Toddler w/Captain Marvin's??

[jnjrad]

Hello,

DH, DD (20months), and I are cruising the Conquest 1/1/06. We have read reviews that people have taken toddlers on Captain Marvin's excursions. I'm wondering how it works. Did they provide a lifejacket for the child? Did the child like the stingrays? Any specifics would be appreciated!! Not so sure if this is the trip for us but...if it is doable...I have a fearless 20month old that I believe would love to see the stingrays. thanks in advance!

 

jnjrad

[Budget Queen]

You need to contact the vender directly and inquire. Yes there are child life jackets but the whole point of going with an independent is to enjoy the added snorkle sites, meaning the reef and coral gardens. These would probably not be suitable for a toddler, there is plenty of surf and can be swells. One child of about 5 on my last trip, did not tolerate this at all and one parent had to stay on board with him- is that an option for you?

 

As for the sting ray city sandbar, frankly a toddler isn't going to get much out of it, even though it is shallow here, you are looking at at least 3 feet, far less than a toddler can stand in and the rays are bottom swimmers usually. Look at a ship tour perhaps, if a cheaper option?? But overall, probably not a good choice for a toddler.

[jnjrad]

Captain Marvin's got back to me right away when I emailed them and this is what they had to say...

 

Thanks for writing, and thank you for coming back with Capt. Marvin's! Our excursions really are enjoyable, and such an exciting experience for the entire family, from the smallest to oldest. From experience, we very often have guests, that take infants, with the intention that adults will rotate, and share supervision. They return and tell us that the babies enjoyed it very much, being in the water, and the overall experience, but, truthfully, who will know your infant better than you do :) Normally, if kids enjoy being in the water, and have fun splashing around and playing in their inflatables, then kids normally have a blast! For infants that age, I could recommend bringing the Baby rings, or Baby float, that they can actually sit in, and play in the water. It would mostly be for them to enjoy playing in the water perhaps. At the Sandbar, adults can normally stand, and hold infants. Or if you prefer, staying on board is just as well an experience, because the Captain will normally bring the Rays right up to the back of the boat, and you can even get to pet them.

All of our boats are half-open, half-covered, with a restroom, also very comfortable for while you are on board.

For all the information on our trips, times, prices, and location near the cruise ship pier, please read through our web site atwww.captainmarvins.com, where you will also find an on-line reservation form for booking with us.

Let me know if you have any questions after you have read through our web site, and I will be happy to answer them for you. I look forward to hearing from you again!

Shirlene for Capt. Marvin's

[wendyvp]

We took our 12 month old and he had a great time with the stingrays. We took captain marvin's tour and we just held him at the sandbar and let him touch the stingrays. It was a great picture moment too. We didn't end up taking him in the snorkling area (we took turns staying in the boat). I liked Captain's Marvin's tour because it was a little shorter than the ship's excursion (which better suited a toddler) and it had a lot less people on the boat. It felt more personal and everyone really enjoyed it. I am not sure if there would be much difference with a 20 month old, but if your child likes the water, then she may enjoy the tour.

 

wendy

[Freezin' in Minny]

Hello,

DH, DD (20months), and I are cruising the Conquest 1/1/06. We have read reviews that people have taken toddlers on Captain Marvin's excursions. I'm wondering how it works. Did they provide a lifejacket for the child? Did the child like the stingrays? Any specifics would be appreciated!! Not so sure if this is the trip for us but...if it is doable...I have a fearless 20month old that I believe would love to see the stingrays. thanks in advance!

 

jnjrad

 

We did this excursion with Captain Marvin on our last cruise. We did have a good time and would recommend it.

 

I do want to point out a couple of things that we encountered on our tour. You did have to swim a short way to get to the sand bar. I would estimate that the water was about 6 ft deep right off the boat. Once you swim to the sandbar area the water is only about chest deep, so you can hold your child. If you think that your child will be ok with you swimming them to the sandbar, you should be alright. Also, be aware that some people will scream when the stingrays start to come over. My son got freaked out when people started to scream and wanted back on the boat. I wish I had thought to prepare him a little better because I think he would have loved the experience.

[mruhaak]

I have done Captain Marvin's twice. I just wanted you to be aware that both times I have done it has been rough seas. So rough that on one occasion the ship had canceled their excursions. I am relatively short and small and part of the time had a hard time keeping upright. I wouldn't have wanted to be out there (in the water) with a toddler if that was the case.

 

However you would always have the option of one of you staying in the boat with the toddler and switching off.

 

Also ditto to what the previous poster said about people screaming. They do and it might be disturbing with a small child. There iss nothing to be afraid of but people always seem to freak out anyway.

[lisaland15]

We took our 10 yr. old son and 2 yr. old daughter on a tour from Nativeways (similiar company in the Caymans to Capt. Marvin's). We went to Coral Gardens, Stingray Sandbar, and Rum Point Beach. There was less than 25 people on the tour.

 

At the Coral Gardens, I stayed in the boat with her while hubby and son went snorkling.

 

At the sandbar, my hubby sat in the boat with her most of the time, then he came in the water with my son and I. Our daughter was not interested in going in the water at all! Where we were, the water wasn't very deep--my 10 yr. old was able to stand-up most of the time and we were close to the boat. Our daughter was happy watching us, eating a snack and playing with the beach toys I brought.

 

The tour company was great and we had great hand-on experiences with the stingrays.

[sWampy]

We took our 2 year old, last week and while the sting rays scarred him a little, he had a blast. They didn't have any life jackets designed for 2 year olds, they did have small life jackets and masks. We took a 3 and under jacket we purchased with us before the trip, they have a strap that goes under the legs to make sure the jacket doesn't slip off. There were about 30 people on our boat, and ad least 10 were under 10 years old, 5 were under 5. We all even got to go in the water together, execpt after a sting ray touched my son and he wanted out of the water. At both snorkle spots, the crew threw some food in the water to attract some fish near the surface since the smaller kids couldn't really snorkle, it really gave them a chance to see the fish up real close and personal.

[Nebr.cruiser]

Last winter we took our grandchildren, 3, 4, 5 & 5 on Capt. Marvin's tour. It was cool, low 70's and the water was a little too choppy for the kids, even though they are used to the water--we live on a lake. We took them all out snorkeling but the water conditions scared them so we took them right back to the boat and the adults took turns staying with the kids. At Stingray City only one of the 5-year-olds was brave enough to get in the water with the rays, and that was in her Dad's arms. I think if the ocean had been calmer they might have enjoyed the snorkeling. They did have a blast on the boat, enjoyed the ride and especially the free fruit punch. They all had nice red mouths from drinking it. Capt. Marvin himself, at 89!, piloted; his crew was very helpful, coming out to help us bring the little kids back to the boat after their aborted snorkeling trip. We brought the kid's own life jackets along, but I think they had children's jackets available.