Stingray Excursion on Castaway Cay?

[Ilovestitch]

Has anyone done the Stingray excursion on Castaway Cay? When I did a 7 day a few years ago, I did Stingray city at Grand Cayman.

I'm not expecting the water to be as nice at CC, but is it a fun excursion? Are there lots of stingrays all over the place? My bf has only been snorkling at Typhoon Lagoon and he loves that- so I think he would have fun with this!

Any opinions on this excursion?

 

[jjatwdw]

We just returned from a 7-night double scoop cruise. We did the stingray excursion on Friday. It was great! The water was very clear. There were 45 stingrays in the enclosure. We got to feed them several times and they circled our feet the entire time we were in the water. My whole family loved it and we highly recommend it! It was well worth the money.

 

[Ilovestitch]

We just returned from a 7-night double scoop cruise. We did the stingray excursion on Friday. It was great! The water was very clear. There were 45 stingrays in the enclosure. We got to feed them several times and they circled our feet the entire time we were in the water. My whole family loved it and we highly recommend it! It was well worth the money.

Oh, ok, so they are in a caged off area? How much time are you actually with the stingrays? Is this next to the beach, or do you take a boat out in the water?

The one in Grand Cayman, they take you way way out in the water and throw some chum in to attract the rays and then you just jump off the boat.

 

[inkkognito]

You just wade right into the water. The DCL experience is much less intimidating for small children or those who might be nervous. Instead of "attacking" you for food, the DCL stingrays wait because they are trained to be fed on a target on a floating platform. You hold the food over the target and they swim up there. We really enjoyed this experience. The total time is an hour, but you're not in the water the whole time. They do an orientation first, then you feel the rays on the platform, and then you can snorkel around for a while.

Barb

 

[lbgraves]

Here is a great trip report complete with pictures.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=965950&highlight=castaway

 

[eeyoregon]

I loved the fact that the water was only thigh high where you feed and pet them. Then if you want to snorkle out into the deeper water, you can. It was a great activity for all ages (think 5 is the minimum age to participate).

 

[jjatwdw]

My DS6 was very nervous about doing this excursion but once he got there he loved it. I couldnt' get him out of the water to go!

 

[sopandbass]

My DH and I took our DD-5 on the Stingray Adventure at CC and it was great. DD was scared at first but everyone was very kind and patient and she eventually fed the stingrays herself. She didn't want to snorkel so we sat in the shallow water and the stingrays swam around us - we could pet them and they brushed up against us a lot. It was fun. They had a sand castle area right there too and our DD enjoyed that as well.

 

[nutz4dzny]

I just came back from the May 13th 7 day Eastern Magic Cruise and I did this excursion! It was very fun and informative. I signed up for the first one at 10or 10;30 AM can't quite remember the exact time. It is a FAR walk to get there. Right next to Serenity Bay which is the adult beach.

They gave a very interesting talk all about Stingrays and their program which is sponsered by The Living Seas in EPCOT. They just started this program in September 2006. The most interesting fact I learned is that the stinger, which is located on top of their back where the tail begins, not at the end of the tail, has to be removed every 3 months because it grows back!

I also did the Dolphin encounter at Anquilla and the interesting thing is that the dolphins feel sleek and rubbery while the stingrays are VERY slimy! Sort of like a slug. I got to feed them about 6 times and then I waded out to snorkel but the water was a little cold for me so I just kept bending down to pet them as they would swim by. There are also a lot of fish swimming around, pretty big ones and a couple of times I had a few of these in my hands!

Here are some pictures:

It is hard to see but in the water in the background you can see shadows, these are the stingrays swimming around.

 

[Marypoppinsiam]

We did this excursion and my 6 DS loved it! At first it felt strange when the stingrays past you but you soon get over that. We had a wonderful time snorkeling around.

 

[tam012864]

Does the little tram not go down to where the stingray excursion is???? If not--about how long did it take you to walk down there???

 

[WDWLVR]

Actually the stingray's are right next to the teen beach (not Serenity Bay which is on another side of the island). They are right next to the Game Pavillion. It is a good distance from the tram stop but I would say no more than a 10-15 minute walk.

It starts out with some info on land, then the feeding in the water, then you have another 20 minutes or so to swim or snorkel with them.

We loved it! We've done the stingray encounter in Grand Cayman and to me that is the best. We've also done one in Antiqua which was good but not great. This one to me falls right in the middle. The fact that you can walk right out into the water without taking a boat is nice. The fact that they are also groomed so as not to cause accidents is nice as well.

I would definately recommend this to anyone who has small children or who has never done something like this before. It is a great way to get to know these wonderful creatures.

 

[Ruth B]

Hi
i am thinking about booking this for our aug trip. Sounds great. Does it get booked up quickly and do you have a option of time?
thanks for your help
Ruth

 

[Celestine]

We've booked this for our cruise. I seem to remember the time slots were on the hour starting at 10am, but can't remember the last time available. Maybe some-one who's been can give you an idea of the max. no. in a group so you could then calculate total no. gusts experieces available/day. I'm guessing it would be popular as it is a fairly new experience.

 

[disneycrazzzy]

fyi...if you miss out on reserving the time slot you want...the Extreme Getaway Package also includes a timeslot for the stingray's for $54 (regular excursion is $34) and also includes 1 hour bike rental, all day float rental and all day snorkeling equipment rental. The individual prices for these items is $73.

 

[TSirgey]

This excursion is great! My dd (5) keep talking about it. We also went on the 5/13 Eastern and were scheduled for noon. I booked it just a few weeks before our cruise.

The "target" the rays are taught to feed on are actually mickeys. We got a kick out of that.

They start with a short informational presentation and then let you each feed on the devices pictured above. Feeding them was so much fun. You don't feel anything other than the fish being sucked up. They do not have teeth.

There is a large fenced in area right from the beach that is where they are located. On the family beach, we sat further from where the ship docs so we would be closer to where this is. It was a pretty short walk from the family beach. 10 min. or so.

 

[jjatwdw]

I would book as soon as possible. I pre-booked 6 to 8 weeks before our cruise. The Sunday slots were all full and there were only 2 time slots available for the Friday stop.

 

[Ruth B]

Booked today for a 11am slot- i hope this will give us enough time to dump our stuff, go snorkelling and then go to the stringrays- can't wait!