If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (including tax) available in the next 60 days.
Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (USD289.00), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.
Sea, sun, sand is a winning formula for island stays, but Soleil d’Or raises the bar with a 20-acre farm, destination dining spot and classic Caymankind hospitality to boot. Perched along the southern coast of Grand Cayman’s peaceful little sister isle, Cayman Brac, the hotel is spread across two locations: a manor house, just a mango’s throw away from the sea, surrounded by lemon trees, blooming bougainvillaea and leafy palms; and the Beach Club, where the Caribbean sea laps at the foot of shaded cabanas. Exclusive yet unspoilt, this is paradise with no pretension.
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Fresh fruit from the hotel's own farm and freshly baked cookies
Noon, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 3pm.
Prices
Double rooms from £261.51 ($327), including tax at 13 per cent. Please note the hotel charges an additional service charge of 12% per room per night on check-out and an additional resort fee of $50.00 per room per night on check-out.
More details
A resort fee of US$50 a night covers roundtrip transfers, a tour of the farm and daily, American-style breakfast made with ingredients from the Le Soleil D’or farm.
Also
The hotel’s farm hosts a regular market where guests and locals alike can shop for organic produce; bring your tote and embrace this authentic island experience.
Hotel closed
The hotel closes throughout September each year.
At the hotel
Beach Club with shared pool, gym, farm, basketball and tennis courts, laundry service (charged), and free WiFi. In rooms: TV, Nespresso coffee machine, and Gilchrest & Soames bath products. The Coast House has a private pool, and the Manor House rooms have a shared laundry room, living room, kitchen and games room.
Our favourite rooms
The heartthrob of the main Manor House is the Cherry Lime room with its private wraparound terrace set up with sunloungers and a table for alfresco dining. But if you’re looking to splurge, you can’t do much better than the Coach House, an independent villa a stone’s throw from the ocean with a private pool and a butler on-hand.
Poolside
The Beach Club and the Manor each have a pool. The former is a five-minute drive away with shaded cabanas overlooking the ocean, a palm-flanked bar with terrace and a pool surrounded by loungers, while the latter is a kidney-shaped number in the courtyard.
Spa
There’s no spa onsite, but the concierge can arrange in-room treatments with a local masseuse, on request.
Packing tips
Load your suitcase with swimwear, flip-flops and a trusty pair of hiking boots for tackling the bluff.
Also
All room categories, aside from the Beach House, are suitable for guests with mobility issues.
Pet‐friendly
Pets weighing under 30lbs are welcome at the Farm-House, Beach Club and Coast House for a non-refundable, one-time charge of US$250. See more pet-friendly hotels in Cayman Brac.
Children
Welcome.
Sustainability efforts
Most of Soleil d’Or’s eco credentials come down to its circular food economy, with the majority of ingredients used in the kitchen being grown onsite in the hotel’s farm. What can’t be sourced from the land is provided by local producers and fishermen.
There’s no second-tier tables at the Farm, with romantic indoor-outdoor seating throughout.
Dress Code
Bring your breezy robes and slinky sandals for balmy evenings on the Brac.
Hotel restaurant
Not just one of the main attractions of the hotel but also of the whole island, eatery the Farm has a reputation for its exceptionally fresh Italian and Latin fusion cuisine. Helming the kitchen is Rene Sanchez, who crafts his menu around the seasonal produce available from the hotel’s farm, which includes pillow-y focaccia and funky homemade kombucha. The signature ceviche and catch-of-the-day dishes are a must for seafood savants, and pizza lovers should make a beeline for Thursday’s Serata Rustica (rustic night). Staying a while? The chef can design a tailor-made menu to your preferences.
Hotel bar
You’ll find a bar in the Farm Restaurant, where libations are infused with herbs from the gardens. We love the Blood Treasure, made with Bacardi, jasmine syrup and lemon juice, or the hotel’s signature passionfruit martini, with vodka, homemade passionfruit cordial, farm-fresh egg whites, sparkling wine and lemon juice.
Last orders
The restaurant only serves breakfast on Mondays and Tuesdays, but opens for all-day-dining through the rest of the week, while the bar pours between noon and 9pm daily.
Room service
From 7am to 8.30pm, guests can use Whatsapp to order anything from the Farm’s regular menu.
Soleil d’Or is perched along the southern coast of Caribbean island Cayman Brac, spread across 20 acres of organic farmland.
Planes
Charles Kirkconnell International Airport is closest, a 10-minute drive from the hotel. Roundtrip transfers in a van or SUV are included with your stay.
Automobiles
There’s free parking at the hotel, but if you’re simply planning to hop between Soleil d’Or’s pools, farm and the nearby beach, you’re unlikely to need wheels. If you do intend on exploring, there are a handful of car-rental companies at the airport.
Worth getting out of bed for
Ocean-set activities are the bedrock of this petite Caribbean island which spans just 14 square-miles. The hotel’s surrounded by clear, turquoise waters and lush coral reefs, with an abundance of marine wildlife, so diving is a must. Take your pick from over 50 diving centres spread across the coast. Those who prefer to stay close to the surface should opt for snorkelling instead; or embark on an aquatic adventure, taking a boat trip to Grand Cayman to get up close and personal with the East End barrier reef and the USS Kittiwake shipwreck. Back on dry land, the Brac is a rambling paradise, with plenty of hiking trails to lace-up for, the most rewarding of which is the Bluff trail, which ends atop an 140-foot limestone cliff, rewarding you with unbeatable ocean views. Or, try your hand at rock climbing your way to the top before rappelling your way back down. While you’re feeling at one with the rocks, explore the island’s many caves. Despite its name, Skull Cave is one of the most photogenic, with booming bougainvillaea and cacti adorning the exterior (though you can also anticipate the occasional bat). Which brings us to another of Cayman Brac’s natural wonders; the birds. Twitchers will have a field day with the 267 different species that call the island home, from flamingos and hawks to eagles and herons. Explore the island by bike or electric scooter, both of which you can borrow from the hotel for free. Back at Soleil d’Or, when you’re not lounging by the pool or topping up your tan at the Beach Club, raise your heart rate at the fitness centre, basketball and tennis courts, or take a farm tour to meet the producers then put the fruits of their labour to good use with a cooking class at the restaurant.
Local restaurants
The hotel’s own restaurant is the best option on the whole island, so it’s unlikely you’ll feel like straying, but if you catch yourself with hunger pangs while out on the town, head to Captain’s Table, a powder-blue, poolside spot serving chicken-fried tacos, blackened grouper and Florentine scampi.
Local bars
Ok, so it’s not exactly Ibiza, but you can still let (modestly) loose in the island's handful of bars, most of which close around midnight. Brac Reef Resort is popular for its karaoke on Wednesdays, movies on Thursdays and live music on most other nights. Or head to Barracuda, a pub-style, pirate-themed bar for tropical cocktails and an upbeat atmosphere.
Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this beachfront hotel on craggy Cayman Brac isle and unpacked their duty-free jewels and Tortuga rum, a full account of their breezy break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside Soleil d’Or in the Caribbean Sea…
Named after its rugged, limestone cliffs (‘brac’ means bluff in Gaelic) Cayman Brac, while not quite the smallest isle of the Caribbean archipelago, is definitely the most wild with 14 square-miles of undulating hills, craggy coastlines and more than 200 species of rare and tropical birds. Equally unspoilt are the 20 acres of farmland that charming retreat Soleil d’Or calls home, though there’s nothing wild about this sepia-toned Spanish-style manor house and its accompanying villas. Rather, you’ll find perfectly manicured exteriors with fuschia bougainvillaea snaking the walls, gardens of leafy palms and fragrant lemon trees, plus breezy, Mediterranean-inspired interiors. Its Beach Club has oceanfront cabanas, a pool and bar for post-splash sipping; but the real star of this sun-kissed showpiece is the farm-to-fork restaurant, which draws in-the-know gastro buffs from far and wide to its oh-so-tranquil tables.
