Stingray City FAQ
Stingray City is a shallow sandbar in Grand Cayman’s North Sound. It is home to around 100 friendly Southern stingrays. People have been visiting Stingray City to interact with the stingrays for around 40 years now. Over time has become the Caribbeans most famous tourist attraction, providing an unforgettable experience for guests.
Stingray City is located in Grand Cayman’s North Sound, a large reef protected. Stingray City sandbar is about 3 miles north from the mainland.
Generally the water over the sandbar is three to four feet deep. The area is tidal, so the depth will vary.
Back in the 1970’s, much of Grand Cayman was covered with Mangroves. The mangroves provide great habitat for wildlife, including mosquitos, which were prolific in the years gone by. In order to avoid the mosquitos, Cayman’s fisherman used to stop at a shallow sandbar inside the reef. There, they could clean their catch and not be troubled by mosquitos. Thefishermen used to throw the fish guts into the water. This attracted the stingrays, who are naturally scavengers. After a while, the number of stingrays at the sandbar steadily increased. The fishermen discovered that the stingrays were actually very friendly and started to feed them from hand. It was then realised that this was a unique experience that tourists would love. That was the start of Stingray City tours.
Stingray City is perfectly safe so long as you go with a professional tour operator. Thousands of people visit the sandbar at Stingray City in Grand Cayman every month. As long as you follow a few simple rules explained by your guide, you should not run in to any issues. The stingrays themselves are very friendly and are very experienced at interacting with visitors.
Stingrays only sting to defend themselves from predators (they have a barb on their tail). The stingrays are very happy to see people as it means they are going to be fed. You will see them swim over as soon as a boat arrives. The stingrays at Stingray City do not feel threatened by people. There is very little chance of them stinging anyone at Stingray City.
Southern Stingrays can live for up to 40 years. You will meet many stingrays that have lived at the sandbar for generations.
No, Stingray City is completely open. The stingrays are there because they want to be there. They are free to come and go as they please.
No, all ages are welcome to enjoy this unique experience. A larger, more stable boat with plenty of shade will suit both younger and more senior visitors.
Sharks are not a common sight at Stingray City.
Stingray give live birth to small litters of baby stingrays. The young stingrays are released after the eggs have hatched inside of the mother. A newborn Southern Ray is about 5 inches across. It will have to fend for itself from birth.
A group of stingrays is known as a fever
Southern stingrays feed on a variety of small prey, including shellfish, worms, and crustaceans.