Postal Services

Local postal services in Cayman are fast and efficient, with turnover time for local mail being 24 hours. There are nine post offices and many blue mailboxes located throughout the Islands for the posting of stamped mail. Most hotels offer postal services for their guests. Post office opening hours at the main branches of Airport (Called APO), Central George Town (GT) and Seven Mile Beach (SMB) are 8.15 am to 5pm, Monday to Friday and Saturday 9am to 12.30pm.

Postage Costs:

Local mail CI$0.25 per oz or part thereof.

Overseas Mail:

Airmail is zoned according to the area of destination and charged according to weight.

US/Canada – CI$0.75 per half oz or part thereof.

UK – CI$0.80 per half oz or part thereof.

Asia, South Africa and Australia – CI$1 per half oz or part thereof.

Post goes to the US daily. Post to the UK and Europe only goes on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, but must be mailed the night before to make that day’s post.

Post Office Boxes

Regular mail is not delivered to houses; instead post office boxes are used. The cost for renting a small box inside the post office is CI$30 per year. For outside boxes (which can be accessed at any time) the annual costs are: CI$75 (small), CI$100 (medium) and CI$250 (large). There is a two year waiting list for mail boxes at the George Town, Seven Mile Beach and Airport Post Offices – if you were thinking of getting one for yourself. However, General Delivery service is available and many people do use their work PO Box number to receive mail.

 Post to Cayman must have a PO Box number and a postal code written on the envelope. If you see a suffix after the PO Box number (SMB, APO, GT, SAV, etc.) this is no longer correct and must now be removed and replaced with a postal code or it will delay the arrival of mail. You can look up the correct postal code at www.caymanpost.gov.ky. Mail arriving in Cayman with only a street address (and no PO Box number) will eventually be returned to the sender.

 An example of the correct way to address an envelope is as follows:

Mr. Cayman Resident

PO Box 31403

Grand Cayman KY1-1206

CAYMAN ISLANDS

Note: The use of the old suffix of B.W.I. on mail to Cayman has been discontinued. Also please do not write George Town anywhere on the envelope as there are dozens of George Towns around the world and its use has caused much confusion.

Courier ServicesOverseas

A CI$2 government tax is charged on all packages leaving via courier. Please note that couriers cannot deliver to Post Office boxes.

DHL Worldwide Express

Thompson Building, 68 Mary Street

George Town, Grand Cayman

Tel: (345) 949 8575 Fax: (345) 949 8384

www.dhl.com

FedEx Express

Elizabethan Square

George Town, Grand Cayman

Tel: (345) 949 5911

Sprint Express Services

19 Walkers Road

George Town, Grand Cayman

Tel: (345) 949 0262

UPS (United Parcel Service)

226 Dorcy Drive

Industrial Park, Grand Cayman

Tel: (345) 949 8771

Purchasing Overseas

What you will find out fairly quickly is that you cannot buy everything you need in Cayman. Your options vary: you can shop when off-Island; have one of your visitors bring you what you need; or purchase on-line and get the items shipped to the Island. If you take the latter route you will find that 90% of overseas companies will not ship to the Cayman Islands.

 For large bulky items (like furniture) you are better off using a custom broker (who all have addresses in the US) to consolidate the items for you in Miami and then forward them to you in Cayman. They will clear the items through Cayman Customs and call you when they have arrived. See the Preparing to Move chapter for a list of customs brokers. For smaller items (clothes, letters, magazines, etc.) US Link (Tel: 949 4361) will give you your own PO Box in Miami and will then forward the items to Cayman, clear them through Customs and call you when they are ready for collection. They are located in the Caymanian Village on North Sound Road.