Navigator of the Seas Grand Cayman Tender Process

[nkwsb]

We just got back today (8/10/14) on the Navigator of the Seas and here is a heads up for those of you going to Grand Cayman on the Navigator and are not doing a ship sponsored excursion. Royal Caribbean’s Tender Process is awful and you end up wasting a good deal of the day as a result. The ship reaches Grand Cayman at 10:30 and you have to get a tender ticket that they tell you they will start giving out at 10:15. I went down at 8:45 and had about 20 people already in line. By 9:45 when they actually started giving out tickets the line was all the way to the other side of the Promenade. The first batch of tickets given out was for group 3 and those of us got there 1.5 hours early got these (not sure who got 1 and 2). It wasn’t until nearly 11 that they started letting the people on the Ship Excursions off the ship. It wasn’t until around 12:15 that they started calling any of the Group numbers and our Group 3 was in that first group called. By the time we loaded the tender and got to the dock it was 1 pm. The last tender back was at 5:15 so it did not leave a lot of time on the Island. To make the process even worse, when we got back on the ship at 5 the only place open to eat was the Cafe Promenade which only has some finger sandwiches and very average pizza and Johnny Rockets. Needless to say the line at the Cafe was pretty long.

 

We have been to Grand Cayman several times and this by far was the worst tender process we have ever experienced. My advice is that if you are doing an excursion on your own is to not plan to be there before 1:30 PM.

 

Now if you decide to do an excursion on your own I highly recommend Sail Cayman. http://www.sailcayman.com Once we got there Nick with Sail Cayman gave us a great 3 hours where we got to snorkel, swim with the sting rays, see the star fish and even stop for some outstanding conch fritters and additional refreshments. Our entire group thought this was the best part of the cruise, just wished we would have had more time.

[Marie51]

I was on Independence in April and the tendering in GC was a nightmare. They did not pass out tender tickets and it was like a circus with tons of people like a herd of cattle trying to get off the ship. We waited in line for 70 minutes to get on a tender. There has to be a better way.

[cb at sea]

Wow...must be a glitch....the last time we were there, we waited about 45 mins after they gave the ok to go ashore, and hopped on the next tender...easy!

Edited August 11, 2014 by cb at sea

[websiteauthor]

So did you happen to see how they handled the people who did have RCL excursions?

[nkwsb]

The people with an RC excursion were allowed to get off the ship first starting around 11. I don't think they had any issues and they didn't have to get tender passes.

[websiteauthor]

The people with an RC excursion were allowed to get off the ship first starting around 11. I don't think they had any issues and they didn't have to get tender passes.

 

We booked an RC excursion in Grand Cayman because it was a tender situation. Sounds like we made a good call.

[YadaYadaJodi]

Yikes! Got me worried. Thanks for the info. May have to rethink our GC plans.

 

Anyone else with recent experience trying to get off the Navigator?

[YadaYadaJodi]

Also wondering if they limit no. of tender tickets that you can get. Can 1 person wait in line and get 4 tickets? Can you get tickets for a separate reservations? We are traveling with friends on the Navigator.

 

It won't be ideal but as long as I have my book and something to drink I can sit in line (even if that means on the floor) for an hour.

 

Still have a problem with not being able to get off earlier than 12:15 but that's another issue I have to work on.

[websiteauthor]

Also wondering if they limit no. of tender tickets that you can get. Can 1 person wait in line and get 4 tickets? Can you get tickets for a separate reservations? We are traveling with friends on the Navigator.

 

It won't be ideal but as long as I have my book and something to drink I can sit in line (even if that means on the floor) for an hour.

 

Still have a problem with not being able to get off earlier than 12:15 but that's another issue I have to work on.

 

I agree with you. If you have to use the tender to get to shore, they should plan things better so you're actually in port longer.

[nkwsb]

Yes one person can get multiple tickets. (I got 10) There was no limit. And you do have to sit on the floor.

 

We were lucky that the excursion we had booked was just us and they waited for us.

[logan25]

The Worst! That was my experience in May. I have visited GC on four different cruise lines and Royal Caribbean Navigator ranks dead last...if you have not booked a ship-sponsored excursion.

[TXGalAJ]

Went on Navigator in May and booked a RCI excursion and we were put on the first tender. But there was still a bit of a wait to get on the tender.

[splinkaone]

Hmmm.... We're booked on the Navigator for next April. But our itinerary says we are in "port" from 7am to 4 pm. Our excursion is booked for 9:15am. I'll have to keep my eye on this. Hoping tendering will be better then

[miss meow]

Wow...going to have to keep this in mind. We're stopping at Grand Cayman on 10/21/15, arrival shows 10:30, departure at 6:00. We've already arranged for a non-RC excursion and we are to meet them at 11:15 on the pier - and they made it sound like it shouldn't be an issue time-wise - but this makes me a little nervous. We don't have to pay until we go on the excursion, but I'd really HATE to miss it.

How many passengers can fit on the tender at once?

Rita

[websiteauthor]

They can fit several dozen on the tender and there are several tenders gong back and forth. In spite of that, we have decided that we will only use RCCL excursions for tender ports, if only to ensure we are the first off the ship in the morning.

[buffy24]

We are going in April as well and it says that we are in port from 7-4. Anyone experienced this timeframe for tenders yet? We aren't in any rush. We just plan to walk to Smith's Cove and snorkel for a while, then come back to town so my husband can snorkel at Eden's Rock and I can shop. I'd love to hear from someone about this :)