Breathtaking Soufriere and warm mineral baths with RCI

[ruby_tuesday]

Hello everyone, we are going to St Lucia in Nov with Royal and I am scratching my head about which trip to do! Having never been to the island before I am attracted to the Soufriere and mineral baths tour as this may give us a good first time experience, but I would welcome thoughts from those that have done it. I am not a beach person and like to see some sights, so would welcome thoughts.

 

Many thanks in advance! 

[reedprincess]

13 hours ago, ruby_tuesday said:

Hello everyone, we are going to St Lucia in Nov with Royal and I am scratching my head about which trip to do! Having never been to the island before I am attracted to the Soufriere and mineral baths tour as this may give us a good first time experience, but I would welcome thoughts from those that have done it. I am not a beach person and like to see some sights, so would welcome thoughts.

 

Many thanks in advance! 

Well, not the best overview, or even the best mineral baths, but good. The gardens are beautiful, and supposedly the baths (not the one you'd use as obviously they've been redone) are where Josephine Bonaparte would visit on holiday from Martinique, and french troops would take their ease 

The gardens are beautiful, but the baths are literally small rectangle boxes, tile and concrete. Not the most scenic. And everyone who goes out to the falls passes right by, absolutely no privacy or ambience. 

And, you really have no stops except the gardens and baths. You'll likely pull in for the overlook of Marigot Bay, and that's it. 

You'll see the Pitons in the distance, some great viewpoints as you come into and out of Soufriere, and that's it.

It's not a bad your, it's just quite basic. 

Piton Falls or Jerusalem Falls are so much more interesting and beautiful. But not offered through the ship.

If you're comfortable doing independent, I'd highly recommend one of the tours frequently mentioned here, they offer comprehensive sightseeing versus one stop and done.  

You can look up Diamond Botanical Gardens and Falls yourself and see the photos - make an informed choice.  The gardens are quite lovely.

Enjoy, if you opt for it. 

[ruby_tuesday]

Thank you very much Reedprincess, I really appreciate the reply and the honesty. We are comfortable doing an independent tour so will take a look at some of the reviews. We are taking in a few islands so I’ll need to do

more research! 

 

Thanks again! 

 

 

[piggiepuff]

We've done Cosol Tours twice and I definitely recommend it.  You see SO much of the island, a little beach time, waterfall, the volcano/baths, local food, and free drinks (soda, water, beer, and rum punch).  It was really the best deal for the price - I believe it was $75 when we went and it was probably 6 hours.  

[trouble1964]

We did a tour (it was several hours long on a bus) the first time we went to St Lucia. We were picked up at the pier, drove thru some areas where they pointed out different residences and buildings, and then stopped at a small town for a bathroom and stretch your legs break. It seems like there were a few stores open there. We stopped at a banana plantation and were told about the importance of the fruit to the economy (they even make ketchup from it). Some ladies were selling handmade items there. Back on the bus, we stopped at a place on the side of the road where you could take pictures with the Pitons in the background. We ate lunch in a home/restaurant of local food (it was good, possibly a little spicy for some people). Another stop was at the drive in volcano, where you could choose to go see it, or go to the mud baths. We did the volcano. Next was the waterfall where you could jump in. Last was a stop at a beach for about an hour by the Pitons. There were chairs there and a restaurant/bar, I think. We were loaded onto a boat and then went close to a ledge where you could see bats sleeping on it. We idled thru Marigot on the boat where the guide pointed out Mick Jagger's house, and told some history of the area. Next was passing by the rock arch that was in a movie, and there were young boys jumping off of it to entertain us as we sailed back to the pier. 

 

I hope I'm getting all of this right---it's been a few years. It was a long tour, and covered a lot, but I think it was less than $100 back then (less than 5 years ago). I think that was probably one of the more extensive island tours I've been on, as we saw so much. I'm sure I'm leaving something off. The bus was not full, so it was not like we were packed in like sardines. 

[Dragon2109]

On 10/13/2019 at 8:04 AM, ruby_tuesday said:

Hello everyone, we are going to St Lucia in Nov with Royal and I am scratching my head about which trip to do! Having never been to the island before I am attracted to the Soufriere and mineral baths tour as this may give us a good first time experience, but I would welcome thoughts from those that have done it. I am not a beach person and like to see some sights, so would welcome thoughts.

 

Many thanks in advance! 

For a first time I would recommend a Land and sea. It gives a fantastic overall view of both sea and land. You get to do and see quite a bit in a short time. There are quite a few operators that offer a variation of this tour including cruise ship. Quick research should turn up a few options. take a look at Serenitytvl, Barefoot, Cosol, Spencer Ambrose...

[trouble1964]

13 hours ago, Dragon2109 said:

take a look at Serenitytvl, Barefoot, Cosol, Spencer Ambrose...

I'm pretty sure it was Spencer Ambrose that we did our tour with, now that I see the name.  It was an extensive tour of the island for the price. We did so much on land, that we didn't get to spend much time at the beach. 

[ruby_tuesday]

Thank you for these replies, and sorry I have been delayed in responding. Sadly our cruise has been cancelled following ill health,  one of those really unexpected curveballs that life throws your way. I will bear these suggestions in mind if I get to cruise to St Lucia again, and thanks again for your replies. It is really appreciated.