If you're unfamiliar with the term, it means that there is no pier for the ship to dock at. Instead, the ship anchors in close proximity to the island and from there, tender boats get passengers from ship to shore; and give you a wonderful view of your ship!
If you don't have an excursion booked (or are of high loyalty status) you'll want to listen closely to the announcements and get a tender ticket as soon as you can, otherwise you may be forced to wait hours before you get to disembark the ship. One major disadvantage to tender ports are the long wait times: Wait to board. Wait for the tender to fill up and set sail. Wait to get back onto the tender to go back to your ship. Wait yet again for the tender to fill up... However annoying the wait can be, the tenders allow you to visit some of the most beautiful places in the Caribbean! Half Moon Cay is one of my absolute favorite ports!
The three tender ports that we've visited while cruising with Carnival are Half Moon Cay, Grand Cayman, and Belize. Recently it was announced that Carnival will be building a pier at Half Moon Cay and a pier will be built in Grand Cayman; financed by Carnival and Royal Caribbean. This is great news as often tender ports are missed due to rough seas.
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