Arriving at GCM
Owen Roberts International Airport (GCM) is a modern airport only a short drive from Seven Mile Beach.
The warm breeze that greets you when you get off the plane is something we always look forward to. Once on the tarmac, the airport is directly in front of you. The wonderful airport staff will direct you to the arrivals hall, which is just a short mostly, shaded walk. On the weekends, local musicians are often playing in a small area off to the side of the entrance to the arrivals area which always helps shift you into vacation mode.
The arrivals hall is a very modern and clean facility. Once inside, passengers are first directed to automated kiosks to confirm their travel information. One family can use a single kiosk, although each will need to have their picture taken and input their information separately. Each passenger will receive a printed ticket from the kiosk upon completing their information. You will need this ticket to proceed through the immigration line, so make sure you take it from the kiosk. When our kids were younger it was sometimes difficult to take their picture and they subsequently weren’t issued a ticket. So their information was confirmed was we reached the immigration agent.
The immigration line can sometimes be long, although it typically moves quickly. During quieter times (e.g. early flights, week day, etc.), we generally expect to be through immigration and into the baggage area within 10 - 20 minutes. During busier times, we’ve waited 45 minutes or more. As referenced in the “Flying to Grand Cayman” post, the airport does offer a “Meet and Greet” service if you are concerned about the wait time or just want to fast track the immigration process.
After you clear immigration you will enter the baggage hall. There are only a few baggage carousels so you’ll easily be able to find your related flight information and which carousel your baggage is arriving on. It’s all pretty straight forward. The baggage handling process is really efficient. If your time in the immigration line is more than 25 minutes or so, you’ll often come out and see your bags off the carousel and organized in neat lines. If you have excess luggage, both carts and porters are available to help get your stuff to the pick-up or rental car areas.
Once you have your bags you’ll proceed through customs, if you have items to declare, and then out into the main terminal. Be sure to pick up copies of the different activity guides and area maps, including:
Cayman Good Taste (Dining)
Explore Cayman (Activities, Dining, Events, Deals)
Cayman Resident (living and working in Cayman)
Cayman Parent (kid focused info and activities)
With your crew, baggage, and information in hand, you can head outside to ground transportation to get a taxi, meet a booked vehicle, or pick-up your rental car.