Recently, a visitor to the Cayman Islands asked me how I managed to get any work done, living in a tropical paradise.
 
The truth of the matter is, my wife and I are so busy with our careers that we often have to force ourselves to enjoy some of the aspects of the Cayman Islands that make it so attractive to tourists.
 
Every once in a while we head out to one of the local hotels for what is now called a mini-staycation. After taking a similar weekend trip out to East End for our anniversary earlier this year, we’ve grown to like the idea of getting away without actually leaving Cayman.
 
I know… it seems crazy to spend money on a hotel when we live here, but we’ve really learned to enjoy our weekend resort excursions here.
 
Most recently, we took advantage of a great off-season deal offered by the Westin Casuarina Resort for one night and a couple of days of fun and relaxation.
 
We started our stay off with a bottle of Champagne, brought from our fridge at home. Since we didn’t have to drive anywhere, we were able to drink without worrying about having a designated driver.
 
Later we enjoyed a nice dinner by the beach and then sat out and looked at the stars. Yes, there’s something about these little staycations that brings out the romance, another reason they’re good for us.
 
The next morning we slept in, something we never seem to be able to do at home anymore. Later, we went down for a wonderful brunch and then hung out at the pool for several hours.
 
Our stay was short, but we very much enjoyed all the amenities of a hotel and the service you get at a good resort. We felt far removed from our daily routines because all the cares of housework, cooking and taking care of the pets was gone.
 
Best of all, we felt this way without the cost of flights and rental cars and without the hassles of modern-day travel and its long lines, security checkpoints and high risk of catching some sort of flu in the close proximity of so many other travellers.
 
We’ve done long weekends in Miami before, but we’ve found the hectic pace of such short trips – which inevitably include lots of shopping - not relaxing at all. After a weekend trip to Miami, I usually come back feeling like I need a vacation.
 
When we drove back home from our mini-staycation – a trip that took all of 15 minutes and didn’t require us to show our passport to a single person – we were relaxed and re-energised for the work week ahead.
 
Adding up the cost for our mini-staycation, it was a fraction of the price it would have been for the two of us fly to Miami, Jamaica or somewhere else for the weekend. Yet we really felt like we went somewhere.
 
Going forward, we’d like to try out some of the other hotels and resorts on the island, just to see what they’re like. Maybe we’ll even send some postcards to people we know.   WH