First cruise: excursions vs exploring

[bbdanitkd]

I am going on my first cruise, Paradise, over thanksgiving week. We have about 40 people in our group, but most are wealthy families, compared to my fiancé and I who are 23. The excursions are a little pricy for us and a few friends. What are the opinions on exploring Cozumel and Grand Cayman? What are some nice things to do?

[latitude918]

I've done that cruise and it is a lot of fun.

 

If you're the partying sort, they offer a lot of choices of places to get libations. Some places are cheaper than others, just depends on where you want to go.

 

Just an FYI: Grand Cayman's money is worth more than ours. I didn't realize that until while at Hammerhead's (a little island style bar) they came back with a bill for $50. When I asked if I could pay in American cash, they replied "No problem", came back with a new bill for me and it was about $10 more.

[mikel24m]

I am going on my first cruise, Paradise, over thanksgiving week. We have about 40 people in our group, but most are wealthy families, compared to my fiancé and I who are 23. The excursions are a little pricy for us and a few friends. What are the opinions on exploring Cozumel and Grand Cayman? What are some nice things to do?

 

What I would do is grab a taxi to Mr Sanchos in Cozumel.Google it for menu and pictures.$45 per person all you can eat and drink all day. Service is awesome and food and drink awesome too

 

Grand cayman is an easy one .Take a cheap taxi to Calico Jacks.Its a little beach bar on the beach with pretty cheap chair rentals,clean bathrooms and always taxis waiting to take you back to the ship

[kcwingwalker]

I am going on my first cruise, Paradise, over thanksgiving week. We have about 40 people in our group, but most are wealthy families, compared to my fiancé and I who are 23. The excursions are a little pricy for us and a few friends. What are the opinions on exploring Cozumel and Grand Cayman? What are some nice things to do?

 

Exploring on your own can be fun, just be sure not to be late getting back to the ship.

 

Here's the link to the Cozumel board http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=210

 

and for Grand Cayman http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=147

 

And don't forget to join your Roll Call

[Terre]

We have rented cars/jeeps in Cozumel before and driven around the island. The "back side" is nice and not commercalized, at least not the last time we drove around back! Last several years we have been going to Nachi Cocum for the day...I think it's around $50 pp and includes an appetizer, entree, and dessert, all the drinks you can drink, your own chairs and waiter for the day. We usually end up in the pool and hot tub all day. It's a nice relaxing day.

 

We've been somewhere called Paradise Beach (I think) that's inexpensive and we have been to Chankanaaub (sp?).

 

In Grand Cayman, we have walked around, took a tour to Hell and done stingray snorkeling several times.

 

Check the ports of call boards on these two places for more inexpensive excursions

[marshalltp]

In my experience, seasoned cruiser or not, it is to your advantage to plan your own excursions.

 

I can highly recommend Moby Dick for Stingray City tour in Grand Cayman, and without a doubt, Nachi Cocum in Cozumel for an all inclusive fabulous beach/pool day.

[mikel24m]

In my experience, seasoned cruiser or not, it is to your advantage to plan your own excursions.

 

I can highly recommend Moby Dick for Stingray City tour in Grand Cayman, and without a doubt, Nachi Cocum in Cozumel for an all inclusive fabulous beach/pool day.

 

We have done Moby dicks and that's how we found out about Calico Jacks

 

We have done Nachi Cocum I think 5 times until we discovered Mr Sanchos 1000% better

[RuthlessBoss]

My funds are extremely limited so I know what you are saying. Fortunately I'm content walking around locally. At most ports, the locals offer some good deals to drive you around, and many times they are open to a lesser amount than they say it would be. You are young (I'm old :mad:), so I wouldn't lock myself into a day at the beach. Look around, take a cheap tour to Hell or see simple things, get the feel of where you are.

[Noelchristian92610]

We took our first cruise a few months ago. We bought one excursion package in Grand Cayman. It was the turtle farm. First and last time we do that. I didn't like over paying, the waiting around, staying with the group, specific schedule, etc.

 

At the other ports, we just got off the ship and explored some places, and negotiated good prices for horse rides, shopping, taxi rides, etc.

 

To us, getting off the ship and finding something fun was much better than purchasing an excursion, especially through the cruise line. It was also MUCH cheaper.

 

For example: the turtle farm cost us a little over a hundred bucks for two of us, plus one free toddler. It was okay, but a lot of waiting around and staying with a big group. After a few cheap souvenirs and some food, we spent about 130.

 

In Cozumel, we took a horse carriage ride through the town, lasted almost an hour, eating, lots of souvenirs and shopping, on our own with no groups, and we only spent about 60 bucks. We like to negotiate though, but all the locals are willing to bargain.

 

I hear people say that it's better to purchase through the cruise line because you're guaranteed not to be left behind, but why on earth would you even take an excursion that runs that close to departure time, lol.

 

 

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[mikel24m]

We took our first cruise a few months ago. We bought one excursion package in Grand Cayman. It was the turtle farm. First and last time we do that. I didn't like over paying, the waiting around, staying with the group, specific schedule, etc.

 

At the other ports, we just got off the ship and explored some places, and negotiated good prices for horse rides, shopping, taxi rides, etc.

 

To us, getting off the ship and finding something fun was much better than purchasing an excursion, especially through the cruise line. It was also MUCH cheaper.

 

For example: the turtle farm cost us a little over a hundred bucks for two of us, plus one free toddler. It was okay, but a lot of waiting around and staying with a big group. After a few cheap souvenirs and some food, we spent about 130.

 

In Cozumel, we took a horse carriage ride through the town, lasted almost an hour, eating, lots of souvenirs and shopping, on our own with no groups, and we only spent about 60 bucks. We like to negotiate though, but all the locals are willing to bargain.

 

I hear people say that it's better to purchase through the cruise line because you're guaranteed not to be left behind, but why on earth would you even take an excursion that runs that close to departure time, lol.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

We almost never book through the ship.They over book and cram people on the excursions

 

The ports of call section on here is the place to look ,word of mouth is a big thing especially on here

[flounder315]

Cheapest thing to do in Cozumel is get off the boat and just walk around the shops at the pier and across the street.

 

Another option for Cozumel - taxi to free Paradise beach, chairs with an umbrella $2, they hope that you order $10 worth of food or drinks. Very friendly wait staff. Tell them you want to sit where there are no rocks in the water!!! Or you will have to walk down the beach to get in the water.

[spyingeyes]

Not sure what your budget is but if you are looking for something very cool to do in Cozumel for what I consider to be a great value, try the Cozumel Bar Hop. It's $57 bucks each but you get to see the beautiful east side if the island, visit several beach bars with a free drink at each, and experience a piece of Cozumel that many never see because they stay near the port. We've done it a few times and have enjoyed it each time. If interested you can find out everything you need to know here: http://cozumelbarhop.com

 

If you search on trip advisor you will find that it consistently gets rave reviews.

[Waterloomarc]

After 7 cruises we've only done one official ship excursion. The rest of the time we just get off and wander around on our own. A few times we've purchased an excursion from the locals holding the signs at the pier. Never been disappointed. In Cozumel we've down Chankanaab and Paradise beach a few times. Both are less than a $10 can from the pier.

 

In Grand Cayman we've just taken the bus to different places on 7 mile (6 mile?) beach. The private place did have nicer facilities than the public but that's to be expected. Had a blast both times and spent less than $10 again on transportation if I remember right.

 

Just make sure you give yourself plenty of time to get back to the ship. To me it's more fun to just wing it. But that's my personality others must have every second planned.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[askimdog]

We always explore. We love food and history and culture. 3 cruises and we never do manicured beaches, ziplines, shops etc.. We always look for wild beaches to comb, museums, local foods, hiking trails etc.. We also try to stop at local schools or orphanages with small gifts of school supplies if a needed community exists.

 

We make work sheets for our daughter to do, local currency find, local flora and fauna, shells etc..

 

Cozumel has a great wild beach on the opposite side of the island, GC has Pedro St. James historic site, great jerk shacks, turtle and stewed cowsfoot and mannish water to taste.

 

We eat our way and geocache across these places avoiding many places most go. In Cozumel we hired a local driver, had him take us to a store for beer, for our cooler (cheaper than a bar) and then to a street food vendor, we take all this and walked the wild beaches for hours. GC is expensive so be warned.

We budget about $100.00 for the 3 of us per port day and always have leftover. That's drinks, meals, museum fees, rides etc...

[dreaminofsun]

Since you said you are travelling with a group of about 40 people you may want to see if others are interested in doing similar things and book your excursions privately. I have done this with our group of 10 on our upcoming cruise in January and gotten some very good group rates. We are booked for a private 4 hour snorkel tour in Cozumel with cozumelcruiseexcursions dot net for only $50 pp. Some tour providers will even give the person organizing the excursion theirs for free or at a bigger discount.

[ratherbtruckin]

I'm not sure what your budget is, but here are some options for truly cheap experiences. At Grand Cayman walk literally 5 minutes into town to the bus depot (the buses are minivans) and for 2 to 3 bucks catch a bus to Cemetery Beach. It's less than a 10 minute ride, there is a grocery store nearby, and the snorkeling is great. A little exploration on the Grand Cayman message board and you can find detailed instructions about the bus. When you want to return, stand by the road and about every minute a bus goes by and wants to pick you up. It is truly that easy. Wander around the port area if you have any extra time. At Cozumel go to where the taxis wait and ask a few people if they are going to Downtown San Miguel and split the taxi (mini bus) fare with them. I would guess we paid about $5 for both of us when we shared it with another couple we met at the taxi stand. Why should two people pay when 4 can split the cost? Wander around the town, especially the back streets. They are awesome. Find the local elementary school, the outdoor food market (about 4 blocks back), and tons of local stores. You can walk back to the ship (about 3 miles) along the beach (there is a nice sidewalk the whole way) and pass all the resorts and beach bars. Another option would be to take a taxi to Dzul Ha (The Money Bar) and hang out all day. They like you to buy something (we bought a $10 plate of ultimate type nachos) and you can hang out all day. Their facilities are top-notch and the lounge chairs/umbrellas comfortable and the snorkeling is pretty good. Heck it's an all day parade of snorkeling expeditions where everyone paid $40 to $60 bucks per person and you paid about $8 for the taxi and $10 or less for food. Any extra time can be spent exploring the shops around the port. I know everyone has a budget, but you can truly have a great experience for under $20 at a port if you enjoy just people watching and exploring. I forgot to mention the town square/plaza in San Miguel has great benches for people watching and taking an afternoon/morning siesta. Don't make it a big deal since it's your first cruise, just keep it simple and enjoy!

[OCruisers]

 

Exploring on your own can be fun, just be sure not to be late getting back to the ship.

 

Here's the link to the Cozumel board http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=210

 

and for Grand Cayman http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=147

 

And don't forget to join your Roll Call

 

====================================

 

For sure do check out the Ports of Call Board under Cozumel and Grand Cayman (per links above).

You'll find reading what others have done in each of these very helpful.

You can ask question there as well.

 

Have fun planning! :)

 

LuLu

~~~~

[Atlantian]

I'm not sure what your budget is, but here are some options for truly cheap experiences. At Grand Cayman walk literally 5 minutes into town to the bus depot (the buses are minivans) and for 2 to 3 bucks catch a bus to Cemetery Beach. It's less than a 10 minute ride, there is a grocery store nearby, and the snorkeling is great. A little exploration on the Grand Cayman message board and you can find detailed instructions about the bus. When you want to return, stand by the road and about every minute a bus goes by and wants to pick you up. It is truly that easy. Wander around the port area if you have any extra time. At Cozumel go to where the taxis wait and ask a few people if they are going to Downtown San Miguel and split the taxi (mini bus) fare with them. I would guess we paid about $5 for both of us when we shared it with another couple we met at the taxi stand. Why should two people pay when 4 can split the cost? Wander around the town, especially the back streets. They are awesome. Find the local elementary school, the outdoor food market (about 4 blocks back), and tons of local stores. You can walk back to the ship (about 3 miles) along the beach (there is a nice sidewalk the whole way) and pass all the resorts and beach bars. Another option would be to take a taxi to Dzul Ha (The Money Bar) and hang out all day. They like you to buy something (we bought a $10 plate of ultimate type nachos) and you can hang out all day. Their facilities are top-notch and the lounge chairs/umbrellas comfortable and the snorkeling is pretty good. Heck it's an all day parade of snorkeling expeditions where everyone paid $40 to $60 bucks per person and you paid about $8 for the taxi and $10 or less for food. Any extra time can be spent exploring the shops around the port. I know everyone has a budget, but you can truly have a great experience for under $20 at a port if you enjoy just people watching and exploring. I forgot to mention the town square/plaza in San Miguel has great benches for people watching and taking an afternoon/morning siesta. Don't make it a big deal since it's your first cruise, just keep it simple and enjoy!

 

Thank you for posting this. We have been up in the air as far as what to do in Cozumel (spending more money in Belize, Costa Maya and Roatan) but wanted to get a good feel for the area versus booking a beach day or other excursion. Your idea for Cozumel sounds perfect for us.

[Atlantian]

I'm not sure what your budget is, but here are some options for truly cheap experiences. At Grand Cayman walk literally 5 minutes into town to the bus depot (the buses are minivans) and for 2 to 3 bucks catch a bus to Cemetery Beach. It's less than a 10 minute ride, there is a grocery store nearby, and the snorkeling is great. A little exploration on the Grand Cayman message board and you can find detailed instructions about the bus. When you want to return, stand by the road and about every minute a bus goes by and wants to pick you up. It is truly that easy. Wander around the port area if you have any extra time. At Cozumel go to where the taxis wait and ask a few people if they are going to Downtown San Miguel and split the taxi (mini bus) fare with them. I would guess we paid about $5 for both of us when we shared it with another couple we met at the taxi stand. Why should two people pay when 4 can split the cost? Wander around the town, especially the back streets. They are awesome. Find the local elementary school, the outdoor food market (about 4 blocks back), and tons of local stores. You can walk back to the ship (about 3 miles) along the beach (there is a nice sidewalk the whole way) and pass all the resorts and beach bars. Another option would be to take a taxi to Dzul Ha (The Money Bar) and hang out all day. They like you to buy something (we bought a $10 plate of ultimate type nachos) and you can hang out all day. Their facilities are top-notch and the lounge chairs/umbrellas comfortable and the snorkeling is pretty good. Heck it's an all day parade of snorkeling expeditions where everyone paid $40 to $60 bucks per person and you paid about $8 for the taxi and $10 or less for food. Any extra time can be spent exploring the shops around the port. I know everyone has a budget, but you can truly have a great experience for under $20 at a port if you enjoy just people watching and exploring. I forgot to mention the town square/plaza in San Miguel has great benches for people watching and taking an afternoon/morning siesta. Don't make it a big deal since it's your first cruise, just keep it simple and enjoy!

 

Thank you for posting this. We have been up in the air as far as what to do in Cozumel (spending more money in Belize, Costa Maya and Roatan) but wanted to get a good feel for the area versus booking a beach day or other excursion. Your idea for Cozumel (such a simply put plan in one place -- so many recommendations start to run together for us first timers on this board) sounds perfect for us.

[marshhawk]

WE managed to take a cruise to 4 ports and only spent 50.00. Total for the two of us. In Cozumel we walked over to El Cid, and they have a day pass for 18.00 which included giving you back a 10 $ food voucher. I found out about this place on cruise critic's helpful information about Day Passes, so keep doing research! We snorkeled, swam, lounged and ate. There was a pool, and a hot tub and smoe great fish to see.

In Grand Cayman, while you may own the property in front of the water, you do not own the entrance into the water. We walked up to Don Foster's and snorkeled from there. I will be honest if you are not water babies, you may want to investigate excursion,s but if you are water babies, these ports are beautiful.

I hope you have a great cruise, and check out the section in Cruise Critic, about saving money. Have fun! But get off the ships in port! Sailing to somewhere, and ending up no where is for old folks.:):rolleyes:

Edited November 7, 2013 by marshhawk

[Colorado Kat]

As far as making it back to the ship on time: Do not rely on your cell phone. Sometimes they self-adjust. Bring a cheap watch, and keep it on ship-time.

[2Okies]

If you've never been to Grand Cayman before - a trip to Stingray City is a must! We've used Moby Dick tours (find them online) 2 times, and they are very, very reasonable. They are a LOT cheaper than the ship's excursion to do the same thing, and the guides are so nice, and they spend a lot of time w/you and you get to enjoy it to the fullest. They will drop you off in town, and it gives you time to shop some of the shops, and look around before you get back on the tender boat. We also had a little time before our excursion left to look around in town too.

 

Cozumel has SO many options, and you don't have to spend any money here if you don't want to. If you like to snorkel, try the Money Bar - which is free (other than a taxi ride to & from - which is about $8-10 one way - that is per taxi) We've heard the food is good at the bar, and there are facilities to lounge on their man-made beach too. I believe Paradise Beach is also very reasonable ($2 entrance I believe) to enjoy their beach. Food & water toys are extra. It would also take a taxi to get there.

 

But, if you want to just walk around the town, take a taxi into San Miquel and just start walking! There are so many shops and restaurants to explore - and its fun to interact with the locals. We LOVE looking around in town. Do not be afraid in Coz or Grand Cayman to just explore.

[spyingeyes]

If you've never been to Grand Cayman before - a trip to Stingray City is a must! We've used Moby Dick tours (find them online) 2 times, and they are very, very reasonable. They are a LOT cheaper than the ship's excursion to do the same thing, and the guides are so nice, and they spend a lot of time w/you and you get to enjoy it to the fullest. They will drop you off in town, and it gives you time to shop some of the shops, and look around before you get back on the tender boat. We also had a little time before our excursion left to look around in town too.

 

Cozumel has SO many options, and you don't have to spend any money here if you don't want to. If you like to snorkel, try the Money Bar - which is free (other than a taxi ride to & from - which is about $8-10 one way - that is per taxi) We've heard the food is good at the bar, and there are facilities to lounge on their man-made beach too. I believe Paradise Beach is also very reasonable ($2 entrance I believe) to enjoy their beach. Food & water toys are extra. It would also take a taxi to get there.

 

But, if you want to just walk around the town, take a taxi into San Miquel and just start walking! There are so many shops and restaurants to explore - and its fun to interact with the locals. We LOVE looking around in town. Do not be afraid in Coz or Grand Cayman to just explore.

 

Stingray City is one of our most favorite excursions of any port!

[Rangers23]

We have done Moby dicks and that's how we found out about Calico Jacks

 

We have done Nachi Cocum I think 5 times until we discovered Mr Sanchos 1000% better

 

 

Great tip! Do you have to book Mr. Sanchos ahead or can you just show up? Thanks

[mikel24m]

Great tip! Do you have to book Mr. Sanchos ahead or can you just show up? Thanks

 

Its $5 more to just show up I think, but regardless so worth it the food is amazing and non stop all day.The drinks were good and plentiful as well