The Port Authority is seeking permission to install shaded walkways along the George Town waterfront to improve the experience for waiting cruise passengers.
The $50,000 project would add shade and fencing along Seafarers Way, covering the area between the port facilities.
The project was considered by the Central Planning Authority at its meeting Wednesday July 22 and a decision is expected within the next two weeks.
The application, in the CPA agenda, states the shade structures are intended to protect pedestrians “from the intense sun’s heat, especially during summer months,” and will be designed to reflect “the character of Cayman, the maritime industry and the national symbols of the Islands.”
Accompanying fencing is intended to separate pedestrians from vehicle traffic along the narrow sidewalk.
Brevan Elliott, deputy port director, said the project would provide a more comfortable experience for passengers waiting to get back on the ships during busy periods.
“This will offer much-needed shade for tourists as they embark and disembark during the peak cruise season, while also enhancing their overall visitor experience,” Elliott said.
Tendering wait times
Despite calls from the cruise industry for a new, purpose-built berthing facility over the past two decades, voters rejected that approach by a large margin in a referendum on 1 May 2025.
Passengers continue to reach shore by tender boat, a process that can mean long waits both disembarking and returning to the ship. In the aftermath of the referendum, port officials said the clarity of the result gave them room to invest in the existing facility.
Port Authority board director Cline Glidden said, in an interview with the Compass late last year, that Cayman remained an in-demand destination for cruise passengers. He said the Port Authority would seek to add shaded awnings and water stations as well as modifications to the dock that would allow passengers on double-deck tender boats to disembark from both the upper and lower decks.
Negotiations were also taking place with cruise lines to enable shore-side security screening, which would allow multiple security lines to operate simultaneously rather than a single-entry point aboard the ship. The goal, Glidden said, is to reduce wait times, increase efficiency, and improve the overall passenger experience.
“With the clear instruction to not move forward with the [cruise ship berthing] port, we are able to go ahead and do what we need to do to make the best of the facilities we do have,” he said.
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