Turtle farm

We will be taking our 8 year old to Grand Cayman in February 2011. He's not real daring so I'm not sure he'd swim witht he stingrays. Is the turtle farm worth the trip?

My wife and I visited the turtle farm a few yrs. ago.

We are looking foward to going again this Sept.

You 8 year old will love it.

 

for more info go to http://www.boatswainsbeach.ky

We visited back in February - my review is at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1151709&highlight=conquest (Grand Cayman starts on page 2). My kids loved the Turtle Farm.

We got back a week ago. This was my second time to Grand Cayman and we went to the turtle farm. I was pleasantly surprised how nice it was. There is a beach right across the street too. But they have a very nice lagoon to hang out and swim in. If you do the dolphin discovery, located across the street, they include the turtle farm in the admission.

We'll have to try it out. Thanks so much for the responses.

It was kind of neat. A little small but I think for an 8 yr old he will like it. My wife and I did it (shes in her mid 20's im 32) and it was cool but I wouldnt go back again. It was a bit of a drive from port...the drive was twice as long as the amount of time you spend at the farm.

It was a bit of a drive from port...the drive was twice as long as the amount of time you spend at the farm.

 

The actual drive time from the port area to the Turtle Farm is about 20 minutes...total time including waiting for the rest of the group may vary greatly. :D

 

Your time spent inside will depend on your interest level, and whether you go for the full package or just the turtle tanks tour. There's lots to do and see at the park besides the tanks. You can get more info here - http://www.boatswainsbeach.ky/

What kind of things are there to do at the Turtle Farm? Are you able to hold them?

What kind of things are there to do at the Turtle Farm? Are you able to hold them?

Yes - they will show you how to pick up the turtles (if you pick them up the wrong way, you will be very wet:p). The turtles are divided in tanks by age, ranging from yearlings up to several years old. If you get a package that gives you access to the full site, you can see the turtles, the shark tank, the lagoon, and the aviary. There's also a really nice pool for swimming and a nature trail.

I cant wait to take our 10 yr old there. I still havent decided if we are going to tell her or keep it a secret. All of the reviews sound wonderful!

It's pretty cool - yep, you get to hold one. Kids usually love turtles and sea turtles are even better! We enjoyed it.

We will be going to the turtle farm next week on our Legend cruise. If you book online directly with the farm www.boatswainsbeach.ky, they include a free shuttle bus to and from the farm which makes two trips a day.

We will be going to the turtle farm next week on our Legend cruise. If you book online directly with the farm www.boatswainsbeach.ky, they include a free shuttle bus to and from the farm which makes two trips a day.

 

Do you know what time the shuttles are at? I sent an email on their website but havent heard back yet. Also, asked if we would receive a refund on tickets if the ship couldnt dock in Grand Cayman because of weather.

Do you know what time the shuttles are at? I sent an email on their website but havent heard back yet. Also, asked if we would receive a refund on tickets if the ship couldnt dock in Grand Cayman because of weather.

 

According to what they told me, the shuttles to the turtle farm leave from the pier where the tenders arrive at 8:30 and 9:45 local time. The return shuttles leave at noon and 1:15. The shuttle takes 20-30 minutes each way.

Do you know what time the shuttles are at? I sent an email on their website but havent heard back yet. Also, asked if we would receive a refund on tickets if the ship couldnt dock in Grand Cayman because of weather.

 

I did the same thing and didn't hear back either. We are going in November. I'm going to try it anyway. There is a place to cancel on line so if the ship doesn't make it, I'll cancel on the ship and see what happens.

 

Silverscreencruiser, will you please post when you get back and let us know how the bus worked?

Planning on the doing the Capt Marvin land tour while in Grand Cayman and it's 45 minutes at the Turtle Farm and 15 minuites in Hell (too long for me!) Has anyone else done this excursion with Capt Marvin? Was it long enough at the Turtle Farm? We are dong the Stingrays first with him and then this one. What were you able to do during this 45 minutes?

I was just reading reviews of Boatswain's on Tripadvisor and they were rather scathing; almost unanimous that the place is in rough shape. The reviews here seem to be to the contrary...any idea why the sweeping range in reviews for this place?

 

My son will be 4 at the time of our visit and this seemed perfect but I really don't want to invest the time if it is as small, dirty, and the water is as messy as was indicated in those reviews.

 

I'd appreciate any insight anyone could give...thanks!

I was just reading reviews of Boatswain's on Tripadvisor and they were rather scathing;

 

Personally, I don't trust TripAdvisor reviews. It really seems to be random, and I've yet to find any relationship between the reviews and my personal experiences...at least for the places I've been. For example, last spring my DH booked a hotel, and when I went to TA to see the reviews, they were horrible! Claiming there were bugs, dirty sheets, etc. - I was petrified. We went, and it was great. The staff was really nice, and sure, the hotel wasn't the newest, but there certainly weren't the type of problems all the reviews seemed to indicate. That's just the most recent example...that difference between review and reality has happened to me more than once.

 

For most things, I stick with trusting CC members a lot more than the random strangers on an unmoderated review site...see if you get a recent review (or do a search in this forum) for Boatswain's, and make your decision from there... :D

Folks, I really need to ask this, as I haven't been able to reach a definitive conclusion. At the turtle farm, are the turtle raised for release into the wild, or is it really a farm where the cute turtles you get to hold and love will eventually be eaten?

Folks, I really need to ask this, as I haven't been able to reach a definitive conclusion. At the turtle farm, are the turtle raised for release into the wild, or is it really a farm where the cute turtles you get to hold and love will eventually be eaten?

 

Both. Some turtles (about 40%) are raised for release, but others will be sold for consumption. The idea is that fewer wild turtles will be hunted if meat is available commercially.

 

http://www.boatswainsbeach.ky/conservation/history.cfm

Folks, I really need to ask this, as I haven't been able to reach a definitive conclusion. At the turtle farm, are the turtle raised for release into the wild, or is it really a farm where the cute turtles you get to hold and love will eventually be eaten?

We were told that the turtles on public display will be either bred or released in the wild; the turtles raised for consumption are not on the public tour.

Thank you, folks, for your replies to my question! I guess I would feel better if I knew that the turtles I met wouldn't be eaten!

Far less than 40% of the turtles will be released. Far, FAR, less.

 

The operation is primarily a farm producing turtle meat for local consumption.

 

Back in 2001, a glancing blow from a passing hurricane did serious damage to the old Turtle Farm structure. Many of the larger breeding turtles were swept out to sea, never to return. So of Nature's owner Free Willy, b ut for turtles.

 

With a reduced population of large breeding turtles, the economic picture changed. A certain level of turtle meat sales has been a primary source of income. With fewer turtle eggs being layed by the smaller remaining breeding stock, fewer turtles are being released in order to have sufficient numbers remaining for culling to meet demand for turtle meat products.

 

From their own FAQs:

How many turtles are released each year?

 

With the farm stock now greatly reduced due to Hurricane Michelle in 2001, we now do "token" releases of about 20 turtles each year. Over 31,000 turtles have been released to date.

 

How many Green turtles in the Herd at the Farm?

Over 7,000.

 

How many eggs can a female Farm turtle lay?

... About 8,000 eggs were laid for 2008 season out of 106 nests. (132 was the most laid in a single nest).

 

 

So... there are about 7,000 turtles at the farm. About 20 are released each year. If only 10% of the laid eggs are successfully hatched that would add about 800 turtles each year. Maintaining a steady population would leave 800-20=780 being culled each year. That would provide a 2.5% release rate.

One more number found in a newspaper article ( see http://www.compasscayman.com/caycompass/2010/03/01/Farm-turtles-faced-depletion-by-next-year/ ) about the Turtle Farm:

 

“If we were to continue harvesting turtles, butchering them, at the rate of 40 turtles per week – the same rate that has been in effect for years up until when the price increased – we would run out of harvestable turtles in the next year and a half, just 18 short months,” he [ Premier McKeeva Bush ] said.

 

So, 40 culled per week. 52 weeks per year. That makes 2080 per year culled. 20 released. 20/2080 puts the release rate just under 1%.

That means they need hatching rates a bit better than 26.25% of the eggs laid just to maintain current stock levels while accounting for culling rate, some natural attrition, and a nominal release program.

We were there last month and we had a guide from our ship's excursion go around with us and tell us all about the turtles. He did say that some were raised to be eaten, but we tried not to think about that while we were there, because if I did, I would get really upset because I'm an animal lover.

 

I went because the kids wanted to hold the turtles, and they did and they really enjoyed it. The tanks that the turtles were in looked clean to me, they didn't smell or anything.

 

I don't think I would pick it to be the only thing I would do in GC, but it was perfect as part of the Hell, Turtle Farm and Stingray City package our ship offered.