Snorkeling with turtles

Has anyone used barbadoscruiseexcursions thru island marketing? Looking for half day snorkeling with turtles and maybe beach..

You could just go to Carslisle Beach & snorkel with turtles by swimming right out from the beach. Or you can make a deal with one of the many little boats who will take you right out to the turtles & several ship wrecks right there & usually provide some rum punch or beer

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

I just had an awesome experience snorkeling with Thriller Ocean Tours. Only 12-15 people on board, owner operated, all equipment provided and a full day of snorkeling! And giant turtles :)

Best tour I have ever been on!

I just had an awesome experience snorkeling with Thriller Ocean Tours. Only 12-15 people on board, owner operated, all equipment provided and a full day of snorkeling! And giant turtles :)

 

Best tour I have ever been on!

Will you provide details... cost, pick up/drop off, etc.

Thanks :)

You could just go to Carslisle Beach & snorkel with turtles by swimming right out from the beach. Or you can make a deal with one of the many little boats who will take you right out to the turtles & several ship wrecks right there & usually provide some rum punch or beer

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

Snorkel Dawg, would you agree that a person needs to be a rather strong swimmer to actually get to the turtles?

Your suggestion of taking one of the snorkel boats out is a good one! :)

We will be in Barbados in February and would also love to swim with turtles. We were there a few years ago, and although the catamaran was fun, we were taken to a place where there were many other boats, and hundreds were looking at 2 turtles. Would love to avoid that next time, so I would love others advice. Thank you.😊

We will be in Barbados in February and would also love to swim with turtles. We were there a few years ago, and although the catamaran was fun, we were taken to a place where there were many other boats, and hundreds were looking at 2 turtles. Would love to avoid that next time, so I would love others advice. Thank you.😊

I just booked the Thriller Ocean Tour one that was previously mentioned. Will be going Nov 6 if you want to wait and Ill provide feedback. But based on all I read on Trip Advisor (only 91 5 star reviews LOL) I think it will be amazing.

Limited to about 12 people. $70/adult $40/kid 12 and under. I'm in port 10-7p Pickup is 1130a at the dock. Excursion starts at 12p. 3 1/2 hours long. 3 snorkel stops and beach break. Drinks and snack included.

We just came back and did the Calabaza Tour which was fabulous!! It was a 12 person sailing tour to the turtles and shipwrecks as well. Included 2 hot meals, snacks and drinks all day (of course rum punch). The service was phenomenal!!! I cannot say enough about how great the staff was!! We have never been treated better! We were picked up I believe about 930 and returned 230pm and the cost was $110.

Our friends did the Jolly Roger and said it was very crowded and food was cold. Kids did have a blast though.

We relaxed in what felt like luxury and were treated as such! My daughter who is 16yo loved it as well.

We have sailed with Calabaza Sailing Cruises for years and it is ABSOLUTELY MAGNIFICENT!!! I promise, you will LOVE the day and recommend it to all who ask about sail/snorkel in Barbados!! sailcalabaza at gmail dot com

Dinah

If you want a cheap day, just head to The Boatyard ($20pp), which includes a chair and umbrella and a welcome drink AND it also INCLUDES a boat ride out to the turtles to swim with them. We had an amazing day there.

A full review is located HERE and there's TONS of pictures. :)

If you want a cheap day, just head to The Boatyard ($20pp), which includes a chair and umbrella and a welcome drink AND it also INCLUDES a boat ride out to the turtles to swim with them. We had an amazing day there.

 

A full review is located HERE and there's TONS of pictures. :)

Hi, That is an amazing review on Barbados, just one question. How much was the taxi to and from the BoatYard? I think we will be doing this in Jan. Again Thanks, sounds like an awesome place and a great price.

Hi, That is an amazing review on Barbados, just one question. How much was the taxi to and from the BoatYard? I think we will be doing this in Jan. Again Thanks, sounds like an awesome place and a great price.

We paid $4 per adult (children were free) and the ride back IS FREE. It's included in your entrance price to the Boatyard. You can't beat that. :D

Mitsugirly, I noticed the food pricing in your review at the Boatyard showed two prices, one being US pricing, but the drink menu only showed one price. I assume the drink pricing was local currency, correct? Was the boat out to the turtles an extra charge? I apologize if I missed that detail in your review.

Mitsugirly, I noticed the food pricing in your review at the Boatyard showed two prices, one being US pricing, but the drink menu only showed one price. I assume the drink pricing was local currency, correct? Was the boat out to the turtles an extra charge? I apologize if I missed that detail in your review.

That's funny because that's the same thing I noticed when we were looking at the menu. Yes, the drinks only showed local currency and was half that price in US. :)

Nope, no extra charge for the boat ride out to the turtles. It's all included in the $20 admission. $20 admission per person and you get a chair, umbrella, free welcome drink and free trip out to swim with the turtles. :D

Thank you for the information Mitsugirly. I think the Boatyard will be a definite consideration for our upcoming cruise!

Interesting - when we went to Barbados off the Victory about four years ago, the cab ride admission to the Boatyard include transportation to/from, chair and drink but no boat ride to the turtles

Instead, we had a bunch of tour operators walk up to us on the beach - we settled on one for ~$20pp and included equipment, snorkeling with the turtles, over a shipwreck and drinks......

Interesting - when we went to Barbados off the Victory about four years ago, the cab ride admission to the Boatyard include transportation to/from, chair and drink but no boat ride to the turtles

 

Instead, we had a bunch of tour operators walk up to us on the beach - we settled on one for ~$20pp and included equipment, snorkeling with the turtles, over a shipwreck and drinks......

Yep, it has changed and the boat ride out to the turtles are now included with admission to Boatyard. However, don't think that it's a full blown "snorkeling tour" because it's not. You won't go snorkeling over a ship or spend a tremendous time out in the water (I think we were out there about 30 minutes), but it's plenty enough time to see the turtles and such an amazing site. :)

If you want a cheap day, just head to The Boatyard ($20pp), which includes a chair and umbrella and a welcome drink AND it also INCLUDES a boat ride out to the turtles to swim with them. We had an amazing day there.

 

A full review is located HERE and there's TONS of pictures. :)

Were you able to reserve your chairs and umbrella ahead of time at the Boatyard, and if so, how did you do it?

Were you able to reserve your chairs and umbrella ahead of time at the Boatyard, and if so, how did you do it?

No need to. Just grab a taxi and tell them you want to go to the Boatyard and once you get there you pay and they give you a wrist band to wear. Go out and pick your spot. :D

No need to. Just grab a taxi and tell them you want to go to the Boatyard and once you get there you pay and they give you a wrist band to wear. Go out and pick your spot. :D

You know, I was gonna pay for a separate "excursion" at the beach to go snorkel with the turtles and over the shipwreck but if we get 30 minutes with the turtles that's enough for me. I would be paying an extra $20 p/p basically to do the shipwreck as well so I don't see much sense in doing it now. I guess I'll just do the included "tour" at the Boatyard. Between the other beaches we'll be visiting on the cruise (Coki and Sapphire at St. Thomas and Jalouise in St. Lucia) I'm sure we can get our fix of awesome snorkeling with other marine life.

For those considering going to the Boatyard, get there before 10am since they do run out of chairs and umbrellas. No need to reserve, though. If you're gonna be in the water or swimming with turtles leave a few non expensive belongings (like an extra towel and sandals, maybe) with the chairs you pick. Trust me, you'll be glad you did! You'll have a chair when you get back. Otherwise, it's a craps shot.

You know, I was gonna pay for a separate "excursion" at the beach to go snorkel with the turtles and over the shipwreck but if we get 30 minutes with the turtles that's enough for me. I would be paying an extra $20 p/p basically to do the shipwreck as well so I don't see much sense in doing it now. I guess I'll just do the included "tour" at the Boatyard. Between the other beaches we'll be visiting on the cruise (Coki and Sapphire at St. Thomas and Jalouise in St. Lucia) I'm sure we can get our fix of awesome snorkeling with other marine life.

 

For those considering going to the Boatyard, get there before 10am since they do run out of chairs and umbrellas. No need to reserve, though. If you're gonna be in the water or swimming with turtles leave a few non expensive belongings (like an extra towel and sandals, maybe) with the chairs you pick. Trust me, you'll be glad you did! You'll have a chair when you get back. Otherwise, it's a craps shot.

Oh yes, Coki, Sapphire and Jalouise will give you what you need for snorkeling for sure!

Of course how crowded they get also depends on how many ships are there that day. We only had 1 ship and didn't have much of a crowd the entire day with plenty of chairs.

Also, they have a very early trip out to the turtles (and that's what we took) and when we returned, you had your choice of chairs still. So, if you can get there and do the very first trip out to the turtles, you still should be fine with chairs. :)

Oh yes, Coki, Sapphire and Jalouise will give you what you need for snorkeling for sure!

 

Of course how crowded they get also depends on how many ships are there that day. We only had 1 ship and didn't have much of a crowd the entire day with plenty of chairs.

 

Also, they have a very early trip out to the turtles (and that's what we took) and when we returned, you had your choice of chairs still. So, if you can get there and do the very first trip out to the turtles, you still should be fine with chairs. :)

We'll be the only ship in port. Going on the Fascination just like you did!!

We'll be the only ship in port. Going on the Fascination just like you did!!

Oh that's right, I wasn't paying attention to the name (Stinger). Now I remember you are from PR. Lucky you! Great to be the only one in port.

Are there any beaches where you can just swim up to the turtles (without an immense amount of swimming?)

I am considering The Boatyard, but the crowds scare me (we will have 2 ships in port).

Also I would like to see the green monkeys while on the island, so I probably don't want to spend all day at a place like The Boatyard. I would prefer a free beach where you can also snorkel to the turtles.

We were at the Boatyard last month and did swim with the turtles from the boatyard boat.

If you are a decent swimmer the turtles are about 600 yards off the beach. The beach is free just look out on the water to see where all the boats are gathered, that's the spot wher the turtles are being baited (boats throw food to attract them) to hang around. It was crowed by the turtles when we were there and there was only one ship in port.

Ride back to the ship was included.

Hal