Basics[]
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. The 264 km2 territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman located south of Cuba, northeast of Costa Rica, north of Panama, east of Mexico and northwest of Jamaica. Its population is approximately 60,000.
There are the usual two operators in the Caribbean:
- Flow (by Cable & Wireless)
- Digicel Cayman
Flow is the incumbent provider and Digicel came to the Caribbean 2001-6 to end this monopoly. In the Cayman Islands they are now on par each sharing about 50% of the market and many locals have two SIM cards.
Flow uses the American frequencies of 850 and 1900 MHz for 2G/GSM and 850 MHz for 3G up to HSPA+, while Digicel employs European frequencies of 900 MHz for 2G and 2100 MHz for 3G. 4G/LTE has started on both networks in 2013 on 700 MHz (bands 13/17).
Prices are given in Cayman Islands dollar (KY$, CI$ or CYD) that is fixed to the US dollar: US$1 = KY$ 0.82 or KY$1 = US$ 1.22. All taxes are included.
Flow []
Flow up to 2015 called Lime and rebranded, is the incumbent provider in the Caymans. It's operated by Cable & Wireless that has been sold to Liberty Global.
Note that 2G and 3G is on 850 and 1900 MHz. They advertise a '100% coverage' for 4G/LTE on 700 MHz (B17) available for prepaid. In 2016, they announced that their network is now an LTE-A network.
Availability[]
You can buy a prepaid SIM card from Flow for KY$ 8.99 including KY$ 5 credit at their stores (locator). For 4G/LTE you need one of the new 4G-enabled SIM cards.
Top-up vouchers can be found at more than 100 outlets on the islands or online through their international top-up site by credit cards or PayPal. For every top-up of KY$ 10 or more 50 MB data are rewarded once per month. Check balance by *120#.
Data feature packs[]
Data outside of bundles is KY$ 0.16 per MB. These bundles are offered:
| Price | Volume | Time | Activation |
|---|---|---|---|
| KY$ 2.99 | 250 MB | 1 day | *146*50# |
| KY$ 7.99 | 1 GB | 3 days | *146*250# |
| KY$ 14.99 | 2 GB | 7 days | *146*1007# |
| KY$ 29.99 | 5 GB | 15 days | *146*2000# |
| KY$ 39.99 | 5 GB | 30 days | *146*4000# |
| KY$ 49.99 | 15 GB | 30 days | *146*10000# |
All weekly and monthly plans auto-renew. To stop, type *787#.
Three combo plans are offered too:
- for 5 days: KY$ 9.99 including 1 GB and 250 minutes to any network, activation: *140*8#
- for 7 days: KY$ 19.99 including 2 GB and 500 minutes to any network, activation: *140*16#
- for 30 days: KY$ 49.99 including 2 GB and 1000 minutes to any network, activation: *140*50#
These bundles also auto-renew
Roaming[]
For roaming data, Flow sells a Travel Pass with 500 MB of roaming data, valid for 7 days, for KY$ 15. Activate by dialing *129#. This pass covers 46 countries and territories, including other Flow markets in the region.
More info[]
- APN: ppinternet
- Website: http://discoverflow.ky/
Digicel Cayman[]
Digicel started in 2006 to challenge the monopoly of Lime that is called now Flow. They claim to have a '99% coverage', but their coverage map is in fact much more limited. While they have a somewhat lower coverage than Flow, their prices are generally lower than Flow's too.
They use European frequencies of 900 and 1800 MHz for 2G, 850 MHz for 3G, 1800 MHz (Band 3) and 700 MHz (Band 13) for 4G/LTE. Their 4G/LTE network offers twice the bandwidth of their competiton but unlike them, is not an LTE-A network.
Availability[]
SIM cards are available in their stores (locator). Activation is by *122#, balance check by *120#. You can top up by vouchers or online by credit card.
Data feature packs[]
Default data is KY$ 0.24 per MB. These data packages are given out:
| Price | Volume | Time | Activation |
|---|---|---|---|
| KY$ 2 | 100 MB | 1 day | *135*500# |
| KY$ 5 | 500 MB | 3 days | *135*501# |
| KY$ 10 | 1 GB | 7 days | *135*502# |
| KY$ 25 | 2 GB | 30 days | *135*504# |
| KY$ 30 | 4 GB | 30 days | *135*506# |
| KY$ 50 | 10 GB | 30 days | *135*507# |
Unused data allowances will roll over to the next period.
These combo plans are offered:
- for 2 days: KY$ 6 with 400 MB, unlimited on-net and 20 off-net minutes
- for 10 days: KY$ 22.50 with 2 GB, unlimited on-net and 100 off-net minutes
- for 30 days: KY$ 45 with 6 GB, unlimited on-net and 300 off-net minutes
Here too unused allowances roll over to the next period, if you renew your plan.
International roaming []
Digicel gives out roaming bundles valid in all Digicel networks in the Caribbean, Panama plus in the UK, USA and Canada:
- 100 MB + 25 mins for 3 days: KY$ 8
- 250 MB + 50 mins for 7 days: KY$ 15
- 750 MB + 150 mins for 30 days: KY$ 45
More info[]
- APN: web.digicelcayman.com
- Website: http://www.digicelcayman.com