The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman

Having read Unreasonable Hospitality, I approached my stay at the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman with a mix of curiosity and skepticism. Staying at a Ritz property was a bucket list item for me, and was admittedly a splurge, but it did not disappoint! It exceeded my expectations in every way. From the time we arrived until the day we left we were consistently greeted by name. Every interaction with staff-from housekeeping to management-felt genuine and unhurried. The authenticity of the team really stood out. Special thanks to Adrian at the beach getting our chairs and explaining all our fun options of included beach activities. Also to Cristen at the pool bar who made my daughter a special drink when she couldn’t seem to find one she liked (18 years old and her first “bar” experience.) The rooms were pristine and the food was fantastic which was expected, but it was the truly personalized service that blew me away. Javier, the guest experience expert, had reached out and taken note of the details we shared in our communication before arrival. He arranged a couple of incredible and completely unique surprises for us. He went absolutely over the top and we were completely blown away. I highly recommend visiting the restaurant Seven during happy hour to watch Wasid the bartender work his magic behind the bar-his craftsmanship and ability to tailor our cocktails to our preferences was remarkable. My daughter still raves about him. If you stay for dinner, be sure to request a table in Shirbee’s section. She brings wait staff to an entirely new level. Also, a shout out to Junaid for his attentive service when we came back a second time to try the dessert we didn’t have room to eat the night before. And saving the best for last, I will always and forever have a special place in my heart for Javier the bartender. His time with my daughter went beyond hospitality. He not only shared his expertise in mixology with her, but he also imparted thoughtful life lessons that made a huge impression on both of us. We were so impressed with him that we are now following him on social media. And my daughter insists we go back next year just to see him again! Initially, I saw this trip as a once-in-a-lifetime experience and something to cross off the list. But after experiencing the extraordinary service and genuine interactions I don’t want to go anywhere else. I sincerely want to thank both Javiers, and the entire Ritz Carlton staff, for living up to the hype and redefining what hospitality means.

We really enjoyed our stay at the Ritz Carlton. The hotel is beautiful has nice amenities for couples and families. We traveled with our toddler and the staff was incredibly attentive and made sure we all had a great time. The beach service was outstanding and the water is calm and crystal blue. They also have a mini water park on the harbor side of the resort. Our son was a little intimidated, but its perfect for older kids. We had a lot of food allergies in our group and really appreciated how attentive the staff was at St. June and Seven to ensure everyone was safe. Highly recommend! We had a wonderful ocean view room on the third floor. The location was perfect with easy access to pool and beach.

Customer service at its finest! Not only is this a beautiful property on the most magical stretch of beach but all the employees were just phenomenal. We became friends with those we saw on a daily basis and discovered that most actually enjoy working there. The high employee morale is definitely evident in the excellent customer service. Even with a housekeeping hiccup on our first day, the housekeeping team was quick to come and fix the items in question. A very BIG shoutout to Elaine (housekeeping), David (Seven) and Christian (Andiamo). Our family is already dreaming about our next stay!

This property is so incredible that we are already looking to plan our trip back next year!! The thing that really sets this property apart from others is the staff they have and the incredible attention to detail for all of their guests. After just two days staying there, almost all staff knew our family’s name and genuinely took interest in us. The property is so clean and well kept up. The activities included in the resort fee are unmatched. We were able to sail and snorkel every single day. I could go on for hours about this place! It’s truly truly the closest thing to heaven on earth.

There’s a very good reason this is our second vacation to this Ritz property - because it’s top tier service, the beach is amazing, food is excellent, and the beds are incredibly comfortable. The staff, from managers to concierge to servers to housecleaners are over the top exceptional. People who deserve special recognition include David, Shevi, Rosalin, and Rushi at Seven; Cebo at Club Concierge and concierge Godfried, Pem at Saint June, Chyu and Adonis on the beach (so many other’s I can’t remember their names!), all the friendly cleaners who consistently cleaned our rooms 3 times a day and even the bathroom cleaners by Seven and the pool area were always tidy with friendly welcomes who deserve recognition. And of course the chefs who make allergy-free foods (thank you from someone with food intollerances) and everyone behind the scenes who you don’t see - especially staff in the gym and spa. You can tell people are proud to work here and it shows. I left jewelry, money, my phone in the room and it was all there after the cleaners came (unfortunately that wasn’t the case at different NYC hotel, not the Ritz). The spa is lovely - great hot tub, sauna and steam room - VERY clean!. The only snafu: we scheduled 90 minute couples massages and by the time we were picked up in the waiting area (5 minutes late) - discussed our aches/pains and actually go to the table our massages were maybe 75 minutes. I added on the hot stones but honestly only had 3 hot stones, the rest I couldn’t tell if she was using stones ornot. Moving forward we’ll continue to go to our fave masseuse at home (we get a full 90 minutes on the table). REGARDLESS - everything else is so OVER THE TOP that spa glitch won’t stop us from coming here because we feel like adored family. Thank you everyone.... it’s our Carib home away from home! We are counting down until our next visit like all your other fans :)