DCL canceled my excursion...

[MissMet]

I'll be on the Magic Nov 3-10 for the western itinerary. I booked the 7:30am Stingray City & Island Tour & they called me to tell me they canceled that time slot & now I'm on the 9:15.

I had my heart set on the 7:30am, so we could get back on the ship before lunch & enjoy the empty ship for the rest of the day.

Anyone have any idea why they would cancel the early am one?? Any chance they'll open it back up?

 

[CruisinEars]

Sorry to hear that. I have heard great things about a private tour company called Capt. Marvins that does the Stingray City tours. You might contact or google them to see what times they have and book your own. I think it is cheaper too. We are going to book through them for our May cruise. Good Luck!

 

[MissMet]

Sorry to hear that. I have heard great things about a private tour company called Capt. Marvins that does the Stingray City tours. You might contact or google them to see what times they have and book your own. I think it is cheaper too. We are going to book through them for our May cruise. Good Luck!

Yeah, I had read about them on DIS, but they end up either the same price or a little higher when you do the Stingray City & Island Tour. If I found a company that does both conveniently & lower priced I'd go with them but I can't seem to find any.

 

[eva]

Be glad they contacted you. They changed our jeep excursion in Cozumel from 11:45 to 9:45 without letting us know. Luckily I check our reservation on line from time to time.

 

[MissMet]

Anyone have an estimate of how many will be on DCL's version in comparison to Capt. Marvin's? I'm reluctant to use Capt Marvin's, but I'm feeling like they would be a better option.

If DCL says we'll arrive at Grand Cayman at 7:30 will we be able to make the 8:30am meet time for Capt. Marvin's? What if the ship is delayed?

Also, is it a long walk from the pier? They say 6 minutes. My mom isn't good with long distance walking & we would prefer to not bring her wheelchair.

Does Capt. Marvin's have the fresh water shower & toilet like MobyDicktours offers?

Sorry for all the questions. This excursion has been like a thorn in my side- probably cause I'm looking forward to it most!

 

[AmberDaClown]

They know when the cruiseships get in. Remember Grand Cayman is a tender port, so you will be riding a little boat from the ship to the pier. I have never seen a wheelchair on a tendership, but maybe it can be done.

 

[disneydance]

I think ive read somewhere where a wheel chair was on a tender ship but I may be incorrect

 

[allears]

Anyone have any idea why they would cancel the early am one?? Any chance they'll open it back up?

Disney does not run these excursions, but sub-contracts them out. The vendor probably changed their scheudles. That's a business decision they make and Disney has to live with it.

There are pros and cons to booking excursions on your own. One pro for going through the cruise line is that if something happens and you can't make that port or the excursions get cancelled you're not charged for them. If you book independently, be sure you know what the cancellation policy is. Another pro is that if you're on an excursion booked via the cruise line and the tour runs late, the ship will wait, not the case if you're one your own.

Just a little piece of advice, as a seriously retentive planner. There is an element of, shall we say surprise, with every cruise. There are many factors that affect how things go, weather, sea conditions mechanical considerations. Ports can be missed, destinations changed and obviously excursion altered. It is best to do all the planning you can, but try to be flexible and be willing to go with the flow. Have some back ups in mind, and you'll most likely not have anything change, but it's good to have an adventurous attitude going in, it makes things that might come up less stressful. And believe me, we have had some interesting challenges on past cruises, but have always had an awesome time.

 

[justmestace]

One reason that they will sometimes cancel an excursion, or simply one time slot of an excursion is because that particular one doesn't book up. If it wasn't full, then the operator isn't likely to want to take out a nearly empty boat.