• The Cayman Islands are a dependent territory of the United Kingdom and as such enjoy the traditional political stability guaranteed by the British Crown.
• Largely autonomous and self-governing, the Cayman Islands are a democracy and elect fifteen Members to a Legislative Assembly whose life is four years. From these elected members, an Executive Council, consisting of  five members chosen by ballot from the elected members and three official members dictated by the Governor acting for the Crown, is formed. The official members are the Attorney General, the Financial Secretary and the Administrative Secretary. Executive Council (Exco) effectively forms the Government.
• Ministers are appointed from within Exco to provide leadership for the various ministries. Permanent Secretaries provide management continuity within the ministries in line with their counterparts in Britain.
• The Governor may exercise right of veto on any legislation which in his or her opinion as Representative of the Crown, is not in the best interests of the people of the Cayman Islands.
• Islanders have frequently been polled by representatives of the United Nations with a view to determining their right to self-government via independence. The islanders have consistently refused such separation from Britain.

• The Cayman Islands Dollar (KYD) is the  currency of the Cayman Islands. It is linked to the US Dollar at CI$1.00 = US$1.20 and is not traded internationally; as such, it does not suffer the unwanted side effects of international currency trading.
• The Cayman Islands Government does not levy income tax; rather it finances itself through indirect taxation such as annual fees on companies, duty on imports and fees on land and property transfers.
• For large budget elements, the Government pursues loans or grants in the international marketplace; it has a first class reputation for repayment of such loans.

• The Cayman Islands consist of three major islands (100 sq. miles approx.):
  Grand Cayman (pop. 33,000 approx)
  Cayman Brac (pop. 1,200 approx)
  Little Cayman (pop. 100 approx)
• Approximately 62% of the population are Caymanian; the remainder are persons on work-permits and their immediate families
• Principal industries are tourism and finance
• The islands are one of the top five diving destinations in the world
• The islands are one of the top five financial centres in the world
• Some farming is carried on but most food stocks are imported
• Facilities and infrastructure are modern:
  - three large and well stocked supermarket chains with one or more branches
  - recently expanded and well equipped public hospital and a number of private clinics
• Airlines with scheduled services to Grand Cayman (GCM), Cayman Brac (CYB) or Little Cayman (LYB)

  Airline	Telephone	GCM	CYB	LYB
  Air Jamaica	+800.523.5585	X
  American Airlines	+800.433.7300	X
  British Airways	+800.247.9297	X
  Cayman Airways	+800.422.9626	X	X
  Cubana		X
  Delta	+800.221.1212	X
  Island Air (Inter-island)	+345.949.5252	X	X	X
  Islena	+345.949.4979	X
  Northwest	+800.225.2525	X
  US Air	+800.622.1015	X

• Nationally recognised entities
  - National Bird - The Cayman Islands Parrot
  - National Tree - The Silver Thatch
  - National Flower - The Wild Banana Orchid
  - National Carrier - Cayman Airways
  - National Song - Beloved Isle, Cayman
  - National Flag - Blue Ensign overlaid with Cayman Islands Crest

• The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority is the central authority with responsibility for the currency and for controlling all offshore entities trading in the Cayman Islands through a set of Inspectorates.

• The Cayman Islands Immigration Board (formerly the Caymanian Protection Board) regulates requests for work permits; its decisions may be appealed to the Governor In Council (effectively Exco) .
• The Board also examines, and denies or approves, requests for permanent residency, either with or without right to work.
• The Board also plays a part in evaluating whether or not to grant a licence to trade locally (as opposed to offshore) to companies not posessing majority (60%) Caymanian ownership

• The following list of Grand Cayman hotels does not imply any endorsement by Britannia, but are generally considered to be suitable for business travellers with varying budgets:
  

  Hotel	Telephone	Facsimile
  Best Western Sammy's Airport Inn (APO)	+345.945.2100	+345.945.2330
  Grand Pavilion Hotel (SMB)	+345.945.5656	+345.945.5353
  Hyatt Regency Grand Cayman (SMB)	+345.949.1234	+345.949.8528
  Indies Suites (SMB)	+345.945.5025	+345.945.5024
  Marriott Resort Grand Cayman (SMB)	+345.949.0088	+345.949.0288
  Sleep Inn Hotel (SMB)	+345.949.9111	+345.949.6699
  Treasure Island Resort (SMB)	+345.949.7777	+345.949.8672
  Westin Casuarina Resort (SMB)	+345.945.3800	+345.949.5825

  APO - Adjacent to Airport
  SMB - Located on Seven Mile Beach

• Telecommunications are provided by monopoly supplier Cable and Wireless (West Indies) Ltd. (+345.949.7800).
• The following is a partial list of services available to travellers or visitors:
  - Cellular rentals
  - Internet access
  - Credit card calling 1-800-744-2000
  - AT&T Direct 1-800-872-2881
  - MCI Direct 1-800-888-8000
  - Sprint Direct 1-800-366-4663
• A full range of modern services is available to businesses including ISDN
• While in Grand Cayman, contact Cable and Wireless Customer Services on 811

For those who wish to drive themselves, car rental is inexpensive. A temporary local licence must be obtained and this can be issued by your car rental company on production of a valid and current overseas licence.. The following internationally recognised rental car companies are represented in Grand Cayman; other high quality local companies also rent cars and jeeps at economic prices: