Saving money on excursions (Western)

myboysmom

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jan 3, 2003
Messages
537
Hi everyone,

I am looking for ways to save some money on excursions for our cruise next year. My husband last night actually looked at the prices for the Disney excursions and about flipped! I can see him now- "we're staying on the ship".

I told him I know there are less expensive routes to do things. For example at Key West I think we can just get off the ship and catch the trolley or walk. Am I right?

Any recomendations on how you did your own excursions? Any concerns about being back by sailing? Any problems getting to your excursion? I am thinking of Grand Cayman where everyone must tender.

With a year out, I know I can work on him and we will do something in the ports, especially if it is a fair price.

Thanks
 
Do you have your own snorkeling equiptment? If so, you can get off of the tender in Grand Cayman, take a right hand turn and walk down to the second dive shop, walk down the stairs into the ocean and snorkle right there for free. Or, you can take a taxi to Chankanab for $10.00 cab fare, pay $10.00 to get into park per person and snorkle , see the ruins and watch the dolphin show from the docks. There are tons of things to do inexpensively if you plan ahead.
 
We did all our own excursions on the Western last October. At Key West, we just walked around (it isn't that big and many things are a reasonable walk). Our favorite thing there was a gorgeous "secret garden" that we visited. Our DS5 begged to stay at the kid's club, so this was just DH and I.

At Cozumel, we booked a snorkeling excursion with Eagle Ray Divers (www.eagleraydivers.com) that we REALLY enjoyed. Actually, we liked it so much we will be doing it again this October! It is very personallized and low-key excursion and the snorkeling is fantastic. We just got off the ship and grabbed a taxi at the port (there is a stand where they line up and you just tell the dispatcher guy where you want to go - I don't remember the exact cost, but I am sure the cab was under $10 for the 3 of us each way) Our "2 Reef Snorkel" excursion cost $100 for 2 adults and a 5 year old.

Unfortunately, we were not able to go to Grand Cayman last fall due to the hurricane damage there. We had arranged before that happened to go to stingray city with Capt. Marvins (www.captainmarvins.com). When we found out we wouldn't be going there, Capt. Marvins was great about canceling our reservation and we were not charged anything. Once again, we have booked this excursion for this fall. The cost is $39 each for adults and $22 for our DS6. It is supposed to be an easy walk to Capt. Marvins office from where the tenders drop us off and then they take us by van to the boat.

Oh - just a note - Chankanab is on Cozumel not Grand Cayman.

I hope this helps some,

pdarrah
 
myboysmom said:
Hi everyone,

I am looking for ways to save some money on excursions for our cruise next year. My husband last night actually looked at the prices for the Disney excursions and about flipped! I can see him now- "we're staying on the ship".

Just tell him one DISer spent US$1000 for one single excursion for two adults and two kids to see Chichen Itza in Mexico and everything will seem real cheap after that. BTW, I'm the Diser who did that in February 2005 and it was worth every single penny. I'd do it again tomorrow without a second's thought. In my opinion, a cruise without excursions is like being confined to a hotel and its grounds for an entire week.
 

You can do many excursions without doing them through DCL.. Just make sure it is a reputable company. Since we tender into Grand Cayman island with DCL, if for some reason that is an impossibilty, you may be charged for an excursion anyway...SO, I would go with people's personal experiences, and check them out for yourself...

Also, you can do things without them being an "excursion". Key West is fun, but in my opinion, been there done that!! I much more enjoy being on an almost empty ship, with the pools almost to ourselves. There are beaches you can taxi to also, this would be very economical... Do a search for Cozumel, and there will plenty of people's experiences....

Good Luck... :goodvibes
 
We did the Western in June '04. I researched these boards and took notes on how to save money on excursions and we had the best time without spending a lot of money. It was our first time to Key West (even though we live in Florida), so I went online to the Old Time Trolley Tour website (www.historictours.com) and ordered my tickets in advance. This was cheaper than the Disney excursion. In Cozumel we got off the ship, negotiated a price to Chankanab park with a taxi driver (he was even able to get us into the park at a discounted rate). He picked us up when we were done too (make sure you use that tip, because while everyone else was waiting for a cab, we just walked out of the park and our driver was waiting for us). Chankanab park was pretty neat. There really was not much of a beach, but the snorkeling was really good. (Words of caution: Bring Bugspray!) On Grand Caymen we again were able to negotiate a taxi ride to Seven Mile Beach (there is no charge to enter the beach). We got there early and brought sandwiches and chips we had ordered from room service (free again) the night before. The beach was wonderful. We brought towels to sit on under some shade trees. It was awesome. And again our taxi driver came back and picked us up later in the day. My family of 4 was able to do all of the above for less than $200 and we had a blast! So do your research on this board and your husband and you will keep your cost down and still enjoy yourselves. :rotfl:
 
Thank you for asking this question...I'm taking notes. :teeth:
 
If you're planning a "beach day" DON'T use DCL. 99% of the time you can do the same thing for 1/3 of the price!!

I remember looking at DCL's sting ray city trip vs. captain marvins and felt better by sticking with DCL for the extra $5 per adult that DCL charged.
 
I am so glad I asked this question. My hubby was pleasantly surprised at how many fun things we did and how we were able to strech our $$ at WDW last spring break...all because of what I learned on these boards. I am sure we can do the same with our cruise. One other question, did you us U.S. $ or exchange into the local currency?

For those of you who packed a shore lunch, what did you use to carry it around with you?
 
pirate: On Grand Caymen, we are going on the Jolly Roger Pirate cruise. 2 Hr sail & snorkling. Rum punch included. It costs $35 adults & $25 kids. It is a wooden sail boat replica of the Nina. We will post after 4/9/05 cruise for a opinion. pirate: Yo Ho Ho
 
Hello, We brought a soft sided cooler with us, which took hardly any room in our luggage, and we used this on our excursions. We ordered sandwiches through room service, and cookies. The only thing we had to purchase was soft drinks, water, or other beverage.. ::yes:: :drinking1 ..

HTH :goodvibes
 
Mexico takes American currency in small bills-nothing larger than a $20. We always travel with a small- six pack size- soft sided cooler and zip lock bags. Order room service the night before, pop it into the zip lock bags and keep it in the fridge till its time to leave. You can also make a small ice pack to put in the cooler.
 
banderson said:
Just tell him one DISer spent US$1000 for one single excursion for two adults and two kids to see Chichen Itza in Mexico and everything will seem real cheap after that. BTW, I'm the Diser who did that in February 2005 and it was worth every single penny. I'd do it again tomorrow without a second's thought. In my opinion, a cruise without excursions is like being confined to a hotel and its grounds for an entire week.

How did you get to Chichen Itza from Cozumel? This is not a DCL-offered excursion, is it? Just asking out of curiousity....we've already visited Chichen Itza while vacationing in Cancun, and I agree, it is FABULOUS! But I also remember that it was like a 3 hour bus ride from Cancun each way! Seems like you would have to schedule very carefully to get back to the ship on time!
 
Our first disney cruise was the western. Because we had never been to any of those ports, we read up on what the ports had to offer, asked questions on these boards and made our own plan. we had a blast.

In Key West, you can rent a golf cart to get around or take the trolley, or walk. Golf cart or trolley are best options. There is a ton to do within walking distance.

In Cozumel, we grabbed a cab at the taxi stand right up the dock, went straight to Mr. Sancho's for lunch and beach time. It was fantastic. The food/service, the beach is beautiful. Really clean restrooms and shower areas. My hubby still talks about it and can't wait to go back there. Then we grabbed a cab back to the dock area..we had them drop us at the forum shops so we could walk our way back, doing shopping along the way. Upstairs in the forum shops is a great cigar shop and a nice play to enjoy a mojito. So we did that, visited with the locals a bit. Went downstairs to the Diamonds international store (if they still do it, this is the shop where you get the free diamond earrings and tanzanite earrings..check with the shopping desk on the ship and watch the navigator). I did not know about these free earrings..lol, we were just looking around, they asked what ship we were on, etc. We were about to go, when one of the salesmen said..wait..you didn't get your free earrings..I said what..oh, that's ok..I forgot to get the coupon for them. He said, that's ok..you can have them anyway..well, he and hubby started talking, I went looking over in the other side of the store..lol, and found myself a pair of pink sapphire and diamond earrings..lol. Negotiated a great price, and love them to this day.

we shopped our way back to the ship..took our packages back on, freshened up and came back out to check out a couple more places. They have a cute little, oh, like town square area, the gets going towards the evening. Walked around, checked out senor frogs, and then went to carlos and charlies for dinner. The food and service was wonderful, the place is a blast.


In Grand Cayman, it is very easy to get off the ship, go to the taxi dispatch station and grab an island tour. It is a two hour tour, takes you to tutle farm, hell, past the first gingerbread house, some of the neighborhoods. Gives you plenty of time to hold and pet the turtles, take pictures, they have a cute little souvenier shop there. It is also a good place to buy postcards and stamps to send back home...mailbox is right out front. One of the rum cake factories is right next door, so you can taste and purchase the cakes also. They are the best. (Tortuga rum cakes). They also make delicious rum, which you can taste in most of the liqour stores and rum cake factories. In hell, you can mail postcards back home, it will have the postmark hell. There is a post office right there. The driver will offer to drop anyone at the beach who wants to go..nobody wanted to from our group, but we did want to stop by one and take pics..so he stopped by a small beach where we could get great photos of the magic right across the way.

After that it was time for lunch...we stopped at Rackhams for the locally brewed stingray beer (it is quite good). They also have a wonderful souvenier shop there, and a wonderful menu. The bar is oceanside, up a bit, easy walking distance. Then we worked our way back, there is a microbrew pub (which also serves food), so we stopped there. They also have some really excellent tshirts, can't remember the name of it for the life of me, the beers are fantastic..there are five of them to try, and the fresh grilled food is wonderful.

After that we finished up shopping, took pictures with some of the pirate statues standing around the town, went to hardrock cafe, in general just had a great time.

Enjoy!
 
Webray--Can I have more infro on the Grand Caymen tour? Is there a specific island tour? Or did the driver just give you a two hour tour of the island? What was the cost of this trip? I will have an 11 and an 8 year old when we go. Would this appeal to them? I can't convince them to swim with the stingrays. Thanks for your help.
 
We also just walked around Key West on our own, and grabbed a cab in Cayman to Seven Mile Beach. The cabs were right there as we got off the boat - it was very easy. We ordered sandwiches and cookies from room service the night before and brought them in a little soft-sided cooler, and brought our own snorkel equipment. We had a blast doing our own thing! In Cozumel, I was a little leary of taking a cab and had read some bad things on this board about some of the beaches, so that was the only port where we splurged and did an excursion. It was well worth it though! (We did the sail/snorkel/beach party one - it was awesome!)

Have fun!
 
I'm very curious about excursions in the Western Carribean as well. There will be 5 of us, me, my wife, her Mom and Dad and our 6 year old son, leaving this April 9th. We're not all that into the snorkeling thing and would like to safely get a flavor for Cozumel/Playa del Carmen and Grand Cayman. I'm thinking beach time, authentic food and drink, and some shopping. It seems like these are things we should be able to do on our own. Does anybody have any thoughts or ideas?
 
This is a little OT, but does anyone know how to get to Hard Rock Cafe at each of the Western ports? Can I walk there? Or, will I need to take a cab? In general, how much do cabs cost?

TIA!!!
 
Hi All!
This was a great thread with lots of useful info! The idea to pack a lunch from Room Service is great- we will definitely be using that one! :earsboy:
We are going on the Western cruise on 4/9 - my third Disney cruise (first two were 3 nights only), but my boyfriends first cruise ever!
He is a certified diver, but since I am not certified, we are looking for the Best snorkeling spots/excursions in Cozumel and Grand Cayman.
So far from what I have read, Stingray City seems to be a big hit in GC, but is fairly shallow- is there anywhere else we should look for good snorkeling?
I have also read great things about Chankanaab Park in Cozumel, but am not sure of the snorkeling there.
Does anyone have any tips or advice? It would be greatly appreciated!!! :goodvibes
 
Regarding the Hard Rock: The HRC in Cozumel is very close to the port to the left of where the Magc docks.

In Cozumel, we grabbed a taxi and went to Paradise Beach. Taxi ride was $13 each way. There was no cost to get onto the beach, though I understand that there is now a $5 charge if you want to use the trmpoline, the iceberg and the water stuff. It is a beautiful beach with clean restrooms. They ask that you buy the food and drink there. I thought the food was very good and very reasonable.

We were on the hurricane shortened cruise, so we didn't get the GC or the Key West.
 

GET UP TO A $1000 SHIPBOARD CREDIT AND AN EXCLUSIVE GIFT!

If you make your Disney Cruise Line reservation with Dreams Unlimited Travel you’ll receive these incredible shipboard credits to spend on your cruise!


New Posts










DIS Facebook DIS youtube DIS Instagram DIS Pinterest DIS Tiktok DIS Twitter

Add as a preferred source on Google

Back
Top Bottom