Getting back to the ship on time

[LBB]

Hi. I'm thinking about taking a private tour from 1-3 in Grand Cayman. The ship leaves at 5. Am I leaving enough time? I don't want to be worried the whole time.

[voyager70]

As long as they drop you off in or near the downtown area where you catch the tender back to ship you should be OK. Most ships leave GC around 5 so the tour operator should be aware of what time you need to get back, but be sure to tell them anyway! Also, the lines for the tenders can be pretty long around 3 o'clock so be sure to give yourself plenty of time.

[LBB]

Thanks! All the reviews say the tour operator is very aware of ship times, but I just want to be really careful!

[cb at sea]

That's they tour operator's livelihood--so he will be careful. I just worry about things beyond his control. That's why I always book thru the ship--just to be safe!

[Nliedel]

You should be fine. You have to be back onboard 1/2 hour prior to sailing and should have plenty of time.

[Yazoo cruiser]

They had booked a tour to Dunn's River falls and on the way back, their taxi had a flat tire and then got caught in a traffic jam. If you have ever been to Jamaica, you what I am talking about as far as the traffic. Some one on the ship said they had to arrange for someone to get them to Grand Cayman, our next port. Since then we have only booked through the ship, costs a little more but the peace of mind, knowing you won't get left is worth it to us. But I have friends that will only book through an independent tour and they have never had a problem. Have a great cruise.

[LBB]

Thanks for everyone's help. I think it's only a short trip to the boat (to go snorkeling) and have read only great reviews about the tour operator. I know there will probably be a long line to get a tender, but I'll deal with it. We are not morning people and the thought of being ready to go at 8 a.m. on vacation does not interest me at all.

[Travelgrrl]

If it's Nativeway, you'll be fine.

 

In any case, I would tell a tour operator that I needed to be at the pier by 4:00 (not 5:00); that gives you a whole hour's leeway in case of a traffic jam, which sometimes happens on narrow island roads.

[Desertbelle]

We almost always book private tours on our cruises and haven't had a problem.

 

There are many more differences in ship tours and private tours than cost. With private tour guides you have more control over where you go, number of people you go with, type of vehicle you go in, and you can take advantage of the excellent advice found here on Cruise Critic. I certainly have heard more good about private tours than bad.

 

Having said that, we have used cruise excursions when it seemed right for us, but I really don't think that scaring people should be confused with giving advice or information.

[superjerryw]

One more thing for you to consider - local time versus ships time. On some cruises they adjust the time on the ship to match the time in the ports, on some cruises they do not. During the summer when the east coast is on daylight savings time the time on the ship may be one hour ahead of the time in Grand Cayman if they choose not to adjust it on that sailing. Therefore, if your tour ends at 3:00PM local time, that might actually be 4:00PM ships time. If the ship sails at 5:00PM ships time you need to be back on board by 4:30PM ships time so your time frame may not be as big as you think.

[LBB]

The tour is on Soto's, which has gotten good recommendations on these boards. I'm going next month, so it looks like they're on the same time right now. I'll make sure everything is ok when I get the e-mail confirmation from the company.

[zuscruiserz]

Keep your watch on ship's time and you'll be fine.

[Desertbelle]

Keep your watch on ship's time and you'll be fine.

 

Simple, but excellent suggestion!!

[superjerryw]

The problem is if the ships time is not the same as the local time. If the ships time is one hour ahead of local time the poster may not be able to get back to the ship on time. If his tour ends at 3:00 local time it may be 4:00 ships time. If the ship sails at 5:00 and all aboard is at 4:30 there is only 30 minutes to get back to the ship. The OP is going next month and daylight savings time starts on April 2 so if the ship sails from Florida the time on the ship may be one hour ahead of the local time in Grand Cayman. I think the OP needs to research if Grand Cayman switches to daylight savings time.

[zuscruiserz]

Jerry - that's exactly what I'm saying;) . If the 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. tour actually starts at 2:00 p.m. ship's time, the OP will know BEFORE he goes on the tour that it won't be back until 4:00 p.m. and he can decide whether it is worth the chance getting back so late (for myself, I would have to say no, it's NOT worth it).

 

But keep your watch ALWAYS on ship's time, no matter what the local time is!

[Trevoli]

The tour operator is going to be well acquainted with Daylight Savings Time, ship's time, local time, and everything else. S/he will do their utmost to get you back to the ship on time. This is their livlihood and they can't afford to have anybody disappointed.

 

I think telling them you need to be back by 4:00pm, when s/he knows darn well the ship doesn't sail until 5:30pm, is unnecessary.

 

When circumstances are out of their control (mechanical problems, traffic tie-ups), THEN you have to worry.

 

And that's exactly why I only take ship-sponsored tours. I know they're more expensive, and some travellers wouldn't be caught dead doing this (and more power to them), but I like the peace of mind knowing the ship is going to wait for me.

 

I almost missed the ship once in Antigua. This is a very long time ago. We'd gone into town in the morning and then went back to the ship. There was a security checkpoint at the port, and we went through in no time. We then changed and went out again for some beach time. When we returned this time, the line at the security checkpoint was extremely long and slow-moving.

 

When I heard the ship's whistle blow the first time, I pushed my way to front of the line, apologizing profusely all the way, and I made it on board, but just barely. They had pulled up the gangplank, and we walked onto the ship across a piece of big sheet metal, still apologizing, and wound up in the bowels of the ship. Another two minutes and we'd have waving at the ship as it sailed away.

 

T

[Schplinky]

We took the Godfrey tour in St. Thomas and he was constantly reminding us to be punctual so that we would be back to the ship ontime. We arrived back an hour before sailing, which he said is as close as he would ever want to make it, owing to the possibility of a flat or traffic. I appreciated that he was looking out for us and without the constant reminder, we would have been late as there was a family that was always lagging behind and seemed perturbed about being cajoled. It really was annoying and they all kept making comments about how the rest of us were punching the clock while "they" were on hollidays. Godfrey was very curt with them after the second time and they were on time the rest of the trip. I wonder if he offered to leave them behind. Hope so.

[Green4me]

Have a great time, you will be fine with the tour. Nothing worse than standing in a 2 hour line at 3 pm to make the tenders back. We typically have been on "the last tender" and have have not had to wait. In GC you can see the tender line from the bar at the hard rock cafe, some pepole choose to wait in the hot sun, I personally will take an air conditioned bar:cool:

[LBB]

It looks like the ship will be on Daylight's Savings Time and Grand Cayman will not. I really think it may be cutting it too close...I'm a worrier. I e-mailed them to see what they had to say, and I'm looking for something earlier, but not 8:30. That's too early for me!

 

Thanks for all the help.