Anyone not do excursions on the Western Magic Cruise?

[Gretel]

Anyone just wing it?

 

[momof2minnies]

We just went to the beaches by way of taxis.We had no desire to do excursions and we are doing the same Jan 5,2013

Linda

 

[iloverags2]

We winged it in Key West and Cozumel, and realized after doing a tour of Grand Cayman we could have done the same there also. Are you looking for advice on where to go in those ports? If so, here are some suggestions for you...

Key West is by far the easiest port to do on your own. Because of its size, we just walk around on our own, with no need to take a cab or trolley. There are several small museums within walking distance with my favorites being Truman's Little White House, Hemingway House, and Mel Fisher's Maritime Museum (which is just off the pier). Also, along Duval Street there are several joints which are tourist destinations...Margaritaville, Hard Rock Cafe, and Sloppy Joe's Saloon. You can even walk to the Southernmost Point, although that is admittedly a bit of a hike.

Cozumel has several options depending on what you are looking to do there. Just off the pier is a small shopping center, and about five blocks from the pier is a town square type area that also has several shops (and a better selection to choose from). If you want to go to a beach, you will need to take a cab, but that is still a lower cost option than an excursion.

Grand Cayman has a nice shopping district just across the street from the tender pier. In addition, there are quite a few beach options within a short driving/cab distance including Seven Mile Beach.

Hope this helps!

 

[paraflier]

We didn't do any excursions on our Western, well that's not totally true, my husband went scuba diving in GC. We walked to the Southernmost Point in KW...that was a mistake. After that our boys refused to leave the ship again. It was so hot and humid their poor little Northwest mushroom-selves just wilted. I stayed on board the ship that day and relaxed on a lounger on deck 4 with a cold soda and good book while the kids played in the club. In Cozumel the kids stayed in the club and we walked down the main drag and then reboarded the ship for lunch.

 

[MikeAndNick]

Anyone just wing it?

We book very few Cruise Line excursions. I look on-line and find the same excursions or better at lower prices. The times that I do book cruise line excursions is when there is a chance of us not getting back on time; the port time is short or the excursion is long or the excursion is a long way away.

 

[MarcyIn Florida]

We very rarely do excursions on any ship (except for Tulum ruins, which was a more complicated trip) and we love it that way! We usually take public transportation, hire a cab driver for the day to take us somewhere, or do a private excursion that isn't through Disney. This way, we get more time at the places we're enjoying and are less tied to someone else's schedule. (And no, after about 20 cruises, we have never missed getting back on a ship . . . knock wood.)

 

[CruznLexi]

We never do shore excursions! KW we have rented scooters or just walked around. They have a great conch place that looks like an old air stream! Best ever! Cozumel we have been there so much. We go play mini golf. Walk past the mexican flag and go up. We have swam with the manatees, rented jeeps. GC is overpriced so we stay on the ship

 

[aymekae]

Just came back a few weeks ago. Only booked one DCL excursion on Grand Cayman for the semi-sub/reef snorkling tour. I really enjoyed it as a beginner snorkeler. We walked around Key West ourselves. Cozumel was our pricey day; we booked a beach break at Nachi Cocom, and I would do it again! Did not book anything for Castaway Cay.

I will also say that our tablemates booked 1 or 2 things for every day. At dinner every night, we would compare our days. Inevitably, they looked more and more worn out, and several times wished they had skipped whatever they had planned so that they could just relax! Made me feel a lot better that while I did a lot of planning, I did relatively little "scheduling".

Pick one or two "must-dos" and go with the flow for the rest!

 

[Sir William]

We never do shore excursions! KW we have rented scooters or just walked around. They have a great conch place that looks like an old air stream! Best ever! Cozumel we have been there so much. We go play mini golf. Walk past the mexican flag and go up. We have swam with the manatees, rented jeeps. GC is overpriced so we stay on the ship

We're much the same. We just enjoyed walking around KW and GC. We tried to do a kayaking/snorkling excursion at Cozumel but a storm blew in so we ended up walking around the town. I've done the same on other cruises elsewhere. If and when I return I may go on an excursion but I like exploring the towns first.

 

[trudy88]

We aren't really planning on doing excursions. We may not even get off of the ship!
To each his own....

 

[FJS961]

We did a western in april and it was our best cruise by far. It was our first 7 nighter / caribbean whereas the others were 3 and 5 night bahamas.

We winged it in Key West. In GC we did a pirate ship excursion in the am which was a disappointment but balance of day we took a cab to the beach and rented jet skis having a blast. In cozumel we did the Dolphinaris excursion and had a great time with that.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Key West isn't very big, and you only have half a day there. It is very easy to do on your own. We got tickets for the Old Towne Trolley and toured the city, it also took us down to the Southernmost Point so we didn't have to walk it. You could get on and off all day. We did this on our own, not through DCL.

Cozumel was also easy to get around. There is a taxi stand through the mall right when you get off the ship. Rates are posted for all major attractions there. When you could still do it, we booked our dolphin excursion ourselves online and then just took a taxi to Chankanaab. It was very easy.

 

[poizenivey]

We booked 2 excursions through DCL on our first cruise and will probably never do it again (unless the Med comes back). On our 2nd cruise, I hit tripadvisor and found some great things to do on our own, that were much more enjoyable and much less expensive, than booking through DCL.

Be smart and don't cut your times too close or venture hours away from port and you won't have to worry about being left behind!

 

[tolemommy]

Last March was our first DC and my sister and I only booked one shore excursion in GC.

We walked around OKW at our own pace, walked out to the southern most point in the US.

In COZ we walked around, shopped, and ate lunch while in port. We wanted our cruise to be a relaxing as we have very busy home lives.

We are not "commando style," cruisers. One of my best memories is of my sister and I lounging in deck chairs reading/snoozing in the morning/afternoon sun w/o a care in the world watching the beautiful ocean sail by...

November 2013 seems like such a long time to wait...