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Stingray City Trips

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Cantin2
Cantin2
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5 out of 5
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10
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Stingray City Tour

  • February 14, 2008
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Carol65 from Milton, Ontario
Stingray City Tour

We booked our tour with our ship "Carnival Inspiration" which was a good thing since we were late arriving back and they held the ship for us.

This is a once in a lifetime experience. We took a boat out to the sandbar, put on our snorkel gear and went into the water. Our guides explained how to feed the stingrays and we were given food. The stingrays were everywhere. The females are the large ones and we were able to hold one.

The water was warm and clear so it made for some great snorkeling.

I would recommend that if you are on Cayman to do this tour. If you are coming from a cruise ship make sure you book with the ship not on your own because you may get left behind otherwise.
Editor Pick

Stingray City

  • January 6, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by megamay from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
I am a scuba diver, so I thought that a trip to Stingray City wouldn't be that exciting, since I have seen marine life pretty close under water before. Boy, was I wrong! We got there early in the morning and were one of the first boats. There were about 50 stingrays in the group, and they pretty much all crowded around our boat looking for food. At first I was a little scared, thinking that they had stingers on their tails. They do have stingers, but they only put them up when they feel threatened and they are so used to people that they are not easily threatened. The tour guide said that you should shuffle your feet on the bottom so you don't step on them, because that could make them sting you. But, he said, even if you step on them, these are so tame that they would probably just wriggle out from under you.

It was really cool to be able to pet them and feed them. Feeding them was kinda scary too, though. They don't have teeth, but they do have strong suction and jaws to sort of crush their food. The guide said not to worry, but I was still kind of scared.

However, it was an amazing experience. There were so many of them, and they are so graceful and beautiful in the water. I don't think there is anywhere else where you can have this experience, to be up close and personal with so many of these amazing creatures.

One suggestion, though, if you go, try to get there as early as possible. There are about 50 stingrays, and when we got there, there were two other small boats, but one was getting ready to leave. So the 12 people on our boat pretty much got all 50 stingrays to ourselves because we were the "fresh meat". But by the time we were leaving, another boat with about 50 people on it was pulling up. Then we went snorkeling a short distance away at the reef, and when we were finished, there were like 15 boats at Stingray City! AND there were more on the way. So it gets pretty crowded, and there are still only about 50 stingrays. I am sure that latecomers still have a great time and get to pet them and feed them, but earlier is better because there is a larger stingray-to-people ratio.

From journal Christmas Week in Grand Cayman

Sting Ray City - Grand Cayman

  • April 9, 2005
  • Rated 5 of 5 by MalervyC from Norristown, Pennsylvania
Sting Ray City was awesome. The sting rays actually come up to you and take squid right out of your hand. Our instructors were very nice. We bought a DVD of the whole day for $60, a bit pricey, but when it's snowing here in Philly, it's worth it to look back.

From journal My Voyage on Voyager

Sting Ray City - Grand Cayman

  • April 6, 2005
  • Rated 5 of 5 by tvl4fun from Grapevine , Texas
This was a very cool thing to do. We got to see the turtle farm, as well as the town of Hell, and go to Stingray City. It is very surreal that you are swimming with something you thought was dangerous. It was very cool. My son was a little freaked out by it, but he did enjoy it.

From journal Spring Break 2005

Stingray City

  • March 12, 2005
  • Rated 5 of 5 by lawngnome from Medford, Oregon
Stingray City - one of the most amazing places to be. Go about 30 minutes off the coast of Cayman by boat and you're in 10-foot crystalline waters protected by a reef wall that drops out to sea.

When you step off the boat into the water at Stingray City, a sand dune boosts the water level to about 3 feet and you see swarms - literally dozens - of stingrays varying between 2 and 5 feet in length.

Whichever tour you take, you'll be given an educational discussion about the rays: where their "stings" are, how to pet them, and how to feed them. Squid is brought along for the latter opportunity.

While it can be a bit nerve-wracking if you're thinking "What?! Being in the water with dozens of stingrays swimming around me??!" they're quite tame from all the tourist attention they get and beyond friendly (some like to give backrubs!).

All in all, it's a brilliant place to see, and if you're in Cayman, a must. There are only so many places that people get the opportunity to visit animals in their natural habitat, and this is one of the best.

From journal Cayman Islands: How Grand!

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