CAYMAN ISLANDS An island is a perfect tourist destination if you would like to indulge in and enjoy miles and miles of sugar sand beaches, sporting and cultural events all through the year; water sports; deep sea fishing; as well as seeing rare sea plants, creatures and the much-admired undersea coral reefs. But why do so many prefer Cayman Islands? Cayman Islands have everything that an island can possibly have and then some more, which is typical and unique to the Cayman Islands. For instance, a deep sea diving to explore the famed under sea walls is what attracts many tourists here. A meal of turtle soup, stew or braised steak could be worth relishing. The mouthwatering Caymanian delicacy – Conch (pronounced as konk), prepared from mollusks is something, which you would want more and more. Learning about turtle breeding in the turtle firm (in spite of the turtle soup), watching flamboyant pirates capture and pillage ships during the week long pirate festival, a trek in the midst of nature, along the mile long bluff trail, diving to explore the Wall and Stingray City, bird watching in the Brac parrot reserve (spread over 180 acres), or a hike to explore the caves in the tranquil Cayman Islands are extremely soothing and exciting and some of the most popular activities. If you intend to mix business with pleasure, then the Cayman Islands are definitely the tourist place for you. Millions of people travel to the Cayman Islands for these reasons. Situated midway between Cuba to Honduras in the Caribbean seas, this island is part of the Caribbean group of islands and a preferred destination for tourists, business executives who combine business and pleasure, would-be-couples and honeymooners. 1.5 times the size of Washington DC, Cayman Islands consists of three islands – Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and Cayman Brac. Its weather, the sweeping white sandy beaches dotted with palm trees (that stretches up to seven miles at one place) and clear blue seawater make it a major tourist attraction. It rains during summer in Cayman as typical of tropical nature. Just an hour’s flight from Miami, the Cayman Islands has year-round vacation weather. Regular flights from Grand Cayman to Miami operate daily. British Airways operates twice-weekly flights from Grand Canyon to Gatwick and London. Cayman Islands dollars (equivalent to US $1.25) are the local currency here. Major credit cards are accepted here. Banks operate Monday through Friday. There are a number of houses, hotels, and condos to accommodate tourists. There are plenty of things to do in the islands. Taking a cruise tour around Grand Canyon to start with, is an excellent choice. If fishing interests you, then casting for Bonefish in the knee-deep waters of a lagoon to trolling for Blue Marlin, there are a number of choices. A boat may be hired and taken to the deep waters for fishing or you may be a part of a sport-fishing cruise, which provide everything from baits to tackles. The sheer number of diving sites and their uniqueness makes Cayman Islands an amazing diving destination. A few of the many diving opportunities include wall dives, coral dives, cave dives, reef dives etc… The best part of diving here is that underwater visibility is up to 100 feet. This allows the diver to explore the submerged mysterious water world better. It’s advisable to check out the safety records of the operators dealing with diving, the proficiency of the instructors and the quality of the diving gears. The smaller the diving party the better, as you would get more personalized attention. Those who cannot dive can be satisfied with snorkeling in Cayman Islands. Parasailing, sailing, jet skiing and wind surfing are some of the other water sports that can be indulged in Cayman Islands. Cayman Islands are simply not just a retreat for would-be-couples and honeymooners. It’s a place where you surrender absolutely and things are taken care of. If you plan your wedding a little ahead, professionals take care of everything from decorations to the food. Whether you plan the wedding in a quaint chapel, a stately church, on board a boat, on the sandy beaches or in a lighthouse, there is no cause to worry for every wedding idea is possible in Cayman Islands. It only takes 24 hrs to get married here. Just make sure that you and your life partner are above 18. Cayman is home to a mixed race of people. The mix of Caribbean hospitality and American working habits makes this place an ideal one for both businesses as well as for a vacation. Since there are no direct taxes in Cayman Islands, there is no income tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax. Still a British Crown Colony, this place is safe as it is protected by the United Kingdom. This island has 40,000 companies incorporated, with a net asset of $500 billion Out of these, 600 are banks and trusts. The island is a tax haven and that’s the reason behind the large number of companies setting up operation here. The booming tourism industry and the business sector is the reason for average per capita income of a Caymanian to be at around $35,000, the highest in the Caribbean. Business can be safely done here as a stock exchange facilitating investments and a chamber of commerce regulating business ensures that activities are well coordinated and legal. As mentioned earlier, connectivity is not a problem and the Islands are well connected by air and water. All parts of the Islands are easily accessible through 786 km. of well-paved roads. Georgetown Hospital in Grand Cayman and Faith Hospitals in Cayman Brac are adequately equipped to deal with emergencies. In addition, in serious cases patients can be air lifted to hospitals in Miami very quickly. Several operators provide Internet connection apart from telephone connections. Grand Cayman, where the majority of the tourists nestle temporarily, offers the pleasure of shopping in duty free shops. Gucci and Fendi would tempt you in the harbor side Georgetown. For those who do not have a diving scheduled for the morning spend a laid-back night in the nightclubs. Cayman Islands offer a delightful combination of city life in the midst of pristine nature. People who visit the islands again and again are happy that it’s not spoilt with fame.