Boatswain Turtle Beach & Stingray City

Newbie Joined: 29 Jan 2009 Posts: 9

Hi,
I'm traveling to Grand Cayman by Cruise ship. I expect to be there on
February 12th.(7:30-5) I'm coming with my two girls (14 &9), Husband and mom,dad and brother. We are currently having difficulty decidng what to do on our visit. My mom and brother want to do the whole shabang, turtle farm, hell, rum factory, and stingray. I want to do the turtle farm, hell, rum factory and some shopping. WE are concerned about stingray city and getting in and out of the boat. I have trouble with my knees and my mom is slightly handicapped. Can someone recommend which would be better for slightly handicapped people. we are 7 people can we get a private tour? Also, I've been reading good and bad reveiws about the turtle farm. I really would preferr to see turtles than rays, but i'm concerned about dirtiness. Aslo where do I get this coupon? when i put in the guide the coupons don't show.

Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2009 9:41 am Post subject:

Welcome to the forum kinseykin Smile

,

First of all, I really have to caution you about trying to cram so much into your day in the Cayman Islands, especially in light of the fact that your Mom is "slightly handicapped". Even though your ship may be in port at 7:30 a.m., since Georgetown is a tender port, it will take time to get off the ship and onto shore.....and, of course, vice versa, at the end of the day. With all the coming and going, and catching cabs or whatever, you don't end up with as much time as you think.

The first thing to eliminate from your list is a trip to Hell......especially if you have lots of other stuff to do. It's basically just an interesting limestone rock formation with some t-shirt shops.....not great stuff. Takes 5 minutes to see, but you would have to take a cab to get there....

Secondly, I'm not sure what's involved in a tour of the Tortuga Rum Cake Factory. There are places to buy the Tortuga Rum Cakes everywhere on the island....in fact, possibly on your ship. Not sure if you have time to take a tour of the factory, or how much time that would take.

I think your biggest decision is whether or not to do the Turtle Farm or Stingray City. I have always told people that they should really go to Stingray City, since it's so unique and something you just can't do anywhere else in the world. We highly recommend Soto's Cruises for this trip.....you asked about a private charter for your group of 7. They wouldn't do that (that would be very expensive if you did hire someone to do that), but they don't take more than about 20 people at a time on their boat, so your group would be a big part of that. The good news is that there are only two ships in port that day, so it wouldn't be as crazy on the island as some days. Also, the boat that Soto's uses has a nice big platform on the back. You and your Mom could either climb down the ladder into the water, or you could sit on the platform and just kind of "jump" or swim off. Then, you would use the ladder to get back on. The crew would help you every way they can. You would have to reserve this with them ahead of time, of course.

Soto's could pick your group up in Georgetown at around 8:30 in the morning for their 9:30 two hour tour. That would give you plenty of time to do other things afterwards - but maybe not everything on your list. You'll have to choose. They could either drop you off back in Georgetown for lunch and shopping. You could even catch a taxi from there over to the Tortuga Rum Factory, if you really want to do that before getting back on the ship.

However, if you really want to go to BOTH Stingray City and the Turtle Farm, I think you would have to go directly by cab from Soto's dock. They wouldn't be able to take you up there.

You mentioned that you were worried about "dirtiness"....were you referring to the Turtle Farm? The Turtle Farm is now actually called Boatswain's Beach and it is all brand new and quite an impressive facility, so I wouldn't be concerned about cleanliness. It would take several hours to do the whole thing justice.....there is an awful lot to do and see there. Many just pay the entry fee for the turtle part, however, and that wouldn't take as much time. When you're done with that, you could take a taxi back to Georgetown to do a little shopping before catching the tender back to the ship.

So, only you know what the abilities and interests are of your whole group, but I really think that you are planning on too much for one "short" day. You'll be out in the sun....it will be warm.....take it slow and enjoy! You can always come back another time and do what you didn't have time for on your first visit.

Enjoy!

Char

Newbie Joined: 29 Jan 2009 Posts: 9

Thanks Char for all the information. I have made my decision and feel better about it. We definitely wanted to do the Stingray city trip but were concerned about getting back into the boat.

Also I heard that there is a Harley Davision shop in Grand Cayman. any idea where that is?

Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2009 11:01 am Post subject:

kinseygin.....that's how we discovered the paradise that is Cayman........a one day cruise stop. I would look into the excursions that your ship offers because they will make sure you are back on board, and with a handicapped or older person.......that's really important.

On our one day stop in Cayman, about 15 years or so ago, we did the Stingray excursion thru the ship......do NOT do that! It is a cattle car jammed with people and noisy! As Char mentioned, Soto's is FAST, also inexpensive, informative and fun.....being in the water with the rays for the first time is one of the major reasons Cayman touched our hearts......it's an unforgettable experience that you MUST not miss.

Also...on that one day stop, we hired a van that was parked at the dock where the tenders will let you off in Georgetown........that van took us to Hell, which took WAY too long...not because of the distance but because we had to wait for the other 2 couples to take photos, buy souvenirs and look around.......but I'm guessing it still only took about an hour at the very most.......then the van driver took us to the then Turtle farm and we held the young turtles, toured the souvenir shop and had a great time.......the "Rum Factory" is a tiny little bldg that was right next door to the Turtle Farm (now across the street from Boatswain's) and you basically just peer thru the window at the gals making the rum cake......can take as little as 2 minutes....but they have an attached area where they have a lot of samples of the cakes for you to try, and then you can purchase rum and rumcakes there and they will be sent to the ship....from there we toured the airport (waste of time) and drove past Governor's Mansion enroute to Georgetown where we STILL had time to shop for t-shirts, jewelry, etc. and the dock is right there.

I would just make sure that you do the Stingray Tour with Soto's first and go from there......keeping in mind that you do have to wait in line to get on a tender at both ends.

As far as the vans I mentioned......they were right outside the dock terminal, but I would ask Soto's what they would suggest. Oh.......and as Char mentioned, as far as the turtles....just do the basic tour where you can hold the turtles and see the different stages of development and shop for souvenirs or you WON'T have time to do all you want.

Bon Voyage,
Celine

Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2009 11:22 am Post subject:

Kinseykin,

The shop you are taking about is in Georgetown. You can't miss it its next to a rockin cafe.

Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2009 4:34 pm Post subject:

kinseykin here's our offer! Book the full park directly with us at US$45 each for the 6 adults in your group and US$25 for the nine year old, total $270. We will give you 15% off because you’re a member of this site, total then is US$250.75. Use you’re amex and we will give you an additional 20% off, TOTAL THEN IS US$200.60! TRANSPORTATION INCLUDED! ON TIME RETURN TO THE SHIP/TOWN GUARNTEED!

Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2009 6:04 pm Post subject:

Hi joey!

we will be on your beautiful Island in a few short days and are planning a day to enjoy your place.

How do we get the 15% discount for being a CAG member? Is there a coupon in the Activity Guide?

Thanks!

Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2009 6:11 pm Post subject:

hey kinseygin!

the harley place is not recommended by the CAG and I understand why. I thought of trying that once myself but if you've never been on Grand Cayman you will realize after your first trip that the island is just not set up for motorcycles. The traffic is very heavy, especially in Georgetown. You would truly spend most of your time sitting on your bike waiting at stop lights. we are renting a car for 2 days and plan to be past Georgetown before 7 am and returning after 5pm both days just to avoid the traffic. The last time we went from 7 mile beach early in the morning to Rum Point I felt so sorry for all the people in traffic going the opposite way (towards Georgetown) the line of cars and scooters stretched for miles. And to think those poor people do that everyday to get to work!

Newbie Joined: 08 Apr 2008 Posts: 3

SQUIDKISSER there is a coupon on activity guide. You can also contact Raymond Hydes our Tour Manager through the email info link on our section of this site.

Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2009 10:56 pm Post subject:

Just to clear up a little mis-conception that's seems to be carried on this board. The Harley Davidson store in Georgetown allows you to buy HD clothing and accessories. Unless there's another building somewhere that isn't at all visible from the store or the street, there are no bikes to rent or buy. At least not when we were there Jan 4-11.

Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2009 11:56 pm Post subject:

OOOPS! My bad! Yes there is a Harley Davidson "store" where you can buy Cayman Island Harley clothing and accessories. I misunderstood your post in that you were looking for the place to rent Harleys.

I have a couple of shirts I bought at the Harley store and yes it is close to the Hard Rock Cafe.

Sorry

Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2009 9:50 pm Post subject:

SQUIDKISSER,

Don't leave me here in Tx. all alone. I think I can fit in 1 luggage... Laughing

Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2009 10:36 pm Post subject:

tracya I've just spent the evening packing and you won't fit in my suitcase! It's so full I may be able to take only one scuba diving fin!

Newbie Joined: 29 Jan 2009 Posts: 9

Hey joey, Can you give me the site to book it?

"Book the full park directly with us at US$45 each for the 6 adults in your group and US$25 for the nine year old, total $270. We will give you 15% off because you’re a member of this site, total then is US$250.75"

Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2009 5:05 pm Post subject:

kinseykin,

I don't think that there's anyway to book anything on their website. I think what he meant by "direct" was not to go through anyone else like a hotel concierge or someone on the ship.....just deal with them directly.

I think he suggested that you send an e-mail to someone by the name of Raymond Hydes. Here's his e-mail address:

If you go to the Boatswain's Beach thread in this forum, you'll also see a phone number and a FAX number for the park. That's another way of reaching them.

Good luck with your planning!

Char

	Cayman Activity Guide Forum Index -> General Questions	Goto page 1, 2 Next
Page 1 of 2