Shore trip - Grand Cayman

[Veronica]

Hello

Has anyone been on the 2 stop stingray sandbar and snorkel trip with Native Way?

We are cruising on the Carnival Miracle on 16 January 2005, any feedback on this ship would be appreciated also.

Thanks

[Darcy]

Veronica

I didn't do it with Nativeways but did it with Soto's Cruises and we all had a great time. It was $24/pp and they picked us up at the pier and dropped us back off there when it was over. We did 2 snorkel sites and the stingray sandbar. There were about 14 people on our boat. I would definitely go with them again.

Darcy

We booked Stingray City though Caribbean Princess. While swimming with the stingrays was great, I would highly recommend NOT booking through the ship. We paid $47 per person for the same trip offerred by Nativeways and Soto. We got "nothing" for the extra money. In fact, they only had one bus, which had to make 3 trips to get us all from the port to the dock - and we got to stand in the parking lot waiting in the hot sun between trips. When we complained to Princess upon returning to the ship, we were given an apology, but not much else.

[readytogo]

I used Nativeways and they are EXCELLENT - i had heard good things about them and they were all true. if you email any questions, sharon will write back asap. you don't have to give a credit card to reserve and they will meet you right at the dock and return you to the same place. We had a great time and would use them again in a heartbeat!!

You have to book through Captain Marvins to go to stingray city. I have gone w/ them twice now and I was referred by some friends that own a timeshare in Cayman!! They are very knowledgeable and dedicated to making sure you have a good time. We even showed up an hour late...(I thought there was a time difference) and they reserved us a spot with the next group at no additional charge. How embarrasing on my part. But they are GREAT. Do a search on google of Captain Marvins Grand Cayman and you will find it. We booked ours online and paid when we got there.

What happens if your ship is unable to dock due to weather/etc.? If you didn't book through the cruise line, can you cancel with the trip company and get a refund, or not get charged? If so, how does one do it from the ship if it is a last minute cancellation?

[Brenda in Canada]

Hi Cruiser99, Check out Sotos and the other excursions sites(Nativeway, Cptn.Marvins)-all the reputable companies will not charge you if your ship does not dock due to weather problems in GC. Last cruise I had booked Princess excursion for the stingrays,and we did not get in due to weather;of course we had our money refunded. We are booking ourselves this time after getting all the great info from CruiseMates. We will be booking with Soto's and they do not charge you if unable to dock due to weather. It is also a lot cheaper than the ships' prices(there is 4 of us this time);if you are worried about the return time, get the earlier excursion to the Stingrays. Remember that GC is a tender port;I plan to have my husband up early to get the tender ticket/number early!! (Ships' excursion customers are first off the ship)
Hope this helps and ask away as there are many experienced cruisers who can help you with any info you need!!

Thank you, Brenda.. How much of a difference can I expect in tender time if I book my own excursion rather than through Norwegian? Thanks.

When we went to Belize, we booked through X-Stream cave tubing, and had to be off the ship first, And the cruise ship people told us where to go so we could join the first group off of the ship. Just ask around if you need to be off the ship early, people aboard will help you.

Capt Marvins will not charge you either if your ship does not stop due to inclement weather.

Just got back. Here's another contact: Soto Cruises... scruises@candw.ky
Ask for Kerry. We had a group of 14 @ $24/per included snorkle gear and 3 stops in about 3hrs....

Two @ at the coral reefs which was good and one stop @ Stingray City which was excellent.!!! There were a total of 30 people on our boat as a opposed to some others that we saw with twice that or more. They'll take good care of you and you'll have a great time!

NOTE: Don't let 'em feed the stingrays with squid in your bathing suit bra.....!!!
Have fun!!!

[hkolln]

We did the stingray city and snorkel tour in March when we were in GC with Nativeways.
It was great! They made a DVD/VHS of the entire tour and we purchased the DVD copy and they delivered it directly to our ship before we left that day.

I would highly recommend them!