Boatswain marine park, help?

[DARSGANG]

Has anyone gone to the Boatswain marine park for the day recently?:) I see on the RCCL shore excursions it cost approx $89 for 5 hours of use of beach, snorkling equip, viewing turtles, etc. THANKS!

[TexasMommy]

Here is the link to the website. You can check it out yourself.

http://www.boatswainsbeach.ky/

 

It is

Packages and Prices

 

Wet Package: Includes all the great features of Boatswain's Beach

Adults: US$75 Children 2-12: US$35

 

Dry Package: For guests who wish to enjoy the Park without getting wet

Adults: US$50 Children 2-12: US$25

 

So your price through the ship sounds about right. The price difference is very reasonable for round trip transportation.

 

I think it sounds really fun. We're not doing it on out trip in 2 weeks due to money constraints but I think next trip.

 

If you go let us know what you think.

[DARSGANG]

Thanks texas mommy, we're booking the freedom of the seas today for march2/2008.I think it would be really nice to do,expensive yes,but we have a 19 & 14yr oldwho I think would love it!thaks again!:)

[UsedtobeSmith]

hehe Hi TexasMommy! I came over here to see about more info on this place too...

 

I am thinking if it gets good reviews we might do this instead of the pirate encounter we have planned..

 

 

So Had anyone been there recently??

 

Thanks!

 

edit... from the sounds of it, they have a lagoon kind of like at Typooh Lagoon at WDW, where you can swim with ocean life.... is there a time limit on the swim? can you tool around in the lagoon all day if you wish or do you do a ' circle ' then are out?

[232271]

Just back from Boatswain Beach! We did the full tour, including snorkeling.

The place is fairly small, but beautiful. They have a salt water lagoon to snorkel in and a fresh water pool to swim in. There are chairs and tables to sit at as well. What was nice, is the fact that it was so uncrowded in the swimming area's. Most dont get the snorkel package. They have a bird sancutary and it was neat. Plus, you can hold the sea turtles as much as you want. We only got to stay 3 hours, but got our fill of the park. NOTE: The food is very pricey, but it is everywhere in Grand Cayman. ($10 for a burger)

I believe drinks like Pina Colada's were $8.75 and beer $5 a bottle.

[Jezbel716]

I'm looking on the website now and it says admission is $55 and the RC excursion is $59. Did the prices drop since last posted or is this more a lesser package? thanks

 

jessica

[232271]

I'm looking on the website now and it says admission is $55 and the RC excursion is $59. Did the prices drop since last posted or is this more a lesser package? thanks

 

jessica

 

dont know, but RC included transportation the other does not.

[maidaweb]

We just returned from NCL Jewel trip and went to Turtle Farm (Boatswain park) and loved it! A word of caution - we did not sign up for ship's tour, and it was an absolute zoo when we arrived at Grand Cayman and no taxi wanted to take us. We wasted close to an hour & finally had to hop aboard a private tour bus who just dropped us off. Getting back was not an issue as they called us a cab, but I would strongly recommend going with ship's tour unless there are few ships in port.

(I NEVER go with ships tours, but this time I regret it! :)

 

But once we got there, we loved it. I am a senior who was looking for easy snorkling. Winds were VERY high last Weds, and all the snorkling tours were cancelled, including everything to Stingray city. But Boatswains has a "protected" manmade lagoon, so it wasn't at all affected by the almost gale force high winds. I truly enjoyed it.

 

We did not bring fins, and they do not offer them, and although it was fine, if you have room I think it would have been better to have them. Hundreds and hundreds of fish to see, zero entry, life vests & snorkles included with beach entry.

 

If you go with ship's tour they do not include the beach but you can upgrade your admission and they give you a different bracelet.

 

Food was pricey but excellent.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions. Again, we were in port with 7 other ships and it was basically a zoo in town. If you are only ship in port, then story about taxis might be different, but they all wanted to pack the cabs and take you to 7 mile beach.

 

Have a great time!

[hoop4321]

We booked Boatswains through Royal Carr shore excursions. We were looking forward to it. We were extremly disapointed. The turtle part was cool, holding a turtle even cooler, but the snorkeling was horrible. The water was not clean. Algae was everywhere covering everything in sight. Imagine brown snot floating through the water and that is what we were swimming through. We got in and immediately noticed a lack of fish. For the size of the aquarium we expected fish. After going almost completly around, there they were, all huddled together in front of the predator tank window which included to be what looked like a small reef shark (would have like to say what it was but the visablility was horrible due to the algae/snot) a few nurse sharks and baracuda. The fish were there because they had a fish feeding station (insert 25 cents and toss in a handful of pellets) and the fish would not leave the spot for fear they may miss a morsel. The idea and the layout of the park is similar to discovery cove in orlando, although smaller. Clearly they have no idea how to care for the aquarium. We spent 2 hours there and were so ready to leave. Wished we had done something else.

[Millashka]

Can you tell me how long is the ride from port to the farm?

[Julia’s Journey’s]

Thanks for this info, I was just looking into something to do in GC and doesn't sound like this is going to be it.

We have been a couple of times previously so have done the Island tour, Hell etc and also done stingray city.

[hoop4321]

Can you tell me how long is the ride from port to the farm?

 

About 15-20 min depending on traffic. The bus driver points out various buildings, talks about the devestation of hurricane Ivan, banking, etc.

[nanby]

I agree with your review. I am copying my post from an earlier entry.

 

I just returned from a Carnival cruise and booked the Boatswain Marine Park and we were very disappointed with the excursion and thought it was over-priced. I felt a little mislead because I thought the park included a beach which was part of the ocean but it was entirely man-made.

 

After being picked up at the port, we boarded small buses and after a 20 minute ride, arrived at the park. Our guide gave us a tour of the turtle area. They are basically cement pools with lots and lots of turtles in them. You can hold some of the small ones and get your picture taken. Since these turtles are raised for commercial purposes (i.e. sold as food) they were kept in holding tanks without any native flora/fauna etc. My children were distressed to learned that the turtles were raised to be eaten.

 

After the tour, the people that had blue wrist bands were able to look at the predator tank and snorkel in the man-made lagoon. This was the best part of the excursion. There is also a fresh water lagoon which is basically just a swimming pool. Our excursion was for 4 hours and we were done after 2 hours. We walked across the street to see the ocean, but, alas, it was not a swimming beach. Oh and by the way, the only exit was through a gift shop.

 

When we compared notes with fellow passengers at dinner, we wished we had just taken a taxi to the beach and rented snorkeling equipment there as our friends did. We never got to enjoy the beautiful water of Grand Cayman.

Live and learn. I know there are lots of positive reports on this place but I just wanted to share our opinion of the excursion.

[CaymanIslander]

Don't bother with Boatswain Beach folks. Expensive and really quite forgettable.

[CaymanIslander]

Just a reminder to visitors - that Boatswain Beach has no beach !!

[FanofFlorida]

I talked to someone today who equated the turtle farm to a slaughter house. This is HUGE deal to my husband who is a reptile breeder and will NOT enjoy seeing this... I realize that they probably dont slaughter the turtles in front of guests, but is it obvious that the turtles breeding there are for the purpose of eating?:eek:

[digger864]

Skip Boatswain Beach, in my opinion it was terrible. We rented a car from avis and went there. We were only there about an hour and left. Not worth the money we paid to get in. We had our snorkel gear and the beach was fabulous! The real beach not boatswain beach! Next trip we'll be going straight to the beach.

[FanofFlorida]

Skip Boatswain Beach, in my opinion it was terrible. We rented a car from avis and went there. We were only there about an hour and left. Not worth the money we paid to get in. We had our snorkel gear and the beach was fabulous! The real beach not boatswain beach! Next trip we'll be going straight to the beach.

 

THANK you very much for your advice...

This is our first trip to GC, and I didnt want to waste half a day, and then have to hear about it for a year or two :rolleyes:

[Holly g]

Skip Boatswain Beach, in my opinion it was terrible. We rented a car from avis and went there. We were only there about an hour and left. Not worth the money we paid to get in. We had our snorkel gear and the beach was fabulous! The real beach not boatswain beach! Next trip we'll be going straight to the beach.

 

How did you find the driving there? Any problems? Do you drive on the left side of the road like you do in England? Any tips for driving there? Also, how did you rent the car from Avis? Was it easy finding your way around? Thanks.