Cocoa Cay Tender ?

[phinn]

Most ship run excursions seem to have a place to meet on the ship and then they call you to board the tender going to shore. How does it work for Cocoa Cay? Is it just first come first serve? On Freedom, there will be a tremendous amount of folks on line. Anyone tell me the best time to go for tender? Shoud I wait till most of the crowds gone? If I wait, will I be hard pressed to find a good spot on the beach? Thanks..

[DuchessSophie]

Just back from a 3-day cruise on the Monarch, so I'm not sure if all holds true for the Freedom. An announcement was made at 8:00 am letting us know that we could go ashore. We were not given a specific time nor were we given a specific place to go. However, we did not book an activity such as parasailing or a kayaking tour, which have set times. So not sure if those individuals were given a specific time/meeting place. Otherwise there were 3 tender boats which made the run back and forth. I'm guessing each tender held about 150-200 people. There was quite a line at 10:00 when we went, but only had to wait about 10 minutes. Once we got on the island there were plenty of lounge chairs available. There was 2750 passengers on the Monarch and I know the Freedom holds many more- so again not sure if this will hold true for her!