Stingray City question (and an irrational fear, but I have to know!)

[magyar2]

I am planning on signing up my daughter for the Stingray City excursion. She is fascinated by stingrays, and has spent hours petting them and asking questions at Sea World. I was originally going to go with her, but am thinking of sending my husband, instead (can't both go as someone needs to stay with our younger daughter that is scared of stingrays).

After talking with a friend that did this a few years ago, I am now hesitant though, and need some answers.

First, is it true that you have to swim out to the sand bar from the boat? Is it a far swim? Are you swimming over deep water, or is it all pretty shallow?

Can you see land from the sandbar?

If there are stingrays around, do sharks stay away (you know how they say sharks are not around when dolphins are around?)? I realize that this is an irrational fear, and I realize that the odds of even being close to a shark are not that great, but I have a fear of sharks nonetheless. I have no fear of my husband or daughter being in the water, for I am convinced that the shark is out for me, not them. Like I said, a very irrational fear, and I know it, but it won't go away.

How deep is the water on the sandbar? Does it change with the tide? I am only 5' tall, and would prefer to have my head above water!

Is drinking water provided on the boat when you take the Disney excursion? How about a washroom?

How big are the biggest stingrays that come near you? I have seen some pictures, and they look huge, just wondering if that is normal or if the ads just show the biggest rays, and the rest are all smaller. My daughter won't care (although the bigger the better for her!), she will be thrilled to be with them, I am just curious though.

Can you take a disposable underwater camera to take pictures on the Disney excursion?

Ok, I think that is it. Thanks for your help!

 

[hydster]

but we have done the Stingray City tour (though NOT with Disney) and here was our experience

1) Our boat landed AT the sandbar meaning you got off the boat on a ladder and the sandbar was pretty much right there. In some places you had to swim a little bit to get to it but where we got off the boat it was there and you could feel it when you got off.

2)I dont remember seeing ANY land from the sandbar. It seems like the boat ride was about 20-30 min away from land but that time frame may be a little fuzzy.

3)We were in the water for approx 1 hour and NEVER EVER saw a shark. We also scuba dive and havent seen a shark yet anywhere. Your chances are slim but trust me I understand irrational fear (but we wont go with mine) but to be honest I dont know if sharks stay away from the stingrays or not but I havent heard of anyone seeing one out there.

4) It seems the water was pretty choppy and almost impossible to stand in because of the waves crashing on the sandbar but we just floated around and they had lifejackets so we didnt have to worry about drowning or anything and we stayed pretty close to the boat within 1 armstroke of the boat so we were pretty close.

5) Dont know about Disney drinking water or toilet but on our excursion they had both although the water we had to buy. They had fresh water to rinse your mask in and also soap water to make it so your lens of you goggle didnt fog up. I wish I had known that SPIT is a much better anti-fog agent than soap it would have saved me alot of hassle with my goggles falling off and such.

6)Most of the stingrays we were with were in the middle category to small. They look huge because they were in the water when we took the picture and water magnified them on the film but they were NOT massive. There were a few big ones but they stayed by all the people feeding them squid and let the smaller ones come up to us. It is a strange sensation because you expect them to be slimy but they arent....they are so soft! They were amazing and I thought it was cool opportunity and I was scared to go but I am so glad I did it. We were given the opportunity to take squid out of the bag and feed them and we finally got brave enough to do it. My husband had a stingray actually slither (if that is a good term to use) out of the water and up his body in order to get the squid...it was really neat. Feeding them is an experience I will NEVER forget and I am glad I did it although I wondered if I would get my hand back since it seemed to suck down to my wrist. They were very gentle.

And I would definitely make sure you take an underwater camera with you. It was so neat to have the pictures when we came home and remember how great of a creature they are!
Hope this kind of helps!
Heidi

 

[gdulaney]

Okay, I'm going to take a stab at this...

On our DCL excursion (Snorkle with the Stingrays)

First, you don't have to swim out to a sandbar, which is a good thing, since I swim like a rock. I'm a 5'9" female and the water was chest high (a little lower in some spots). You are wearing a "snorkling" life jacket (the flat kind that you can partially inflate) and snorkling masks are offered. We climbed down a ladder (off the back of the boat) and were about 10 feet away from where the tour folks had the "stingray food."

It's all optional...getting in the water, feeding the rays, etc. You can snorkle to get a good look or stand still like a statue (I did both at one time or another).

You can't really see land...it's a good boat ride out...but there are several tour boats and lots of folks in/out of the water, so hopefully nobody feels too scared.

We didn't see any sharks (thank goodness!!!!), but did see some fish.

I think an underwater disposable camera would be perfect for pictures. Also, on our tour, they offered pictures...folks just got in line for a picture with a ray (some also chose to get a picture "holding" a ray). It's very supervised. I didn't get the picture price, but saw lots of folks getting them. The tour folks were very nice...if you think you might want a picture, they suggested you get it...then if you don't like it, no problem.

On board was an "outdoor" shower so that you could shower off after being in the ocean. A ladies and mens room...but no changing facilities. They also had water (and I think fruit punch or lemonade...we had water, so I'm not sure).

Some of the rays were REALLY big and some were smaller. It was very cool and a "don't miss opportunity." If your younger child wanted to get in the water...she could, or she could stay on the deck and watch. We saw several small children who started off crying and not wanting to be in the water, but after standing on deck and watching everybody else, some ended up scampering down with mom/dad. Some did end up staying out of the water. I don't know if you'd want to pay for the excursion and then your younger child not participate.

Hope this helps!
Ginny

 

[mmouse37]

Here are some pics of our recent stingray excursion with Capt Marvins in August (Magic Western)

The stingray were about the size of a large pizza pie. My chicken DH said he would not go in the water but curiosity got the best of him and got right in with no problem.

I took just a bit to get used to the sensation of them bumping into you, and as the previous posters have said....they are soft, not slimy. We also pulled right over the sandbar so no need to swim. We all had lifevests on anyway and the day we were there the waves were not bad all. We were able to stand with no problem.

Don't miss this as it was one of my favorite things that I have done. At one point we had about 40 stingrays all around us at one time.

On the webshots page, just click the arrows to see the other pictures.

http://community.webshots.com/photo/48196942/48731914ZhBAek

MJ

 

[atigeg]

We did the Disney excursion called "Island Tour and Snorkeling With Stingrays." There is one with a different name but an almost identical description, but we were told that the groups are smaller in this one. We were broken down into vanloads of people for the land portion and then went on the boat with our same small groups. It was 20 to 30 mins. out to the sandbar, and land is very far away. No swimming was required...just climb down the ladder from the boat into the water (by the way, there was a restroom on board, and also drinks). I am 5 foot 2, and it was easy for me to stand...water was about chest deep, and it wasn't too choppy. No sign of sharks or other scary sea creatures, just the rays. They get pretty enthusiastic about bumping them if you feed them, but if you prefer not to have that happen, don't give them any food. From what I've heard, they smell it rather than see it, which is why they are so clumsy about taking it. We loved this excursion and plan to do it again in January.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[Michelle]

Thanks for asking this question, magyar, I had the same questions.

For those who have done this, can a CHILD stand up in the water easily? My DD, age 9, does not swim well and there is no way she could tread water the whole time. She's tall for her age but still only about 4'9" tall and if the water is up to her neck she won't get in the water. I know she would LOVE the rays, she loves marine life, but I'm really wondering if it is worth it if the water is so deep?

 

[Dave in the Frozen North]

mj!

What a great set of pics from your trip, and what a wonderful looking family you have! It looks like you all had a blast. Your expression in the water with the ray sums it all up. Your comments and pics have made the Stingray excursion a must for us when we go!

If you have a moment, a few questions.

Where is the Mr. Sanchos beach that you are showing in your pics. This place looks great. Is this place also in Grand Cayman or is it in Cozumel (where a "Sanchos" would be more likely to be found). Any info re: access, price etc would be great since it looks great. Maybe I've missed references to this beach elsewhere.

Also Did you do the a.m. or p.m. excursion to Stingray City? Was this the Disney excursion or did you book on your own. And I'm wondering if you had time to visit the beach on your own before or after.

Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks

Dave in the Frozen North

 

[mmouse37]

Hey Dave...thanks for the nice comments. I actually just responded to your other post about the Key West web cam!!!!

Anyway, Mr. Sanchos is in Cozumel. We were a group of 7 going and we took a cab (20 min ride) for $30 each way. No charge to get in. It was a beautiful beach that had the "hut" umbrellas w/tables and chairs. They had various water craft (extra charge). It had a restaurant, small pool for young ones, waiter service, etc. No extra charge for the low sand lounges (shown in pic), but there was a charge for the padded chaise lounges (seperate vendor).

We found this to be a very nice beach and would go again. I also printed out a coupon for a free margarita from www.mrsanchos.com (can be used with any food or bev purchase). Beers were very inexpensive, buy 3 get one free. You CANNOT bring your own food/beverages. We had their salsa and chips and it was just enough to hold us over until be got back to the ship. I think we spent about $30 total for our food and drinks. It was cheaper than doing the DCL beach tour.

As far as the stingrays, we booked the 11:15-1:15 Capt. Marvins excursion. With the travel time to the boat and back it was more like three hours instead of two. We felt it was just enough. We stopped for about 20 minutes to snorkel in one area and then continued on to Stingray City for about a 30 minute "swim" with the stingrays. They were really awesome!!!! We booked online just a few days before sailing and got our confirmation while onboard (I checked e-mail online in the internet cafe). It was a short walk (about 10 mins.) to the Capt. Marvin office once we tendered over.

The water was not too deep at the time we went but that might depend on the tides. My DD14 is 5'7" and she was obviously fine standing in the water. We had about 12 people on our boat and the guides were very nice. They had complimentary ice water and fruit punch available. They also had squid for people who wanted to feed the stingrays. This was one of the best times on an excursion. They also provided masks, snorkels, fins.

We did not get to do any beach in Grand Cayman. After the stingrays we headed back to the ship and hit the pool.

Dave, it was really a great time had by all.

www.captainmarvins.com

MJ

 

[Doctor P]

Thanks for all the great info. I'm hoping that we can do one of these excursions next summer.

 

[Cruise]

Originally posted by mmouse37

On the webshots page, just click the arrows to see the other pictures.
http://community.webshots.com/photo/48196942/48731914ZhBAek

MJ

MJ,

I just looked at your pics and saw that you had Deepak as one of your servers! He was our asst server on our first cruise over 2 years ago. Wasn't he just great? We ended up tipping him twice the recommended amount because it seemed like he was always right there with whatever we needed. Is he still an asst. or a main server now?

Julie

 

[Chattyaholic]

for asking these questions, I was curious too!!
And thanks, everyone, for your responses!!

 

[magyar2]

Thanks all for your information! And Mmouse, your pictures are great! I will show them to my daughter after school and ask her if she would be comfortable with the stingrays all around her (although I will have to make it a hypothetical question, as my children only think we are going to Florida in December, not on the cruise!).

I want to be absolutely certain that she will be comfortable with this, although knowing that she absolutely has no fear of feeding them in the touch pools at various aquariums, I think she will be fine. It is her mother that has all the fears, and I thank you all for putting them to rest.

 

[mmouse37]

Hi Julie.....yes, Deepak was fantastic as our sever. He is main server now and on our cruise his asst. was Gede. He was good as well.

Deepak really took care of us and as you can see in the pictures my son and him really hit it off. We actually saw him on his day off while we were at Mr. Sanchos beach. Apparently the crew frequents the neighboring beach to Mr. Sanchos and we saw him walking down the beach!!! At first I did not recognize him without his dining uniform!!!!!

I wanted him to stay for a drink but they were heading back to the ship to get ready for dinner service.

MJ

 

[mmouse37]

bump

 

[Cruise]

Originally posted by mmouse37
Hi Julie.....yes, Deepak was fantastic as our sever. He is main server now and on our cruise his asst. was Gede. He was good as well.
MJ

I'm going to have to keep an eye out for him... though I'm sure he won't remember us from two years ago He was always so soft-spoken. I think I'll take him a phone card too... I remember him talking about getting off the ship in St Thomas to call his mom back in India.

Julie