La Romana - mehhh

so back from our cruise and had a stop in La Romana and was not impressed.

was looking forward to our excursion which was a stop at Le Flor cigar factory and then to Altos de Chavon.

I had read that Le Flor was not much more than a small shop and that is a very accurate description. our tour guide was undoubtedly embellishing pretty much everything he talked about ,including the lady who was putting the 'caps' on the end of cigars that had just been rolled (maybe in her mid to late 20's). The guide said that she likely learned to do this as a young child at her grandmother's knees - ummm sure. First they clearly were not even rolling cigars until the tour group started to come around the corner and there were only a few people at tables casually working, one guy just kicked back smoking a cigar on a love seat... I honestly wondered what they were even paying him to do. We really did not go for the tour itself but because my husband does smoke cigars and enjoys the hunt for a good deal. The shop at the cigar 'factory' had a very good selection and hubby bought several boxes of different cigars and he felt that he got a good deal so he was happy overall.

back on the bus to Altos. Although very pretty it was also very boring. not a very lively place. lots of restaurants so I imagine it would be a great and possibly romantic place for dinner, but we were there in the afternoon and did not have an appetite. we walked in and out of the shops and bought a few small items (not nearly as many shops as I would have thought there would be).

the port itself has the typical vendors selling mass production souveniers. nothing that stood out to me as unique or special but got my magnet and key chain.

did not come a way feeling that I would want to come back for a 2nd visit... it was just so-so

Had vendors at Amber Cove try to convince my wife and I that some mass-produced wooden boxes (on every vendor's cart) were made by hand by the cart individual's grandfather. Yeah, I get the shtick, the need to play up to the tourists, but come on.

What got me is one vendor told me I could take it back to the ship and pay him later (as I don't carry cash when out an about....unless to pay for an excursion). That really ticked me off as I knew someone would be "waiting" for us as we tried to board the ship and then swindled for sure.

Had the same experience in Cozumel many years ago. My wife was looking at Caribbean Topaz jewelry and the shop owner kept dropping the price and adding pieces to the set the more we said 'no thank you'. Finally, they suggested that my wife step outside and look at the pieces in the light. Red flags everywhere in my brain. Thought about how our bank accounts would have been drained, because I'm sure this was a setup.

Don't get me wrong. Absolutely love the Caribbean and cruising, and most of the people we've had experiences with have been wonderful. But there are bad eggs there just like everywhere else. And, yes, there are some that will try to steal from you in one way or another. You just have to be smart and say "no."

Yes we avoid the "cookie cutter" tours so we did quite a bit more research for this port. La Romana turned out to be one of our most memorable days in our 17 years of traveling the Caribbean - by sea or by land! We even returned for a two-week stay a year later to enjoy more of the natural beauty of the area and the wonderful people. Hope you are able to return again and experience that!

>> Had the same experience in Cozumel many years ago. My wife was looking at Caribbean Topaz jewelry and the shop owner kept dropping the price and adding pieces to the set the more we said 'no thank you'. Finally, they suggested that my wife step outside and look at the pieces in the light. Red flags everywhere in my brain. Thought about how our bank accounts would have been drained, because I'm sure this was a setup. <<

I'm confused about this being a red flag and a set-up? If my wife was in the store and interested and not leaving and they suggested she look at them in the daylight...what is the concern? Vendors everywhere will haggle with you...Maybe I'm missing something...

Yes we avoid the "cookie cutter" tours so we did quite a bit more research for this port. La Romana turned out to be one of our most memorable days in our 17 years of traveling the Caribbean - by sea or by land! We even returned for a two-week stay a year later to enjoy more of the natural beauty of the area and the wonderful people.

Can you tell me what made La Romana your most memorable trip in the Caribbean?

Can you tell me what made La Romana your most memorable trip in the Caribbean?

Sure - It was one or our most memorable days because we took the Seavis Saona Island excursion. Excellent outfit and a great day. I've posted details in other threads here.