Advice Please: W Caribbean Cruise

[chloes_mom]

Originally Posted by Sdallnct

I don't mean to scare anyone. A Catamaran is a very, very stable boat. And a lot of fun! But of course you have to be reasonable and use common sense. Most of the kids in our group did enjoy sitting out on the canvas "trampoline" that is between the two hauls (or whatever they are called). But the smallest kids would get bored sitting with mom or dad inside the covered area want to get up and walk around on their own or go to the bigger kids. Obviously this was an issue.

I'm really shocked to learn your not supposed to take food off the ship. They never once asked or looked in my backpack which I always carried around. We took at least a couple pieces of fruit off at every port. And in GC, I anticipated wife getting hungry as we ate breakfast at like 8, our tour wasn't going to get off the ship till 11 or so and the tour would not be over till 3 or 4 and had to be back on the ship by 4:45 so I loaded up, filling up a large zip lock bag with a bunch of stuff.

We never tried to take any food back on. If we had a piece or two left, we threw them away. Coming back on board your stuff goes thru and xray like at the airport, so I just assumed they would see anything.

You didn't scare me any more than I already was. But then, I'm a worrier. I like the layout of the cat because it just seems more comfortable. But the regular boats definitely would be safer.

I took some fruit off a few years ago in hawaii, and noone ever checked me either. But then reading on these boards, I "heard" that you weren't supposed to take it off, and that people had to throw away their food. But then, they were probably being obvious about it. You can always throw it away if they make you. I just didn't want to waste food. I won't be obvious about it. I also read that it depends on the port. Go figure!

[chloes_mom]

Originally Posted by MaiTaiMary

Isn't there some kind of pirate ship excursion at one of these ports? I can't remember which one (Cozumel? Grand Caymen?)
We're going to take our kids on this cruise and I thought the pirate ship looked like fun, but I can't remember where it is (or the name. ) Anybody??


ETA: nevermind. I found it.
http://www.jollyrogercayman.com/ Grand Caymen!

I was thinking about doing this too, because my 7yo dd really like pirates. But I read on here that a few people thought it was cheesy. My dh and I did the Jolly Roger in Antigua on our honeymoon, and it was a blast! But it was definitely a booze cruise. I read that the one in gc is more geared to kids, at least the daytime one. It's between this and the stingrays. Can't decide. I think I read on the jolly roger website that you have to book it thru the cruise line, though.

Renee

[T. Advisor King]

My two-cents worth:

1. Taking food off the ship: You should be sure to educate yourself about what the local regulations are about importing food. Local ecosystems can run into serious trouble with something as harmless as a piece of fruit. However, some on these boards have tried to convince everyone that you can never take any food off any ship in any port unless it is pre-packaged (e.g., a sealed bag of chips). This is simply not true. In my experience, the posters don't believe it either, but they just seem to think it is too complicated to actually learn what is allowed and what isn't in each port. Each country has its own food import regulations. Within a country, different ports may have different regulations. Generally, they are all aimed at protecting ecosystems and keeping out foreign pests. If you make reasonable inquiries, check for signs posted when you disembark and use common sense, you should be fine. Obviously, you shouldn't carry around food all day that will go bad.

2. Our day in Grand Caymen in March was probably the best day of the cruise. We paid a taxi to take us to 7-mile Beach and stayed until we had to leave. I'm not sure what the attraction is to some of the contrived "tours" that don't have any direct relation to a port's history or natural beauty. The tours can be so expensive that you can find yourself spending more on tours than you did on the cruise. We took tours on two of our three port days and while we enjoyed them, neither was as good a day the day we just took a cab to the beach. So my advice would be to explore the port towns and/or relax on the beaches. Don't feel like you need to "do" this or "do" that. Your wallet will thank you and you'll be back on vacation sooner than you would be otherwise!