SANTO TOMAS Guatamala

[LAKNARF]

We'll be in Santo Tomas at the end of November (this year). We're trying to decide on what tour to do. We do not do ship tours. Has anyone used the Chiltepe tours? Any other suggestions other than the Livingston tour, since we feel the 7 hour tours might be a bit long

[PTCruizer]

Here is a link to my review.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=433259

[nsj]

We will be there at the end of November as well, what cruise line will you be on?

[nsj]

oops, didnt see your date. Looks like you went last year...what did you end up doing in port?

[luv2cruise123]

We will be here on Wed., Nov. 21 on the NCL Spirit out of New Orleans. That will be the first sailing from New Orleans and we are also looking to find an independent tour operator. I have just emailed Gus so I guess I will wait until I hear back from him. This will be a new port to me.

 

I am very interested in ideas on what to do in this port. I have not researched much yet. Thought I would take a look at the NCL excursions, but do prefer independent operators wherever possible.

 

I would love to hear from recent cruisers and their adventures here!

[zuzu0059]

We stopped in Guatamala while on the Norwegian Sun out of New Orleans. It was one of our favorite stops. We booked a shore excusion through the ship to the Amantique Bay Resort. This tour was recommended to us as we were travelling with children. It was WONDERFUL!!! So much to do. Huge, great pool area with covered areas to sit and relax. Lots of stuff for the kids to do. There is also a huge shopping area for souveniers. We spent the whole day there and were so sad to leave!!

[saraisarai]

at the resort or nearby?

[Ga_Crusin]

We were in Santo Tomas last January. My group wouldn't commit to a tour before we arrived, so we didn't have anything planned. Where our ship docked (HAL), and where I think most ships dock, there is a nice pier that leads into a huge, very nice building where they sell all kinds of tours plus other stuff. The locals put a really big effort into making tourists feel welcome, and it's very nice. They gave away trinkets to our kids, had movies running on what to do, had coffee and stuff to eat.

 

Anyway, there are lots of tour operators there. One of the standard tours is a city tour plus a tour to the rainforest. There were six of us, age range 6 to 75, so we didn't want a long bus ride. We just bought the standard tour. The city tour was a bust, in my opinion. Santo Tomas is poor poor poor. I've been to lots of poor areas before, so nothing new for me and the kids are too young to really get it. However, the hiking in the rainforest was absolutely amazing. You can swim in the river (everyone under age 70 swam) and swim right up to waterfalls. It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.

 

So, the easy approach is to just hire a tour there on site, skip the city tour and spend a few hours hiking.

[zuzu0059]

the shopping we did was at the resort...and at the pier on the way back to get on the ship.

[saraisarai]

What type of items did they sell at the resort?

[zuzu0059]

they had most anything you would want. Beautiful hand made brightly colored blankets, table cloths, place mats, table runners. They had hand made clothing and purses. They had all kinds of jewelry. I bought some beautiful green jade and amber earrings. I think jade is pretty abundant in Guatamala. The shopping was like a little marketplace set up at the entrance to the resort. It was perfect for us because we had to choose a shore excursion that would accommodate children. This way, we got the water and relaxation of the resort and shopping too. Also, there is shopping at the pier. It is a big airplane hanger that has vendors inside. Several members of our group said the hanger had a bit lower prices than the other shopping they did --- I thought the prices for everything we did was excellent! At the resort, a bottled water was only $1. Also, the lunch they served at the resort (which was included in the price) was very good.

[ctdahlquist]

From what I've been reading in the guide books, this is a great place to get away from the standard cruise/resort infrastructure and have an authentic travel experience. Puerto Barrios near the port is supposedly not much to see, so travelers should plan a trip to Livingston to see authentic Garafuna (African/Caribbean) culture, food, and also a gateway to falls, wildlife and sights along the Rio Dulce. Livingston is hub for travel to Tikal, Copan, and also points in Belize, so there are hotels and restaurants that are used to catering to international travelers. I booked with Happy Fish tours after reading some good reviews. They charge $50 for a full day Rio Dulce tour, which seemed like a GREAT deal when considering the short and expensive tours offered by NCL. I have also read some great reviews of the "Go with Gus" group.

[luv2cruise123]

We decided on the Rio Dulce tour and Humanitarian tour with Gus. Looking forward to it. We'll be sqailing on the first Spirit cruise out of new Orleans on Thanksgiving week.

[swampfox28]

Okay -

 

you guys that went recently... any info to report?

 

 

THANKS!

 

 

-Sarah

[HERKIMER417]

I did a tour with him a while back. I was nervous as well - language and such. There is no need to be. The tour up to Rio Dulce was terrific and still is one of the best I've ever taken.

 

Gus was NYC cab driver for 20 years and still comes north to visit his grown kids. So his English is fine.

 

Many of his helpers have also lived in the US .

 

He is very considerate of the cruise ships - he is ( or was ) the mayor of Livingston and he realizes that the ships are the way to economic prosperity.

 

Hope this helps

J