Non Carnival excursion suggestions for Cozumel and Grand Cayman for 6 adults and two teens

[DEBBO1012]

CC has always come through with the best experiences for us. We are open to do anything. We just want reliable and safe excursions which excel at showing their customers great experiences rather than rushed and crowded conditions plus constant upselling. 

[mz-s]

ask in the forums for those ports of call. this has nothing to do with carnival.

[DEBBO1012]

Ok, thanks, aren't I in the Cozumel POC forum?

[serene56]

cozumel:     What do you want to do>   lots of beach breaks        I use this site for cozumel   https://cozumelinsider.com/?Page=CruiseShips&Sort=Arrival 

 

grand cayman-  swimming at sting ray city.   I much prefer a smaller vendor instead of arriving enmasse with hundreds of others    Check Capt Marvins   or Native Ways Sports 

[DEBBO1012]

We don’t really care what we do. Everyone is a first time cruiser but me and they have no clue. If it was just me, I’m always up for a snorkeling/catamaran excursion, but half of our 8 don’t like to snorkel. They like to 4-wheel, cook, have a beach day, jeep rides, live music and food food. 

[blue_water]

Highly recommend Fat Fish Adventures for GCM. Small group on jet skis, you hit Stingray City with fewer boats there than with the options mentioned, plus the reef and possibly Rum Point or another beach stop. Great crew and fun day, can’t recommend them highly enough! If you can take the last excursion of the day you get an extra hour…
 

https://fatfishadventures.com/

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g147365-d1006098-Reviews-Fat_Fish_Adventures-Grand_Cayman_Cayman_Islands.html

Edited June 5, 2023 by blue_water

[blue_water]

For Coz, the best beach clubs are typically busy and you may want to try the bar hop us or something similar…

[DEBBO1012]

Great ideas!!! Thanks, we are all engaged in reading and getting ready to make the final decisions.

[c-leg5]

13 hours ago, blue_water said:

For Coz, the best beach clubs are typically busy and you may want to try the bar hop us or something similar…

Unless the teens are over 18 you would need to charter a private “ hop”. It is probably easier to book a driver for the day and just plan a custom tour so you are on your own schedule and visit the places you want.

 

I am a big fan of the east coast, away from the crowds, but you need to be careful where you choose in the summer when it is sargassum season, unless you just go for a drive-by.

[bguppies]

Both ports are great for doing non-cruiseline excursions. (both are incredibly well developed so fewer worries about being back to the ship on time. Unless of course you screw up the timing)

 

Might help you get more incisive recommendations if you could break down the ages of your group for everyone. (especially for Cozumel)

 

In Cozumel DW and I always (for decades) go to Nachi Cocum for our beach days. But a supremely relaxing beach day isn't for everyone. If you can break down your groups ages and likes better, Cozumel has something for everybody.

 

In Grand Cayman I'd definitely recommend a non-ship excursion to Sting Ray City.

I tried Native Way my first trip there, but way too much excitement getting back to the port with minutes to spare due to them mixing up their three groups all day and getting us back to the port almost late.

 

Have used Stingray Sailing eveytime since and have had a great experience everytime.

https://stingraysailing.com/

The link has some good pictuires of the boat and the excursion to give you an idea.

If you have a group of 8, you will either have the boat to yourselves or maybe with one other group. We have never been with more than 12 people on board and I think they have a limit of 20, even with a busy day in port.

Captain picks you up at the tender pier and drives you to the boat at a marina nearby. (once DW went on a girls cruise and the ships had to go to the pier south of town and he drove down and met them there and gave them the choice of doing the excursion or not, since the waves were a bit high that day.

They had the boat to themselves that day and he took them on a special day to out of the way spots the cruisers usually don't get to go to.)

I like to snorkle, DW does not, so she stays on the boat with the Captain and he keeps her entertained and still manages to point animals and fish out to her while she stays on board.

 

No matter which independant excursion company you choose in Grand Cayman, just make sure to do independant.

Everytime we go to Stingray City, I always feel sorry for the people on the cruiseline tours, as they usually arrive before or at the same time as us, the independant boats, but when we arrive the 200 people on the large ferry like boat are unpiling to see the stingrays. 

We pull up and it takes 5 minutes for the 10-12 of us, to get off the boat, meanwhile, the 200 are still getting off the bigger boat.

So we have 20-30 stingrays swarming around our group, while the Captain and his assistant are teaching our small group how to pet them and feed them squid.

Meanwhile the large group has finally unloaded and now the first off people are having to start getting back on the boat.

Meanwhile we are casually enjoying the stingrays swimming all throughout our group the entire time they are trying to get reloaded.

Then after they have already left, we begin the 5 minute reload to head out to a good snorkeling spot.

Edited June 6, 2023 by bguppies

[blue_water]

I would suggest searching YouTube for videos of the boats at the Stingray sandbar on GCM. It is the most popular excursion for both cruise line-sponsored and independent outfits and so gets crazy busy. A tour that includes stops at multiple spots may be able to work around the biggest crowds at the sandbar. 
 

Everyone in our small group enjoyed the ride through the mangroves, a more personal experience with the stingrays, and a stop at the reef with FFA. And because we took the afternoon tour we hit both Starfish Point and Rum Point. But most tours just stop at Starfish Point unless you have a later port departure time.

 

But just research the different options so you aren’t disappointed. A group of 8 would likely be the only ones on the FFA tour…

[clackey]

On 6/5/2023 at 9:35 AM, serene56 said:

cozumel:     What do you want to do>   lots of beach breaks        I use this site for cozumel   https://cozumelinsider.com/?Page=CruiseShips&Sort=Arrival 

 

grand cayman-  swimming at sting ray city.   I much prefer a smaller vendor instead of arriving enmasse with hundreds of others    Check Capt Marvins   or Native Ways Sports 

Good advice.  You can also check out cozumelmycozumel.com.  For most newbies I recommend Chankanaab  Park, especially when with teens.  Decent snorkeling there, too. I think that Cozumelinsider has coupons for $2 off.  We usually just grab a cab.

 

We did a tour with Capt. Marvins several years ago.  Did the Sting Ray City, reef snorkel and a trip to Rum Point.  I could live at Rum Point.

Edited June 7, 2023 by clackey

[aborgman]

What are you looking for on Cozumel?

 

My wife and I vacation there for a couple weeks about every other year, so I've got LOTS of opinions and recommendations.

[blue_water]

Coz is just so inundated with day visitors today…20+ years ago as we were virtually the only day visitors at Playa Palancar, for example. Now even that spot further from port is mobbed. Chankanaab Park is a great option, but it’s hard to recommend any place anymore on big ship days. 

Perhaps sharing your date in port will get more useful recommendations…For example, with a long port day (e.g. 10 hours) we could even recommend going to the mainland (Playa Del Carmen) for an excursion to Rio Secreto, or another nearby attraction. 

Edited June 8, 2023 by blue_water

[c-leg5]

On 6/5/2023 at 10:09 AM, DEBBO1012 said:

We don’t really care what we do. Everyone is a first time cruiser but me and they have no clue. If it was just me, I’m always up for a snorkeling/catamaran excursion, but half of our 8 don’t like to snorkel. They like to 4-wheel, cook, have a beach day, jeep rides, live music and food food. 

Cozumel extra ideas to consider:

For a beach day with good food and a pool you may consider Buccanos (not big beach but semi-rocky which offers opportunity for snorkeling).

 

For local food oriented excursions, highly recommend trying Cozumel food tour or cooking class with Josefina (now run by her son) or the new food courts if shopping in town.

 

For a more all round experience, maybe Playa Mia - ceveat, I haven’t been because it is touristy and busy but for a group there are food class opportunities, water park and water activities for teenagers, beach and pool and next door there is a Chocolate factory.

 

If getting a private driver, lots of individual opportunities all round the island to customize your day with something for everyone.

 

[mitsugirly]

Cozumel is such an easy port to do anything you'd like on your own. No need to do ship excursions. 

 

You mentioned that you have family that like to do more adventurous things...We've been to Cozumel many times and also vacationed there. For something fun and exciting (other than beaches) we did a Dune Buggy excursion that went to Jade Caverns. You drive your own and it's a lot of fun and then go to the beautiful caverns where you can jump off at the top into the cavern. They go to another cavern and into a little town. We had a lot of fun and it was something "different" than what we usually do when in Cozumel. HERE you will find my link to my review with tons of pictures. 

 

We've also done the Pearl Farm, which is unique to Cozumel and different than just a beach day. You go by boat, there's snorkeling at their farm, they explain the process, remote beach and have a cookout.

 

Trying SeaTrek is an unique experience....walking on the sea floor under the water. Easy to do and your head doesn't even get wet and you breathe just like above water.

 

There's so many beaches to go to as well if that's what you'd want to do. Check HERE for a list of all the places we've been there. There's tons of pictures in each so that you can get a feel for each.