The Cayman Islands has experienced tremendous digital growth in recent years, especially through a surge of local and locally accessible mobile apps that provide those who live in, work in or visit Camana Bay additional connectivity to Cayman.
Hungry?
For a country with a sizeable culinary scene, there are a number of food- and restaurant-related apps.
The latest to hit the app store is Cayman Good Taste, which provides menus, recommendations and the option to make reservations for more than 200 restaurants. It joins food delivery apps like Let's Eat, Bento and Island Grub as well as loyalty programme app, Bite Club.
“[Through the apps], we’ve been able to engage with our customers – and them with us – by easily seeing our menus, ordering food, buying tickets for events and making reservations,” said Jason Moir of the Market Street Group, whose portfolio includes Camana Bay-based restaurants The Waterfront Urban Diner, Mizu Asian Bistro + Bar, Pani Indian Kitchen and The Brooklyn Pizza + Pasta. “We’re getting more reservations now because it’s easier as opposed to the hassle of calling for some people – now you can just use your phone and reserve.”
He also expressed that the ease of making reservations encourages people to commit to an outing – which is overall great for business.
“Typically, when people make reservations, they follow through [versus] if they don’t make a reservation, it’ll be out of their mind. So, having the apps help with customer acquisition – it’s been really good for us.”
Need a ride?
Local transportation has also expanded digitally with the recent launch of Island Ride – a luxury-style chauffeur service that allows you to book, track and pay for your ride directly through an app.
Nigel Mitten, the founder of Island Ride and the well-known local transport company Majestic Tours, used his experience from the pandemic to fill a gap in his business and the transportation sector.
“There was a big push during the pandemic to go cashless and improve technology, something our clientele had already been asking for, for a while,” he said. “So, I took this time to put together an app that would allow our customers, right at their fingertips, to book and pay for their rides.”
The fleet features high-end vehicles such as the BMW X5 and Audi Q5 and is operated by verified Majestic Tour team members during the company’s off-peak hours of 5 - 11 p.m.
"You have the ability to see a picture of your driver, the vehicle license plate, and to track the vehicle,” says Mitten. "We also have a feature in the app that allows you to share the details of that trip with a trusted contact."
Island Ride joins the list of locally available transport-related apps such as ZÜN, Flex and Bird.
ZÜN is a new membership-based car rental service developed by Arch Automotive, which has its sales centre based in the Audi dealership in Camana Bay.
Calling a taxi? The CI Go app can help you calculate your fare before hitting the road.
Skip the line
As a popular leisure and entertainment hub on the island, Camana Bay is home to the country’s only cinema. However, there’s no need to contend with ticket queues thanks to Fandango.
Fandango is a U.S.-based ticketing company and is the only verified digital seller of Camana Bay Cinema’s movie tickets, accessed through the website and mobile app.
Frequent Fandango user Vanessa Williams, who also works in Camana Bay, opts for the convenience of it to preview movies and buy tickets.
“Every time I’m going to the movies, I use Fandango – I rarely, if ever, get my tickets from the box office,” said Williams. “Especially if I have an impromptu feeling to watch a movie, I’ll quickly go on Fandango to see what’s showing – if there are any showtimes coming up, I’ll purchase it on my way to the cinema.”
These apps are available in your mobile device’s app store. To explore the local variety, type “Cayman” in the app store search bar.
Use your points
The Polyn programme — Cayman's largest loyalty programme — has a mobile app as well as the option for iPhone users to store their digital card in their phone's wallet for easy and quick access. Several Camana Bay-based retailers use the programme, where you can earn points for spending and can later redeem those points.
This article was originally featured in the March 2023 print edition of Camana Bay Times.