What did you do in Grand Cayman Islands??

[ashleytyson]

There is a lot to do in Grand Cayman Islands such as stingray city, snorkeling, bioluminescence, fishing, private charters, paddle boarding, crystal caves, local food tour, scuba diving, kittiwake, starfish point, bike rental, hell, island safari, helicopter tour, turtle farm. Among all this, I had an experience of snorkeling, fishing, paddle boarding, and turtle farm that was a fantastic tour.

 

[Lynne G]

There is a lot to do in Grand Cayman Islands such as stingray city, snorkeling, bioluminescence, fishing, private charters, paddle boarding, crystal caves, local food tour, scuba diving, kittiwake, starfish point, bike rental, hell, island safari, helicopter tour, turtle farm. Among all this, I had an experience of snorkeling, fishing, paddle boarding, and turtle farm that was a fantastic tour.

Can you tell me what tour is that? Sounds like something our family would like.

 

[SL6827]

Can you tell me what tour is that? Sounds like something our family would like.

Hell, is a waste of time, don't bother. Didn't do starfish point, would have like to. Bioluminescence is at night. We missed that and I didn't know about it until later. Wished we could have done that. If the WATERS ARE CALM, there is a place called Smith Cove that is awesome to visit. Lots of locals go there. With us being there a total of close to three weeks, there is still so much we didn't do, but half of our time there was with a medical need.

 

[Savagekids]

Just emailed Capt Chip's Company. Hope this works out. Thanks for the info everyone.

 

[Buzzster]

We are just back from Grand Cayman on the Fantasy. Did not book any excursions. Instead, took the public bus to Cemetary Beach. This is a quiet public beach about 15 minutes from George Town. Swim out about 80 yards for some pretty spectacular snorkeling. As a bonus, the beach is beautiful. Total cost....$5.00 per person round trip bus fare. Beach is free.

 

[stsomewhere]

https://www.dexters-fantaseatours.com/ We used him in February. We had a great time. He picks you up close to port.

 

[mjbradeis]

We have been to Grand Cayman 4 times:
1st time we did the Dolphin Encounter and Turtle Farm (DCL no longer does excursions to the Turtle Farm)
2nd time we did a beach break to 7 Mile beach to Tiki Beach (Tiki Beach no longer exists so this no longer a DCL offering as well)
3rd & 4th time we did Rum Point Beach Break and is our favorite excursion in GC, the catamaran ride is awesome and the beach is very nice and they section off an area just for DCL guests. Lunch provided was also very good. As another poster previously mentioned there can be seaweed at times but we still enjoyed it.

 

[a1tinkfans]

Swam with the stingrays. It was Awesome

 

[kkayluvsdis]

Stingray City. We too did an excursion with Captain Chip of Stingray Sailing (www.stingraysailing.com). We had a small group, seas were a bit rough but we were still able to go - he took great care of us and it was a terrific day! We saw some other commercial tours and quite frankly I would never want to be on one of those boats - way overcrowded and it did not look like a positive experience. I would book with him again without hesitation.

This quote is on his website, and I found it accurate:
"We have built our reputation around the idea of staying in balance with nature. Many of the bigger operators depend on catching stingrays to show one to their guests. We find that if you treat them nicely and just sit back, they will come to you."

We are thinking about booking with this company for our upcoming November cruise. I'm concerned about the timing given that we have to tender to port. Did you feel rushed/stressed on either end of your adventure with Stingray Sailing? Was locating the meeting point straight forward? We will be a group of four adults and 5 kids. This looks like a more "relaxing" way to visit Stingray City. Thanks in advance for your help!
-Kelly

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

Stingray Sailing with Captain Chip. The best excursion I have done on any cruise. They take a small group out to the stingrays, give you food to feed them, and once you are done there they also take you to a reef for snorkeling.
I am sure there are other good stingray experiences, but avoid the big groups you book with the cruise line, there are just too many people to get the attention you would want.

So glad for this thread; I looked up this operator and am booking with them for our upcoming cruise. Sounds great!

We did end up going with Captain Chip. Yep, it was amazing, and the highlight of the entire cruise for all 4 of us. I was a little nervous about going with a non-DCL excursion given the short port time and the tendering, but there were absolutely no issues at all. We were in one of the earliest tender boats ... we just went to the theater 20 minutes early, and were in one of the first groups to go. So we were at the meeting place a little early. We did look around a bit, and found Michelle on a bench under a tent with the Stingray Sailing sign. Since we were early, she recommended we walk around a bit. We got snowcones for the kids. After our group was all there, we walked over to a van, and Michelle drove us to the marina (10-15 minutes), we headed down the dock and climbed aboard. It was about a 45 minute motor out to Stingray City (wind was straight against us), we anchored, and hopped out. It's just like they said ... the stingrays flock to Captain Chip's boat. There were at least 3 dozen around us. It was really amazing. Then we did a snorkel at a nearby reef ... it was nice because the reef is fairly shallow so you can see things pretty close (In Mexico we were a good 15-20' above the reef, so it wasn't a nice close-up view like we had with Captain Chip). My youngest one was a little worn out and opted not to get in for the snorkel, which was fine, he just hung out on the boat. They put up a sail headed back, and had some apples and oranges for us to snack on. It was really relaxing, did not feel rushed at all. Captain Chip drove us back to the port area, and we were back with plenty of time for my comfort level (I feel like it was around 3:45-4pm or so that we were back at the port, and walked straight onto a tender boat). Can not recommend this tour enough. If we go back we would do the exact same thing.

 

[kkayluvsdis]

We did end up going with Captain Chip. Yep, it was amazing, and the highlight of the entire cruise for all 4 of us. I was a little nervous about going with a non-DCL excursion given the short port time and the tendering, but there were absolutely no issues at all. We were in one of the earliest tender boats ... we just went to the theater 20 minutes early, and were in one of the first groups to go. So we were at the meeting place a little early. We did look around a bit, and found Michelle on a bench under a tent with the Stingray Sailing sign. Since we were early, she recommended we walk around a bit. We got snowcones for the kids. After our group was all there, we walked over to a van, and Michelle drove us to the marina (10-15 minutes), we headed down the dock and climbed aboard. It was about a 45 minute motor out to Stingray City (wind was straight against us), we anchored, and hopped out. It's just like they said ... the stingrays flock to Captain Chip's boat. There were at least 3 dozen around us. It was really amazing. Then we did a snorkel at a nearby reef ... it was nice because the reef is fairly shallow so you can see things pretty close (In Mexico we were a good 15-20' above the reef, so it wasn't a nice close-up view like we had with Captain Chip). My youngest one was a little worn out and opted not to get in for the snorkel, which was fine, he just hung out on the boat. They put up a sail headed back, and had some apples and oranges for us to snack on. It was really relaxing, did not feel rushed at all. Captain Chip drove us back to the port area, and we were back with plenty of time for my comfort level (I feel like it was around 3:45-4pm or so that we were back at the port, and walked straight onto a tender boat). Can not recommend this tour enough. If we go back we would do the exact same thing.

Thank you so much for posting! This type of report is just what I needed to read to make me feel better about the timing of things. Were you able to get photos of your family with the rays? Did you use the snorkel equipment provided by Stingray Sailing or bring your own? Thanks again for the info!

 

[Narnia_girl]

We did a non-DCL excursion, where we got jet-ski's to Stingray City and it was beyond AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!! Then our guide took us to Starfish Point and then we rode our jet skis back. We had the guide to ourselves. I would highly recommend!

Do you remember the name of the tour company? We have young adults and I think the jet-skis would be a big hit.

 

[bbn1122]

Thanks for posting this forum. We are cruising to GC in January. We were there in 2010 and DH & Me had our honeymoon there in 1988!

In 2010 our sons were 10, 12 and 16, we did Reef and Wreck Snorkel, it was fun.

In January I can’t decide if we should just go 7 mile beach for the day, Rum Point excursion (with or without Sting Ray City) or spend a little more $$ and get a private boat for a 1/2 Day Excursion.

Would love to hear more about Rum Point, we definitely want to be able to get in the water. Is there snorkeling available there?

If anyone has done 7 mile Beach recently, where did you go?

And lastly, has anyone chartered their own boat? Thanks in advance for everyone’s help.

 

[MickeyD74]

Catamaran cruise. Beautiful way to see the island. Many of them will probably stop at Stingray City but there's no requirement that you get in the water.

I have done dolphin swim, turtle farm, and hell and found them all to be very touristy.

Did you use a specific company for the Catamaran Tour?

 

[ChicosWife]

Do you remember the name of the tour company? We have young adults and I think the jet-skis would be a big hit.

Island Marketing. If you do it, you will not regret it! It was an amazing experience!

 

[ChicosWife]

Do you remember the name of the tour company? We have young adults and I think the jet-skis would be a big hit.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUse...-George_Town_Grand_Cayman_Cayman_Islands.html

 

[bbn1122]

Bump

 

[ashleytyson]

This question reminds me of all my nostalgic memories when I have been at Grand Cayman. The first thing, I did there was a night dive submarine tour. It was awesome. I will never forget it.

 

[ashleytyson]

‘Finding Nemo’ topped the list of movies of our daughter, Lisa. Ever since she saw it, she has been curious and keen on exploring the underwater world. So we did a little research. No other place than Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands could give her the stunning underwater world experience. What we came up with were the best weather for us to get here and amazing Cayman Islands Submarine tour.

It was mesmerizing not only her but also us when we saw huge barrel sponges, and star corals abound the reef with colorful snappers and groupers. Her excitement took another level when stingray came so close to her large viewport. It was fun and learning tour for her as well as us. Highly recommended for parents with kids.

 

[steph12]

Where do you recommend going on 7 mile beach? I've been reading reviews and am seeing that Calico Jack's has bad service and very busy, and Royal Palms is very expensive and crowded, and Rum Point Beach is murky and filled with seaweed. Is there anywhere else that someone could recommend? We are just wanting a beach day b/c we've already done Stingray City, and thought that a cab to 7 mile beach would be a relaxing day.