ABC Islands Excursions for Difficult Couple ;)

[sakigemcam]

Hi there - We're excited about this cruise to the ABCs plus Grand Cayman. I've been to some of these islands on land trips but this is the first time in a long time. We're actually delightful people but this is why we're difficult: 🤣

• I'd like to snorkel at one of the stops but am really a fairly novice snorkeler, so guidance/instruction would be great - I've snorkeled on my own offshore and that's it. I'd love to learn more. 
• I'm also not comfortable on long rides on small boats - I get seasick and although I wear the miraculous patch on cruises, haven't yet tested on small boats, so a shorter ride than longer would be great to start with.
• Husband says he won't snorkel so he'd need to enjoy the boat experience - he's not that hard to please  but won't want to feel left out if he's not snorkeling.
• Definitely not looking for a party boat but refreshments are welcome!
• Also prefer no young kids (we've raised ours, thank you, older teens are cool)
• For another excursion, an uncrowded beach paradise would be great 🌴 (with at least some bathrooms)
• We usually do beaches but if there are key cultural sites to visit - like, very important to see - we'd like to know that 
• We don't care about shopping unless it's something truly unique (i.e., special spices come to mind)
• Are there any outstanding resort for a day options on any of the ABCs? We're also doing Grand Cayman.

Excited to plan this and appreciate your help! Posting on the BC threads too. 

Thank you!

[trophy_23]

I would look at going with Woodwind in Bonaire.  Nice stable boat, experienced and friendly staff/guides, beautiful snorkelling area and great food/drink onboard the boat.

[sakigemcam]

1 hour ago, trophy_23 said:

I would look at going with Woodwind in Bonaire.  Nice stable boat, experienced and friendly staff/guides, beautiful snorkelling area and great food/drink onboard the boat.

 

Thank you - I had just emailed Woodwind when I saw your post! Let's see if they can accommodate my special kind of crazy, My husband is in after reading a few posts! 

[Hatteras51]

You might want to look at snorkeling with Black Pearl/ Blue Melody in Aruba.  They only go out late in the afternoon,  so I don't know if that works in your schedule.  That is our favorite snorkel tour in Aruba. It is small, with very few, if any, kids. Your husband could relax on their nice loungers while we you snorkel. 

In Bonaire, we like Spice Beach Club.  You can snorkel right there and again,  he can relax on the beach.

 

 

[sakigemcam]

Thank you!

[SimplyMarvie]

I would skip the snorkeling in Cayman, and either go and visit the stingrays or if you're looking for non-boat options, check out the iguana farm and have lunch by the bay and feed your fries to the enormous tarpon. The Atlantis submarine in Cayman is also quite cool, since you can go and see the drop off and walls of the Caymanas Trench. 🙂

[Gabrielle R.]

Bonaire- Woodwind tours!  My Husband doesn't snorkel, he LOVED sitting on the catamaran while I snorkeled.  Their boat is nice and stable. I've snorkeled Aruba, Curacao and Grand Cayman... Bonaire was the best   Water was also more calm in Bonaire.

[Peachy59]

I know lots of people seem to love Woodwind, but we really didn't like it.

 

The boat was small and older and barely enough room to sit. They sailed in a big circle for 45 minutes before they stopped for snorkeling. The water was a little rough and the current kept pushing us toward the shore near where we were snorkeling. We didn't even see very much and they tried to keep us in a tight group so there were others bumping into us, and we weren't in the beginner group. Then another at least 45 minutes back. This was the three hour tour.

 

On the sail out, one of the young girls came to the bow to do something, and bent over in her skimpy bathing suit bottom right in front of the eight of us sitting there. I mean she bent all the way over. My husband just went "wow" and put his head down, he was so embarrased. For a minute I thought we were at a strip club or something. We also didn't care for Dee, the owner. She was very condescending. When people were jumping into the water she kept yelling "don't swim" Ha. I'm not kidding.

 

This was last year, so maybe they've improved or we just went on a bad day.

[trophy_23]

On 10/4/2019 at 1:32 PM, Peachy59 said:

I know lots of people seem to love Woodwind, but we really didn't like it.

 

The boat was small and older and barely enough room to sit. They sailed in a big circle for 45 minutes before they stopped for snorkeling. The water was a little rough and the current kept pushing us toward the shore near where we were snorkeling. We didn't even see very much and they tried to keep us in a tight group so there were others bumping into us, and we weren't in the beginner group. Then another at least 45 minutes back. This was the three hour tour.

 

On the sail out, one of the young girls came to the bow to do something, and bent over in her skimpy bathing suit bottom right in front of the eight of us sitting there. I mean she bent all the way over. My husband just went "wow" and put his head down, he was so embarrased. For a minute I thought we were at a strip club or something. We also didn't care for Dee, the owner. She was very condescending. When people were jumping into the water she kept yelling "don't swim" Ha. I'm not kidding.

 

This was last year, so maybe they've improved or we just went on a bad day.

I am surprised to hear this, complete opposite experience to what we had.  I wonder if they got a new(er) boat since you were there, I thought the boat was really nice and had plenty of space for everyone, it certainly wasn’t small or old. Maybe it was wind related on your day or something, for us there was no doing circles, just pulled up to the spot dropped us off in the water and away we went.  Once we were picked up we moved to a different spot and were again dropped off. Really enjoyed it and would go with them again next time.

 

 

[stanjj111]

On 9/13/2019 at 8:08 PM, sakigemcam said:

Hi there - We're excited about this cruise to the ABCs plus Grand Cayman. I've been to some of these islands on land trips but this is the first time in a long time. We're actually delightful people but this is why we're difficult: 🤣

• I'd like to snorkel at one of the stops but am really a fairly novice snorkeler, so guidance/instruction would be great - I've snorkeled on my own offshore and that's it. I'd love to learn more. 
• I'm also not comfortable on long rides on small boats - I get seasick and although I wear the miraculous patch on cruises, haven't yet tested on small boats, so a shorter ride than longer would be great to start with.
• Husband says he won't snorkel so he'd need to enjoy the boat experience - he's not that hard to please  but won't want to feel left out if he's not snorkeling.
• Definitely not looking for a party boat but refreshments are welcome!
• Also prefer no young kids (we've raised ours, thank you, older teens are cool)
• For another excursion, an uncrowded beach paradise would be great 🌴 (with at least some bathrooms)
• We usually do beaches but if there are key cultural sites to visit - like, very important to see - we'd like to know that 
• We don't care about shopping unless it's something truly unique (i.e., special spices come to mind)
• Are there any outstanding resort for a day options on any of the ABCs? We're also doing Grand Cayman.

Excited to plan this and appreciate your help! Posting on the BC threads too. 

Thank you!

you can take a snorkeling excursion from the dock area without having to take a boat ride in Bonaire.grand caymen is also known for snorkeling.

[stanjj111]

what ship are you on? we are doing celebrity over thanksgiving.

[jean87510]

Bonaire you can snorkel from divi beach resort. Theres chairs there and snorkeling is good. Cayman you can walk to eden rock and snorkel. 0.3 miles from ferry dock. They have rentals there for snorkeling gear. Aruba, you can take a cab to boca catalina but there really isnt chairs there to rent or snorkeling gear. I'd use that day for a nice beach day. I would definitely snorkel in cayman. I do recommend stingray sailing for caymen. They will help you with any snorkeling.

[PAcruiser19372]

Regarding Woodwind, all you have to do is look at them on Trip Advisor, one 5 star rating after another.  The  boat described above was their older boat.  They have had a newer cat for close to a year now.  Dee is the reason my wife now snorkels.  After a few unsuccessful attempts at snorkeling we went on Woodwind in 2016 and Dee made sure my wife was comfortable and that she had a good time.  My wife now has her own snorkeling gear (mask and fins) and can snorkel with the best of them.  Btw my wife is 72.  We were just with Woodwind this past April and Dee must have remembered us from 3 years ago as she told me how much my wife had improved.  On this last trip I watched Dee literally pull a woman on a noodle during the snorkeling.  This woman cried afterwards and hugged Dee for being there for her and having such a good time, she was so grateful.  We are booked with them in December and our taking our 3 grandkids, ages 6 thru 13.  Ulf, Dee's husband told me he's had as young as 3 on the boat.  I can't say enough good things about Woodwind.  Another thought is the reason she was probably saying don't swim is that this is drift snorkeling, no need to swim.

[roysue]

Just back from a cruise and a 3 hour snorkel trip with Dee.  Dee and Woodwind are the best.  I have done a fair amount of snorkeling and I could not be happier than the 2 trips I've made with Woodwind.  

[MarkWiltonM]

We snorkeled with Woodwind in January 2019.   They had lost our names for their list but let us on anyway.  The boat was very crowded, but the crew/staff were very knowledgeable and helpful.  We also had the misfortune of being there on a very windy day with choppy seas that were difficult for newbies, and there also wasn't a lot to see underwater where we were able to stop.  The guides definitely watched out for everyone in the water and offered assistance when necessary.  And they served us a hot lunch afterward, which was nice because it was pretty chilly due to the wind.  For people who aren't snorkeling, it's not a boat with a lot of space for relaxing and there are no loungers, etc.  

[NateUpNorth]

On 10/11/2019 at 4:04 PM, PAcruiser19372 said:

 We are booked with them in December and our taking our 3 grandkids, ages 6 thru 13.  Ulf, Dee's husband told me he's had as young as 3 on the boat.  I can't say enough good things about Woodwind.  Another thought is the reason she was probably saying don't swim is that this is drift snorkeling, no need to swim.

 

My son did the drift snorkel with a pool noodle at 4 1/2 years old last year. My daughter was 7. Both loved it and still talk about it.

Granted I believe they're both partially fish, but I digress.

 

On 9/13/2019 at 8:08 PM, sakigemcam said:

 

• I'd like to snorkel at one of the stops but am really a fairly novice snorkeler, so guidance/instruction would be great - I've snorkeled on my own offshore and that's it. I'd love to learn more. 
• I'm also not comfortable on long rides on small boats - I get seasick and although I wear the miraculous patch on cruises, haven't yet tested on small boats, so a shorter ride than longer would be great to start with.
• Husband says he won't snorkel so he'd need to enjoy the boat experience - he's not that hard to please  but won't want to feel left out if he's not snorkeling.
• Definitely not looking for a party boat but refreshments are welcome!
• For another excursion, an uncrowded beach paradise would be great 🌴 (with at least some bathrooms)

Excited to plan this and appreciate your help! Posting on the BC threads too. 

Thank you!

 

In Aruba you could look at the "Sailaway" tour. Similar to Jolly Pirates but by all accounts less of a "party boat"

Two of the three snorkel spots they visit seem to be exactly what you're looking for.

We did a morning snorkel trip with them, the boat is a fair size and a nice few hours of sun and sea. Once done you can step off the boat, walk 50 feet and plant yourself on a pristine Aruban beach for the rest of the afternoon.

[TinkBellaMom]

We booked a Woodwind trip for Jan2020.  We not experienced at snorkeling, we have only been twice before.  My husband is very sensitive to cold and when I informed them they said they would have wetsuit for him.  I thought that was very accommodating.

We have decided to snorkel in Bonaire because our kids went to snorkel in Aruba and said the wind was a negative factor.

Edited December 12, 2019 by TinkBellaMom