Rare 01Sweetpea Posted April 8, 2005 #1 Share Posted April 8, 2005 Here's our dilema... We are on the 7/3 Miracle with a port stop in GC on 7/5. We are in port from 7-4 EST, but since GC doesn't observe Daylight savings time, it's 6-3 local time with a last tender of 2pm LOCAL time. (Thanks to Tankersbabe for bringing this to my attention!) We currently have reservation for the Buccaneer which runs from 10:30 - 1:30 local time, getting us back to port around 1:50 LOCAL time, which is just to close for me (10 minutes lead way). We really wanted to do this tour because it has 2 snorkel stops, sting ray city AND had a bathroom on board (we are traveling with 3 kids). So now, I can either: 1. switch to the earlier Capt. Bryan tour (9:30-noon) but that only has 1 snorkel stop & sting ray city. 2. Book with Captain Marvin for their 1/2 day tour (10-1) which has 2 snorkel stops & sting ray. This gets us to the port around 1:20, giving us 40 minutes or so of lead way. I should also add that we are snorkeling in Cozumel, so GC won't be our only chance. Any input? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treschicas Posted April 9, 2005 #2 Share Posted April 9, 2005 Just got back with Captain Marvin and it was awesome! A lot of tours probably close in what you do but we had the best videographer and just received our DVD and it was one of our best souvenirs! Very professional and the kids loved the underwater footage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laceyjane Posted April 9, 2005 #3 Share Posted April 9, 2005 Hi, We loved our trip with Captain Marvin. Great guides!! We just watched our great video for the 50th time since our Feb. trip-we are so glad we bought it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rarodg2 Posted April 10, 2005 #4 Share Posted April 10, 2005 This is just my opinion from reading the posts. I don't know how either tour is because I haven't been (yet) but I have read tons and tons of posts. I have read good and bad about both tours. One thing that stands out to me the most though is that people always comment how when there is 3 stops they don't get enough snorkeling time at each stop. So my suggestion is to go with Capt. Bryan on the 9:30 to noon tour this way you will have more time at stingray city and the other snorkel stop. Less riding around on the boat and more snorkeling time. Just my thoughts. Rebecca Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lhasa2go Posted April 11, 2005 #5 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Just wanted to let you know that I am booked next Monday with Capt. Bryan. Just received an email from them stating that because of daylight savings time, the 9:30 tour time has been changed to 8:30. Hopefully this will help you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tankersbabe Posted April 11, 2005 #6 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Just wanted to let you know that I am booked next Monday with Capt. Bryan. Just received an email from them stating that because of daylight savings time, the 9:30 tour time has been changed to 8:30. Hopefully this will help you. WOW...I am booked week after next and have not received any change in the time frame. This is getting ridiculous! I have the meeting time set from 845a that morning, local time, on my email that I received last week. I'm the one who originally freaked out over the 1030a excursion and ten minutes to get back to the ship ordeal...sorry SweetPea to cause you all this stress. I give up...I'll be there at about 830a local time, if they have left without me, oh well...:) Stef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolltidecruiser Posted April 11, 2005 #7 Share Posted April 11, 2005 WOW...I am booked week after next and have not received any change in the time frame. This is getting ridiculous! I have the meeting time set from 845a that morning, local time, on my email that I received last week. I'm the one who originally freaked out over the 1030a excursion and ten minutes to get back to the ship ordeal...sorry SweetPea to cause you all this stress. I give up...I'll be there at about 830a local time, if they have left without me, oh well...:) Stef Stef, I'm booked on the same tour as you are (4/26), and I haven't heard anything either! This whole time thing is very confusing... As I understand it, the ship will always be on Tampa time, which is now Eastern Daylight Savings Time, right? So if we get into port at 7:00AM ship time, is that 6:00AM or 7:00AM in Grand Cayman?? I think I'll email Capt. Bryan and make sure I understand where we're supposed to be when. I'll let you know what I hear. Nancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 01Sweetpea Posted April 11, 2005 Author #8 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Stef - Not a problem. DH & I talked this weekend, and this morning I emailed Capt Bryan and switched to the 9:30 tour. My email confirm says a 8:45 meeting time with a 9:00 start time. I know Capt Bryan kept saying the last tender was 2:30 local time, but I'm just not comfortable with that. Especially when everthing Carnival says states 2pm local time. Now had they switched the Buccaneer tour to 10-1, that would be a different story! Nancy - when you arrive at 7am EST it is 6am Grand Cayman time. It is VERY confusing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tankersbabe Posted April 11, 2005 #9 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Stef - Not a problem. DH & I talked this weekend, and this morning I emailed Capt Bryan and switched to the 9:30 tour. My email confirm says a 8:45 meeting time with a 9:00 start time. I know Capt Bryan kept saying the last tender was 2:30 local time, but I'm just not comfortable with that. Especially when everthing Carnival says states 2pm local time. Now had they switched the Buccaneer tour to 10-1, that would be a different story! Nancy - when you arrive at 7am EST it is 6am Grand Cayman time. It is VERY confusing! So we have plenty of 'time' to kill before meeting our excursion...:) Thank goodness....:) Glad you got it worked out with them....that bugs me that they would offer this tour to Miracle passengers with cutting the time so close...maybe I am overreacting... Wonder what time the shops open up...hopefully somewhat early...I'd like to get off the ship and do some browsing before heading out. I'll have a watch for Grand Cayman time and hubby will have a watch for ship time, that way we make sure we are heading in the right direction, now to remember which one has what! :) Stef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tankersbabe Posted April 11, 2005 #10 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Stef, I'm booked on the same tour as you are (4/26), and I haven't heard anything either! This whole time thing is very confusing... As I understand it, the ship will always be on Tampa time, which is now Eastern Daylight Savings Time, right? So if we get into port at 7:00AM ship time, is that 6:00AM or 7:00AM in Grand Cayman?? I think I'll email Capt. Bryan and make sure I understand where we're supposed to be when. I'll let you know what I hear. Nancy 13 days to go! Like I said, I'll be in line to get in one of the first tenders off the ship, just so I have my feet on the ground before time to meet up. We should have an hour or so to kill before meeting the excursion, depending on how long it takes us to clear customs and to get a tender out. *crosses fingers* This has GOT TO BE the MOST confusing port of all! Stef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelskath Posted April 11, 2005 #11 Share Posted April 11, 2005 I did email Capt. Bryan because I have the 10:30 tour booked for 6/26. They have assured me that we will be back to port no later than 1:45 and the last tender doesn't leave until 2:30pm. I'm taking them at their word as they do this tour on a daily basis. Hope this info helps. Kath Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 01Sweetpea Posted April 11, 2005 Author #12 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Thanks to everyone.... I can't wait to read all your reviews! I think we made the right decision for us. Not only is it DH & I, but also 3 kids (12,9,9) and I'm not sure if 2 snorkelling stops would be to much for them. This way we can snorkel, see the "rays" AND do a little shopping.. for some reason my kids like to do that...gee... wonder who they get that from??? :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MICHSUNLOVER Posted April 12, 2005 #13 Share Posted April 12, 2005 We were just in GC last week (after daylight savings time).....did not have any problem with "time" and there was no change in our watches from the other islands. We did Captain Marvin's stingray tour with 2 snorkeling stops. We were on a small boat with about 20 people. It was a great excursion, guide was good. We took the 10am half day tour and had no problem getting back. Did some shopping and got back on the ship with no problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lhasa2go Posted April 12, 2005 #14 Share Posted April 12, 2005 This is the email I received two days ago from Captain Bryan re:time changeGrood morning, Due to the recent change to Daylight Saving Time in North America yourparticular reserved excursion departure & meeting time has been moved anhour earlier than previously reserved. The new departure time is now 8:30am, with a meeting time of 7:45am to8:00am. A revised confirmation has been sent to your e-mail address, please confirmreceipt. Thank you, Island Marketing Ltd (Cayman) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tankersbabe Posted April 12, 2005 #15 Share Posted April 12, 2005 This is the email I received two days ago from Captain Bryan re:time changeGrood morning, Due to the recent change to Daylight Saving Time in North America yourparticular reserved excursion departure & meeting time has been moved anhour earlier than previously reserved. The new departure time is now 8:30am, with a meeting time of 7:45am to8:00am. A revised confirmation has been sent to your e-mail address, please confirmreceipt. Thank you, Island Marketing Ltd (Cayman) That's weird...I haven't received one of those...I'll give them a few more days and then contact them for 'confirmation' of my reservation. This is getting complicated...:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelskath Posted April 12, 2005 #16 Share Posted April 12, 2005 I agee its way to complicated. I really want to go on the catamaran. Hopefully there is someone out there who has done this excursion since the time change and can let us know if they had ample time to get back to the ship. Kath Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MICHSUNLOVER Posted April 12, 2005 #17 Share Posted April 12, 2005 That's just weird, cuz we were there the wednesday after the change to daylight savings time and the time never changed from NO to Jamaica to GC to Cozumel and back to NO again. It was always the same and we checked each time we got off the boat. Captain Marvins was not a problem for our 10am trip.....very strange! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lhasa2go Posted April 12, 2005 #18 Share Posted April 12, 2005 My ship comes in at 7:00 - Maybe this is why the change in schedule? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MICHSUNLOVER Posted April 12, 2005 #19 Share Posted April 12, 2005 We were on the Conquest and arrived at 7am and left at 4pm. I know we left at 4pm (and this would be NO time as well as "island time") because I was napping on the nice lounge chairs on deck 3 when we started to leave and looked at my watch and it was 4pm almost on the dot. They don't fool around when leaving a port! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 01Sweetpea Posted April 12, 2005 Author #20 Share Posted April 12, 2005 This is the email I received two days ago from Captain Bryan re:time changeGrood morning, Due to the recent change to Daylight Saving Time in North America yourparticular reserved excursion departure & meeting time has been moved anhour earlier than previously reserved. The new departure time is now 8:30am, with a meeting time of 7:45am to8:00am. A revised confirmation has been sent to your e-mail address, please confirmreceipt. Thank you, Island Marketing Ltd (Cayman) If this is the case, I'm gonna be REAL annoyed! I emailed Capt Bryan twice asking these questions, and they assured me that the Buccaneer tour would stay at 10:30 and that we would be back to the port at 1:50 the latest. I asked if they would be switching the times and was told NO. I then switched to the 9:30 tour, to give us a little more time. The meeting time was 8:45 local time. I figured it would give us time in the morning to have a leisurely breakfast, catch a tender, take our time getting to the meeting place, maybe do a little window shopping. Now if it's going to be 7:45 local time, that changes ALL plans! I'll be happy when a few people return from GC and I can get a better understanding of what is going on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 01Sweetpea Posted April 12, 2005 Author #21 Share Posted April 12, 2005 That's just weird, cuz we were there the wednesday after the change to daylight savings time and the time never changed from NO to Jamaica to GC to Cozumel and back to NO again. It was always the same and we checked each time we got off the boat. Captain Marvins was not a problem for our 10am trip.....very strange! NO is on central time. Grand Cayman is on EST but does NOT observe DST. So central time and GC time are the same for those few months. Those of us that are having trouble are sailing from an EST port. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lhasa2go Posted April 12, 2005 #22 Share Posted April 12, 2005 I just received this one this morning - Am I cracking up????? Maybe this is only on certain day? I will be in on a Monday. Reservation Name: XXXXXX Ship Name: Imagination Reservation Date/Time: April 18, 2005 8:00AM ** LOCAL TIME ** SAME AS USA CENTRAL DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME ZONE ** Meeting Time: 7:45am to 8:00am **TIME CHANGE**(LOCAL TIME) Total Cost: 2Adults:$68.00Total:$68.0020% Deposit:$13.60Total due at time of Excursion:$54.40 Cash or Traveler Check(s) Only. No Credit Cards Please. In the unlikely event your Ship will not be able to anchor in the Port of George Town due to weather the Ship will anchor in Spotts, located in the outskirts of George Town. In that case, the Stingray City Charter might not be "lost" and Captain Bryan's will still be chartering as usual. The meeting area for your excursion could be changed to a Spotts Dock Pickup, please call the phone number provided below from one of the payphones located at the Spotts Port to confirm an excursion cancellation. If your Cruise Liner has cancelled their excursion their cancellation will not reflect our operational capabilities. Please call a phone number provided below from one of the payphones located at the Spotts Port. If the charter is still in operation please take a van located right outside the Spotts Cruise Ship Landing into George Town to the waterfront. In the unlikely event of excursion cancellation due to weather an Island Tour will be provided as a substitute excursion, your deposit will be subtracted from the cost of the Island Tour. In case of excursion cancellation or Ship's Port cancellation please e-mail back by replying to this confirmation in order to confirm your cancelled excursion. If you require any help while on Island please call Capt Bryan's ANYTIME at (345)-916-2093 or 949-0038 (345 not needed if dialing from a payphone in Grand Cayman) Thank you, Island Marketing Ltd (Cayman) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 01Sweetpea Posted April 12, 2005 Author #23 Share Posted April 12, 2005 This is going to be an interesting trend to watch. If they in fact DO move up the tours 1 hour, then I want to switch back to the Buccaneer. Hey Stef - Will you hurry up and go on your cruise, this way you can tell me what is going on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tankersbabe Posted April 12, 2005 #24 Share Posted April 12, 2005 This is going to be an interesting trend to watch. If they in fact DO move up the tours 1 hour, then I want to switch back to the Buccaneer. Hey Stef - Will you hurry up and go on your cruise, this way you can tell me what is going on! I give up...I just find it really strange that I have not been notified of any time change. I will wait until Friday and then email them to 'confirm' my reservations and time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lhasa2go Posted April 12, 2005 #25 Share Posted April 12, 2005 I will be returning on the 22nd if I can be of any help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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