For a video review of our experience with Barefoot Sailing, click here.

On our October 2008 Sky cruise we stopped in Freeport and Nassau. We did a Sail & Snorkel Cruise with Sand Dollar Cruises in Freeport on a catamaran. We opted for snorkeling again in Nassau, but this time aboard a sailboat. We booked the All Day Island Cruise with Barefoot Sailing Cruises.

Our day in Nassau was rather gloomy with gray skies and choppy seas, but the rain held off for most of the day. Once at the dock we met up with our captain and mate and after handing over our shoes (they take Barefoot Sailing seriously) we boarded our vessel for the day, Riding High, a sailboat along with a dozen others. It was a full boat.

Due to the weather the Captain changed the itinerary for the day to give us the best day possible given the conditions. He was able to find us a reef area to snorkel that was protected form the wind. We enjoyed our time snorkeling and saw 3 stingrays, two lionfish, a sea cucumber, a starfish and an eel. Not bad.

The boat was anchored off the shore in the area in the two pictures below. We swam towards the shore and then followed the shore line down a ways snorkeling. It was a little work to get to the reef, but it was nice to be in this protected area where the water was calm.

Lunch was provided on the boat. While we were snorkeling the Captain and First Mate prepared the food. Obviously some of the work was done ahead of time, but they fired up the grill on the boat and threw down some delicious food. It really was an amazing lunch with BBQ chicken, ribs, beans, etc. After lunch those that wanted headed back for more snorkeling. Scot and I were the last ones back to the boat at the end of the day trying to get every last second in the water that we could.

We really enjoyed the day in Nassau with Barefoot Sailing, but we have to say we enjoyed our morning with Captain Tony of Sand Dollar Cruises in Freeport even more. Why?

1. Well, we really liked the catamaran. It was much roomier. She was a beautiful boat.

2. The weather was better which was an unfair advantage, but truthfully factored into our enjoyment.

3. The reef in Nassau was good, but the reef in Freeport was incredible. We saw more fish there than we did snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.

4. Captain Tony was a stand up guy to take us out even though we were his only customers that morning. The folks at Barefoot Sailing told us he was crazy and he lost money doing that. I’m sure that is true, but what Tony gained was two loyal supporters who have been singing his praises ever since.

For a video review of our morning Sail & Snorkel with Sand Dollar Cruises, click here.

Scot and I were wanting to do some snorkeling while we were in Freeport. I had heard good things about Captain Tony and Sand Dollar Cruises on www.cruisecritic.com so we decided to give him a try and booked a 3 hour snorkel and sail cruise for the morning we were in Freeport. We are so glad we did. It was a highlight of our cruise.

We got off the ship in Freeport and caught a shared van ride into Port Lucaya. The cost was $5 per person and the ride was 15 minutes or so. The van driver got us headed in the right direction to meet Captain Tony in front of the Port Lucaya Hotel and Yacht Club. Captain Tony was waiting for us and walked us down to the Sand Dollar.

We found out that we were the only two booked for the morning sail! Woohoo! We very much enjoyed our private tour. It was very gracious of Captain Tony to not cancel our excursion. We hopped on board and soon were motoring out to the reef.

As you can see, it was a gorgeous morning and it was great trip out to the reef. We brought our own snorkel equipment, but they have it on board if you don’t have your own. We anchored and geared up. Captain Tony brought some food to toss to the fish who swarmed to the back of the boat as I entered the water. I have never snorkeled with so many fish and so few people. Scot and I had the reef  to ourselves. The clarity of the water was great and the coral and reef were plentiful. I stayed pretty close to the boat the whole time and had plenty to see. Scot was much more adventurous than I and swam much further away. I would guess that we snorkeled an hour to an hour and a half. We had plenty of time to enjoy the reef. About 20 minutes before we left another boat pulled up and offloaded it’s 30+ passengers. We were so glad we had booked with Sand Dollar Cruises.

Once we were back on board it was time to raise the sails and head back to the dock. Water, fruit punch and rum were available on the boat. The sail back was peaceful and relaxing. We enjoyed our time chatting with Captain Tony.

If you are interested in booking with Sand Dollar Cruises you can contact Captain Tony at 242-646-1051. You can try e-mailing him at  anthonyconyers@hotmail.com, but we didn’t have any luck with that. He says he hopes to have a website up sometime in November. The cost for the three hour tour was $45 per person for adults.

Thanks Captain Tony for such a great morning! If we make it back to Freeport we will look you up again.

UPDATE: The Sand Dollar website is up. You can get more information at www.sanddollarcruise.com.

For a video review of our Rays, Reef & Rum Point Tour experience, click here.

My husband and I are just back from our cruise on the Norwegian Pearl and did this tour on 10-17-07. We loved it!!! Never would have known about it without Cruise Critic.
The tour is offered through Native Way Watersports in Grand Cayman. I made our reservations online. We were on the Pearl and got into port at 10:00am and of course had to tender. Native Way was willing to work with our ships port time and start a tour later. We met up by 11:15 and headed to the bus. We were the only ship in port that day and had 12 people on our tour. Never felt crowded. The bus ride was about 15 minutes, I would guess. I had never been to Grand Cayman before and enjoyed seeing some of the island.

We arrived at the marina and met up with boat and our driver Chris. The boat had plenty of space for the 12 of us and could easily handle more passengers. The boat was nice and clean. We headed out and picked up our photographer, George, I think. He was Scottish.
At our first stop Chris dove off the back of the boat and brought up starfish for us to hold.

Next stop, Stingray City. The water was warm, clear, shallow and beautiful. When we arrived there was only one other boat and a few people on a jetski. Chris wrangled a few rays for us. We started out just petting one. Then moved on to holding and feeding. Some even got a back massage from the rays.

The last picture was one taken by the Native Way photographer. Pictures were $20 for the first one and $10 for each picture after that. I purchased three, but George threw in another shot for free. What a nice guy! Once we got to Rum Point the photographer sat in the bar and you could visit him there to see your photos. He would then burn what you bought to a disc.

Our next stop was at the barrier reef for some snorkeling. This area was very near Stingray City. You could see the boats there as well as Rum Point. We hoped right in and did some snorkeling. Saw a huge lobster. Clarity was decent and saw a number of fish. Nothing bigger than a foot or so long. Well, I did see one small stingray. Enjoyed the snorkeling.

Back on the boat, Chris rinsed us off with the hose to get rid of the salt water. We looked over menus and ordered our lunch. After a short ride we arrived at Rum Point Beach where lunch was waiting. Scot had the Fish and Chips. It was delicious grouper. I had the Jerk Pork sandwich and fries. it was yummy as well. Water and tea were available at no cost.

After lunch, we walked around a bit and then settled in some lounge chairs, but I didn’t stay there long. The water was so beautiful. I had to get in. We were able to go way put and the water was only to our chest. There was plenty of shade when we were there in the afternoon. Sandy beach.

Before long, it was time to head back. Took the boat back to the marina and the bus back to the port. Chris had asked us what time our last tender would be and planned to get us back to the port an hour or two before then. They delivered us back to the pier as promised. We had a wonderful day and didn’t feel rushed in the least. Although, I easily could have spent more time at the beach. Can’t wait to return to Grand Cayman.

Technorati Tags: Grand Cayman , Island Marketing , Cruise , Norwegian Pearl , Stingray City , Rum Point Beach , Rays , Reef & Rum Point tour , Native Way Watersports

For a video review of our day at Nachi Cocom, click here.

Here is a review of our day at Nachi Cocom on 10-16-07. We made reservations through Island Marketing about a week ahead of time and paid $12 each as a deposit. Our ship the Norwegian Pearl was in port from 7am to 4pm. We were one of three ships in Cozumel that day. Our ship switched to local time which gave us an extra hour of sleep.

We got off the ship and grabbed a taxi and were at Nachi Cocom around 9:15am. The cab driver did ask us if we had a reservation and made the comment when we arrived that we were early. Taxi ride was $15. My reservation from Island Marketing stated the hours are 9am-5pm. When we walked in they seemed surprised to see us that early, but someone asked if we had reservations and we were taken to chairs, given wrist bands and they collected the remainder of money due them.

My first impression was just so-so. It had rained a little on the way out. Things were wet. Blue pads were already on chairs and they tipped them to let the water run off. The blue pads were a bit dirty as they leave them outside all the time. The beach was smaller than I had envisioned. It was long, but not very deep. The water didn’t appear to be all that clear. I was afraid that maybe I had may a bad choice for the day.

Well, first impressions aren’t always right. It turned out we had a great day. I would go back anytime. The sun came out and we settled in our chairs and read for a while. We had a great waiter. The food and drinks were good. Slowly, others joined us at the beach, but I think there were only 8-10 other people there that day.

After lounging for a bit, I decided to walk a bit and check out more of the area. Walked for a while and ended up at the pool. Loved the pool. The temperature was perfect. We met some others from our ship and talked for a while.

The darker area to the left is a sunbathing area. The water was only 3-4 inches deep.

View of the pool from the restaurant/bar area.

Here is the hot tub area. We did not use it or see anyone use it all day. I did check the temperature with my hand. It was a little warmer than the pool, but certainly not hot.

View of the water from the pool.

I did see a large iguana sunning himself by the pool.

While in the pool I asked about getting a massage and they said they didn’t have anyone booked so I could get one whenever I wanted. They were running a special 30 minutes for $29 or 60 minutes for $55. I decided there was no better time than the present for a massage and went for the 60 minutes. I went over to the massage area dripping wet and sandy, but that didn’t seem to be a problem. It was wonderful. There was a great breeze.

I was a bit drowsy and very relaxed after the massage, but Scot was ready to eat so there was no time to nap. We headed to the restaurant for lunch. I had the guacamole and enchiladas with green sauce. Delicious! Scot enjoyed his nachos and mixed fajitas.
We headed back to the chairs for a little more reading.

In retrospect, we were in front of the pool area and very close to everything, but I think if I go back I would rather be further down the beach in a more open area like this. The beach wouldn’t have felt so small there. It is very spacious.

Then we headed back to the pool for more fun. I have never been to a beach club with a pool and I loved it. We never did go in the ocean while there. It seemed to have a pretty quick drop off. I saw another couple a few feet in the water and it was already up to their chests. The pool was lovely and that was good enough for me. We spent the next day in Grand Cayman in the ocean with the stingrays and snorkeling.

Before I knew it it was time to pack up and head back to the ship. Our waiter called a taxi and it was there in just a few minutes. Another $15 and we were back at the pier.