Z-Bird

Hello - I have been trying for about a month now to find a boat tour operator that could take a small group (6-8) out for an all-day snorkel tour on 3.28.18. I contacted a highly recommended dive shop and asked if they did small group snorkeling tours. They did not but recommended Rainbow Divers. I emailed Rainbow Divers 3 times over about 10 days - once from their website, and twice from the email address provided by the Dive Shop and the Rainbow Diver's website. I never heard back from them.

Next I read recommendations on the St. Lucia thread for Mystic Man Tours. Again, I emailed them, never heard back, emailed them from both their website and from an email address they provided, heard back with incomplete info, emailed again politely asking the same questions, and 4 days later have not gotten a response.

I have been at this for about 4 weeks now, and still haven't found anyone in St. Lucia who will take a small group out and communicate in a timely and reasonable manner.

Any suggestions?

Thank you.

Really appreciate this feedback in helping us narrow down which islands to focus on for snorkeling. So far it sounds like Barbados and St. Lucia are the top 2 keepers. Still deciding if we will drop St. Maarten or Antigua from our snorkeling schedule.

Thank you - St Maarten is the only one of these 4 ports that we have previously been to. We did an excellent speedboat excursion there but the snorkeling wasn't the best. It was a windy and cloudy day so wasn't sure if we had simply gotten the wrong impression based on that one experience.

The ports of call board is an excellent source of info on each individual island. The reason I started this thread was to ask for feedback on how these varies ports compared to each other in terms of snorkeling, which the ports of call board doesn't really lend itself to. I appreciate specific tour recommendations but recognize that I can find those elsewhere. It is the comparison info I really am asking about. Thanks.

Calabaza was the first booking we made.

Thank you for reinforcing that choice :D

But we are also curious about how the snorkeling is on the other islands we will be visiting. Any thoughts?

We will be on the Reflection in March 2018 with stops in Antigua, Barbados, St. Lucia, and St. Maarten. We'd like to pick 3 of these islands for snorkel boat trips and wondered what others' experiences were with snorkeling at these locations? Which ones do you think offer the best snorkeling in terms of variety and quantity of sea life that moderately experienced snorkelers could see? Any particular spots you'd recommend? Thank you for all feedback.

Sorry I'm late to this...but we just did a sail/snorkel with Blue Bay Sailing and we were very happy with them. We had 10 in our party. We sailed, then snorkeled, then sailed some more and had snacks and beer, wine, & rum punch. Would definitely recommend.

 

 

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Thank you very much for sharing your positive experience with Blue Bay Sailing.

While Woodwind takes 18 people or so, we were divided into groups of 6 for the snorkeling, with plenty of space between the groups.

Thanks! We have decided to go with woodwind tours.

OK - after reading all of the responses to this thread (thank you!) and reviewing flight options, I think we have come up with a good flight choice.

We are booking MIA to San Diego, 11:05am departure, one stop, 3:44pm arrival.

We are using mileage points to book this. I confirmed with American Airlines that if all the stars align correctly and we comfortably make it to MIA in time to catch the 8:55am nonstop flight, if there are award seats still available, we can switch flights at no cost. If not, no biggie and in the majority of scenarios, we should be able to get to the Miami airport in time for the 11:05am flight.

Thanks again to everyone sharing their experiences with catching morning flights out of MIA and FLL. Now back to the fun stuff of planning shore excursions. :D

If all goes well you can make that SW flight easily. If all goes well. We typically fly in and out of FLL and like a 9:30 non-stop to New Orleans (about 90 minutes) and then we are in our house by about 11:30 a.m. We've been lucky to make it every time. Just line up with your bags by about 6:45 a.m. so you're really among the first off. Forget breakfast or just get something on the run from Cafe Bacio. Don't prearrange a cab or wait to share a shuttle. You're going to need about an hour from the Miami port to the FLL airport, with traffic and loading/unloading your stuff.

Is the appx. hour from when we step outside of the Miami port terminal to get a cab to when we are exiting the cab at FLL? Thanks

We've been able to make early flights, and we've also been still standing in line at 11am. You just never know.

 

This last February, Eclipse started disembarkation about 7am. If you were in line at 6:30 ready to go so that you were first, had nothing to declare, and grabbed a cab, you could probably make it to MIA.

 

The 10:15 at FLL is actually potentially more risky, since you have to get through the traffic to FLL!

 

I'd say, book the 8:55 flight out of MIA and be prepared to be first in line. Book the afternoon flight on Southwest at FLL as a backup plan, not the 10:15 flight. If things go wrong, they are likely to go really wrong, not just by a few minutes.

 

Between now and then, sign up and pay for TSA Pre-Check if you don't already have it. Global Entry would be better. Take you GE card if you get one, as that might speed you through like at Port of Miami and does give you a KTN for Pre-Check. Travel lightly so you have carry on only and can easily carry your bags. Be ready to move quickly and be certain to check in online the day before.

Thanks for your suggestions. Between us already having TSA pre-check and SWA A list, FLL is looking better and better! We are going to book that SWA 10:15 in FLL with a later flight as a backup. It continues to seem that we are adding unnecessary stress by trying to make that early Miami flight. There is a wealth of experience out there on this board, and we really appreciate people taking the time to share their thoughts. It really helped us clarify what direction to go on the flights.

Really appreciate the responses, and given the essentially unanimous feedback that an 8:55am flight is cutting it too close, we are going to book the 10:15am SWA flight out of FLL, with a later SWA flight also booked as a backup to that.

Thanks again for the valuable insights.

Sorry - I thought this board was for asking for feedback. I didn't realize we would be ridiculed for posting questions.

Really appreciate the feedback, especially regarding specific issues at MIA. We haven't booked those AA flights yet so will look at other alternatives.

Do most of you think the 10:15am out of FLL is also too dicey?

Looking for some feedback on taking an early morning flight back home after our cruise. We are sailing on the Equinox this October out of Miami and need to book return flights to San Diego. We have looked at Miami and Ft Lauderdale airports and are considering an 8:55am nonstop out of Miami. It is very tempting when we think about landing in San Diego by 11:30am that day! Here are factors we are considering:

1. It looks like the Miami airport is only a 10 minute drive from the port (maybe longer at 7:30am on a Monday?).

2. We pack lightly and could easily be with 1st passengers walking off the ship

3. While it is a little stressful to have a flight this close to debarkation, it is also really nice to have a nonstop 5 ½ hour flight home.

4. We can book backup Southwest Airline flights out of Ft. Lauderdale that leave at 10:15am, have one stop, and arrive at 2:45pm. There wouldn't be any fee if we cancel these SWA flights that day. There would be a $300 fee to cancel the AA flights.

5. We are in Key West the previous night on the ship so there shouldn't be any weather delays in getting back to Miami on time. We realize that issues at customs for somebody on the ship could be the factor that delays disembarkation.

Is it too dicey to try for this 8:55am flight, or is there a good chance we would make it? Thanks!

Thanks

We are looking for recommendations for a tour operator that has a maximum sized group of 8 for doing drift snorkeling off the coast of Klein Bonaire. Any suggestions?

Thanks

Thank you for all of the tips! We sail on the Equinox next Monday. Would you mind to share who your private guide was in Cartagena?

Thank you for all of the great tips. We will be aboard the Equinox on the March 14 sailing. How cool did you find the dining rooms and the theater? Just trying to figure out how many layers of clothing to pack for the transition from hot, humid outdoors to cold a/c.

Thank you, Blue Water.

Is there any specific type of jewelry that would be an especially good buy there?

Thank you! Last question on this subject from me is: Are there lockers at Cowpet Bay near Sangria's? I've got prescription sunglasses and wouldn't want to leave them on the beach while we snorkel.

Thank you for the responses - really appreciate the info.

Are taxis charged at a set rate? Any idea what the cost should be from the port to Sangria's at Cowpet Bay?

Thanks!

Thanks!

My concerns about rough surf at Cowpet was based on an excellent blog post from this time last year that indicated rough waters occasionally there at that time. Is there any place near where we are docking that could give us an update on conditions before we go over there?

Also, are taxis plentiful around Sangrias for the ride back?

We will be in St Thomas on Nov. 25 and plan on going to Cowpet Bay to snorkel with our own equipment. If anyone can help out with a few questions we have, it would be really appreciated!

1. Our ship docks at Havensight. How much should a taxi cost pp to Cowpet Bay? Where should we ask to be dropped off to access the best snorkel places? We'd like to go to the area where sea turtles frequent along with the other great snorkeling there. Walking long distances is not an option for us.

2. We have read that if the wind is coming in from the southwest that snorkeling can be quite rough on this end of the island. Can anyone suggest the best way to tell what the surf conditions are at Cowpet before we taxi over there?

3. If conditions are poor at Cowpet for snorkeling, what would be a good alternative on the north side of the island? Looking for the best snorkeling close in and basic amenities like chairs, a bathroom, and a snack bar. There is only 1 other cruise ship in that day.