Capt Marvin-Stingray and Tour

[mrsbaru]

Dec 14th

 

Tendering to Grand Caymen was a much better experience than Cozumel. It took about 10 minutes to get to and from the island. We had researched a lot of our vacation through cruisecritic.com and found that booking private tours were usually less expensive and more valuable for an experience. We easily found Capt Marvin’s Tours after a quick 5 minute walk from the South Pier. Everything was all set and after signing the standard can’t sue if you die clause we were off on a little bus to board the boat. Our driver was very knowledgeable and we enjoyed his humor on the 15 minute ride to the dock. There was 18 people on our boat and that is nothing compared to some of the other tours at Stingray City, which held anywhere from 40-100 people per boat. There is limited space within Stingray City and I think most people wasted more time getting on and off the boat that experiencing the amazing animals.

 

On the way to the sandbar to meet the stingrays, we stopped at the coral reefs for some snorkeling. The gear was very clean and seemly lightly used, so I was not to grossed out using a communal snorkel. You can bring your own if you have any big issues. I also learned that using a soapy water mix is much better than your own spit for keeping your goggles from fogging up. The helpers on the boat even through out some food to keep the fish nearby and you didn’t have to snorkel far. Brian got adventurous and even snorkeled to the bottom to get some closer looks, but I stayed at the surface. They did a head count each time we got on and off the boat and no one was lost or missing.

 

About 10-15 minutes later we got to the sandbar. The sand is amazingly white, soft and silky, and the water is very pleasant, like cool bath water. I was in for a shock when I saw the size of the stingrays. I had been to more than one aquarium and these were not standard issued stingrays! Most of the passengers got into the water and formed a circle around our tour leaders and we got to hold the stingray, feed them (watch out! the hoover power is extreme!), pet them and take lots of pictures. These stingrays know they are going to get fed and get very friendly as they swim around you, and yes I screamed like a little girl! It was an amazing experience and I recommend it to everyone if you are stopping in Grand Caymen. And the personal experience we got taking Capt Marvin’s was amazing, and they are very reasonable, helpful, and are highly recommended. As we got off the boat, we were able to purchase a DVD or video of our experience, but the cost was $50, plus $5 shipping, and that was more than our tour cost. Take underwater cameras and you’ll get good shots for your personal memories.

 

We boarded another bus and prepared for the next leg of our tour, also booked by Capt Marvin’s. Our first stop was Hell, Grand Caymen, and really, it’s a rock formation and a gift shop, but it was cute and we got suckered into lots of souvenirs for the family. If you see it once in your life, you’ve seen it enough! Next we drove over to the Tortuga rum factory. MMMMmmmmMMM! We sampled lots of rum cakes and bought as many as we sampled! (Our family put in orders before we had even left, but now I understand why!) It took a lot of effort not to break into the cakes before they made their way back to CT. It is a small venue and there is a lot of people, so leave children on the bus if you don't want them stepped on or lost in the masses. Our last stop on the tour was the turtle farm. It was an interesting tour and we got to see a lot of huge sea turtles as well as the babies. The references of “dude, I was like whoa” from the movie “Finding Nemo” were endless! We stopped at the gift shop of course and picked more souvenirs for family and friends. Brian wanted to try turtle soup and I said that they wouldn’t have that here, that was insane. However, I was proved very wrong, and the snack shop had turtle soup, chowder, quiche, and other turtle based goodies. He bought some soup and I tried one bite and felt bad so he finished the rest. (BTW it takes like beef)

 

As we concluded the tour, we where pretty much spent from a day of swimming and walking around so we headed back to the ship. FYI on tipping, we tipped our tour driver to the boat $5 per person, and our sight seeing tour guide $10 per person. It seemed pretty busy downtown for shopping and we didn’t want to walk around with our bags and towels. If we had more time we probably would have gone back to the ship, changed and came back for some lunch.

[danyelle]

Thanks for this review! I'll be with them on Jan 4 and am very excited to see a recent review.

Glad you enjoyed your experience! I think I"ll be screaming like a lil girl too.

[lorajo]

We also went with Capt Marvin and had a really nice time. It was absolutely the highlight of our whole cruise. We were there dec 13th.

 

Lora

[Heloguy]

We too just got back from Grand Cayman's. We used Capt. Marvin's and found him/them to be great. We did the snorkeling and the Stingrays. It was awesome. I concur with mrsbaru's post above about this adventure. They were very professional. The stingrays are huge but as gentle as can be. Capt. Marvin's boat is very nice. I highly recommend him.

 

Keith

[allthe1]

Does anyone have a web page for Captain Marvin or a phone # ?

[danyelle]

Does anyone have a web page for Captain Marvin or a phone # ?

 

http://www.captainmarvins.com

[phabric]

We have 2 non swimmers in our group, could they do this tour?

[mrsbaru]

We have 2 non swimmers in our group, could they do this tour?

 

There were young children on the tour, maybe 5-6ish age range. They did not snorkel at the reef, but with the assitance of an adult, they enjoyed the stingray portion.

 

I am 5'0" and I was able to stand on the sandbar and enjoy the stingrays without a problem, so I expect that the non-swimmers will have no problem.

 

They also have life vests onboard so that you can use at any time of the trip if you are nervous.

[laceyjane]

My husband is a non-swimmer he had the choice of staying on the boat while others snorkled or using a life vest and snorkling. He stayed on the boat but then he did the stingray part of the trip since the water is only 3 or 4 ft. deep.