Chukka River Tubing Safari

Hey guys:)...just back from Freedom and as promised I want to tell you about the tubing we did.

We booked the Chukka River Tubing Safari. So you don't get confused there is also another tubing excursion that is on the White River by the falls....that is a different excursion. This is the one that is at the Great Hope Estate on the Martha Brae River...only about a 20 minute ride from the Falmouth pier. This turned out to be a real fun excursion and I would defiantly recommend it. You get off the ship and find your way to the waiting area right inside the port area.

It did take a bit of time for all the different buses to get loaded on their tours but you are under a covered area out of the sun and they do have ceiling fans. The buses are nice and new and were well air conditioned.

The ride took about 20 minutes thru some steep windy and sometimes dirt roads....there are also areas of pot holes. The buses handle it pretty well but don't expect newly paved roads here. You arrive the Great Hope Estate, a 2000 acre property.

There are many other Chukka excursions that use this property...zip-lining, ATV's, kayaking, dune buggy, just to mention some.

The welcome building was nice and new and the staff very friendly...I was impressed.

There are lockers you can rent to put your stuff along with bathroom facilities.

They also have a small bar and grill that serves up some pretty good jerk chicken, beef patties and Red Stripes along with other drinks and beers. You will have time after tubing to enjoy.

My pictures end here as my camera was not waterproof and I left it in the locker to keep safe.

You are fitted with life vests at this point and then you get on Land Rover type vehicles to take you to the river. This portion is an adventure in itself....you are on a VERY bumpy dirt road...portions are steep and windy. There are some deep ruts in the dirt and I was told that if it rains they have to cancel tours as the vehicles can't make it in the mud...and believe me....I don't think you would want to try. In all it's about a 7 minute ride ....we had to stop a couple times because the vehicle in-front of us lost a few kayaks on the way and we rescued them. We then arrived at the river. The tubes are nice and new and have a bottom piece of a plastic material attached to protect your bottom side from any rocks in shallow areas of the river. You pair up into groups of about 7 per and get in your tubes. The area by the river where you get in your tube is a bit muddy and slippery....my DD slipped right on her butt in the mud....wasn't real happy but rinsed herself off and all was fine. The river itself is on the murky side but pretty clean of any floating debris...the water was cool and refreshing. The tubes are then tied together and off you go with your guide.

The guides were very entertaining and fun. They sing songs and will show you things along the journey down the river. The water was moderate in speed for the most part but there were parts that had small rapids and you pick up the pace a bit. The guide does have paddles to help move you along and steer you a bit. Lots of shade on the river under the canopy of trees. There are some low branches along the way and a couple people did hit their heads a couple times....if you stay alert you will be fine. An older couple in the group ahead of us did tip over in there tub and the lady scraped her arm a bit on some rocks. The guide was very quick to jump in and assist them back in their tubes. All in all I would say you are in the water for like 45 minutes. At the end you get out and back in the trucks. The ride from the end back to the reception area is much closer....just a few minutes.

Once back at the reception area you can grab a cold one and buy some jerk chicken to try....YUM!!! They also have all the pictures they took up on display screens for you to purchase. We had about 30 minutes to hang out before getting back on the bus to return to the port. In total the excursion was closer to 4 hours.

We had a great time on this excursion. We could see the the zip-lining along the river and it looked good also...I would probably do both next time as they have a combo excursion. I would definitely recommend this excursion to all.

Thanks again Steve for the great excursion review! :)

Thanks for the review. I have a few questions.

Did you book this with RCI? Is it privately run? What was the cost?

What time did you get back on the ship?

Sounds like a fun time.

Thanks!

I have the same questions as above, plus want to know if there is a minimum age. Thanks again!

Hey guys:)...just back from Freedom and as promised I want to tell you about the tubing we did.

We booked the Chukka River Tubing Safari. So you don't get confused there is also another tubing excursion that is on the White River by the falls....that is a different excursion. This is the one that is at the Great Hope Estate on the Martha Brae River...only about a 20 minute ride from the Falmouth pier. This turned out to be a real fun excursion and I would defiantly recommend it. You get off the ship and find your way to the waiting area right inside the port area.

 

 

It did take a bit of time for all the different buses to get loaded on their tours but you are under a covered area out of the sun and they do have ceiling fans. The buses are nice and new and were well air conditioned.

 

 

The ride took about 20 minutes thru some steep windy and sometimes dirt roads....there are also areas of pot holes. The buses handle it pretty well but don't expect newly paved roads here. You arrive the Great Hope Estate, a 2000 acre property.

 

 

There are many other Chukka excursions that use this property...zip-lining, ATV's, kayaking, dune buggy, just to mention some.

AWESOME!!! Thanks for your review! We had no idea what we were doing in Falmouth.....NOW, thanks to your review, WE know we will be doing this!

Thank you.

Thanks for the review. I have a few questions.

 

Did you book this with RCI? Is it privately run? What was the cost?

 

What time did you get back on the ship?

 

 

Sounds like a fun time.

Thanks!

 

I have the same questions as above, plus want to know if there is a minimum age. Thanks again!

This was booked directly thru Royal....I believe that is the only way you can book any of the Chukka tours. The price was $79/per. I believe the age minimum is 12. We did the 10:30am excursion (this was the earliest) and were back to the pier about 2:30pm.....I would suggest the early time slot.

Liked your review. Thanks for taking the time to post it.

i had no idea what I might do when in Falmouth. This excursion sounds like it would be fun.

thanks for the review, I am trying to decide if I do something in Falmouth and this review helped.