Driving Tour of West Bay in Grand Cayman

First Stop at Boggy Sands Road

Head north along West Bay Road (keeping the sea on your left). Once you pass the four way stop next to Centennial Towers, you are in the district of West Bay. Take a left at the four-way stop and park. Drive towards the sea and turn left onto Boggy Sand Road, which runs parallel to the beach. This little road gives you a glimpse of the Cayman Islands of yesteryear: lined on either side with quaint, traditional Caymanian houses painted in shades of pastel surrounded by colourful shrubs, you will feel you have stepped back in time momentarily. This is a great place to see some examples of Caymanian architecture and of the typical sand gardens adorned with conch shells. Boggy Sand Road is one of the most picturesque streets on the island. Be sure to grab a bite to eat at Heritage Kitchen, where they serve a delicious array of Caribbean-style dishes.

Continue on the main road, hugging the coast and as you make your way around to the Cayman Turtle Centre. This is a great place to stop and spend a few hours learning about sea turtles.

The Cayman Turtle Centre is a first-of-its-kind attraction and conservation organisation that boosts endangered green sea turtle populations. Along with learning about these majestic creatures, guests can swim and snorkel with turtles, zip down a 40-foot-tall waterslide, explore a nature trail, free-flight bird aviary or Butterfly Garden, and more.

The site known as Hell is located in the district of West Bay on Grand Cayman. Visitors can explore the site, take pictures, and even send "postcards from Hell" to friends and family using the local post office. It's a popular tourist attraction, and many visitors find the geological formations intriguing.

There are some wonderful beaches in West Bay which you can explore before stopping somewhere for lunch. Read on to learn about Cemetery Beach, West Bay public beach and Barkers National Park.

West Bay Public Beach is a serene shoreline spot that caters to a laid-back day in the sun. Situated on the quiet north end of Seven Mile Beach, it offers ample white sandy space for relaxation and embraces the typical Caribbean vibe. The beach provides a decent range of amenities, including a limited number of public changing rooms and toilets. Foster’s Republix supermarket is within walking distance for those interested in a picnic and so is a small but really good restaurant called Bella Trattoria. You can find the latter next to Jacques Scott. Public cabanas with seating, shaded areas, and a small number of parking spaces near the ramp enhance the overall convenience.

Cemetery Beach is a popular spot for locals and tourists alike, who are looking for a more tranquil, less crowded beach experience than typically found on Seven Mile. Soft white sand (of course), and shady seagrape trees await you after the brief walk along the walled edge of the cemetery, which gives the beach its name. Renowned as a great spot for snorkelling, there is a reef located in about 30ft of water, at a distance of about a 6-minute swim offshore.

Right at the north east tip of West Bay you will find this hidden gem, the Barkers National Park. The roads to this remote point of Grand Cayman are rough ad potholed, but the tranquility and feeling of remoteness is worth the careful drive. Significantly less frequented by visitors, this is where the West Bay horseback riding companies bring their tours, and its a great spot for windsurfers and kitesurfing, so on a windy day you will no doubt see sails in the air. You can swim here but there is a lot of turtle grass and the beach is a little rocky. There are no designated parking areas, so just park on the roadside and walk through to the beach.

Time to recharge your batteries and get some lunch. There are quite a few lunch options in West Bay from Bella Trattoria (Tuesday-Sunday 12noon-2.30pm), Calypso Grill (Friday-Sunday 12noon-3pm), Heritage Kitchen (daily from 12noon), Macabuca (daily from 11am), Nourish at VIDA (open 7am-3pm), Nova (daily during the week from 11.30am and 9am on the weekends), Schooner's at the Cayman Turtle Centre (daily), Tukka West (daily from 11am) and VIVO (daily from 11am). The Cracked Conch and Ristorante Pappagallo are also wonderful restaurants in West Bay but they are only open for dinner. There is also a Subway at Centennial Towers at the 4-way stop just as you come into West Bay if you want to pick up a sandwich, and there is a Fosters grocery store on the left just before the 4-way stop if you want to pick up supplies for a picnic.

There are lots of other great places to eat in West Bay from local eateries to waterfront restaurants. Check out these additional recommendations.

Other activities that you can do in West Bay include diving and snorkelling from the Cracked Conch/Macabuca dock or the Lighthouse Point/Divetech dock. Lots of large and very docile tarpon hang out in the water here, and these majestic creatures are wonderful to see in their own element.

If you are interested in snorkelling then check out this link.

If you are organised in advance you can also book windsurfing or kitesurfing lessons from Kitesurf Cayman who run private and semi-private lessons from the beach in the Barkers National Park. Or a true highlight is going for a horseback ride along the seagrass-strewn beach in Barkers National Park with Pampered Ponies or Spirit of the West. Both do beach rides and beach-swim-rides. Their moonlight rides are also pretty awesome!