eclipsethecat

We also had a a bad experience with James Touring. I have posted a long review in other posts and on Trip Advisor. Please read so you can avoid having the type of day we had.

l2f- I think the difference is that Thenford is a gentleman. I think on other islands they are more like hustlers as opposed to tour operators. I think that is the main problem. I felt so safe with Thenford- like I could have been left alone with him and nothing would have happened. I didnt feel like that on my tour of St Lucia (please if you are visiting look up my reviews of James Touring- we had a horrific day- I want to spare anyone else from going through what we did.)

Thenford Grey’s trip was probably the best shore excursion we have ever been on. Thenford was a complete gentleman and took the time to explain the island to us and was a wealth of information and was the complete opposite experience as we had in St Lucia (if you are booking in St Lucia please be sure to read my review of James Touring so you can avoid having the horrific experience we had.)

Upon our exit from the ship we found Thenford himself waiting for us. He introduced himself and explained what we were going to do for the day and that we were waiting for a couple other people. Once they arrived we got on the road and Thenford immediately began explaining the neighborhoods and interesting sites. He was very knowledgeable and if he didn’t know the answer he looked it up. The van was very nice and air conditioned but not too cold. We drove along the roads and then stopped at the place where there were petroglyphs- Thenford explained in a nice way (and not like we were stupid tourists,) that there would be people along our way with monkeys- if we wanted pictures it would be expected that we would pay for them. If not we could tell them no thank you. I am not a fan of monkeys so I didn’t partake but there was a woman on our tour who did want to and Thenford let her borrow some ones because she didn’t have any small bills. This is what really sets him apart from other tour operators.

He is a gentleman who cares about his clients, their comforts and desires. Never once did he seem annoyed by our questions or did he think they were stupid. After the petroglyphs we drove up to Romney mansion and the Batik store- Romney mansion is beautiful and Thenford offered to use our cameras to take photos of us- again a nice thing to do. The Batik store was beautiful and had a lot of nice gifts at decent prices. Thenford was also very knowledgeable about all the plants and flowers in the garden-knowing the names and background stories on all of them. After Romney manor we were taken to the Fort- it is beautiful and looks out over the sea. He drove very carefully unlike some other drivers we have had and explained the forts history on the way up. He let us walk around as much as we wanted then took us to a lookout point where you can see where the Caribbean and Atlantic meet and then down to the beach at Shipwreck (I think that was what it was called,) beach.

We did not take snorkel gear but understand there was some good snorkeling. We ate a good lunch there and then he took us back to the ship. At the amount he charges you get a very good deal for what you get. We had a marvelous time and can honestly say that this is one tour guide who deserves all the praise he receives.

Hello Everyone,

I am a first time cruiser and I have several questions-thanks in advance for your help!

1) Do the rooms have a safe?

2) Can you open the fridge to put pop and waters that you bring with you in them?

3) Are there usually lockers at the beaches on the carnival shore excursions? If not, what do you do with your valuables when you are on the tours?

4) Anything you wish you would've known your first time?

5) Has anyone ever taken sandwiches with them on the tours from the ship? Do they package them so you can take them with you? (Trying to save some money!)

6) Liquor- sneaking on; good idea or bad? Do they throw it away if they find it?

7) What if I don't want to use my funpass- should I still sign up for it? I think I have to in order to get fully pre-boarded!

8)For the people who flew into Tampa and went straight from the airport to the port, what service did you use? Taxi? Van? Etc. Any help would be great! Thanks!

Thanks again for all of your help!