Any info on new excursion: Snorkling with Seahorses on Castaway Cay

[MrsG]

We're on the July 13th Wonder. There is a new excursion on Castaway Cay about Snokling with Seahorses. Has anyone gone on this one yet? Is it worth it? We want to snorkle at Castaway Cay and know that early morning is best for snorkling on your own there. DS and DD have never snorkled and this one looked interesting.

 

[AnnMorin]

That is a new one to me... they didn't have it when we cruised last December,, what are the details?

 

[MrsG]

It must be very new as it is on the printed pages with prices but not in the color book they send. We're on the July 13 Wonder 4 night. There are 4 new Castaway Cay excursions: Walking/Kayak Nature Adventure, Glass Bottom Boat Scenic Voyage, Scuba Dive Adventure, and this one Seahorse Snorkle Adventure. They give no other info except time and price: 2-2.5 hours, 9:00 or 1:15, $49 adult, $29 children ages 3-9. They also added 3 new Nassau and 1 new Freeport excursion on the sheets but not in the book.

 

[MrsG]

BUMP!

 

[trishy]

I signed up for this excursion for our July 5 cruise and received a call from DCL that "this excursion is not available due to vendor-related problems". I was told when/if they work out the problems, we will be reinstated on that excursion. Until then, they were not going to book it.

 

[tpseller]

We also tried to do the Scuba Diving at Castaway Key on the 4 day Wonder in early May. When we got to the excursion desk they said they are only offering scuba on the 7 day Magic.

Same excuse "this excursion is not available due to vendor-related problems".

 

[cgdmom]

bump

 

[Michelle]

From the DCL website:

Seahorse Snorkel Adventure (2 - 2.5 hours)

This excursion will put the wind in your sails! You'll board a 63-foot catamaran that will whisk you away to a prime snorkeling spot amid the colorful reefs that encircle Castaway Cay. You'll be provided with snorkeling gear and a brief orientation, and then it's time to explore an amazing underwater world teeming with fascinating aquatic plants and animals. After snorkeling, complimentary snacks and beverages will be served before the return trip to Castaway Cay.

Adult Price: $49 (ages 10 and above)
Child Price: $29 (ages 5-9)
Departure Times: 9:00 am, 1:15 pm

 

[cgdmom]

Has anyone tried this one yet?

 

[trishy]

According to DCL, this excursion is still not available. If you are interested, you can request it and they will include your name on the list - if it becomes available, they will notify you. As of last Thursday, it was still not available for the 7/5 cruise I wonder if it is really "vendor related" problem or if it's more of a "lack of interest" problem.

Michelle: Do you have any "inside" info on why this isn't available yet?

 

[Buckaroo's Dad]

"this excursion is not available due to vendor-related problems".

This is the same response I received from a CM when trying to reserve the Castaway Cay Bottom Fishing excursion for DS and I...

 

[AnnMorin]

I think the problem may be lack of interest, as neat as the excursion sounds CC is beautiful I don't think I would want to leave it for an excursion... now if we were there two days thats another story!

 

[cgdmom]

I called ffriday and was able to sign up for the july 5th cruise. I guess maybe that may be the first time they do it. I wish I knew if the snorkling was any good.

 

[Rock'n Robin]

I think AnnMorin may be right--esp. on our first cruise (next week!!!!!) we don't want to waste the precious CC time on a 2.5 hour excursion!
Robin M.

 

[trishy]

It's on! Guess I posted too soon. In today's mail I rec'd a new confirmation for our excursions that includes Seahorse Snorkel - COOL something else to do while at CC. No offense to those who worship CC, but having been there 2 times before (both during July) it's crowded, hot, and tempers tend to flare over those darn hammocks and umbrellas (which can be pretty hysterically funny when sitting back and watching the altercations! ) I'm sure the Adult beach is wonderful, but since we have 2 little ones who would not like to participate in the kid group sand events while everyone else is in the water, we can't enjoy the adult beach yet - oh well, someday... I'll be sure to give a detailed description when we return late July...

 

[Tonyspad]

Anyone been on this excursion yet??

 

[Texag87]

Just got back yesterday from the Magic! We did the seahorse snokel but if you have ever snorkeled before you will be bored and as for first timers the water is a little rough and they keep you from going to far away from the group. My DD and I had fun and it was her second time to snokel, the first was a couple days before on the shipwreak snokel in St. Maarten. I thought that one was a waste of money except for the trip to and from the crew was great along with the Rum Punch. The Rum Punch and Beer is $5.00 a drink. If it is your first time, try it but from what I heard the snorkeling inside Castaway Cay is just as good. We did not do that but the ones that did really enjoyed seeing all the surprises underwater! I also wish we could have spent more time at Castaway that was one of the many highlights of the trip. The weather was great, don't forget the sunblock.
The worst part of our trip was having to leave the Magic.

Have Fun!

 

[luv2boys]

DH did this this past week on the July5-12 Western. Wished he had not wasted the money. NO seahorses, why call it that. Water was choppy and tired everyone out. Glad I stayed on CC with the kids.

 

[trishy]

We did this on the 7/5 also. The reason it's called "Seahorse" is because the boat is named "Seahorse" just like the "Fury" is not relative to ocean condition but named because of the boat "Fury", etc. We were on the morning excursion which like others have pointed out the water was very choppy - the current caused some weaker swimmers to struggle a bit. The reef was absolutely beautiful - filled with ocean critters (except those cute seahorses) even saw some squid. The coral was awesome. The afternoon boat went to a different location because the storm was pushing closer to the area we had been in earlier that day. Drinks were all included (alcoholic ones, too). The crew was very friendly, helpful, courteous, but definitely not experienced. The captain chugged us out to the reef so fast I think it caught some by surprised, but the water was not exactly calm. Anyway I thought it was a nice alternative to CC, but then this was our third cruise and we were kinda bored with the same ole snorkeling path...