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For anyone trying to get to the Baths on your own...

jjgarv2

By jjgarv2,
in Tortola

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AtlAlyson

AtlAlyson

Posted
Posted (edited)

sms15- Got this email today back....

Hi Alyson,

 

We have a tour scheduled and the fare is $50 per person. Dion is located outside the security gate and he leaves 45 mins - an hour after the ship dock. We offer a complimentary drink on-board.

 

 

Veronica/Dion

 

My group of 4 is going to try and catch him around 7:20-7:30. Not looking to be part of the big group going with Speedy's but it's the backup plan. $9/pp more will hopefully be worth it. I said the word beer to the 2 guys and fast boat and they were all about it.

 

Thank You sportschicfla for the number!

Edited by AtlAlyson
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sportschicfla

sportschicfla

Posted
Posted
sms15- Got this email today back....

Hi Alyson,

 

We have a tour scheduled and the fare is $50 per person. Dion is located outside the security gate and he leaves 45 mins - an hour after the ship dock. We offer a complimentary drink on-board.

 

 

Veronica/Dion

 

My group of 4 is going to try and catch him around 7:20-7:30. Not looking to be part of the big group going with Speedy's but it's the backup plan. $9/pp more will hopefully be worth it. I said the word beer to the 2 guys and fast boat and they were all about it.

 

Thank You sportschicfla for the number!

 

glad to have helped.

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tc1177

tc1177

Posted
Posted

Just a question for anyone who has used Dion. Once you arrived at the Baths, do you have to swim to shore. I ask because I have three children and would not trust them having to swim in the ocean to reach shore. From what I can find there is no where to dock a boat at that location and I'm trying to find out how you get from the boat to the shore or beach. Thanks for any info.

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AtlAlyson

AtlAlyson

Posted
Posted

Just got back Sunday from visiting Tortola/Virgin Gorda

We decided to go with Dion after I saw the large amounts of people going with Speedy’s. WELL WORTH THE EXTRA $9/pp($50/pp total). Got off the ship and asked a few people where Dion was and we got pointed in the right direction. Dion was right outside the security gate once you see all the cabs and other people trying to sell you on why their boat is awesome. Word of advice if you plan on going with somebody else I would ask them the cost and then ask to see what their boat looks like as the dock is very close to where you walk outside the security gates. When we docked at 7am the weather was overcast and a light sprinkle so needless to say we were late to leave. Dion told me by email that he usually leaves 45min-1hour after the ship docks but we did not leave until maybe 8:45 I would say. Speedy’s left late the same day and we beat them easily by 30 minutes. (a little over 25min on the boat) The scarab with 750hp was a blast to ride on!

Once we got to the baths he pulled the boat to shore and we all jumped off the front on the sand at Devils Bay.

If you are looking at the baths the main park entrance is on the left by another beach (forget the name) but this is where the LARGE groups of cruise ship people stayed. The baths are in the middle and Devils Bay is on the right. Devils Bay was nice because there were not a lot of people and the snorkeling was gorgeous with some fish swimming right up to you. Highly recommend some water shoes it is a must as you will be able to climb on the rocks while others will be slipping and falling everywhere. Also bring a snorkel and mask for the beach area!

On the way back the fuel filter got clogged I think and we had to get pulled back to the dock by one of his friends. Soooo… the boat ride back turned into a booze cruise with beer and lots of vodka. This was most likely special for our group as Dion was VERY apologetic. We had a blast even with the unexpected situation & about 15 people on board. We left the baths around 12:30 and got back to the boat with time to spare but the stumble back to the boat was difficult.

Tc1177-Dion pulled the boat to the shore when we got there and when we left. I am sure you would be able to lift the kids up to the front of the boat getting on and off. I had my boyfriend lift me up when we left so I didn’t have to get more sand in my water shoes. Hope this helps.

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AtlAlyson

AtlAlyson

Posted
Posted
AtlAlison - thanks so much for posting your experience!

 

So - did you email him before, but did not have to give CC info? Did you know he was going to be there/he was expecting you?

 

Sounds like a fantastic day!

 

I sent an email to him and he said that they did have a tour scheduled and to arrive 45min after the ship docks. We paid in cash $50/pp and added a little extra when we returned back to the marina. No credit card needed.

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  • 2 weeks later...
ValerieM

ValerieM

Posted
Posted

We traveled from Tortola to the Baths in March 2012. We planned to do the Speedy's Ferry thing, but Shawn approached us on our walk over to Speedy's. My husband is not especially adventurous, but I really liked the idea of saving some money and not worrying so much about the time. Husband was afraid we would get "dumped" at the Baths and miss the ship. But, we went with Shawn anyway. I'm so glad we did. We waited a little while outside the pier to see if anyone else would join us - about 15-20 minutes. But when the crowd was trickling down, Shawn agreed to get started to the Baths. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of his boat. What a great adventure. Smaller scale, but really nice. The ride over was fun and fast, great for our teenage boys. Shawn let us be completely on our own timetable, asking when we thought we might want to return and giving some advice to ensure we were back on the ship. He dropped us right on the beach - he was able to maneuver the boat so that it pulled right up to the end of the water - maybe only ankle to knee deep when we got off. About an hour before we were ready to head back we could see Shawn a little off in the distance at anchor waiting for our signal. He provided cold drinks, both alcoholic and nonalcoholic for the trip back. It was a GREAT trip - our own private charter for less than what it cost to ride the Speedy's Fairy, plus entrance fees, taxes, all that - (about $45 - $50 per person). BTW - Shawn insisted we wait to pay until we got back to Tortola. The 1st picture is us on the boat in Tortola before we left for the day. The 2nd picture is Shawn waiting for us to be ready to return just off the beach at the Baths. His email is biggyello81@gmail.com.

100_5043.jpg.798571f9fdfbc0eeaf09bb5b901edfd3.jpg

100_5076.jpg.73fa9fa2ad3a196fffaee98957fcb917.jpg

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  • 2 months later...
iheartpoco

iheartpoco

Posted
Posted
Leaving on the Freedom in March. Sent an email to Dion last week and have not heard back from him. Can we go to the port and search him out? Just ask the locals where we can find him? Just in case we do not hear back from him.

 

Please read the thread I just posted that details my Dion experience last week! :eek:

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cathycaz

cathycaz

Posted
Posted

Please let me know how it turns out with Dion. We're on the CCL Breeze Exotic Eastern in September, in port at Tortola on 9/18 and have found several of the private charter companies take their own vacations and do boat maintenance in September, returning to full service in October.

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bazbaz65

bazbaz65

Posted
Posted (edited)

 

Wow! Sorry to hear that you had a bad day with Dion. We were on the Freedom in June/July '12 and booked through him after reading through this site. To this day we count it as the single best tour/day we've had during our cruises. So much fun! He had "parked" the boat a little offshore and when the guys got thirsty they swam out to the boat to grab a few beers and swam back. When a few people did that, Dion moved the boat in a little closer for us. Was just a fun day all around!

 

Hopefully more people get that experience than what you had.

Edited by bazbaz65
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blue_water

blue_water

Posted
Posted

 

We would hire one of the private charters out of Nanny Cay or take a daysail to VG before I would put my wife in this guy's hands, this isn't the only concerning report I've read. The itinerary is excellent, just the execution is terrible in some cases.

I'll look him up next time we stay in Tortola and maybe I'll have a different opinion, but this "outfit" sounds very bad...

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JennCandi

JennCandi

Posted
Posted

I booked with Dion for last week. We never heard the announcement that we could get off the ship, so by the time we did get off and find him, his boat was full. He sent us with someone else from D&D Tours. We had to wait about 40 minutes for them to get enough other people to fill the boat going over. I was annoyed. Besides that, the trip was good. A little chopping going there and back, but fine.

 

My problem was that we were traveling with a 5 y.o. and 3 y.o. We were left on the beach and weren't able to get through the caves and rocks to the bath or were the restaurant and facilities were. We ended up being "trapped" on the beach for 4 hours. Luckily we had water and a few boxes of cheerios from the ship. I wouldn't recommend this tour for families with small kids.

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