Grand Cayman’s hotels were celebrating a bumper Christmas this year with many reporting full occupancy over the festive period.
Five-star and boutique hotels alike were at full capacity over Christmas and New Year, with some lucky tourists, whose flight had been cancelled, able to secure what could have been the last available room on island.
Marc Langevin, general manager of The Ritz-Carlton hotel, told the Compass that the hotel was completely sold out from 22 December to the first weekend in January.
“We are at full capacity,” he said. “It’s definitely a packed house.”
The hotel often operates at high capacity around the festive season, he said, at usually around 95% occupancy.
Guests were undeterred by the wet weather on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, Langevin said, and have already been booking for Christmas 2025 to secure their preferred rooms.
“Overall, the year has been challenging, with the storms between July and November being a spoiling factor,” he said, “but thankfully none of them were destructive and we were able to finish with a big bang. The holiday season has been great.”
Boom time for Cayman’s hotels
Hermes Cuello, general manager at the Marriott Grand Cayman Resort, said that Christmas was always a peak time but this year’s was even better than usual.
“We had really high occupancy all week and then in the days around Christmas and New Year we’ve been completely full,” he said. “The flights were full too, so it’s been very busy. It’s a great time for everyone in the industry.”
Both the Kimpton Seafire Resort & Spa and Hotel Indigo Grand Cayman were fully committed over the festive holiday season, said Virgil Napier, area director of sales and marketing for the two hotels. He said the Kimpton benefitted from large numbers of repeat guests who brought friends and families with them back to Cayman.
“The hazy weather on Christmas Day, while not ideal, was a chance for guests to enjoy a short break from the heat of the bright sun,” he said, as well as take part in culinary events such as rum tasting, culinary classes and children’s events.
Island full for the holidays
Natalia Radchenko, general manager of boutique health and wellness hotel Vida in West Bay, told the Compass that the hotel was 100% booked over Christmas and New Year. “We’re very happy because we opened only nine months ago, so people are starting to discover us,” she said.
At one point Vida, which has nine suites comprising 17 bedrooms, had just one room available but that was booked at the last minute by a group of tourists whose flight was cancelled over Christmas. “It was lucky that we were able to take them,” says Radchenko. “The whole island was full.”
Looking ahead
Having ended 2024 on a high note, there is cautious optimism for the first few months of 2025 from hoteliers.
Langevin, from The Ritz-Carlton, said that the first quarter of 2025 was as strong as ever, with no indication of a slowdown, but with lots of new resorts opening across the Caribbean, the competition was fierce.
However the Marriott’s Hermes Cuello said that March was currently softer than usual in terms of visitors to the island, as people held back from booking until the impact of the new Trump administration became clearer.
There are plenty of flights available so we have a lot of work to do,” he said. “People are taking their time to book.”
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