Question for anyone who's done the Waverunner excursion on Castaway Cay

[SeaSpray]

Hi

We're going pretty much all-out on our cruise next month as far as expenses go. However, DH and I are having a hard time justifying the expense of the waverunner excursion. It sounds like an excellent excursion, but $95?? I know you can ride double for $160, but the fun of it would be driving your own waverunner. DH and DS16 are interested in doing this, so they'd each have their own waverunner, at a cost of $190. Now $190 isn't that big of a deal. We're paying $90 per person for the 4 of us to go on the Tulum ruins excursion, and we have no qualms about that at all. But that excursion lasts all day and includes lunch.

Can any of you tell me why you feel the $95 cost was worth it for only 1 hour on the waverunners?? Even if it was a 2 hour excursion, I could see where you'd have time to really enjoy the waverunners and to see part of the island that the guides take you to. But an hour flies by so quickly, it's like a tease to be out there for only 1 hour. lol

I don't mean to go on and on about this, but I can't get past the fact that this excursion only lasts 1 hour, and it's $95 a person. I really do want to be talked into this! LOL Help me!

 

[TammiMcMan]

Hi Fellow Massachusetts Dis'er,

DH and DD(18) did the excursion and both said they would do it again in a heartbeat. They had some pixie dust though. They had originally signed up to go double, but when they were ready to set out, each had their own wave runner. DD is an ecology major so she really enjoyed hearing about the history of the island and they both thought the sandbar was "wicked" awesome. DH loved being able to ride the jet ski at open throttle for a while too.

Hope that helps.

 

[tstobb]

Was it worth it? So much so that DW and I were EXTREMELY tempted to do it a 2nd time later in the day!

 

[jfs9900]

I would like some more info on this excursion as well........ How restrictive is the guided tour?

 

[jfs9900]

Also I have found conflicting information about how to book this excursion.... Can you do it at the 60 day mark, or do you have to do it once on board? If we book the excursion will it be charged to the stateroom account, and is there a cancellation fee if we decided not to do it? Thanks

 

[admepo]

Hi Terry!!! DH and I have booked a double for CC day. He just wants to drive and I want to see the tour, so we are paying the $160 which I thought was a little high for only an hour too...but hey we are on vacation so he won the debate and we are booked!

jfs9900.... the waverunner excursion at our 60 day mark back on June 29th was unable to be booked ahead of time. Then I read a post here probably almost 2 weeks ago where someone said they were able to call and pre-book it so I called DCL back the same day I read the post and got the only double waverunner time left for my CC day. The excursion as all others are charged to your stateroom account and the same cancellation rules apply.

Talk to you back on our cruise meet thread, Terry!

Melanie

 

[tstobb]

AMAZING!!!

Great tour. We got our safety instructions abd boarded the waverunners. We went at about 1/2 throttle out into the ocean (make sure to bring a waterproof camera!) and around the side of the island for the 1st stop. The guide explained some of the history of Castaway Cay and the Bahamas and it was time to move on. He said that he was going to run ahead a bit and asked if anyone thought they might want to keep up with him. Oh Yeah! Two of us said sure and we made a full throttle, all out run to the next stop where we got to spin donuts on the wave runners while we waited for everyone else to get there. Beached on a sandbar and he talked about some more of the history and how the islands were formed and how the mangroves play an important part of the ecosystem. Also found out where most of the sand comes from (I won't give it away here) that is on the islands.
We made a long full throttle run back to the beach, with lots of tight turns and bouncing over the waves. If you wanted to go slower, there was a second guide at the back of the pack so don't feel like you need to go fast all the time.
By far, the best excursion we've done in 4 cruises and will do it again, given the chance.

 

[zaxmom]

I have not done the excursion, or even cruised Disney yet, but I bet your husband and son would both prefer renting jetskis and taking them out on their own. I rode a jet ski for the first time last year and it was only about 5 mins before I had it going as fast as possible and jumping waves. We did an ATV tour in Las Vegas this year and had to keep slowing down and stopping to let one slow lady catch up. It kind of bummed us out that we could not get crazy on them at least a little. Every time we got going and started getting some good little jumps in the guide would stop in front of us. We almost crashed several times. I would just rent some at a beach or lake and have fun with them. You will still probably pay at least $60 an hour for them, though.

 

[tstobb]

DCL isn't really out of line for single riders. Here's the prices from a vendor on Fort Myers Beach:

Waverunner Rentals
$50 half hour $85 hour
$5 off early bird on hour rentals before 11:00 AM

WAVERUNNER DOLPHIN TOUR
$90 Single $110 Double $130 light Triples

"This is an hour and a half excursion with a guide through the back bay areas to see the mangroves, estuaries, manatee zones, local plant and wildlife. This is a must do!! They fill up quickly so sign up early to make sure a spot is reserved for you."

 

[Beechparty]

We would do it again. Had a great time.

I thought it was more of a jet ski excursion instead of an eco tour. We rode most of the whole tour. Because it was so rough the afternoon tour just rode they didn't stop at all. My dh loved riding them in the open ocean. We had only done jet skis on the river so this was exciting. You really go out in the ocean totally away from shore.

 

[Christine]

My parents (in their 60s) and my kids just did this on the July 23 Magic cruise. My mom said "Whew, it was pricey" but they all loved doing this. They rented two doubles. There were two groups of waverunners that went on the tour (two tour guides). After the first few minutes of the tour, the guides asked who wanted to drive fast and who wanted to go slow. The slow group stayed with one tour guide and the *daredevils* went with the other tour guide. My mom really loved the tour aspect of it and the guides were wonderful. I don't think she regretted the expense at all (and she can be a bit of a cheapskate).

They booked the excursion about 3 weeks before their cruise and were glad they did because she said it was fully booked when the got to the ship.

 

[Viking]

Where does the tour depart from?
Does it take place more than once a day?
We usually head over to Serentity Bay first thing in the morning to spend the day there tanning and snorkeling, but the waverunner-thing sounds so tempting, that I may give it a try.

 

[SeaSpray]

Thanks for the comments and info, everyone! I'm going to call DCL this morning and book DH and DS16 on this

 

[Beechparty]

It starts at the Boat Beach. They have several different times during the day. Ours was 11:15. I talked to someone who had an afternoon time.

 

[jfs9900]

What is the DCL excursion cancelation polilcy?

 

[Disneycrazymom]

We have a Sea Doo at the lake and DS and DH LOVE to try to wipe out and knock the rider off the back. It is a fun game and quite possible to have the rider fly off while the driver stays on. Just a little note to those who chose to ride double!

Be careful we rented one and DH had ours delivered by the next weekend! They can be as addictive as a certain theme park we all know and love! Well at least for boys who like fast toys.

 

[Beechparty]

I believe the cancellation policy is 2 days before your cruise leaves.

 

[Viking]

Originally posted by Beechparty
It starts at the Boat Beach. They have several different times during the day. Ours was 11:15. I talked to someone who had an afternoon time.

Thanks for the info