Sunnymom02 Posted February 3, 2005 #1 Share Posted February 3, 2005 We are thinking about booking a stingray tour with Captain Bryan's. Anyone out there ever done the tour with them? If so, what was the catamaran like? Is it better than a regular boat? Any input would be appreciated:D Sunnymom02 Conquest 4/2005 Sensation 2/2003 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Eyes Posted February 3, 2005 #2 Share Posted February 3, 2005 We just did a trip with Capt.Bryan on 1/23. It was the best snorkel we have ever done and we have been all over the Carribean. We walked to his office and were taken by van to the cat. There were only 6 of us on the trip, 4 people did not make it to the island because of weather problems. I was surprised he even did the trip. We went to the reef first as there were about 4 boats at the sandbar. Our guide who I can not remember his name was in the water with us and he enticed a giant moray eel out with a small squid, and he held him...I was so excited and impressed..of course as the eel turned toward him he let him go...we went over to the sandbar and what an experience....those rays are magificient....so huge...we fed them, held them and just generally were in awe...the cat is a nice boat, nothing spectacular, but very well maintained and clean....this is the first excursion that did not offer free rum punch or goodies when you finished your snorkel, but it did have a cash bar...4 of the people on our trip were staying on the island, so they had a cooler and snacks and they shared with us....I would go with them again any time..... :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beechfor Posted February 4, 2005 #3 Share Posted February 4, 2005 Blue Eyes; We are thinking about doing a tour with Captain Bryan when in Grand Cayman in April. What time did you arrive in port and what time was your trip. We are scheduled to arrive at 8:00am and were wondering if there is enough time to make the 9:30 trip with tendering and his request to be at the office by 8:30. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NBcruiser Posted February 4, 2005 #4 Share Posted February 4, 2005 Beechfor, We were there two weeks ago and had booked the 9:30 tour. When we got to Capt. Bryan's office, we were told that the tour was cancelled due to weather, but their 10:30 excursion would probably go ahead. It was windy, but I was little suspicious, so we walked back and got on a tour with Capt. Marvins. I found out later that we were the only 2 booked on the tour, and that is the reason why it was cancelled, not the weather. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beechfor Posted February 8, 2005 #5 Share Posted February 8, 2005 We tried to book the later tour with Captain Bryan, but have had a reply that it is already full. If we sign up for the 9:30 tour will we have enough time to make it there if we arrive on time? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gacruiser123 Posted February 8, 2005 #6 Share Posted February 8, 2005 Beechfor, We did Capt. Bryan's in Oct. of 2003. I believe we were on the 9:30 tour and had no problem meeting at that time they requested. It is only a short walk from the Pier to the office. You may want to contact them, if possible, to find out if they will wait if you are a little late. It is a great excursion. When we did it, there was only 5 of us and our experience was much like Blue Eyes as posted above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobbieSu Posted February 8, 2005 #7 Share Posted February 8, 2005 SunnyMom02, We just returned from a trip on the Buccaneer. It is a catamaran, the Hannibal is a trimaran and looked a bit larger. (Both run by Capt Bryan). The Buccaneer felt very spacious to me. We had about 25 people on the boat and there was plenty of room. They had an inside area, where most of the people sat since it was a little cloudy, rainy and cold on the way out. We sat up front and enjoyed the gentle breeze and the sound of the sail flapping. There was also a canopy over the back if you wanted to be out but have shade. There was a "head" (watercloset), which was convenient. There were kids, at least four that I can remember and probably more. I enjoyed it much better than the boat we had in Cozumel. I will write a detailed report soon and post it... Su Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Eyes Posted February 8, 2005 #8 Share Posted February 8, 2005 I think everyone has answered your questions about the time frame. I did find out one bit of info on our trip. They notify the ship that you have an excursion booked with them. I am not sure the ship would wait for anyone, but it is at least good to know the ship does know where you are if your were late, which I believe will not happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunnymom02 Posted February 9, 2005 Author #9 Share Posted February 9, 2005 Thank you everyone for all of the info. We decided to book on the Hannibal as the Buccaneer was already full. We have almost 2 hours to get off the ship before we have to meet with the tour. I am assuming that is enough time. ;) I know when we are there, Grand Cayman will be on central time as they do not observe daylight savings time. Our ship is leaving out of central time, so time should be ok for us:D Any other reviews are greatly appreciated:cool: Sunnymom02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
balanceok Posted February 10, 2005 #10 Share Posted February 10, 2005 We just got back from the Dawn Princess and greatly enjoyed our experience with Captain Bryan. We booked the 10:30 a.m. Buccaneer and will certainly go back. The Princess stingray city tour was cancelled and there were only about 10 of us on the catamaran. Stingray City wasn't crowded and the two additional snorkeling stops were some of the best we've experienced. We were very close to nurse sharks and several types of eels. It was incredible. The ship is nice, the staff is very friendly and helpful. I can't imagine a better experience in Grand Cayman. We will definitely go back with Capt. Bryan and I recommend him without reservation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisLambert Posted February 11, 2005 #11 Share Posted February 11, 2005 Sotos Cruises is almost half the price of Captain Bryans and they have a much faster boat. Their customer service was inredible and they get in the water with you and show you all the stingrays. With four of us, we saved over $100 by going with them. There is a great site that gives more details on this and a lot of other ways to save money: http://s8.invisionfree.com/Cayman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhelms Posted February 13, 2005 #12 Share Posted February 13, 2005 Sotos Cruises is almost half the price of Captain Bryans and they have a much faster boat. Their customer service was inredible and they get in the water with you and show you all the stingrays. With four of us, we saved over $100 by going with them. There is a great site that gives more details on this and a lot of other ways to save money: http://s8.invisionfree.com/Cayman Now thats interesting. A $100.00 savings for four people is $25.00 per person. Captain Bryan's charges $34.00 per person. $34.00 less $25.00 is $9.00. If Soto's charges $9.00 for a stingray City tour than sign us all up. Yeah Right!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jznet2 Posted March 1, 2005 #13 Share Posted March 1, 2005 We just went on Capt. Bryan's boat on Feb. 22nd. It was fantastic. There were about 20 people on the cattamaran and it was so relaxing sailing along while our fellow cruisers were crammed into some of the other larger excursion boats. They spent about 45 minutes at Stingray City, then took us to another area which I thought was even better. Lots of fish, a nurse shark, and a couple moray eels which were kind of interesting..... I would definitely recommend them to everyone. Don't be turned off by their office. The checkin area is in the parking lot in back of a bakery with a run-down old sailboat in the parking lot. I took some ribbing until the van actually showed up and brought us to the sailboat.....:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
micruz Posted March 2, 2005 #14 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Hi, We were just checking into Capt Bryan's - Hannibal 2 1/2 hour trip (the Bucanneer trip was full) and they told us that the boat can take up to 40 people. Has anybody been on with that many people? How much room was left in the boat? Also how easy is it to get in and out of the water on a catamaran? The other snorkeling boats we have been on have decks on the back with big ladders. Do they supply water to drink??? Thanks for any info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jznet2 Posted March 5, 2005 #15 Share Posted March 5, 2005 I know they had refreshments available for purchase but I didn't investigate myself. I'm sure they had bottled water available but you might want to take your own. Even if there were 40 people on the Hannibel, I would say it would still be comfortable. There are 2 ladders into the water and I don't recall them being particularly difficult to use.... Have fun.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flytanya Posted March 30, 2005 #16 Share Posted March 30, 2005 Anyone else care to share their experiences??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nhfamily Posted March 30, 2005 #17 Share Posted March 30, 2005 We went with Captain Bryan's two years ago. Even though Disney cancelled their excursions due to weather and rough seas, Captain Bryan's still sailed. We had a miserable weather day (winds, down pours, high seas), but still had fun. It took quite a while at the office for them to get everyone processed (very slow, laid back pace), but there is a bakery next door to grab a coffee and pastries. (Grand Cayman has very "cool" paper bills, when you hold it up to the light, you can see a sea turtle), so we kept a couple of the bills for change for the kids. I think we made 2 snorkeling stops... they were going to do sting rays first, but it was crowded, so they circled around and went back after a snorkel stop. I expected Sting Ray City to be quite a distance from the pier, but it really isn't. When you are on land, you can see the boats on the horizon that are out at the sand bars. The only comment I have is that if you want to stop at Seven Mile Beach after the excursion, they will drop you off along the way, but be sure you know exactly where you want to go. We didn't and trusted the van drivers expertise, and wound up at the Colony Beach Club where everything was $$$ including walking onto the beach via their resort, expensive food and drinks, bad undertow, and crowded with cruise "beach excursions"... Have fun :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mellowgirl Posted April 1, 2005 #18 Share Posted April 1, 2005 We just returned from the Hannibal last week. To us it was the best part of the whole cruise. We were lucky enough to get a seat on the bus by the door, so we were able to get in one of the hammocks in the front of the baot. The Capt. put up the sails, and we sailed at a relaxed pace for about 35-40 minutes to the stingrays, then over to the barrier reef for snorkling. Again, on the return trip the sails were put up and another relaxed trip back to the dock. We loved the relaxed pace of the excursion, and the operator was great with the stingrays. I think there were close to 40 passengers and it seemed to be okay - not too crowded at all. BTW, in the hammocks is where we got some of the most intense sun of the entire trip - more than Sunset Beach in Jamaica! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebtmsw Posted April 3, 2005 #19 Share Posted April 3, 2005 :) just got back 2 days ago was at captain bryans weds? I think it was great- looking at the other boats out there- I would say the best some of these others were doucle decker tourist boats with hoards of people packed in my entire family had space to relax lay out and enjoy even though the hammocks were taken,it was still relaxing on deck- my inlaws went and watched and still had a good time.They were in the water with us and helped hold up the rays for the guests and the kids. they sold a video that a few people got- to me a bit of a rip off to watch yourself for 2 minutes and everyone else for 18 or so. a great dday I wont soon forget. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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