Opinions on port activities?

My DCL booking window opens Sunday. Six-night stopping at Cozumel and Grand Cayman.

I’m considering doing one of the “submarine” adventures. Opinions? Are they worth it? Which port is better for this?

I’m not an all-day-at-the-beach person, but I do enjoy walking along the water’s edge. Are the beaches suitable for walking barefoot or too coarse? Better in one port vs the other?

I’m not interested in shopping and dining on shore.

This is a solo trip, so I’m also unsure how I’ll feel about going ashore alone. I’m considering maybe just staying on the ship.

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I wish I could help. I can tell you what we’re doing.
In Cozumel we chose: All-Terrain Buggy and Snorkel (CZ57)
In Grand Cayman: Coral Beach Club on Seven Mile Beach (G75)

We previously did a beach club in Cozumel and it was a lovely beach. Nice sand and nice water. You can hang out on the beach or at the pool, etc. I find these relaxing days so I don’t think going alone would be terrible. Since we did the Cozumel beach club last time I chose something different that will allow us to see more of the island itself but still have some water time. Both of these places are known for their beaches/snorkeling/diving. It’s our first trip to Grand Cayman so here we’re gonna just enjoy the beach.

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I would go to Stingray City in Grand Cayman if you’ve never been. I’ve done both a DCL excursion there & booked a jetski tour with a stop there through a private tour company. The private tour company was much better, but I think if I was solo I might feel more comfortable with the DCL excursion. I always feel safe in Grand Cayman, but I’ve also never traveled there alone.

In Cozumel we usually go to Nachi Cocom Beach Club which we book on our own. You said you don’t like to sit at the beach all day, so this might not be for you. There’s a Cozumel Bar Hop that I really want to do. Has great reviews & would probably be a good solo activity. I actually booked it once when our ship was rerouted last minute to Cozumel during a hurricane. The times weren’t going to work out & they contacted me & refunded me. Great customer service, so I would book in the future. I can’t remember where that picks you up. Again, I don’t know how you would feel taking a taxi alone in Cozumel. The taxis are very organized with set rates.

Have you ever done one of the submarine things? I did it in Hawaii & it’s ok. Not bad, but not overly exciting & I probably wouldn’t book it again. I’d rather be in the water.

I’m all about beaches bc I’m cheap and I love salt water. That said I’ve done Playa Mia and Nachi Cocum and I found the sand exceptionally coarse. Like OUCH sharp.

If you like beaches Isla Pasion is on the north side and had powder soft sand.

Also - go to Cruise Critic port pages and you can read oodles and maybe get in on a group discount.

I’ve been to Nachi Cocum 4 times & never had that experience with the sand. I wonder if there had been a storm or something?? Cruise Critic has some great info about ports, I think that’s where I originally found out about Nachi Cocom.

Is there a beach club at Isla Pasion? How are the food/drinks?

Yes. It’s a private club. I found it on DCL website though we weren’t in DCL. It’s a boat ride to the north end. In 2019, DCL was at a port further North than Carnival was, but it was a 1 hour ride each way from Carnival.

Playa Isla is only a short distance from Nachi and the sand was rough both trips so I had said I’d never go to Cozumel again. When I’d read on Cruise Critic about Isla Pasion I was willing to try it one more time and it was worth it. It was all inclusive.

I try to avoid any beaches where DCL has excursions! LOL :rofl: Too many kids! Years ago I went to one through DCL, maybe Playa Isla (very close to Nachi Cocom) & it was miserable. Packed & a gross buffet.

You should try Nachi Cocom if you haven’t. I absolutely love it. I’ve never heard anyone complain about the sand.

I also spend a lot of time on Google earth planning visits.



And daydreaming about life and travel in general.

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Gotcha. I’m 100% not anti kid. And you’d probably only notice the tough sand if you were being burying in it and kneeling to make sandcastles.

Last time I did a DCL cruise (several years ago), we did the submarine thing at Cozumel - it was ok, nothing special. At Grand Cayman we did the turtle farm and dolphin encounter - both of which we enjoyed a lot. I can dig up some photos of both if you’d like!

When your booking window opens, any chance you could see if the fishing excursion is available at Castaway Cay? It’s the one thing we really want to do but I’ve heard that it hasn’t come back since COVID.

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We did the turtle farm on Grand Cayman as well. It was a fantastic excursion. Unfortunately I don’t think DCL runs it anymore. A friend of mine couldn’t find it on the list of port excursions when she went with her family a few years later.

If it is available, definitely look into it!

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I’ve done Stingray City before as a scuba trip while staying there. It was amazing and I still tell people about it.

In Cozumel, that was a dive trip, so I only personally know the diving. But, I just booked a cruise that stops there and we’ll have a girl with us that doesn’t dive. So, looking into non-diving activities. Current front runner is the Snuba thing, since you don’t need a diving license and that will get me under the water. You can spend the rest of the day snorkeling on their beach.

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My cruise doesn’t go to Castaway Cay, so I don’t think I would see those excursions?

No, then you wouldn’t see it. Nevermind!

For the curious. My booking window opened. I booked the submarine in Cozumel (DH talked me into it). I wasn’t able to get brunch at Palo. Maybe something will open up. Since my booking window is the latest tier I was expecting it to be full. So if I get in, happy dance; if I don’t, not devastating. Still waffling on going to the beach in Grand Cayman vs staying on the ship. Not thrilled to deal with a tender.

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We are going end of January and the fishing adventure is available!

Yay, thank you!

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There is a reason that the 7-mile beach is famous.
I understand the tender being a problem, but I think you’d find it worthwhile.

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I did a 7-mile-beach excursion with Princess in 2014. The tendering was easy and a very short distance (Belize is a much longer tender). I’d not hesitate unless you have significant mobility issues.

I just went to a beach bar. The water was amazing.

I’ll look for photos of I can get back to my computer.

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