Suggestions Please - Western Route Shore Excursions

[mickeyluvr]

DH, DS(15) and I are on the 7/19 Western cruise, our first. We just got our info on the shore excursions and need some help deciding which to take! None of us have ever snorkeled so I'm not sure those would be good choices, but there are so many others....are the Cozumel ruins tours worth doing? How about the Key West schooner cruises? Or the minisubs/Nautilus type things? Or would be be better off taking a general overall tour or maybe just going it on our own? Thanks!!

 

[Robert and Kelley]

We did the general tour in Grand Cayman. It was ok but very crowded. You get a good tour of the island. The turtle farm was interesting as well as the rum cake factory stop. The kids still like to tell people they went to hell (the town).

We did the Dolphin encounter in Cozumel which was fun if you have never done anything similar. The ride to the park was fast and there is a lot to see and do at the park in addition to the encounter.

We are cruising the western again in January 04 and plan to visit the Tulum ruins or the horseback riding.

Most of the excursions are going to be fun so just get out and enjoy one.

 

[WDWLVR]

Here's what we did on our May 10th Cruise:

Key West - bought tickets for the trolley online and saved $4 per person over the DCL price. It is very easy to find the trolley booth downtown (it is right next to the Aquarium) and that took us all around the island. You can get on and off as you please. We got out at the Southernmost point stop to see that and the Butterfly Conservatory, then walked up to the Hemmingway House, Up Duval street to shop, and later hit the Aquarium and shops near the ship. Very easy to do on your own.

Grand Cayman - We did the DCL tour which was Snorkeling with Stingrays and Discover Cayman. First stop Hell, then the Turtle Farm and then finally the Stingrays. We did the early excursion which met at 7:50 and got back to the pier around noon. Plenty of time to do some shopping and get back on board before everyone else.

Cozumel - we did the DCL tour called Cozumel Ruins and Beach Tour. These ruins are right on the Island and the whole excursion took about 4.5 hours. The other ruins tours go to the mainland and take 7.5 hours - a little too long for our taste. The tour we took was great with a short ride to the ruins, a walk through with a guide, time to shop, then a beautiful ride along the coast. Last stop is the Playa Sol beach where we had an hour to shop, play, go in the water, whatever. Then back to the ship. This tour left at noon so we had time to shop in the morning, grabbed a quick bite to eat on board, and got back on the ship in plenty of time to get ready for early seating dinner.

 

[rmbreset]

We did horseback riding on Grand Cayman, it is a non DCL excursion but I do highly reccomend it, for info go to:

http://grandcaymancruiseexcursions.com/horsebackriding.htm

 

[kpros]

I would do the Sting Ray trip on Grand Cayman. The water is only 3 or 4 feet deep, so it's not like a real snorkel trip. We used Nativeway for the trip and it was great.

 

[Buckaroo's Dad]

Hi mickeyluvr.

How about the Key West schooner cruises?

On our first cruise my son and I sailed on The Western Union Schooner. It was a lot of fun. My son received a lesson in ropes, rigging and tall tales from one of the crew members. Everyone onboard had the opportunity to help raise the mast. The schooner's captain provided a lot of historical information concerning the vessel and Key West. He answered all questions with insight and a few with added humor. Ice-cold non-alcoholic beverages were always available. While we sailed, a woman played seafaring music on her guitar - quite skillfully. All in all, this tour offers an enjoyable shore excursion - with minimal physical exertion - that I recommend for families...