Private Tour Operators in Cayman?

[bullwinkle72]

My family and I are arriving in Cayman on the Carnival Valor in just over a month (!). We are a party of 9, including one child age four. We're interested in booking a private charter, preferably on a catamaran, for a trip to Stingray City, and maybe Rum Point, or other beachy escape, or just for a nice sail. Mostly we want to avoid crowds (impossible, I know, at SRC and Rum Point) - especially on whatever vessel we're on.

 

I've contacted Island Marketing/Grand Cayman Cruise Excursions and they're booked up for private tours. Are there any other suggestions out there? Personal experiences? Even if it's not a private tour, maybe just a smaller tour so the boat doesn't have a bazillion people on it?

 

Thanks in advance!

[cath32]

We were in Grand Cayman about 10 days ago. We booked a tour with Stingray Sailing. They take you out to Stingray City and then snorkelling on a nearby reef. Their boat is a catamaran and I think they take about 30 people. You meet them at the pier and they load you on their bus to take you to and from the boat. We had a really enjoyable boat ride to and from the sites. The crew was great and we really enjoyed the trip.

 

It wasn't private, but it wasn't a huge group either and we didn't feel too crowded. Hope that helps!

[AlanAllyn]

There have been a lot of good reports here on http://www.captainmarvins.com/

We are thinking of booking them in December.

 

You may also want to look at the Ports of Call board -> Cribbean -> Cayman Islands for other recommendations.

[msbambam1]

I highly recommend Captain Marvins! Small tour groups of about 14. We all had a blast in 2006 and are going again in 33 days!!!!

[bullwinkle72]

Thanks so much for your replies! It's been helpful trying to figure out what options are available. We haven't had much luck finding a private charter so we ended up booking the Buccaneer excursion with Island Marketing/Grand Cayman Cruise Excursions. A bit more people on the boat than we'd like, but oh well. I waited too long to nail this one down.

 

I appreciate your responses though - gotta love Cruise Critic members!