Now, we’ve said that the Caymans are a premier family destination, but we weren’t only talking about human families. Take the family of stingrays that call Stingray City and Sandbar home. Our guide tells us that there are about 40 stingrays that show up every day to claim handouts in the form of sliced up squid.

As we arrive at Sandbar, Lexy calls down from the flybridge, “There they are! Stingrays!” She points to the dark silhouettes sailing slowly through the water like clouds move through the sky. She scrambles down the ladder, and instantly suits up in her rash guard, mask around her head, fins in hand. Though stingrays are nothing new for him, Frink looks as pleased as his daughter. By the time our captain has the anchor down, the entire Frink family, each with their own camera in hand, is standing on the swim platform waiting for the “OK” to jump in.

Next thing we knew, the entire crew is in the water. “There’s just something about stingrays,” Frink says, “they bring out the ‘kid’ in people.” Perhaps this is because they’re such curious creatures.

Contrary to their namesake and common misconceptions, stingrays are not a threat to humans. They get their name from a small, razor-sharp barb on their tail which they use as defense from predators. Though not impossible, it is extremely difficult for a human to get stung while handling them, short of reaching out and trying to grab the ray by its stinger. Not Convinced? Consider that they don’t even have teeth, at least not conventional teeth at the front of their mouth. They have more like grinding plates for the crustaceans normally part of their diet. Stingrays ingest their food by using an extremely powerful suction system. Look out Oreck, these guys really know how to suck.

The rays feel soft and slimy, kind of like a bar of soap. They’re not afraid of humans, and eagerly brush up against us, getting our attention in case we have squid to share. Lexy discovers that the rays are easily enticed with a rub of their belly, or stroke between their eyes.

Once our guide, Dan, jumps in with his stock of squid, even more rays converge on the area. We go from being the new kids in the ocean, to the popular crowd. Dan tells us that Stingray City was actually created in the early 1900s when fishermen would anchor in the flats to clean their catch. Naturally, the little pieces of bait and fish fillets were a welcome snack. A century later, the dive and snorkel operators have kept the tradition going.

On Sandbar, where we were snorkeling, depths range from three to ten feet. Stingray City is a little deeper, eighteeen feet at the most. Other places have tried to create their own Stingray City, but as far as we have been able to find, this is the best natural, open water encounter anywhere. Even small children can enjoy this magical interaction. And as Stephen Frink, his wife, and our production crew showed us, adults will be equally entertained. Our guide, who’s been visiting every day for years, never appeared bored. “You can’t visit Grand Cayman and not experience this,” he says with his first serious facial expression of the day.