Snorkeling in Grenada

[Shamrock359]

I think have decided to go with Grenada Seafaris while in Grenada. It sounds like a cool trip. You get a nice boat tour and then get to snorkle the underwater sculptures which look pretty interesting. The boat looks different from anything else I have ever been on, and it only seats 12.

Anybody done this excursion? Thoughts on the underwater sculptures?

Thanks!

[IslandStar]

As you can probably tell from my posts I have done quite a few of the things on the island and I like to go on all the new tours too. Grenada Seafaris is a local company owned/operated by a UK couple who live on the island now. It is super fast and also fun with talks about the island, the turtles and a guided swim/snorkel on the statues. Based on the size of the boat I enjoyed it as I didn't feel like I was crammed like a sardine as I had done on the bigger catamarans.

Thoughts on the statues - hmm they are doing what they are supposed to be doing and creating a eco-environment for the fish and coral which is good. The down-side of this good news is that they are getting tricky to see so I would advise a trip that guides you round them if you have a short stop there.

If anyone else goes on this trip it would be great to get your reviews on it too:cool:

[Shamrock359]

Thanks for the reply. It does look like a pretty cool trip and I love the fact that it only seats 12.

I just received an email from Suzanne who is trying to find more people for that day.

I hope I get to experience this one.

Thanks again!!

[IslandStar]

Let me know how it goes when you've done it. Have you tried posting on the Roll Call threads to drum up support? Have an excellent time.

[Shamrock359]

Let me know how it goes when you've done it. Have you tried posting on the Roll Call threads to drum up support? Have an excellent time.


That was a good idea. Lots of great people in this roll call. I'll see what happens. Thanks.

[jessie073]

As you can probably tell from my posts I have done quite a few of the things on the island and I like to go on all the new tours too. Grenada Seafaris is a local company owned/operated by a UK couple who live on the island now. It is super fast and also fun with talks about the island, the turtles and a guided swim/snorkel on the statues. Based on the size of the boat I enjoyed it as I didn't feel like I was crammed like a sardine as I had done on the bigger catamarans.

Thoughts on the statues - hmm they are doing what they are supposed to be doing and creating a eco-environment for the fish and coral which is good. The down-side of this good news is that they are getting tricky to see so I would advise a trip that guides you round them if you have a short stop there.

If anyone else goes on this trip it would be great to get your reviews on it too:cool:

IslandStar - I am intrigued about this excursion as well. You mentioned that the statues might be tricky to see - is this because of the growth on the statues? How was the water visibility there? We are advanced snorkelers but some of the video I've seen almost looked a little creepy and the water was cloudy.

Shamrock359 - be sure to post your review when you get back. I will be on the Ruby in November. :)

Jessie

[IslandStar]

Tricky to see because of the growth = yes :)
Also the depth of some will have an effect dependent upon visibility. some days fabulous and i guess some days perhaps not. I guess its the same for the beach at Grande Anse depending on if there's swell coming in or if it's flat as a pancake. Best of luck to you or a fabulous day and a great cruise

[Shamrock359]

Loved, loved, loved this tour!!! Will write more in a little while, but highly recommend this tour!!!

[jessie073]

Loved, loved, loved this tour!!! Will write more in a little while, but highly recommend this tour!!!

Shamrock - that's great - would love to hear about your experience! We leave on the Ruby Saturday! :D
Also, would you have your Princess Patters that you could post or email? I love looking at these before we go and since the Ruby just started this itinerary I have not been able to find them. Thank you! :)

[IslandStar]

Shamrock soooo glad you loved the tour too. I love the family that run it and although I do try to be unbiased I can't help but go out with them each time I go back as it's just so much fun and they seem to change just a little bit each year so it stays fresh. Spread the word:D

[Shamrock359]

Shamrock - that's great - would love to hear about your experience! We leave on the Ruby Saturday! :D
Also, would you have your Princess Patters that you could post or email? I love looking at these before we go and since the Ruby just started this itinerary I have not been able to find them. Thank you! :)

Suzanne, Howard, and Albert do an outstanding job with this tour. I couldn't book it on my own, but had to go through Princess. On Princess it's called an EcoTour and Snorkeling. Seafaris charges $64 and Princess charged $89, but I am still glad we went, and felt it was well worth the cost.

Suzanne met us at the dock, and gave me a gift of Grenada Chocolate because she felt so bad I was forced to go through the ship. I loved the chocolate and felt that was so incredibly thoughtful of her!! 8 people had booked this excursion, but only 6 showed up, so it was awesome. The boat is FAST and FUN! Howard made sure everyone was safe, secure, and comfortable before we took off. He even gave me a valuable tip for keeping my snorkel mask from fogging--baby shampoo. Howard, this was the BEST piece of info I have ever received. Worked like a charm from that point forward!!

Albert is a wealth of information and you can feel his passion for Grenada when he speaks. Highly enjoyable and very informative tour. Albert was always in the water with us as well.

The underwater statues are neat to see. I would imagine if you freedive, you will be able to see all the detail that has gone into these. Albert would dive down, point something out, then surface and explain it to us. I searched on youtube and found some great video there if you want to see before you go. The purpose of the statues is to rebuild the reef in Grenada that was damaged by Hurricane Ivan. You can see that at one time the reef was beautiful. There were some fish and you can see that the reef is regenerating. I thought it was very cool to see this.

Howard then continued along the coast, eventually winding up in the harbor by our cruise ship. One of the coolest things was him blasting "Grease Lightning" while flying along the water by our ship on our way back to the dock. Awesome!!

I cannot say enough good things about this excursion. I do hope more people will try them when in Grenada. I wish them so much success!! They truly deserve it!! Very, very, very nice, down to earth people.

As for the patters, I am sorry I haven't unpacked everything yet because we just arrived home yesterday and I went back to work today. I don't think I will get to it before Saturday, but I do hope you enjoy your cruise, because the Ruby was fabulous!! I know the cruise director we had has left, the captain is still Tony Yeoman, and the food was very good.

Wish I was still there!! Bon Voyage!!!

[IslandStar]

Shamrock hi, what a wonderful review. I know exactly what you mean about the family themselves and also Albert. Aren't they just great. Last time I went it was out of school season and Suzanne brought their son down to the dock and what a little cutie he is - methinks he's going to be trouble with the girls when he grows up as he's a little charmer:)
Albert is great and I loved that he got in with us to tour the statues. I'm going to forward your post to them so they see it.

Did you buy anything whilst there and did you visit anything after your tour?

[BeachChica]

Well I just got back as well - changed my screen name (previously Jessie073)

We took the 1/2 day snorkel with Native Spirit and loved it! Adrian and Rahel were great! I loved the tour and Grenada was absolutely beautiful.
The tour made 3 stops, including the underwater sculpture park. I didn't think the statues were "tricky" to see but it would have definitely been nice if they were in slightly shallower water. My DH is an advanced snorkeler so he was able to get down there and got some great pics and videos. (I was watching from above :)) We only had 5 of us on our tour and Native Spirit used one of their larger boats. They offered drinks and sandwiches during the tour. Excellent tour and I would definitely recommend!

We also made a stop at Grand Anse beach. We didn't get to stay on the beach due to the timing of the tour and our time in port but it was a beautiful beach and I would definitely go back there again next time I'm in Grenada!

Jessie

[einstein2]

Shamrock gave a wonderful review, and I had the same experience. I wasn't able to book on my own, so I also booked through the ship.

Albert dove down next to the statues at Moliniere, and I thought we had good visibility to them. It was nice to speed around the coast of the island and see some other spots as well.

Everyone at Grenada Seafari's was very nice, and I hope more people do this tour with them.