It was Christopher Columbus who first sighted the Cayman Islands, but it was Sir Francis Drake who was the first recorded visitor to the island. While Columbus named the islands Las Tortugas due to the number of sea turtles he saw, Sir Drake named it after the crocodiles.
The Cayman Islands fell under the British rule under the Treaty of Madrid, along with Jamaica. This happened as settlers from Jamaica came into Little Cayman and Cayman Brac. The islands became a strategic British base in the Caribbean, although it also became a hideout for pirates. Permanent settlement finally happened in the Caymans in 1730.
The Cayman Islands became a dependent of Jamaica, though it was effectively able to govern itself. After 165 years, the Cayman Islands became independent from Jamaica, though it acted like a Jamaican parish. When Jamaica became independent in 1962, the Cayman Islands sought for independence one more, and became a direct dependency to the British Crown.
The Caymans is known as a global offshore financial services center. Along with tourism, it is the Cayman Island’s top contributor to its economy. Its GDP per capita is one of the highest in the world.
There are 3 islands: Grand Cayman, which is the largest, and Little Cayman and Cayman Brac. Georgetown in Grand Cayman is a major cruise ship port that brings in close to 20,000 tourists depending on the number of ships docked.
Grand Cayman boasts of its Seven Mile Beach. Considered as one of the best in the world, Seven Mile Beach has majority of the best hotels and resorts in the island. Another top tourist destination in the Caymans is underwater. Known as the world’s best SCUBA diving destinations, divers in Cayman’s waters is sure to impress, with its stunning underwater treasure and pristine waters.
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September 7th, 2007 at 9:13 am
[...] the Caribbean are: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, [...]