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you leave home! After the snorkeling, we went to the Stingray City Sandbar where you could look down and see the stingrays. It was very neat! We jumped into the water (only about waist deep) and the stingrays rubbed right up against our legs. The guides told us that's how they "make friends" with us. I'll admit I thought it was creepy at first but then got used to it. They are very friendly animals! We got to pet them, hold them, have our pictures taken with them, feed them, etc. It was very cool and everyone should try this if they get the chance. It was reasonably priced, especially compared to the similar Carnival excursion. The price was $35 pp for my husband and I and $27.50 pp for our children.

Tendering in Grand Cayman: you need a tender ticket in Grand Cayman during the morning and those with a Carnival excursion get the first tickets. We booked our Captain Marvin's trip for 10:45 so we wouldn't be stressed about getting off the boat. By 9 or 9:30 tickets were no longer needed so we didn't have any trouble with tendering here.

Cozumel: We'd been to Cozumel before on other cruises, so knew what to expect from this port. We decided to have a more laid back day here so didn't book any excursions. Instead we shopped in the morning, then went back to the ship to change into our swimsuits and took a cab to Paradise Beach. Shopping here is fun, and the prices are very good. You can get some great bargains here! Paradise Beach is very nice and pretty, though it was a bit crowded. Our cab ride to and from the beach was about $14 each way. You can go to the beach for free, including chairs and umbrellas. But, if you want to use their "water toys" (water trampoline, water iceberg, floats, etc.) you can buy a wristband for $8. I thought this was reasonable, and we all got wristbands. They do have an employee who goes around in a kayak to make sure those using the "toys" have a wristband. I heard him tell a few people they needed a wristband to climb the iceberg, jump on the water trampoline, etc. and they were very nasty to the employee there. I couldn't believe it! A note here, the water gets very deep very quickly at this beach. I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable taking very small kids to this beach. My kids are older and are pretty good swimmers so I didn't worry about them too much mostly just floated around the iceberg watching them climb to the top and jump in the water. They loved it here! We had lunch before going to the beach so didn't order from their menu,

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