Turtles Excursion on Carnival

[gazingm42]

Anyone done the Turtles, Turtles and more turtles deluxe offered by Carnival?

 

 

Turtles, Turtles & More Turtles Deluxe

Visit Boatswain’s Beach, home of the world famous Cayman Turtle Farm.

 

On this excursion you will:

 

* Interact with marine turtles, flora and other fauna as well as swim and snorkel in the park’s lagoons.

* Enjoy a tour of the marine park, including the Breeding Pond, the Turtle Hatchery, and the Education Center.

* Experience seeing a variety of turtles, from hatchlings to 600 pounds, and hold one of the yearlings in the Touch Tanks.

* Enjoy a stroll through the woodlands of the Nature Trail, complete with a small cave system, and let your imagination soar as you enter a world of Caymanian and Caribbean birds in the free-flight Bird Aviary.

* Experience snorkeling at Boatswain’s Lagoon where you can swim with yearling size turtles and view sharks in the Predator’s Reef through the underwater viewing panel.

* Have the choice to relax at Breaker’s Tidal Lagoon, one of the largest in the Cayman Islands. Enjoy lunch at Schooners Bar & Grill before heading back to your ship.

[nybumpkin]

We did the "non-deluxe" version, which had everything except lunch. Since our excursion was scheduled to conclude by 12:30, we figured we'd have lunch on the ship. We really enjoyed the Turtle Farm. My review with photos is at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1151709&highlight=conquest (Grand Cayman starts on page 2).

[RJ7591]

We did the Best of Grand Cayman Tour which included about an hour at the turtle farm. We didn't get to swim with the turtles but that was fine with us. We made a few other stops and got to see a little more of the island and were very satisfied! We had our 19 month old grandson with us and he loved the turtles and did very well on the rest of the excursion too.

 

Of course I feel the need to warn you that if you do stick your finger in the mouth of the "gentlest turtles in the world", they will bite! My grandson moves quickly and went from petting his head to sticking his finger in his mouth in a split second! Needless to say, we hold no grudge against the turtle! :p We just got a kick out of how many times the tour guide had pointed out that these were in fact "the gentlest turtles in the world" (over and over again)

[JackieH]

We did the "non-deluxe" version, which had everything except lunch. Since our excursion was scheduled to conclude by 12:30, we figured we'd have lunch on the ship. We really enjoyed the Turtle Farm. My review with photos is at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1151709&highlight=conquest (Grand Cayman starts on page 2).

 

 

Did you book this on your own? You said the tour ended at 12:30, was the pool part of the tour, and could you swim longer then 12:30???

[nybumpkin]

Did you book this on your own? You said the tour ended at 12:30, was the pool part of the tour, and could you swim longer then 12:30???

We booked through Carnival. The tour time included transportation to and from the pier. If you book the tour on your own, you can spend a longer time there, you just need to arrange for your own transportation to and from the pier. The Carnival tour gives you access to the entire site, including the pool (DH and sons loved it). We considered booking on our own, but we figured the cost of doing so while factoring in transportation would be fairly equal to the ship tour. In retrospect we probably would have enjoyed a little longer visit, but the Carnival tour provided plenty of time for us to enjoy the turtle farm.

[JackieH]

We booked through Carnival. The tour time included transportation to and from the pier. If you book the tour on your own, you can spend a longer time there, you just need to arrange for your own transportation to and from the pier. The Carnival tour gives you access to the entire site, including the pool (DH and sons loved it). We considered booking on our own, but we figured the cost of doing so while factoring in transportation would be fairly equal to the ship tour. In retrospect we probably would have enjoyed a little longer visit, but the Carnival tour provided plenty of time for us to enjoy the turtle farm.

 

Thank you for answering my questions. Did you find the pools clean? I was reading on the tripadvisor board, some people stated lagoon area with fish in it was dirty as well as other pool? Since you were there recently, maybe you can give you take on the cleanliness? We wont be there until Late August, I like to gather as much info as possible;)

[nybumpkin]

Thank you for answering my questions. Did you find the pools clean? I was reading on the tripadvisor board, some people stated lagoon area with fish in it was dirty as well as other pool? Since you were there recently, maybe you can give you take on the cleanliness? We wont be there until Late August, I like to gather as much info as possible;)

Since my family didn't swim in the lagoon I can't comment on it, but the swimming pool and surrounding area was very clean. I saw some of the tripadvisor posts before we went as well, and I figure they couldn't have visited the same pool that we did.