Carnival Stingray Sandbar Tour

[Doughboy77]

Has anyone done this tour through Carnival (or any other cruise line)? I've read plenty of good things about some of the independant operators, but we're only going to be on the island for a short time and the ending times for their tours are too close to our departure time for my peace of mind. My only worry is that an "official" tour will be very crowded. Can anyone help me out here?

[twinkletoes4445]

Has anyone done this tour through Carnival (or any other cruise line)? I've read plenty of good things about some of the independant operators, but we're only going to be on the island for a short time and the ending times for their tours are too close to our departure time for my peace of mind. My only worry is that an "official" tour will be very crowded. Can anyone help me out here?

 

The "official" tour will be packed. We saw boats that were double-decker types, and they had a lot of people on them. We were also concerned about missing the ship, but we ended up using Captain Marvin's (15 on our tour). If you are really concerned about the times, then go with the ship tour. :)

 

Have a great time! The stingrays are awesome!

[pacoloveschocolate]

I agree with twinkletoes. The Carnival tour is extremely overcrowded even if you can still get on. They cram 50-60 people on the tour boat. When the Cruiseline tour boats got to Stingray city we watched thenm from across the reef. It took them 25 minutes to unload all the passengers. The passengers were told to stay close to the tour boat. Everyone was crammed into a tight circle. The Stingrays couldn't even get close to the people.

 

We were in the Grand Caymans last June 2004. We went with a private company that was fantastic! They were wonderful people and very reliable. When you get off the ship on the dock, you turn left on the main street and walk a short 2-3 blocks to their office. It is right next to a bakery on the right side of the street. There were only 15-18 passengers on the Catamaran. Plenty of space for everyone to stretch out, walk around and have different views. When we got to Stingray City, each passenger got to hold a Stingray in their arms and kiss it. The Stingrays love people! Here is the info if you are interested:

Paco

 

The Buccaneer Stingray City Snorkeling Excursion The excursion is onboard a beautiful, ultra comfortable, specious 50ft Catamaran, it is by far a Stingray City Excursion in style. The excursion is $39.00us per adult and $25.00us for children under 10 years of age. The half day charter is 3 hrs long offering 3 stops including: Stingray City, the highlight of the excursion, with a second stop at the Coral Gardens and the Grand Cayman Barrier Reef.

 

Due to the excursions popularity please ensure to reserve the excursion ASAP in order to avoid disappointment due to unavailability.

 

The free transportation for the trip is provided from the Buccaneer's office, transport is included in the cost of the excursion. The office is a short four minute 2 block walk from the Cruise Ship Passengers arrival area in George Town. Snorkeling equipment, floatation vests, ice-chest, fresh purified water and of course food for the Stingrays is provided. The Buccaneer also offers a full cash bar for your enjoyment, please feel free to bring along snacks if you so choose.

 

The excursions departure time is 10:30am with a 10:00am meeting time. The Excursion returns to the dock at 1:30pm, the free transport will take you back to the Port where you will arrive by 1:45pm. A drop off on 7 Mile Beach can also be provided free of cost following your excursion.

[picktowncruzr]

We've done StingRay City twice before through Carnival. I never really thought it was that bad. We're just now getting 'brave' enough to experiment more with independent tour operators. Our trip next week is through Nativeway and we are excited to try something new (they take you to Rum Point and we haven't been there). I say go for the ship tour if it makes you more comfortable. We're doing that in Belize because we are unfamiliar with the island, etc. Have fun!

[CruiseMark]

Just FYI: We've done Native Way and were extremely happy. They were VERY conscientous about getting us back to the ship (I think our ship left at 2:00 last year). They've NEVER had anyone miss their ship. They'd never hear the end of it on these boards if they did!

 

And we had only 8 people on our boat compared to what looked like more than a hundred on the packed Carnival boat.

[Sheffie]

On our first cruise we went on Carnival's excursion to Stingray City. We had a great time. On our last cruise we went on a private excursion and it was sooooooooo much better! Fewer people, and 3 stops instead of one.

 

I have done some searching and found that the following companies have excursions that would work into your schedule and have you back WAY before 2pm:

(these have all been recommended here on CC)

Captain Bryan’s: http://grandcaymancruiseexcursions.com/StingrayCityCaptBryans.htm

 

Captain Marvin’s: http://www.captainmarvins.com

 

Nativeway: http://www.nativewaywatersports.com/shiptours.html

 

Sotos: http://www.sotoscruises.com

 

Have a great cruise!

[Doughboy77]

Thanks for all of the replies, especially to Sheffie for the links. I had some of them but not all. Our ship does leave GC at 2pm, which I'm given to understand is 1pm local time, so I guess I just need to check out the rest of those links then make a decision. Thanks again!

[dvan68]

Wondering about the times - Carnival says from 8-5 - but that would mean 7-4 local time? I am assuming that the websites have the local times. Does anyone know how long the tender process takes? Soto tours has an afternoon from 1-3 to the rays, and I am thinking that the crowds would be much less since it seems a lot of the other cruise ships leave earlier, but jsut wondering if we would be cutting it too close?