Play With And Feed The Stingrays - Stingray City, Berry Islands, Bahamas

Play With And Feed The Stingrays

Stingray City

Berry Islands, Bahamas

N 25° 48.716 W 077° 54.312

Short Description: 

Stingray City is on an isolated sandbar near one of the smaller of the Berry Islands in the Bahamas. It can be reached by cruise ship excursions from Great Stirrup Cay and other islands used by cruise ships.

Long Description:

A short motorboat ride takes you from one of the cruise ship islands, such as Great Stirrup Cay, to Stingray City, a shallow sandbar with a large enclosure containing 42 female and one male southern stingrays. The stingrays are docile and fascinating creatures. They will allow themselves to be held and hand fed.

The operators will bring a large bucket of squid, one of their favorite foods. They come willingly to the operators, known as wranglers, to be held. They know they are going to be fed. The wranglers will position the stingray so that it is facing you, give you a piece of squid, and instruct you as to how the feed these interesting animals.

You fold your thumb down and curl your other four fingers around the squid. Approaching the stingray from the front, you place your hand just below its mouth, which is on its underside exactly between its eyes. Stingrays feed by sucking up food with a powerful force. You can feel the squid being pulled from your hand as the stingray takes it into its mouth.

All the stingrays on the sandbar have names and identifying tags. The feeding continues until all the people on the excursion have a chance to feed a stingray and all the stingrays have been fed. Next a photo op session begins. The wranglers will pass a stingray to you for you to hold in your arms and have your picture taken. Again, the stingrays are willing participants because they know that now they will be fed once again, this time by the wrangler as you hold them.

The stingrays are accustomed to people and are quite curious and friendly. They only use their stingers defensively. The only danger is accidentally stepping on their tail. To avoid this possibility you simply shuffle your feet as your walk along the sandbar. The stingrays will sense the vibration you create and get out of your way.

Beaches: Great Stirrup Cay - Berry Islands, Bahamas.

Beaches

Great Stirrup Cay

Berry Islands, Bahamas

Great Stirrup Cay, is the northernmost island of the Berry Islands. It is owned by Norwegian Cruise Lines. NCL cruise ships anchor just offshore and transfer passengers to the island on dedicated tender boats. Passengers can choose from several beaches, each with its own character as you walk west long the north shore of Great Stirrup Cay.

The Beaches

The main beach is closest to the tender boat harbor and is where most of the amenities are located including the food pavilion.

N 25° 49.565 W 077° 54.788

Farther west along the beach is another less crowded beach. You need to walk a longer distance to the food pavilion and other amenities. 

N 25° 49.456 W 077° 54.919

If you want solitude then continue walking west. This beach has been left in a more natural state.

N 25° 49.439 W 077° 55.059

Beach chairs are provided on the next beach to the west, but there fewer people make their way out here.
                                                          N 25° 49.439 W 077° 55.059

A man made lagoon was created for those who prefer a wave free beach. It is on the west end of the island.

  N 25° 49.430 W 077° 55.146

At the far west end of the island is the most secluded beach. If you want almost complete privacy this is the place to be.

                                                           N 25° 49.449 W 077° 55.275

Epic Beings: Neptune (Poseidon) - Great Stirrup Cay, Berry Islands, Bahamas

Neptune (Poseidon)

Great Stirrup Cay

Berry Islands, Bahamas

N 25° 49.519 W 077° 54.771

Short Description: 

A 6' high bronze statue of the Roman god Neptune, Greek counterpart is Poseidon, greets Norwegian Cruise Line passengers to the private island of Great Stirrup Cay in the Bahamas.

Long Description:

Neptune (and Poseidon) appear in Roman and Greek mythologies. A god, he was the brother of Jupiter (Zeus) and Pluto (Hades). These deities divided dominion of the world into three parts. Jupiter (Zeus) was god of the heavens. Pluto (Hades) was god of the underworld. Neptune (Poseidon) had dominion over the sea, both salt water and fresh water. He is traditionally shown as a bearded god who carries a trident.

Belief in Poseidon dates back to the Bronze Age in Greece. The Romans later adopted the Greek god under the name Neptune. The ancients believed that storms and even earthquakes were the result of Neptune's violent rage. Neptune was married to Amphitrite and had several children, Triton being the most famous. The planet Neptune was named after the god and it's largest moon is named Triton.

Cruise Ship Port: Great Stirrup Cay - Berry Islands, Bahamas

Great Stirrup Cay

Berry Islands, Bahamas

N 25° 49.523 W 077° 54.711

Short Description: 

Great Stirrup Cay, is the northernmost island of the Berry Islands. It is owned by Norwegian Cruise Lines. NCL cruise ships anchor just offshore and transfer passengers to the island on dedicated tender boats.

Long Description:

Belcher Oil Company took ownership of a large section of the island. In 1977, Norwegian Caribbean Lines (later Norwegian Cruise Line) acquired the western section of the island from Belcher Oil, developed recreational facilities and established a port-of-call their passengers. Tender boats that are permanently kept on the island transfer passengers and cargo from the cruise ship to Great Stirrup Cay.

Activities on the island include swimming, snorkeling, parasailing, Wave Runner tours, kayaking, paddleboarding, and excursions to Stingray City. You can even hike along wide gravel roads the the far southeast end of the island, visit a lighthouse, and "international airport", and encounter wildlife along the way.

History of Great Stirrup Cay:

Great Stirrup Cay is a small uninhabited sub-tropical island in north central Bahamas that is part of the Berry Islands Group. The island was a used by pirates from the time the British occupied the Bahamas and made Nassau the capital until 1815. Once the United Kingdom abolished slavery, the British began to withdraw from the outer islands of the Bahamas until Great Stirrup Cay was abandoned.

During the American Civil War the island was used by the Confederate states to store provisions and to export cotton to Europe. The area was patrolled by Federal warships to inhibit the export of cotton by the Confederacy.

The Imperial Lighthouse Service erected the 80' high lighthouse on the north east coast of Great Stirrup Cay in 1863. The lighthouse site was manned until it was converted to solar power. The light is visible for over 20 miles.


During World War II the United States erected observational and defensive infrastructure including: submersible anti-submarine cables, Later the U.S. Air Force constructed a satellite tracking station which was closed in 1991. A helipad that is known as Great Stirrup Cay International Airport is still in use.

Lighthouse: Mahahual Lighthouse - Mahahual, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Mahahual Lighthouse

Mahahual

Quintana Roo, Mexico

N 18° 43.462 W 087° 42.093

Short Description: 

Mahahual Lighthouse is located on the Caribbean coast of Mexico at the north end of the village of Mahahual and south of the cruise port of Costa Maya on the Yucatan Peninsula.

Long Description:

The lighthouse at Mahahual is the southmost lighthouse on the Caribbean coast of Mexico. This is a virtually uninhabited area of Mexico until the cruise ship port of Costa Maya was constructed. It is the most obvious landmark in the area.

The area around the Mahahual Lighthouse was devastated by Hurricane Dean in 2007. Many of the residents including the lighthouse keeper were killed. Today this active lighthouse is entirely solar powered. The round cylindrical white concrete structure has four buttressed ribs, a lantern, a red lantern roof, and a gallery. It is 72' high, has a focal plane of about 75', and makes four white flashes every 16 seconds.

Pyramid: Replica Mayan Pyramid - Costa Maya, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Replica Mayan Pyramid

Costa Maya

Quintana Roo, Mexico

N 18° 43.992 W 087° 41.635

Short Description: 

The Replica Mayan Pyramid is located beyond the security zone outside the Mayan Village at the start of the residential area one Ave. Paseo del Puerto of Costa, Maya, Mexico.

Long Description:

It looks new because it is. This 60' high replica of a Mayan pyramid greets visitors who venture beyond the faux Mayan Village which is within the security zone. The port of Costa Maya opened in February 2001 and was rebuilt after Hurricane Dean in 2007. It was built specifically to be a cruise ship destination in the western Caribbean.

It is really a nice looking pyramid. It it constructed with traditional materials and has stairways, albeit climbing is not allowed, on the front and the back leading up to a temple a the summit. For tourist who would like to see what a Mayan temple looks like but do not wish to make the 4 hour bus ride into the jungle, this provides a convenient alternative.

Myths: Dance of the Flyers Ceremony - Costa Maya, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Dance of the Flyers Ceremony

Costa Maya

Quintana Roo, Mexico

N 18° 43.993 W 087° 41.585

Short Description: 

The Dance of the Flyers (La Danza de los Voladores) ceremony performed to bring forth rain is performed whenever cruise ships are docked at the port of Costa Maya in Quintana, Roo, Mexico.

Long Description:

A consortium of cruise lines developed the port of Costa Maya. The area has deep water that can accommodate large cruise ships and provides a convenient stop for cruise ships that are visiting western Caribbean ports. Within the security area of the port, there is a faux Mayan village created for tourists. The Mayan pole ceremony, an authentic Dance of the Flyers (Danza de los Voladores), takes place in the central square.

According to Totonac myth a severe drought was inflicted by the gods because the people had neglected them. The Dance of the Flyers ceremony was created to appease the gods and bring back the rains. A permanent 72' high pole is installed in the courtyard of the faux Mayan village of Costa Maya. The ceremony is preformed by by professional flyers and witnessed by thousands of tourists.

In this version of the dance four flyers, dressed in traditional garb, climb to the top of the pole, tie ropes around their feet and descend, head first, to the ground while circling the pole the ritual number of 13 times. A fifth participant remains on top of the pole, plays a flute while pounding out a cadence on a drum.

La Danza de los Voladores has been recognized as intangible cultural heritage (ICH) by UNESCO in 2009. The country of Mexico is committed to safeguard and promote the tradition to keep it alive.