Stingray City Excursion Question

[alertkm]

Hi - I am going on a 5 night cruise end of Jan on Magic and we are stopping at Grand Cayman and we want to go to Stingray City. It's me and my husband and my two 7 year old boys. I cannot figure out which excursion to book on Disney - there are about 4 variations in titles and prices but the descriptions to see the Stingrays are almost all identical. Does anyone have any recommendations on what to pick? There's a dolphin viewing option also but not sure if that's worth it or not. My kids are really excited about the Stingrays. Any other thoughts on GC is appreciated. Thanks.

[moki'smommy]

Stingray City is Stingray City. It depends a lot more on who your guide is than just going there. The stop will basically be a stop.

 

We went privately thru Captain Marvin's. I liked the small group (maybe 10 of us...or maybe 12). It was combined with multiple snorkel stops. I much prefer to snorkel off a boat than off the beach. At Stingray City our guide made a point of catching a stingray and demonstrating the difference between a male and a female, as well as having all sorts of interesting facts for us. The rays totally know who has food and will swarm around when those people come. Again, the guide showed us how to feed them and gave us each some food for them.

 

I've done the 40-60 person DCL trips to other places. I highly recommend smaller groups for this sort of thing!

[Ex techie]

Please avoid dolphin excursions.

 

ex techie

[slightlysilly]

Just something to think about. We usually cruise in February and for last year's cruise, I booked a snorkeling trip for my husband and son and I through Captain Marvin. We made it to the office just in time to be told that they were not going out that day because of the choppy waters. So they offered us a refund or a short tour of the island followed by a trip to the turtle farm. I was bummed because this was my son's first crack at snorkeling and GC is a great place for snorkeling. We agreed with the tour and turtle farm since we didn't have a plan B in place for that day. I was bummed to miss the snorkeling. I probably had a major frowney face as I boarded the bus for the tour.

 

Let me tell you though... BEST TOUR EVER. We had a guy named Tim show us around. (There were about 10 of us who were supposed to be on the snorkel tour.) We drove, he talked, we went to Hell (silly tourist trap), a few other stops, then to the turtle farm. My son (age 12 at the time) will talk about Tim for years to come. He ADORED him.

 

I've been to CC twice so far (both in February) and twice so far, we have not been able to jet ski or parasail because of the winds and choppy water. That's not to say it will happen for you, but I think in the winter months, there's more of a likelyhood of things getting canceled.

 

All that to say, back up plans are cool.

[moki'smommy]

ANY excursion at any time of the year is subject to cancelation due to weather, and it doesn't matter whether it is booked thru DCL or privately. We've also done the 1/2 day island tour at Grand Cayman which included the turtle farm and found it to be a great tour. The tour price was exactly the same as doing the turtle farm alone thru Boatswain's (owners of the turtle farm), so by going thru Captain Marvin's we essentially got the island tour free.

 

Another nice point--if you do a 1/2 day thru Captain Marvin, you have the option of being returned to the tender port or dropped off at one of the main beaches of your choice...so if you want a beach time to follow, you'll only have to pay for transportation to get back to the tender terminal.

 

Also...Grand Cayman is the most often missed port on DCL because it is a tender port. If the seas are choppy, the tenders may not be able to operate safely. Don't book a cruise that I'm on--we missed GC the first 3 times it was schedule when we cruised. Of course, we've had at least 2 great stops there since then!

 

Captain Marvin's storefront outlet is VERY easy to find. From the tender terminal, walk to the front (where the street is.) Look diagonally across the street to the left. If you don't see the Captain Marvin's sign, you can't miss the Dairy Queen. Captain Marvin is 2 stores closer to you than the Dairy Queen. They do insist on a credit card to book, but do not charge the card until you actually arrive. At that point you can pay with the card or pay cash and get a small discount. If your ship can't tender, they don't charge the card. The only way you get charged without a tour is if you don't show up and don't cancel but the ship arrives.

 

If you have nothing else planned as a backup, you can take public transportation or a taxi to one of the beaches. We liked Sea Grape and Cemetary Beach, but Seven Mile is the bigger name (the others are at the end of 7 Mile). All of the beaches at Grand Cayman are free--no one can own a beach, but this applies only to a small area of sand near the water. At the main beaches, there are plenty of people selling food, renting chairs, etc. You can also walk to some of the closer locations. The small brown signs indicate public walkways to the beach. While the beach is free, you can't trespass on private property to get to them, so follow the signs if you are walking.

Edited January 4, 2017 by moki'smommy

[DCLCrazy]

Extechie, why avoid the dolphin excursion? Just curious.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[moki'smommy]

Extechie, why avoid the dolphin excursion? Just curious.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Social responsibility--keeping dolphins in captivity, etc. If people would quit doing the dolphin swims/experiences, parks would quit capturing and confining the animals.

 

Note--the rays at Stingray City and Castaway Cay are not confined in any way. They are free to come and go at will and choose to be there...whether for the food or social interaction.

Edited January 9, 2017 by moki'smommy

[bear3412]

Welcome to Cruisecritic alertkm.

 

G08 is on an open air two level large boat, two levels, 15 minutes to marina, 40 minute boat ride to sting ray city. Gift shop aboard too.

 

G39 has an enclosed lower deck, open air top deck, 20 minutes to marina, 30 boat ride to sting ray city. There is a photo of this boat and it's cool stairs that allow easier water egress.

 

G47 - 49 are going to combine varying Dolphin experiences at Dolphin Cove with a trip to sting ray city. These will take longer and cost more obviously.

 

With DCL excursions you meet aboard 30 - 60 minutes prior to departure with the large group and are corralled and herded ashore, etc.

 

If this is you first cruise/ashore excursion I can understand booking with DCL. However you will get a more personal and relaxed experience booking privately. Last time to SRC our family of 4 was joined with one other family of 4. Nice.

 

 

Of course if this criuse is this month many excursions/slots may be filled.

 

If it was my first time I would book G39. Also for plenty of time to check out beach or shopping.

 

Of course JMO.

 

HTH

 

G39 stairs into water; from; https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/port-adventures/grand-cayman-deluxe-stingray-city-sandbar-snorkel/

 

 

[alertkm]

Thanks so much everyone. This was my first post and such helpful comments. I decided to book a Captain Marvin's Stingray City and 2 stop snorkel trip. Fingers crossed the weather cooperates. So excited for this cruise. It's taken me 8 years to convince my husband to go on a cruise after a very subpar experience on Carnival.

[moki'smommy]

Thanks so much everyone. This was my first post and such helpful comments. I decided to book a Captain Marvin's Stingray City and 2 stop snorkel trip. Fingers crossed the weather cooperates. So excited for this cruise. It's taken me 8 years to convince my husband to go on a cruise after a very subpar experience on Carnival.

 

This is one of the excursions we did thru Captain Marvin's. You will go across the street from the tender terminal and pay for the excursion. The group will meet up here. It is good to be a few minutes early if you can--you'll depart as soon as the group assembles. You'll be driven in a 10 or 12 passenger vehicle to the dock area. From there you will board one of their boats and go to the snorkel stops. They will provide all the snorkel equipment (you can bring your own if you wish). We had a great crew--I think 3 guys. The final stop was Stingray City which was great fun. Our group assembled around one of the crew who taught us a lot about the rays. After the stingray experience you will be taken by boat to their dock. The driver will ask if you want to return to the tender port or be taken to one of the beaches. If you opt for a beach, you will be responsible for your transportation back to the tender port area (there is a public bus or you can take a taxi). Obviously, you'd be responsible for beach rentals, lunch, etc. Use of the beaches themselves is free.

 

I have NO hesitation about using Captain Marvin's. We initially booked with them on a cruise that couldn't tender due to rough seas. No problem at all, credit card was not charged. If the times listed on line don't work with your cruise times, e-mail them. They KNOW what time the ships are due, how much time to allow for tendering, etc. If you ship is not on one of the standard schedules, they will adjust the excursion schedule accordingly but it might not show up on line that way.

Edited January 9, 2017 by moki'smommy

[Ex techie]

Extechie, why avoid the dolphin excursion? Just curious.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Social responsibility--keeping dolphins in captivity' date=' etc. If people would quit doing the dolphin swims/experiences, parks would quit capturing and confining the animals.

 

Note--the rays at Stingray City and Castaway Cay are not confined in any way. They are free to come and go at will and choose to be there...whether for the food or social interaction.[/quote']

 

DCLCrazy,

Moki'smommy's post is exactly why.

 

ex techie

[moki'smommy]

I need to be more complete here. THe rays at Stingray City are completely free and exist in their little area of open ocean. There is a net fencing in the rays at Castaway Cay. However, this net is removed when there is a hurricane or other rough weather predicted, allowing the rays to go to an area they consider safe. In every case, within a short time after the hurricane, all of the rays have returned to Castaway. They are tagged so can be identified and the animal researchers know each of them. So, while they do not have 24/7 freedom, they do have opportunities when they could choose to leave and not return...no ray has ever failed to return.

 

In one case we were told that all but one returned within 3 days. That one took about 11 days to come back. We were told the netting is for protection from other dangerous fish and that the staff feels that the rays have a better chance against an enemy than a hurricane.

Edited January 10, 2017 by moki'smommy