Pedro St James:
Grand Cayman’s Great House.

Pedro St James is Grand Cayman’s big house. It’s had a long colorful, at times sad, history.

It stood abandoned for decades until the Government decided it was too precious to lose and spent some serious money reviving it.

It was money well spent. Strolling around the house and gardens in the warm Caymanian sun is a joy for history nuts like me.

Originally the plantation house of the Eden family, it’s now a place for visitors to enjoy, along with the 7 acres of elegant gardens filled with flowering shrubs and trees, providing shaded, scented glades that are better than any aromatherapy spa.

Pedro St James: Visitor Experience

Pedro St James, Grand Cayman, view from the beach

Looking out to the sea, the house seems waiting for the master’s boat to return with whatever precious cargo has been ordered from faraway places.

There are fewer better places to wait for your ship to come in.

Pedro Ste James, Grand Cayman, lizard in the garden

This lizard has the right idea. Pedro St James has to be enjoyed quietly, savouring each sight and scent, which brings me to the kitchen on the ground floor. Before air conditioning, people knew how to arrange things. The ground floor is open to let the breezes blow through and dissipate the heat.

Our guide, a descendent of William Eden, the original builder and owner, explained the kitchen and described how to make Cayman Heavy Cake. Sadly, for me, I wasn’t equipped to record the recipe but I’m pretty sure Miss Cleo’s (Morritts resort’s ambassador) Cayman recipe book will have it. When in Grand Cayman, it’s easier to buy your heavy cake — see our eating out eating out page for Champion House restaurant.

The second floor is where the family lived and entertained. Even here, the house is airy with shuttered doors and windows opening onto wide verandahs. People lived outside a lot in the olden days. Oddly, despite the openness, the second floor is shaded and dark. Your eyes take a minute or two to get used to the change. When you can see, what you see is mahogany floors, dividing walls, and furnishings in the style of the middle of the 1800’s. And very elegant they are in this, their natural, setting. The personal belongings lying on tables or shelves also look right at home, the way they never do in a museum.

Sea View from Pedro St James

Pedro St James, Grand Cayman, sea view from the house

Rocking chairs wait on the verandah for the family to escape the heat of the day or watch the gardens grow, or the light fade from the Caribbean sky at sundown. Still a pretty good way to live, I’d say.

The third floor is mainly bedrooms and they too have plenty of louvered shutters to keep the sleepers cool. Bedspreads are a riot of color, emulating the blossoms in the family gardens or reminders perhaps of back home.

The gardens are now a park with native Cayman trees and plants. There’s also a vegetable garden with herbs for flavoring and healing.

I’ve put larger size photos of Pedro Castle, its alternate name, right here.

Pedro St James Opening Times

Entrance to the house and grounds is from 9 am to 5 pm. Your entrance fee includes a guided tour, in our case by a descendent of the original family that once owned it, and a neat video and light show that tells the story of Pedro St. James and, in doing so, tells much about the history of Grand Cayman. After all, for a century, this was the ‘big house’ on Cayman, the center of all that was going on in government and commerce. The show takes place on the hour from 10am to 4 pm.

For more details call 345.947.3329. You can also visit at their web site here.

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