The Cayman Islands tourism department is seeking a 5-year plan that will help relieve the key attraction, Seven Mile Beach, and spread growing visitor numbers across Grand Cayman.
George Town has dramatically changed over the past three decades, and Seven Mile Beach is loosing its appeal as more and more people come to the island and overcrowd the iconic beach.
The strategy over the past couple years has been to focus on visitor growth. Now that the 300,000 targets has been met and surpassed that focus now shifts to managing that growth in a sustainable way.
“It is not just about numbers anymore. It is also our ability to handle that volume.” Said Director of Tourism Rosa Harris. “Developers will have their ideas for what they want to do, but we need our own vision for the type of development we want to encourage.”
Ms. Harris believes that beyond Dart’s new developments and a proposed new five-star property in Beach Bay, Bodden Town, there is little scope for further major resort development in other areas.
Boutique hotels, of 100 rooms or fewer, and condos offer the best potential for room growth in the eastern districts, with the plan to better create entrepreneurial and job opportunities for Caymanians though out the island.
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