleaning lady did a great job and I looked her up to give her the tip before her day off. And the guard who watches over the beach was really freindly. We have been to other islands and inclusives and have never seen the people treat you so rudely before they even know if your going to be a tipper or not. Sorry but they should nbe nice first!

We have just returned from a ten-day holiday at Beach Club. We last stayed there about seven years ago and, having heard that it had been sold and would be demolished, felt we just had to go back there one more time. Poor old Beach Club! The plans are to replace this unique, lovely place with a very expensive and probably soulless condominium - not that this island needs another one, they're everywhere and most of them have several units for sale. Still, Beach Club will go once 40% of the planned units (starting price 4.5 US dollars)) have been sold. So....poor old Beach Club has the air of doom about it. It looks tired, shabby neglected - there is no way we would have swum in the swimming pool, it looked positively lethal! Staff retain their professional approach to their jobs, but the smiles do not come as readily as they did seven years ago. Their futures must seem very uncertain. The beach is as wonderful as ever, and it was an absolute delight to be only eight feet away from it when I woke each morning. But poor ols Beach Club - someone really should put it out of its misery - it's tragic to see a ,much l.oved old friend lose dignity in this way.

MW/NEG, Sussex, England

We just got back from the beach club. It had a very relaxing and calming effect upon us once we were settled in. The water on the beach was gin clear and the water was very calm most of the day. We did some snorkling in front of the hotel as well as Cemetary beach. Both had nice fish to see at both places. We did not snorkle other places because we just wanted to chill out and relax mostly. We however did take the ocean kayak out which was loads of fun and as mentioned in other reviews this is included as an ammenity with the all inclusive. Food was decent. Breakfast had made to order eggs, sausage, bacon, pancakes,continental food, toast juice,fruit,etc.. We would eat a pretty good breakfast and did a light lunch. Luch was not much--salads and made to order burger and fries. Dinner varied each night. Most nights had a carving station such as beef or lamb, enterees had some ribs, chicken , fish and other usual fare. Food was overall decent and we did not feel we needed to venture elsewhere for food, A big plus while eating is that you eat right at the beachside and get to see the sun set everyday if you care to. The rooms were small but clean, yes they did have a few mosquitoes but they weren't bad. A/C worked good, thank God, because mid-day it got hot outside. We spent most of our time outdoors so sparse room was OK by us. Staff was very nice and congenial. I would go again but as other reviews mentioned this place may not be here for long. Latest I got was that I spoke to Pedro, who is the manager, and he said he expects Jan.09 for things to start happening but as most of the locals say this may happen on Cayman time which will take much longer before any bulldozing occurs. Who knows?? I would go again and felt as though we got a lot of bang for our buck because food and booze is very expensive in the caymans.