recent excursions to turtle farm?

[39august]

Has anyone gone on an excursion since the turtle farm has been moved to Boatswain's Beach? Typically the ships offer a tour that goes to Hell and the turtle farm. Now that it has moved and Boatwain's Beach charges a fee, I wonder how that will affect those tours.

[Quilting_Cruiser]

Has anyone gone on an excursion since the turtle farm has been moved to Boatswain's Beach? Typically the ships offer a tour that goes to Hell and the turtle farm. Now that it has moved and Boatwain's Beach charges a fee, I wonder how that will affect those tours.

 

We went to Hell and the turtle farm last week with Captain Marvin's after we visited the stingrays. Not really sure what your question is though...?

 

Jayne

[redfish1]

What did you think of Capt. Marvin's trip? We've booked the same for Sept. And what did you think of the turtle farm? Some folks have complained about the condition they keep the turtles in (very crowded) and had issues knowing that some of the turtles are raised for food. Did you think it was worth going there?

[Quilting_Cruiser]

What did you think of Capt. Marvin's trip? We've booked the same for Sept. And what did you think of the turtle farm? Some folks have complained about the condition they keep the turtles in (very crowded) and had issues knowing that some of the turtles are raised for food. Did you think it was worth going there?

 

We really enjoyed it--especially the stingrays, of course! My 11-year-old DD was looking forward to going the turtle farm more than anything else we had planned. I read somewhere that they recently moved the farm to a new location so maybe it's better now...?? They certainly could use more room though.

 

The girls loved it there and, yes, we were aware that only 10 percent are released and that it is a "farm." My DD actually likened it to a chicken farm--she said she'd go to a chicken farm to see the chicks even though she enjoys eating chicken...that's my practical 11 year old for you!

 

Yes, I definitely think it's worth going. If we went again, we'd take a taxi though as we would have liked more time there to watch the turtles.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Jayne

 

:)

[TCF]

We did the Turtle Farm and Hell tour this past June and enjoyed it a lot. The Hell part of the tour is just fun and the stop isn't long.

The Turtle Farm is in new digs. The entrance fee is included in the cost of the tour. (We bought it on the ship.)

The farm is interesting and the comments about the turtles being packed in like sardine's is true, but it appeard to me that they were atracted to the pool edges by the people...perhaps they instinctively thought it was feeding time???

The first I heard about not all the turtles being raised for release was right now! In fact the guide said that the farm was exclusively to raise turtles for wild release because they are endangered and the rate of survival of the eggs was up in the 90% range at the farm and only 3% in the wild. If some of them are being raised for food that is very disappointing!:mad:

The shop at the fsarm has some good stuff. My wife got a couple of reasonably priced small cloth purses to bring home as gifts. They had abstract turtles on them.:)

I think it is worth the cost...but if the guide tells you the farm is for re-stock wildlife...you might mention what has been said on this thread!:mad:

Tom and Deb

[mom1132]

Although I would never eat them, I understand that these turtles have been a part of many cultures diets for hundreds of years. I personally would rather have them eating farmed turtle than wild caught. Also my understanding is that the turtles that are released have a much much higher survival rate than those tiny hatchlings in the wild. So... if they are exposing people to these animals to increase awareness, they are reducing the amount of wild caught for food and they are releasing young turtles at a size when many survive, I can live with that.

 

As an aside when we were there in Jan they had a cafe that was serving several turtle meat products.

 

Just my two cents

 

Sara

[Quilting_Cruiser]

 

The farm is interesting and the comments about the turtles being packed in like sardine's is true, but it appeard to me that they were atracted to the pool edges by the people...perhaps they instinctively thought it was feeding time???

 

 

We also enjoyed it there. I'm sure they come to the edges looking for food--you can buy turtle food inside that you can feed to them.

 

The first I heard about not all the turtles being raised for release was right now! In fact the guide said that the farm was exclusively to raise turtles for wild release...

 

I'm surprised they told you that! Ours talked about that they're the only turtle farm in the world that's dedicated to releasing turtles into the wild--he didn't give any statistics on that. It's not something they advertise, but it is a "farm." I'm sure they understand that some people from other cultures might be shocked if they knew that only 10 percent of them are released into the wild.

 

 

The shop at the farm has some good stuff. My wife got a couple of reasonably priced small cloth purses to bring home as gifts. They had abstract turtles on them.

 

 

We found the gift shop to be pretty reasonable as well. We picked up a few of the small marble turtles--they sit on my desk at work now. :)

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I posted some of the pictures we took on our cruise--only about 60 or so. There are a few pictures in there from the turtle farm if you want to go take a look. www.photobucket.com search for jaynemay

 

Jayne

 

:D

[ladycaveat]

Does anyone have a web site for an independant tour of the turdle farm and Hell? I went to Stingray City on my last cruise and while I loved it . . . don't want to do any "water" excursions on my cruise next month. Don't want to be damp and sticky when I go to lunch and shopping in Grand Cayman after my excursion.

[Middleager]

Capt. Marvin does a tour of just Hell & Turtle Farm, $25/p.

[ladycaveat]

I've never done it before (always book independant tours) but I just booked with Carnival for their tour of the Turtle Farm and Hell. I figured two hours and $35.00 . . . what the heck! :p

[SailingDeanna]

Here is recent information they sent me by email.

 

Dear Deanna,

As of September 2006 Boatswain’s Beach will boast an array of attractions including all of the Cayman Turtle Farm features as well as a freshwater swimming lagoon, a saltwater snorkeling lagoon filled with 14,000 fish, a Predator Tank with Sharks Eels, and other reef life, a Free Flight Aviary, the Blue Hole Nature Trail, a Caymanian Street complete with old-time Cayman homes and local artisans, 3 restaurants, a 3,500 square foot Retail gift store, and the chance of a lifetime to experience Caymanian culture at its greatest!

As most features I have listed are not open as yet, guests now have the choice of purchasing admission into the Cayman Turtle Farm portion of the Park or a combined admission into the Turtle Farm and Boatswain’s Beach. However, as more features open, the cost of admission will change to reflect the increase in wonder and amazement that guests will experience. At this time, the prices for admission are expected to be US$60 for adults and US$25 for children between the ages of 2 and 12 (children under 2 years old will have free admission). Of course, prices are always subject to change.

With all of this considered, I encourage you to phone Boatswain’s Beach upon your arrival (or a few days before your departure) to confirm the price of admission as these prices are determined by the opening of new features within the Park.

I hope this information has been helpful and if you should have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.

Kind Regards,

Nasaria Budal

[SailingDeanna]

Here is more emails from them. This would be the cost only if you get there before the entire park opens sometime in Sept.

Deanna,

By September 27 we are expecting more features to be open within the Park. At that time, guests may not be able to purchase admission into only the Turtle Farm portion, but will have to pay access into the entire Park. At this time guests can still visit the Turtle Farm portion separately because there are not very many features to Boatswain’s Beach open as yet. Future admission costs, however, are very dependent on the opening of these other attractions, that is why I suggested to you to phone ahead (or you can email me) when it’s closer to the time of your arrival to confirm the price of admission and whether you can still enter Turtle Farm only.

To give you a better idea of what the Turtle Farm visit would cost, prices of admission as the Park stands are as follows:

Turtle Farm Adult US$12.50 Children US$8.25

Boatswain’s Beach Adult US$17.50 Children US$10.00

I hope this clarifies the cost of admission for you. However, do not hesitate to contact me should you need further assistance.

Kind Regards,

Nasaria Budal

Acting Product Development Officer