More Nativeway questions, (paranoid)

[Bothell]

Hello

I have reservations for next month through Nativeway for the Ray, Reef and Rum Point excursion. This is our first cruise and I wonder if I am overly paranoid or if maybe I should book the Rays and Reef through the cruise ship. We have 6 traveling with us.

Our ship leaves port at 4:30, so is it correct the last tender is at 3:30? Nativeway site says this excursion last til 2:00, I was very comfortable with that time frame. But from what I have been reading up on them now, looks like that is not correct, it is more like they leave Rum Point at 2:45...getting to the docks at about 3:30.

I am not good under stress (Let me tell yah, I would be horrible on Amazing Race).

I guess I just would like some input on whether or not this time frame is gonna work.

Maybe I should just book through the cruise ship? The main reason I did Nativeway was it was only $1 more and we include Rum Point and lunch.

BTW: I cant find what the "lunch" is, other then it is grilled. Anyone know what lunch actually is?

Maybe we should do the boat excursion and not add Rum Point then get to the dock in enough time to look around, or leave on the later time slot and look around before we go? I really would like to do both the stingrays and the coral reef.

Like I said this is our first cruise and I hate stress and trying to beat a clock.

Thanks!

Lisa

[eastwood1fam]

I went through exactly what you are recently. I wanted to do the Ray, Reef and Rum Point which is 5 hours but I felt stressed for time and was afraid we might not get a tender in time to meet our guide or get back to late. Plus I wanted a little time to do some shopping or look around on our own. I emailed Sharon with Nativeway and she said that they have a 2 1/2 hour Ray and Reef only excursion starting at 10 AM. I felt more comfortable with that. It is $35 per person. Go to their website and email her. She is prompt in replying. www.nativewaywatersports.com

I hope you have a great time. I can't wait. Only 24 more days!

[ksoze]

We are signed up for the RR&R tour also and have the same time constraints as you. In reading the many posts here, I have yet to find one regarding stranded passengers after this tour. I think NW is well aware of this issue, as they deal with cruisers all of which have similiar time issues.

 

If you are concerned, just let the driver know that you need to leave Rum point in time to get you tender. Chances are, there are those in your group with the same needs.

[Sir Coslo of the 7 Seas]

booking the excursion through the boat is usually the best way to make sure you are back in time however going on private excursions can be an adventure filled with experiences you neverr thought you would encounter

lunches on range from some form of chicken to sandwiches

good luck

[ksoze]

bothell,

 

According to Sharon at NW, the RR&R tour returns at 2:45, so you can easily make your tender. A rum at the last stop will help ensure that ;-)

[Bothell]

Wow..Sharon from Nativeway responded to my e-mail immediately and I feel a tad more at ease.

Part of her response:

There is no need to worry about missing your last tender, because we have never, and will never allow that to happen. We do this EVERYDAY. And we honestly have a handle on the situation. The traffic on West Bay Road (the main road) is often very bad. This results in an estimated return time back to the pier, instead of an exact time. If you need an exact time back to the pier, I respectfully suggest that you cancel your reservation. I do not want to over-promise. And, the last thing we want you to do, is stress out (we sincerely want you to have fun on your vacation!).

Also for those of you that are interested in what lunch is:

Regarding lunch, you will get to choose one entrée from a menu. The menu consists of items such as grilled chicken, fish, salads, burgers, and more. I do not have the menu available, however, I can tell you there is a nice variety.

I think we will stick to this plan and go with Nativeway, they do have everytihng offered on this trip that I want to do and see. I will just have an extra drink before we leave and so I am calm if time gets close! :D

[bellybutton]

thanks for posting her reply

[KamloopsCruisers]

Defintely go with Nativeway and not through the ship. We did this excursion (DH & I) with 2 couples off a Holland America ship. They didn't depart until much later than we did, but Sharon & Eldon ensured that our excursion would end soon enough to give us AMPLE time to get back to our ship (RCCL). I think if everyone on the excursion was leaving later, we would have stayed longer at Rum Point (wish we could have stayed there for days!). We had only 6 of us on our excursion and got first rate service and attention. We had a blast at with the stingrays - much more time to enjoy these incredible creatures than the "hundreds" that seemed to be on the ship's excursion boats. This will be the highlight of your cruise - I guarantee it.

 

Enjoy!

 

Sue

[txgal1304]

Seeing as I just got back last week from a Nativeways tour, I do feel like I should comment...

We booked the Rays Reef and Rum Point Tour, which I thought returned at 2:30. Being a first time cruiser and seeing that our ship left at 4:00, I thought that we would have plenty of time (not knowing of course that that means the last tender leaves at 3:00). We didn't get into the vans to go back to the pier until 2:45 and traffic on the main road was standstill (aka my husband almost had a heart attack). We told our driver we were leaving at 3:00 and he drove down the emergency/turn-only lane past almost all of the traffic. He had a radio and was in contact with someone down at the pier, and they were reporting long lines, but we weren't sure for which ship. Needless to say, we pulled up a little after 3:00 and ended up at the end of a pretty long line to tender back. So, at least I can say that our driver did everything possible to make sure that we made it close to 3:00, but it was EXTREMELY nervewracking, and I would think really hard about timing issues. I also know that there was another van with people on my boat about 15 minutes behind ours, and I don't actually know whether they made it or not - Grand Cayman had a pretty efficient tendering system. Anyways, I know that as a first-timer I may not have too much insight, but I figured I'd throw my 2 cents in. The excursion was great though. :)

[Bothell]

Txgal

Oh man..honestly, if that happened to me, I would be crying and well, probably freaking out! I am horrible under pressure! I try to handle it, but I am a weenie when it comes to stress or hurt people, or panic situations, or time restraints....hehehe, thankfully those things are not common in everyday life! I acutally find myself pacing back and forth sometimes while watching Amazing Race! My sister will call me to tease me knowing I am probably pacing and not breathing!

I really think I will think this over...again!

You know I will probably laugh at myself after this is all over, but never having cruised I dont know the ropes on how time restraints are.

Lisa

[Ali-in-Texas]

We were in GC on Jan 5 and traffic was horrible going back to the office after the excursion. It took twice as long to get back as it did to go to the boat. I can't imagine how stressful it would be if you were cutting it close to tendering time.

[flamedFXSTC]

I will also be a first time cruiser, and have a question about this excursion. Our ship is in port from 8am-4pm. NW's website states this excursion, returns to the pier at 2:00pm EASTERN TIME. What time would that be "ship" time? Do we have time?

 

Has anyone seen any private companies that just do the stingrays and Rum Point Beach? We really aren't that interested in the Reef part, but that is part of the package.

 

Thanks for any info!

[Bothell]

I will also be a first time cruiser, and have a question about this excursion. Our ship is in port from 8am-4pm. NW's website states this excursion, returns to the pier at 2:00pm EASTERN TIME. What time would that be "ship" time? Do we have time?

 

It leaves Rum Point at 2:00, arriving about 2:45 normally...read the posts though, some are saying it didnt arrive back until 3:00-3:30. BUT never had anyone missed thier ship either!

[CaribbeanBound]

We did nativeway. Had people from at least 2 different ships on our excursion. They made sure everyone got back in time.

 

Complete review...

http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/westerncaribbean.html

[drew sailbum]

Ahhh... ship time vs island time rears its ugly head again!

 

Nativeway usually departs Rum Point at 2:00 island time. What time that is in "ship time" depends upon which ship you came in on. With a 2:00 departure, that should comfortably put them back on the other side of the North Sound ready to unload about 30-40 minutes later. Then it's a matter of how bad traffic is for the return to the tender dock.

 

Honestly, their crew seem to have a handle on things. Missed connections with any company are extremely rare, and I've never heard the Nativeway captains talking about one.

[southhavenjen]

Txgal

I acutally find myself pacing back and forth sometimes while watching Amazing Race!

 

LOL, I know what you mean! I can't even watch that show because it stresses me out too much. My philosophy is that TV is supposed to be relaxing, not stressful. :D

[Family Girl]

Absolutely - Positively - Go on the Rays, Reef, Rum Point excursion.:D You will not be disappointed. We took the excursion at the first of January. It turned out to be one of the highlights of our vacation.

Was the tendering stressful ? Yes, because I'm kinda high strung anyway. I was stressed about not getting off the ship in time, and stressed about not getting back to the tender for the return. In hindsight I should have just relaxed, we had extra time on both ends of the tender.

One glimpse of the huge crowds aboard the cruise ship excursions and I knew we made the right decision. The crew from Nativeway (Sheldon and Everton) were very professional and made sure that everyone recieved the personal attention that makes a "good" tour a "GREAT" tour.

So enjoy your trip, you won't be disappointed. Also, if Dolo from VIP Productions is filming your trip make sure you buy the CD. It is worth every penny. We just recieved it and, like the tour, it exceeded our expectations.:D

[familyplanner]

My brother and sister in law did this tour with native way while the rest of our group did another. I recommend getting off the ship first thing, just go down with the ship tours no one checks and do your shopping first. There is a great outlet mall just down from hard rock that seemed to have the best pricing. My brother and his wife absolutely loved this tour and we thoroughly enjoyed ours with native way. They are a very reputable private tour company. Enjoy and I know what you mean, but relax and trust them.:)

[ginag]

Isn't Nativeway the Best?! We did this tour in December and what an awesome time we had!

We also had Sheldon and Everton as our guides and these guys aim to please! We too, were a little nervous about getting back to the ship on time, but as Everton said.."you let me do all the worrying, and have a great time"! When he told me that, I relaxed. :)

 

We had Nicolette from VIP Productions filming our excursion and she was a sweetheart too! They did an awesome job with the DVD...we are very pleased!

 

Folks, this is their job to make sure we have a wonderful time and to get us back to our destinations ON TIME!

[ericworldz]

i'm also interested in nativeway's ray, reef, and rum excursion. i'll be on the navigator of the seas. how long does it take from the ship and tender to land?

 

the website says it start from 9:00AM to 2:00PM.

 

after reading all the posts here, i'm also worry about the rush back to port.

 

 

[caprcorn28]

We are all set up to do our excursion with Nativeway - with the exception of needing to fax in the credit card number. Have any of you done this via the secure fax line or did you call or just email it?

 

I do feel pretty secure about things going smoothly - but my other question is pretty much the same as everyone else...Our ship leaves at 4:30, which means that we probably have to be back on by 4p...I have been to GC before, but don't remember how long the tendering took (way back in '01...and this time there will be SEVEN ships in GC! :eek: ). I HATE to be rushed...

[ksoze]

I faxed - no problems. Never made it though, the Mariner skipped GC due to high seas and tendering issues :(

[ericworldz]

I faxed - no problems. Never made it though, the Mariner skipped GC due to high seas and tendering issues :(

 

when are you or did you go to GC? the navigator has itinery to GC on feb 8th

[familyplanner]

I e-mailed my credit card number with no problems:)

[Bothell]

I faxed my cc#. You can also call them or e-mail them with it if you are unsure about faxing it.