Blue Lagoons and Stingrays
Written: Aug 09 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: beautiful scenery, beautiful water, feeding and petting stingrays
Cons: not enough time, Stingray City crowded
The Bottom Line: Although not without problems, I truly enjoyed my visit to the Bahamas and the opportunity to pet stingrays. I wish I could have seen more and would definitely go back.
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| quasar's Full Review: Bahamas |
Last fall I took a week off between jobs and went on a Caribbean cruise. First post of call: the Bahamas.
If you've never taken a cruise, basically you are given several choices for shore excursions at each port of call. Naturally in the Bahamas most of the choices revolved around swimming, diving, or boat-related activities. I decided to go snuba diving, a wierd hybrid of scuba diving and snorkeling that amounted to snorkeling with a longer tube (so you can go deeper). Unfortunately that tour was sold out and I settled for snorkeling in Stingray City on the Blue Lagoon.
Our cruise ship docked in Nassau and we took a smallish powerboat to Blue Lagoon island. 45 minutes of Caribbean music and startlingly blue water later we were there. I thoroughly enjoyed this jaunt; I had a chair right by the railing with an incredible view and a nice breeze.
Blue Lagoon itself is a circular island encircling water. A narrow opening in the land leads into a large pool of water in the center where we docked. The land was a mix of sand, Palm trees, and other circular growth.
We had a 15 minute walk to Stingray city through some of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen and on bridges spanning absolutely calm sparkling blue water.
At Stingray City everyone had to sign a waiver saying we didn't hold them responsible for anything that happens in the water. Once everyone signed (we were identified by arm bands), we made our way to the dock en masse. Those of us who rented equipment from Stingray City (you could also rent on the ship) were handed rather gaudily colored face masks. No fins were supplied.
One of the workers gave a short demonstration of how to use the face masks, then he entered the water and the rest of us were allowed to follow.
The snorkling area was roped off and quite small. It was definitely too small for the number of people they allowed in. If I had to guess I would say it was about 40' x 60' and they had 20-30 people in the water at any given time.
At first I was just trying to get used to snorkeling - it had been a good six or seven years since I'd done it and it took me a few minutes to get the hang of it again. But soon I was snorkeling like a pro, exploring the limited area available to us.
At first there wasn't much to see. There were a few rays along the bottom of the water (which was maybe ten or twelve feet deep) and a few fish but very little else. A section near the back had the fake remains of a sunken ship including a treasure chest.
Then the man who gave the demonstration came out in scuba gear and started feeding the rays and the fish. Soon the area was swarming with activity. We were able to dive down and see a wide variety of fish and about ten rays. After the initial feeding frenzy they all stayed in the area. The feeder would catch rays and turn them over for the kids to pet. He told us how to safely pet them, and told us it was okay to dive and pet the rays he wasn't holding.
The rays basically stayed near the bottom and diving down took some practice. I wasn't having much success until I realized the underwater camera I bought was buoyant and pulling me back up to the surface. Once I started leaving the camera at the surface I could dive well enough to reach the stingrays and pet them.
They felt like suede. I loved petting them. Soft, slightly furry, slightly slippery. The key was making slow movements - if I reached too fast they got scared and swam away from me. If I was slow they let me pet them to my heart's content.
The area was too crowded with humans, as I mentioned, and there were definite problems with getting kicked in the face by others or elbowed in the back, and with other equally irritating unwanted bodily contact. I spent the entire time allotted in the water, and soon found myself going to the back away from the fish and most of the people several times so I could swim a bit and really enjoy the water.
As our time there neared an end, the worker was sitting on the steps near the entrance and exit of the water feeding fish and rays. He let us feed them too. I have never seen such agressive fish. Even though the food kept coming they were fighting for every morsel. I fed one or two pieces, but the mad rush that accompanied my acquisition of food scared me and I quickly left the feeding to others.
It was nice that they let us feed them, but it was also problematic. The rays were all hanging out on or near the steps that we had to walk up to exit the water. Several people came very close to stepping on a ray on their way out of the water. Since it most likely would not have been in one of the safe areas to pet, and probably would have led to very angry stingrays, this was not good.
All of those problems aside, I really enjoyed swimming with the stingrays. I would go again, although perhaps I might try to get more time. I think we had about an hour all told, but I am not sure. I do know I wasn't ready to leave the water when it was time. Of course, since I could have happily stayed there forever, that isn't a good criteria to use to judge.
I would have liked the chance to see more of Blue Lagoon, or rather to stop at other sections of Blue Lagoon and swim, boat, and otherwise do water-related fun things. I basically had just enough time to run into the gift shop and buy a few postcards before it was time to return to the ship.
The return voyage was on the same boat and I got the same seat. We took the same route back to Nassau, but I didn't mind that in the least because it truly was beautiful and relaxing.
I had to go back on the cruise ship almost as soon as we got back to Nassau so I didn't really get to see much of the Bahamas besides Blue Lagoon island. From the ship Nassau was breathtaking, a mix of angular orange and brown buildings plopped on thin strips of lushly green land in between more of that amazingly blue water. I stood on deck as we pulled out, just taking it all in, and I honestly cannot think of any moment when I was so at peace, so in tune with my surroundings, so appreciative to be in a particular spot. Stingrays and snorkling, scenery and sailing. I highly recommend it.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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