Little Cayman

Both museums were founded in Blossom Village, just across from the Booby Pond Nature Reserve by prominent Sister Islander and cultural advocate Linton Tibbetts. The Little Cayman Museum houses more than 150 years of primitive relics, artifacts and kitchen utensils belonging to early settlers, as well as exhibits recalling Bloody Bay. The Marine Museum pays tribute to the many sea captains who called the Cayman Islands their home and offers a glimpse of their colorful past. It is said that Blackbeard and his pirates stopped here for fresh water and to bury his treasure in a brick-lined cave.

Little Cayman’s red-footed booby pond is the largest red-footed booby population in the Caribbean, pegged near 20,000, and a designated Ramsar wetland of international importance. Signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971 the Convention on the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources has 159 contracting parties, protecting 1,822 wetland sites on 1.85 million square kilometres, Home to one of the largest breeding colonies of Red-footed Booby in the Western Hemisphere, the Booby Reserve also contains Cayman's only breeding colony of Magnificent Frigatebirds. The Visitor Centre provides an elevated viewing point for observation of the Booby rookery through a fixed telescope.

The house offers a small glimpse into Little Cayman’s past with maps and details about the island’s history, and is famous for its homemade ice cream, rumoured to be the best in the entire Cayman Islands. An interpretive centre, gift shop, and office with elevated observation deck overlooks the Booby Pond Reserve. Telescopes are provided and the deck is open everyday. Visitors Centre is open Mon - Fri 3:00 to 5:00pm Entry to the centre is free. Entry to the breeding colony is not permitted.

Other important species present on Little Cayman include the endangered Rock Iguana or Lesser Caymans iguana, the critically endangered hawksbill turtle, and the threatened Black - billed Whistling Duck, which are also present to a lesser degree on nearby Cayman Brac as well. The iguanas have right of way on all roads. The Salt Rocks Nature Trail, at the western end of Little Cayman, displays all these and more: migratory birds, butterflies, orchids and tropical plants are in abundance. It is also an historic site with abandoned phosphate mines and a railway track.

No fewer than 18 sites make Little Cayman world-famous for its scuba diving, especially Bloody Bay and Jackson's Bight, both on the north side of the island. Bloody Bay is consistently ranked as one of the world's top wall dives with the ocean floor pegged at a approximate depth between 3,000 feet and 5,000 feet

At the southern tip of Little Cayman, the marine park bordering Blossom Village is the starting point for diverse watersports scattered along the region. Sandy Point is the most visited for snorkeling, but Bloody Bay is less secluded and more appropriate for diving and other water activities.

The two largest hotels on the island, The Southern Cross Club and the Little Cayman Beach Resort offer a host of water-based recreations, including diving, kayaking and shore or open-sea sea fishing. Little Cayman's South Hole Sound Lagoon and Sandy Point (watch out for the currents!) are delightful snorkeling sites - their white sand beaches as breathtaking as any in the Caribbean. You might glimpse a feisty bonefish, a Queen conch, a parrotfish and dozens of reef fish in these waters. For an unforgettable experience, take a boat trip to Bloody Bay, where the famous Cayman Wall begins at only 18 feet -- an unforgettable sight as lush coral gardens meet the sheer vertical coral precipice. The South Sound offers protected shallow waters for Hobie-cat sailing and kayaking -- all available to rent from Reef Divers.

Offshore fishing brings such game fish as mahi mahi, wahoo and billfish into range. The run out to the fishing grounds is less than half a mile, so all your time will be spent with lines in the water. Blackfin Tuna are the most consistent visitors, but Yellowfin Tuna and sharks are always around, and the big blue marlin can show up at any time. Flats-fishing is available from a skiff in the shallow waters of South Sound where anglers reel in a variety of inshore fish including bonefish, snapper, permit and barracuda. Finally, Little Cayman has a unique inland saltwater lake, Tarpon Pond; populated by the lake’s namesake fish that were presumably stranded many years ago during a tropical storm. Having exclusively bred in the pond for so long, these aggressive lake tarpons can be targeted with light spinning gear or fly-fishing tackle. Early morning trips of one angler and one guide will have you back at the breakfast table in good time to catch the morning-dive boats.

Traffic is practically non-existent on this island so it is best seen slowly. Points of interest are signposted so keep your eye out. Beach cruiser bicycles are available for rent during the day and with an elevation of only 40ft there are not too many hills to worry about on Little Cayman!

Feel free to get some exercise and have some fun on the floodlit tennis and basketball courts -- or you can choose to unwind in one of the hammocks along the beach, the perfect spot to enjoy a book or catch an afternoon nap.