Bioluminescence Bay Kayak Tour?

Has anyone done the Bioluminescence Bay Kayak Tour offered by Carnival? We're considering this excursion while we're in port in January and since we don't get in until 5, our choices are limited.

Just did a search for this and found this unanswered thread...ANYONE gone on this lately with or without Carnival? We are interested in doing this...we will be in port in December from 5pm - midnight...will we have time? A lot of CCers say they dont get off the ship in this port...but being our first time there, we must get off.....any info would be appreciated....:)

I will be departing on the Carnival Victory in less than one week. I had planned on doing this excursion, but when i tried to book it it was not available (it was listed as one of the possible excursions).

i called carnival and they said sometimes if the local contractor doesn't get back in touch with them, they can't list it on the website.

However, another kayak tour is offered at that port and the notes for that suggest that it is offered when the moon is not good for the bioluminescence tour.

This made sense except that the moon is supposed to be good when i am there in a week, so I don't know what I am going to do.

I am hoping that the website has an error and that i can still sign up for this excursion because the only ones that i see available to booking privately require more free time in SJ, which we will not have since or ship is only there from 5pm-midnight.

Has anyone done the Bioluminescence Bay Kayak Tour offered by Carnival? We're considering this excursion while we're in port in January and since we don't get in until 5, our choices are limited.

I haven't done the excursion- but have been in San Juan 3 times on cruises. The first was in Feb- did the bus/ shpping tour- skip it. the second and third times were as embark/debark- it really is a great port. I assume the biobay tour is not Vieques (sp) but this one, http://www.biobay.com. I was told that it is not 'as' good as Vieques but still worth it. Make sure you check the lunar calendar- so you're not doing it during a full moon. Next time, I'm definately doing it!

We did this excursion in May on our own.It was great.We had never kayak before and going into the bay in the light was fine but coming back out in the dark against the tide was trickey. But it was worth it. An amazing sight,I can't even describe it, its something you need to experience for yourself.

Laura

How did you go about making the arrangements to go on your own? What operator did you use and where did you go? Is it hard to get in and out of a kayak? My daughters (adult) and I will be going in mid November. We were thinking about staying an extra day or two and doing this tour. Our ship departs and returns to SJ. How much time did it take for the entire experience?

If anyone responds to the last post, maybe also advise whether someone can do this on their own if the ship is only in port from 5pm-midnight. I doubt it, but i would love to hear otherwise.

if so, please provide a link, email or way to contact the private company in SJ. I understand that the one in Vieques is too far away for the limited time that I will be in port.

Is there any way of doing this other than by kayak?

Is there any way of doing this other than by kayak?

I've never done it myself so I'm not sure, but from what I understand there is no way to access the bay except by kayak. According to an article I saw recently, the bay itself is actually in a nature preserve and you have to go through a small channel to get into the bay. It is so narrow that you will actually be touching the kayaks of the people coming out of the lagoon. Now this excursion may be to a different bay, but this is the one I've heard of.

I did the bio bay in PR at Fajardo in Feb 05. We arrived earlier at PR and used Jerry/CoquiPIE as our tour guide. He booked us with a veteran kayak outfitter that took us into the bay just before dusk so that we could see the mangrove trees etc...it was an awesome experience.

I am going again this March and want to experience the bio bay again. However, this time I arrive on Carnival at 5pm (which might be 6pm SJ time) and depart at midnight. Since Jerry is moving back to the States, I've emailed him to ask for suggestions on the possibility of doing the bio bay again within such a tight time-frame. I asked for ideas on the best way to get to the bay and the outfitter's name.

I just emailed him today, so when I hear back, I'll post the info.

I diligently tried to find a private operator to do this with as we also are only in port 5 pm - midnight.

I couldn't find any willing to do it. Most leave San Juan before we dock. So we're just going to do it with a ship excursion. Prices I did find weren't much different, even if the private ones could do it. Some required you arrange your own transportation from San Juan, but all did not.

My husband and daughter took the biobay tour with Jerry from CoquiePI a couple of months ago. They said it was unbelievable. Because Jerry is/has moved back to the states, he recommended some guide named Alvin for future tours. Alvin's e-mail is destinationpr@hotmail.com and his phone # is 787-209-2127. Good luck!

my understandinig is that it is about a 90 minute transfer time to the bay when you board the kayak. Can anyone tell me if it is a one, two or three person kayak? Want to do this with 12 yr. old son... who can't swim! Any thoughts?

my understandinig is that it is about a 90 minute transfer time to the bay when you board the kayak. Can anyone tell me if it is a one, two or three person kayak? Want to do this with 12 yr. old son... who can't swim! Any thoughts?

We did it in Feb 05 with Jerry. It was a two person kayak then, and lifejackets are worn by everyone. You have the choice of swimming with or without the jacket.

We just did this in May with Las Tortugas Adventures and we had a blast. We were staying on the East coast of Puerto Rico (near Fajardo) for a long weekend. We read about Las Tortugas on this website. It was $40 per person (I think) and we met the guide (Kenny) at the marina in Fajardo. He was a young man from Arizona - very eco minded and a great guide. If you go and Kenny is your guide tell him Lisa and Steve said Hi. If he doesn't remember us at first - tell him I am the one who got her shorts caught on the kayak trying to enter the water!! What a laugh that was!!

It turned out that it was just the guide, DH and me! It was a two person kayak and I did not paddle (had surgery on my arm before the trip). DH did all the paddling and said it was easier without my help LOL!

It is an amazing trip. Not sure about timing if you are in port from 5 to midnight because of the drive from/to san juan from Fajardo but the folks at Las Tortugas can advise. I think from what I read on the other thread, Jerry takes people from San Juan to Fajardo and then turns them over to someone else - usually the folks from Las Tortugas Adventures.

Here is the website.

http://www.kayak-pr.com/

We did this on June 14 and we booked it through Canival because the timeframe was so tight and I'm glad we did. We got back a little late due to heavy traffic and I know some of the other passengers were worried about being late. It was really interesting and fun, but the bus ride was loooooooonnnnnngggggg. My husband admitted that had he realized the bus ride was so long he wouldn't have been interested.

Can you tell me the amount of the tour and the approximate length of the bus trip. I have a group of 20 adults interested in doing this tour next April so figure we will have one bus to ourselves or close to it. Also could you take along your own refreshments for on the bus ride (especially the ride back) Thanks for your help.

The ride/drive from San Juan to Fajardo is 1 1/2 hours from what I am told, and mebbe more if traffic is bad. Other idea of way to go is plane from San Juan to Fajardo then www.eastwindcats.com , they have a nighttime one on their power catamaran where they take an electric powered boat in. Heard good reviews and waiting for another one in another thread.

I had friends who did the bio bay tour on their own, while cruising with Carnival in May. I know they all loved their tour and booked it through shoretrips.com

My Husband and I went onthis tour and it was offered by Carnival. I can answer everyone's questions.

1. There are other ways than Kayak BUT if you go with those options you will kill thousands of the parasites that make the bay glow.

2. If you have night vision issues this tour may not be for you. You start off in the ocean and you have some light, but when you enter the canal that is surrounded by Mangrove trees it is very dark and hard to see if you don't have good eyes.

3. IT WAS GREAT ! you get to get out of your kayak and swim in the water. if you have ever seen Coccoon it is like that. when you put your paddle or hands in the water the little microorganizms glow.

If you have any questions other than these please feel free to e-mail me mnowak8202@yahoo.com.

Carnival Legend May 20,2006

I want to appologize if anyone e-mailed me and I didn't respond please try again. Yahoo was sending the e-mails to Spam. I have turned the filter off and should be able to e-mails

There are only two places in the world with the level of biolumeniscence you find in this bay (which is on the island of Viesque) -- and the other one is in Japan.

If you go to the website Crisp1 listed early in this thread (www.biobay.com)you'll see pictures of what you'll experience. These are accurate, not exagerations. We did this when we stayed on that island a few years ago. It was amazing. It is very dark and a little scary because of that, but then you get so caught up in the moment any fear goes away.

Since it wasn't a cruise excursion, I can't speak to what Carnival or anyone else is doing. Our kayaks were single person -- those plastic shallow ones that you kinda sit on top of. We didn't enter from the ocean, but from another entry point.

All I can say is Go. Go. Go.

Can you do this tour on your own if you are dock from 3 to11?? We will be there on June5 of 2007, and i have no idea if it can be done or not. We are on the Freedom.

Otherwise, what can we do??? We are not interested in the forts and history. We are beach people, wouldn't mind a rain forest, but I don't think we can do that at night- early evening. Any suggestions-thanks, KMBB

We will be on the Carnival Legend in September. They are offering the BioBay tour when we are in San Juan (Sept. 4th). However, there will be a full moon on Sept. 7th and my research tells me the week before the full moon is not a good time to go. We REALLY want to experience this adventure, but not if it's a really bad time to go. Has anyone done this excursion during the week of the full moon? We've never done anything like it so it's not as if we'll have anything to compare it to. :)

Thanks!!

mnowak8202- I know you did this with Carnival, what were your port hours? We are on RCC(Freedom from 3:00 o'clock to 11:00) I don't think they offer a tour, so I was wondering if it could be done on our own. Want to make sure we get back on the ship. Also, if this tour would not work out for us, what else is there to do in the evenings there? We are really just beach people, do you know of a good beach? Our hours, I think kinda limit us on what we can do. Let me know if you have any suggestions. Thanks, KMBB

We are a family of four-with twins boys 19 years old.