Questions -Zuiderdam Dec 2011

[St.petersburg]

We just booked the Southern CarIbbean/Partial Panama cruise. Could someone help with answers to a few questions?
1. What is the best option on Half Moon Cay - is it the Clam Shell (do you book that?) or is it 1st come 1st served? Is a Cabana better - if so it it coerce that the colors determine locations - how far from the tender, etc. Do the costs vary by color/locationV. Do we even need a Cabana?
2. Can someone suggest the best excursions on Bonaire and Curacao? We have never been to either Island.
3. At Panama - we need advice for either the Panama train experience or the Indian Village (which I can't find in Colon)?
4. At Puerto Limon Isn Costa Rica is the zip line tour worth the experience. I read on CC that it is thrilling Bautista you do not see much.

Any help, information and/or advice will be very much appreciated.

[AZNative2000]

We just booked the Southern CarIbbean/Partial Panama cruise. Could someone help with answers to a few questions?
1. What is the best option on Half Moon Cay - is it the Clam Shell (do you book that?) or is it 1st come 1st served? Is a Cabana better - if so it it coerce that the colors determine locations - how far from the tender, etc. Do the costs vary by color/locationV. Do we even need a Cabana?

As we knew that 3 or 4 hours in the tropical sun would be plenty for us, we got a clamshell. The cost was about $26 I think and they seat two. A cabana IS better with all the food and amenities but we didn't want to spend $300 for 3 or 4 hours.:) Even if you stay the whole day, you only get to use the cabana for about six hours. JMHO ...

2. Can someone suggest the best excursions on Bonaire and Curacao? We have never been to either Island.

We did not go to Bonaire but the absolute best excursion we've ever done was swimming with the Dolphins on Curacao. We booked through HAL while on board because we didn't know about it before.

3. At Panama - we need advice for either the Panama train experience or the Indian Village (which I can't find in Colon)?

Can't help with these as we did the "Canal Experience". This trip on a smaller boat goes the rest of the way through the Canal to the Pacific. What an awesome day.

4. At Puerto Limon Isn Costa Rica is the zip line tour worth the experience. I read on CC that it is thrilling Bautista you do not see much.

Others will be able to report on the zipline. We did a canal boat excursion. Sorry.

Any help, information and/or advice will be very much appreciated.WELCOME TO CRUISECRITIC!

This is a wonderful cruise!

See answers in red above.:)

Cheers!

[pms4104]

When we were in Bonaire a couple of years ago, we did the Mangrove Boating Eco-Adventure. A very small group of, I think, six of us guided in small boat thru the mangrove areas. Beautiful scenery and very knowledgeable guide ... a relaxing time on the waters.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

If you intend to spend the entire on HMC -- then it might be worth it to you to get a Cabana -- they are all the same price. Ir you only intend to be there for just a few hours -- rent a clam shell through Shore Excursions. Take a book with you to prop up the back end so that you can get some air circulation. Depending when you go over to the island -- depends on which clam shell you will be assigned.

If you have never been to Bonaire or Curacao -- I always suggest a tour of the island so that you can get the feel of the place and get an idea of what you would like to do there when and if you get back to those ports.

In Bonaire we have done the island tour and the beach tour -- other than that we just walk around.

In Curacao we have done the island tour, the beach tour (very rocky), the trolley -- or just walk around.

In Panama we have done the train tour and the Indian Village Tour -- listed under Panama. All tours end in Colon -- none start there.

In Costa Rica we have also done the canal excursion -- once just the canal and another time the canal and train ride.

[kazu]

Welcome. We did this cruise on this ship and really enjoyed it.

We did the Embera Village tour and it was quite neat. Very different and not something you would see everyday. Highly recommended.

We used a private guide in Costa Rica and had a fantastic day. Basically he was able to combine three HAL tours into our tour.

Be sure to watch as you prepare to arrive in Curacao - it's a beautiful port to arrive in. enjoy your cruise:):)

[IkeEsq]

2. Can someone suggest the best excursions on Bonaire and Curacao? We have never been to either Island.

We booked the dolphin swim directly through the Dolphin Academy. If you tell them that you are on a cruise ship they will not allow you to book directly through them. I suggest the Dolphin Swim over the Dolphin Encounter. Book early as there is limited space. It is easy to get a cab to the Academy and I think it is $25 each way. We really enjoyed it.

4. At Puerto Limon Isn Costa Rica is the zip line tour worth the experience. I read on CC that it is thrilling Bautista you do not see much.

We did a private tour that did the ziplines and banana factory tour, sampled fruit at a local stand (Really tasty!), got to hold a sloth and a baby monkey, went to a beach (eh, and food at restaurant was so-so) and local supermarket. Very good tour.


As an aside, we skipped the Panama Excursions and hung out with friends we met who were in one of the corner Aft Suites on Level 5 and it was an awesome way to go back through the locks. We touched the walls of the canal they were so close. :)

[Oceanwench]

The first couple times we were in Curacao we didn't leave the port area - it was just so beautiful, we walked around and took it all in. The tram ride was wonderful - it gave us an overview of the area. We did not book it through HAL, but at the kiosk in town.

The last time we were there, we had booked with a local tour - someone who was recommended on Cruise Critic. But he did not provide the vehicle he agreed to, a van arrived rather than a mini-bus for our large party. We declined, for safety reasons [we had a 2-year-old child with us].

Instead we went into town and took one of the brightly colored buses parked by the vendors near the floating bridge. For $15 pp we got a nice tour of the island, including about an hour at a beach [and they paid our admission!]. It also included soda, water and beer while we toured. It was a lot of fun!

[dpm321]

3. At Panama - we need advice for either the Panama train experience or the Indian Village (which I can't find in Colon)? - We highly recommend the Embera Indian village trip. It is probably the best tour we have taken on any cruise, and one not easily matched anywhere. It's a long trip there and back, by bus and canoe, but well worth the trip.

4. At Puerto Limon Isn Costa Rica is the zip line tour worth the experience. I read on CC that it is thrilling Bautista you do not see much. - There are several good private tour companies in Costa Rica. You can do zip lining in many, many places, so if you want a unique experience here you might want to consider a private tour that includes the Jaguar Rescue Center. Its an orphaned animal rescue center established by a Spanish couple in the jungle. There is usually a good variety of animals there to see and you actually get the opportunity to spend some time in a pen with a group of playful monkeys. Another great and unique experience.

[St.petersburg]

We really appreciate all your answers - thank you for taking the time to respond with great information.