What is the bast stingray city excursion ?

[geepmaley]

ockelly, I just made a reservation with Captain Marvin for the day our cruise ship is in port. I have a group large enough that we just went ahead and paid a little extra to have a private charter. We will all know each other and will have a bit of flexibility as to when we move from spot to spot. It will be the same 3 hour tour that you took. Could you take a few more minutes and tell me more about the whole experience with them? I have read they are pretty good and great to work with.

 

Billy, How much was the private charter and how many people did you have? We'll be in GC October 5 and have a group of people interested

[HspncElvis]

Just wondering everyones oppinion on the best trip to Stingray City? Any input is appreciated. Thanks Jessie:)

Hello. We booked our Cayman Island StingRay excursion through http://www.sotoscruises.com/info/trips.shtml

 

Found them to be less expensive than booking through our Cruiseline.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Glen

[SMN]

Another great company is the Buccaneer Stingray city catamaran the catamaran is wonderful and we sailed, snorkeled, had stingrays to feed and interact with. It also is a 3 hour tour for $39 for adults and I think $27 for kids too. We have some of the best photos and even bought a dvd they made while we were on the tour.

 

I totally agree. We did this tour in August 2006 while on the FOS. It was a great excursion. The catamaran was fun, and not as crowded as some of the other excursion boats that we saw. SMN

[mjt2890]

We did http://grandcaymancruiseexcursions.com too and had a great time.

[krazyasaloon]

We booked through Island Marketing which used Capt. Bryan on Sept 12th. We were extremely happy with the service provided. We had plenty of time with the stingray's and did some snorkeling at the reef afterward. They got us back to town in time to do some shopping and sightseeing. Capt Bryan's staff was extremely friendly and helpful during the excursion.

[Iceman-007]

MOBY DICK TOURS by far...they were great...nice people, clean boat, smaller boat (holds about 40 people) which was nice...we didn't have to fight with a lot of people to get near the Stingrays...fun time on the ride there! book ahead of time....but they do have a stand at the dock

 

I heard from this board that Moby Dick use to be good now they are bad. someone on this board even got stood up

[ldm2004]

If I book the stingray and island tour through RCCL - will I be disappointed? It sounds like everyone does it through local companies. We'd prefer to book through the cruise line though.

[THERAPYCRUISE]

wich boat will you be on at x-mas time? I am taking the Valor dec. 24 just curious

[mjt2890]

If I book the stingray and island tour through RCCL - will I be disappointed?

You'll enjoy it but you'll be paying more and it'll probably be crowded. If you have purchased trip insurance (recommended) there should be no fear of missing your ship by using a local operator.

[DukeFamily]

I remember being at Stingray City back in June - we went with NativeWay Watersports (awesome!!). There were boats there full of of tourists who had booked thru their cruiselines, and OH. MY. GOODNESS.!!! You had to use a shoehorn to get those people on and off those boats - there were SO many of them. Like WOW. I was SO glad we didn't book thru the cruiseline. I KNOW we were having a much better time - the twenty or so of us. They are very conscientious of your time and their livlihoods depend on doing a good job for cruiseship pax - they'll get you back to the pier in plenty of time.

[ldm2004]

My concern is more about itinerary changes and getting in touch with the tour companies. I read several reviews from last year of the cruise I'm going on and they all had last minute itinerary changes.

[DukeFamily]

My concern is more about itinerary changes and getting in touch with the tour companies. I read several reviews from last year of the cruise I'm going on and they all had last minute itinerary changes.

 

I would just call the tour operator you want to book with and ask what happens in the event of a last minute itinerary change. They are so good at what they do, they probably know of the changes before the pax know!

[MuffyKismet]

Just booked the jet ski/stingray/rumpoint beach excursion! Looks great, we love jet skiing (being owners of jet skis and living in Florida) so this was the excursion for us. Check it out! Plus you have full use of all the amenities at the resort where you meet them to go on the excursion!

 

http://grandcaymancruiseexcursions.com/StingrayCityWaveRunner.htm

[Son of a Cruiser]

If I book the stingray and island tour through RCCL - will I be disappointed? It sounds like everyone does it through local companies. We'd prefer to book through the cruise line though.

 

If you decide to book through RCCL try the Cockatoo Catamaran. We have done this twice and are booked again. Less people than on the regular RCCL tours - well worth the couple extra dollars. Both times only 30-40 pepole on the trip. BTW - my daughter booked Capt Marvins on her last trip and really enjoyed it, but she thought that the Cockatoo was better.

[Jandcbrown]

The #1 reason to choose Nativeway, the price. The american dollar is not as strong iin Grand Cayman...think it's our $1.25 to their $1.00. So food is VERY expensive there. I had the Blackened Mahi Mahi Sandwich with a large salad, and Ice tea. It was ready and still hot when we got there. Excellent tasting/quality! This price of $60.00 includes the bus ride from the end of the pier, the boat ride to snorkel, snorkeling equipment, Stingray Excursion, beautiful and relaxing rum point, and trip back in plenty of time for the ships. This is a 5 star out of 5 star excursion for us!

[texas greeneyes]

My concern is more about itinerary changes and getting in touch with the tour companies. I read several reviews from last year of the cruise I'm going on and they all had last minute itinerary changes.

 

Captain Marvin's will not charge you if your ship arrives late or misses the port; I don't know about the others.

[mjt2890]

Captain Marvin's will not charge you if your ship arrives late or misses the port; I don't know about the others.

 

Shouldn't really be a concern if you have trip insurance.

[texas greeneyes]

Shouldn't really be a concern if you have trip insurance.

That may be a valid statement for some policies, but it depends on the coverage you purchase. ;)

[Bonita]

I can tell you who NOT to use: Island Marketing Ltd. I booked a tour to the sting ray sand bar excursion on the RED BARON sailboat for our family of ten. The captain of the Red Baron was mad at me in the first place for booking through Island Marketing instead of directly with him He refused to take us to the sand bar area..We were from62-81 years old and wanted this tour because you can get out and walk around, don't have to swim or snorkel which 8 of us could not do.......Captain of the Red Baron was rude and inconsiderate and told us he would take us back before it rained and we blamed that on him too............Our tour consisted of going out and coming back and doing nothing in between

[geepmaley]

I can tell you who NOT to use: Island Marketing Ltd. I booked a tour to the sting ray sand bar excursion on the RED BARON sailboat for our family of ten. The captain of the Red Baron was mad at me in the first place for booking through Island Marketing instead of directly with him He refused to take us to the sand bar area..We were from62-81 years old and wanted this tour because you can get out and walk around, don't have to swim or snorkel which 8 of us could not do.......Captain of the Red Baron was rude and inconsiderate and told us he would take us back before it rained and we blamed that on him too............Our tour consisted of going out and coming back and doing nothing in between

 

Sorry to hear of you bad experience. If you search the boards, however, there are a lot of good experiences with Red Baron. The biggest problem with using them for the sandbar is that the water is only 3-5 ft deep at the sandbar and the Red Baron is a sailboat with about a 6 foot fin on the bottom of the boat which prohibits you from getting real close to the shallows of the sandbar. Someone at Island should have explained that to you. I'd go back to them (Island) and tell them you felt defrauded. Might not get you anything, but you never know

[Bonita]

Someone has recommended the RED BARON as a great charter trip. REMEMBER this trip DOES NOT go to the sting ray SAND BAR. You cannot get out and walk around on the bar and mingle with the rays. The BEST excursion is one that goes to the Sand Bar area

[Bonita]

Reminder: The Red Baron DOES NOT go to the Sting Ray Sand Bar area........this is the ONLY area where you can get out and really enjoy the stingrays in waist deep water. Don't be mislead by them saying they go to sting ray city..a totally DIFFERENT place.

[poison7fl]

We booked through X-Stream tours. We are going next week... I hope they are good

 

http://grandcaymancruiseexcursions.com/Stingray_City_Buccaneer_Catamaran.htm

[mjt2890]

Yeah we booked w/ extreme, but were in a boat, not a catamaran thingie. Must have updated their transportation. Just make sure to do the california shuffle and don't get bit like this person ...

 

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[lgg456]

I heard from this board that Moby Dick use to be good now they are bad. someone on this board even got stood up

 

Just returned from Grand Cayman and toured with Moby Dick. I had some concern as this board has recently given them bad reviews. NOT TRUE. They were excellent! Friendly, well informed crew that did not rush the experience. You could tell these guys really like their jobs and love sharing the experience with you. We booked ahead of time but a lady we met on the tender over did not have any reservation and Moby Dick had room for her to go with us. What a great experience!!