Catamaran Cruise question

**ms325i** · May 5th, 2010, 03:23 PM

My partner and I will be at CTI in two weeks. We have never been on a CC before and have a few questions for those of you who have tried it before.
-How far does the boat sail from the hotel?
-If you are a non-swimmer can you remain on the boat for the duration of the cruise?
-How long does the cruise last?
-What sort of activities do you do on the cruise?
Thanks

**Cara83** · May 6th, 2010, 09:11 PM

I am not sure how far you travel from the resort, but I think ours was about 2 hrs long! We stayed at CSA for the first time 4/18 to 4/25! We got married there so our families were there and the Catamaran Cruise was awesome for all of us to do together. I thought that we would be able to choose our drinks on the boat, but the only option was a fruity drink. I don't remember what it was called, but our dads are beer drinkers (usually nothing else) and they both enjoyed it! Our dads stayed on the boat while we all jumped in the water and swam! They have life jackets available for the non-swimmers! There is also a slide on the boat, so you can slide right into the water. It was awesome to be able to look at the water and all of the amazing buildings on the shoreline! I am sure you will have an awesome time!!!

**klare** · May 7th, 2010, 01:22 AM

My husband & I recently returned from CTI and the Catamaran was a highlight of our trip. He swam and really had fun-there were some "noodles" available for a little extra help with floating, though not enough for everyone. I chose to stay on board and take pictures as I am much more sedantary. There are a few benches available-otherwise you just sit on the deck or cabin top. The trip is along the coast to a cove for swimming and back. Music is played, drinks are served and the sea air and salt spay are great! The crew is great too. It is my understanding that if it is red flag day the trip may leave from another location than the CTI dock so be sure to check it out. We met friends who missed their trip because they were not aware.

If you like riding along on the water I can also recommend the glass bottom boat tour. We also took a wonderful tranquil rafting trip on the Martha Brae River which we booked from the tour desk in the lobby. We were the only couple to book on the day we went and we had a car and driver all to ourselves. He was such a great conversationalist and we learned so much about Jamaica that the trip weas perfect from start to finish.

**ms325i** · May 7th, 2010, 10:06 AM

Thanks for the info and tips!

**DoTheUnexpected** · May 7th, 2010, 12:19 PM

The trip is great. Just leave your ring in the hotel safe.

On one of the trips we took to Couples, my wife lost her rings to Davie Jones Locker. while we are jumping off the boat and having a great time. She didnt noticed untill we when we got back to shore and were getting off the boat. Fortunately we had insurance on the rings, but it took a while before they got replaced, and it definately took something off of that day.

Even better than the hotel safe is to leave the rings at home. But they always seem to come down on vacation.

But you will have a great time the cruse, it is a lot of fun

**sblovin** · May 7th, 2010, 01:44 PM

I think the word "Cruise" misinforms people. It's a large sailboat that takes a bunch of people to a cool, somewhat hidden spot. They play great music, serve you drinks while you're cruising, and you get to see parts of Jamaica from sea, which you wouldn't normally see from land. I had water, but you could also have rum punch which is the "fruity" drink people are referring to. This might change in case you have a different crew. At CTI our CC did not have a slide, but that was fine. They took us to "no problem" cove, gave us a noodle or a life jacket and let us swim. The crew entertained us with their gymnastic competition off the boat. We swam for a while, then hung out and dried up and watched the entertainment. Then we rode back. It's not longer than a few hours and there are bathrooms on the boat, although I didn't use them. It's just a simple little boat ride...and if you go from CTI you'll get a nice surprise as you round Tower Isle....

**Bart and Bug** · May 7th, 2010, 03:21 PM

ms325i,

The catamaran cruise (a.k.a. rum run) is an approximately 2 hour ocean adventure. The catamaran cruise at CTI and CSA are not the same (been on both and liked the CTI one better). They take you by boat to the catamaran where you'll find seating limited as Cara83 mentioned. On ours we started out by heading west along the shoreline and then abruptly turned north into "the blue" for a good 15-30 minutes. Then we came back and stopped in a cove so that those who wanted could jump in the water and swim. There is no slide on the catamaran used at CTI. Then you return to the pier at CTI. They offer rum punch to drink, which is good! They play lots of reggae music and usually have everyone up dancing as you pull up to the resort. You'll get back right around sunset and so can get some nice sunset pictures on the cruise. The crew is really great and makes the excursion fun. Just remember that they are not Couples employees and so you should plan to tip them.

Enjoy your visit to CTI,

Bart & Bug

**Ruminiscing** · May 7th, 2010, 10:58 PM

How far in advance do you normally have to sign up for the CC? Can you normally sign up the day of the cruise?

**Vickyj** · May 8th, 2010, 07:03 PM

Originally Posted by ms325i

My partner and I will be at CTI in two weeks. We have never been on a CC before and have a few questions for those of you who have tried it before.
-How far does the boat sail from the hotel?Dn't know exactly, but far enough out to see Ocho Rios, or least we did.You can sit under the sails in the main section or on the the front on the canvas between the hulls. There is a small head if yo have the need.
-If you are a non-swimmer can you remain on the boat for the duration of the cruise? Yes, my hubby is not a swimmer and stayed on the boat while I swam. They do have life jackets if you would like to get in and float or cool off. They go to a very quiet cove.
-How long does the cruise last? About two hours.
-What sort of activities do you do on the cruise? Dancing and some drinks. Our cruise served Rum Punch.
Thanks

We have been a couple of times and have had the fortunate experience to have dolphins swim along side the catamaran. We did a separate cruise that we paid for in MoBay when we stayed there and we snorkeled on the Marine Reserve as well as docked at Margaritaville for some fun in the water.