Grand Cayman Port Adventures

[tj48103]

Hi! This is my first post on this board. We are planning our 3rd cruise on the Fantasy in Feb. I'm trying to decide which Port Adventure to go on for our Grand Cayman stop. We have 3 boys ages 9, 6, and 3.

We were in Grand Cayman in '15 and because all of the Disney Stingray City Excursions had an age limit of 5 we ended up booking a tour on our own. It turned out to be an awesome excursion that all of the kids enjoyed. I thought about booking that tour again, but its still pretty fresh in the kids minds and even though they had a lot of fun on the boat, swimming with the stingrays did make them a little nervous.

Now I'm trying to find something different that will be fun for all of them. There are two excursions I have my eye on. One is the catamaran to Rum point beach. If anyone has been on this excursion and has a review I'd love to hear it. Sounds like a really relaxing and beautiful spot.

The other one is the Nautilus semi-sub. This looks like something my boys would absolutely love. Especially viewing the shipwrecks. But it's only a 45 minute boat ride. I'm not able to book it with snorkeling combined because of the age of my youngest child. If we did this excursion would we miss out on beach time completely? For people who have taken this excursion in the past what did you do with your time after the tour? Was there enough time to take a taxi to a beach club on your own?

Is there an excursion I'm not thinking of?

Whatever we choose I know we'll have a great time, but any input would be greatly appreciated!

 

[SteveMP]

Yeah thats tricky with a young one. The nautilus semi-sub is fun. We all enjoyed it, not as much as others but since you have the young one it is a good option. Another that would work that is interesting is the duck boat. Because you do a ground tour of the island, see some historic sites, government offices, the cemetary, etc, then the duck boat goes into the water and you get to feed the fish crackers or bread.

I can't remember which one was longer, but you should have time to catch a cab to a closer beach.

I highly suggest snorkeling when the kids get older. Especially over the shipwrecks!

 

[jiminy14]

We have done the Rum Point excursion three times and have it booked again for our cruise in February. After you tender to shore, you walk a short distance to the buses. You have about a 15 minute drive (depending on traffic) to the catamaran. The catamaran is quite large with plenty of seating both on deck and below. It takes about an hour to sail out to Rum Point and you sail past Stingray City. The ride is usually pretty smooth but the excursion can be canceled if the authorities consider the water to be too rough. This did happen the first time we booked the excursion.
There is a cash bar on board and they do provide water. When you get to Rum Point they have a special section marked for Disney Cruise guests. It's a nice area with plenty of shade. A buffet lunch is included and when we were there the menu consisted of jerk chicken, salad, red beans and rice, and brownie bites. Iced tea is included but there is a bar and restaurant there if you want to purchase something else.
You usually have about 2 1/2 to 3 hours on the beach depending on the amount of time you are in port. It is another hour sail back followed by the bus ride and the walk to the tender area.

 

[surfer_ed]

Are there age limits in the Rum Point excursion? Would love this but have a 4 year old with us.

 

[Spotthecat]

Hi! This is my first post on this board. We are planning our 3rd cruise on the Fantasy in Feb. I'm trying to decide which Port Adventure to go on for our Grand Cayman stop. We have 3 boys ages 9, 6, and 3.

We were in Grand Cayman in '15 and because all of the Disney Stingray City Excursions had an age limit of 5 we ended up booking a tour on our own. It turned out to be an awesome excursion that all of the kids enjoyed. I thought about booking that tour again, but its still pretty fresh in the kids minds and even though they had a lot of fun on the boat, swimming with the stingrays did make them a little nervous.

Hi! I also have 3 boys, ages 10, 7 and 4 - which Stingray excursion company did you book last time? We're trying to find a good one, since Disney's excursions don't allow 4 year olds to snorkel...

 

[mktt]

Are there age limits in the Rum Point excursion? Would love this but have a 4 year old with us.

We have this excursion booked for our Jan cruise and our kids will be 3 and 6. So you will be fine.

 

[tj48103]

Hi! I also have 3 boys, ages 10, 7 and 4 - which Stingray excursion company did you book last time? We're trying to find a good one, since Disney's excursions don't allow 4 year olds to snorkel...

We did Cayman Eco Adventures. They were great! They met us right by where the tender docked. It was two years ago so not sure if they have the same staff but it was very kid friendly. We went to Stingray City and got to swim with the stingrays and touch and feed them. Then we went to a reef to snorkel. Our last stop was Starfish Point. My kids loved holding the star fish. It was a great day and our trip happened to be all families from the Disney cruise so lots of kids the same age and they all hit it off. A relaxing day for kids and parents. I was sooooo nervous about booking an excursion outside of Disney but in our case it worked out great.

 

[tj48103]

Are there age limits in the Rum Point excursion? Would love this but have a 4 year old with us.

The age minimum on the Rum Point excursion is 3. So you'll be good.

 

[TDR32]

We have done the Rum Point excursion three times and have it booked again for our cruise in February. After you tender to shore, you walk a short distance to the buses. You have about a 15 minute drive (depending on traffic) to the catamaran. The catamaran is quite large with plenty of seating both on deck and below. It takes about an hour to sail out to Rum Point and you sail past Stingray City. The ride is usually pretty smooth but the excursion can be canceled if the authorities consider the water to be too rough. This did happen the first time we booked the excursion.
There is a cash bar on board and they do provide water. When you get to Rum Point they have a special section marked for Disney Cruise guests. It's a nice area with plenty of shade. A buffet lunch is included and when we were there the menu consisted of jerk chicken, salad, red beans and rice, and brownie bites. Iced tea is included but there is a bar and restaurant there if you want to purchase something else.
You usually have about 2 1/2 to 3 hours on the beach depending on the amount of time you are in port. It is another hour sail back followed by the bus ride and the walk to the tender area.

Can you tell me if you can rent snorkeling equipment when at Rum Point? We have 2 people that want to snorkel and I heard that there are some beautiful reefs just off the beach. We also have young kids with us (6 and 3) and want to have a beach day with them.