Sunny Liston's Tours

[katiel53]

Actually up until about a month before I went on his tour, Sunny didn't make you prepay. You just paid after the tour was over. I'm sure he changed his policy because he probably got stiffed a few times.

 

On our trip with Sunny, he made us pay about 3 minutes into the trip. He had people going to the downtown area as well as those doing the whole tour with him. He pulled over on the side of the road, and went around to each person to find out what they were doing. He then took the money.

 

I think that's why the people who were left downtown and had to get to the beach with someone else were so upset. They had paid in full but weren't picked up as they were supposed to have been. I don't like the idea of pre-paying.

 

Godfrey had us pay at the end of the tour, but perhaps he has changed to paying in the beginning. I can see paying in the beginning, but not in advance. On other islands where we have done tours, the payment has always been at the end. I can see both side to that though.

[Kraz_Eric]

I can understand the paying in advance thing...so many ships, and only so many spots....reserving all those positions without advance payment only to have those folks change their minds would suck...particularly if you've sent others away...

 

I like the payment in advance because I know I have my reservations set and paid for...just like I do with my excursions through the cruise line....besides, it's only 25 bucks per person!

[cruise_crazy68]

Sandi, I separate the two, bad weather AND miss the port. Now I don't mean a few rain showers, but sometimes, depending on the time of year, it can get pretty nasty in the VIs. That is what I was worried about.

Our main reason for the Private Tour was to do what we wanted, mostly activities at Sapphire:) If weather is really bad, no beach, no activities.

If you pay up front, that could be a problem. (At least that is my thinking):)

 

 

Northender did you find a private tour? If not let me know I may have a suggestion for you.

[PGF]

Just wanted to let everyone know that we were on the Miracle in June and went to Coral World and Coki Beach. I loved Coki beach, there were plenty of lawnchairs $5 a piece, a guy met us from a little shack when we got there and got us all set up on the beach, there were people coming around selling drinks, but no pressure and they weren't intrusive at all. We were given dog bones to attract the fish if you wanted to snorkel, again the snorkel and mask were $5. We just got a taxi, because my main interest was Coral World and Coki Beach, the next time we would probably do a tour just to learn more and to have better picture ops! I can't imagine that a day at St. Thomas could be bad! It was an absolutely gorgeous place to visit, and I am hoping that we will be back next year! When we were ready to leave the beach, there were plenty of taxi's waiting to take us back. The fish were amazing at the beach, beautiful snorkeling! I hope you all have as great as time as I did! Bon Voyage!

[Northender]

Northender did you find a private tour? If not let me know I may have a suggestion for you.

 

Yes, I booked with Godfrey. But I am always willing to listen:D

[Cruisin2Sun]

Cruisin2sun...what is the "Right" way to ask about getting in line with other early excursion folks? Is there a trick?

 

Sorry Eric, i haven't been on here this week til now...

 

And I'm realizing the way I worded that could have been better, LOL. I guess there is no "right" or "wrong" way to ask, but my experience is...I see a lot of upset, cranky folks on a cruise giving the crew a hard time. It's a CRUISE! I can't find much to complain about! I just approach the crew member, explain as humbly as I can, that I realize this line may be for people on Carnival tours, but we have an early private tour and were hoping to merge in so as not to miss our tour or keep them waiting. I've had my tour reservation paper out, in case I had to show them. They've never flinched, never asked to see the reservation, just said ok - go ahead, and I "thank them very much!"

 

Good luck!

[Kraz_Eric]

Sorry Eric, i haven't been on here this week til now...

 

And I'm realizing the way I worded that could have been better, LOL. I guess there is no "right" or "wrong" way to ask, but my experience is...I see a lot of upset, cranky folks on a cruise giving the crew a hard time. It's a CRUISE! I can't find much to complain about! I just approach the crew member, explain as humbly as I can, that I realize this line may be for people on Carnival tours, but we have an early private tour and were hoping to merge in so as not to miss our tour or keep them waiting. I've had my tour reservation paper out, in case I had to show them. They've never flinched, never asked to see the reservation, just said ok - go ahead, and I "thank them very much!"

 

Good luck!

 

Thanks...I printed my papers out....and we are good to go! :D

[Northender]

I guess I will need to get my email from Godfrey out before sailing:)

We don't meet him until 9:30, so most of the early tours have left the ship by then anyway. I have not been to the new docking area for Princess, but assuming the excursion people are not much further away than it was in Havensight.....:)

 

I don't remember ever having a problem getting off a ship for a private excursion.

Is this something new? :confused:

[Cruisin2Sun]

Thanks...I printed my papers out....and we are good to go! :D

 

Good luck - let us know how it goes!

[Kraz_Eric]

Good luck - let us know how it goes!

 

I'll end up writing a full review of the trip...and I'll be sure to let ya know...thanks again!

[abbydoo]

We went with Sunny in March, which we chose based on recommendations on these boards. We had a great time! It took a VERY long time to get off the ship (Glory), and we were worried we wouldn't have enough shopping time. Angela (Sunny's wife) was very accommodating, even though we were more than an hour late for our scheduled tour time. I highly recommend you have some sort of confirmation with you to show the Carnival reps to prove that you have a booked tour or they may put you to the back of the Custom's line, as they allow "tours" off first. Also, if you are at all nervous when riding in a car, you may want to reconsider. St. Thomas is all hills and winding roads, and there were people on our tour who were a little unnerved. A few daiquiri's at Mountaintop surely help you to relax, though! Sapphire Beach is beautiful. We usually book and pre-pay for all of our tours. I was going to book directly with Sunny, but our TA offered to make the arrangements for our group of 18. Also, 2 people decided to go once we got into port, and we phoned Sunny directly and they were added with no problem. We had no issues, felt it was well worth the money, and I'm sure we will go on his tour again next year. We are sill singing "Evry Day o' the Week"!!

[tunisbridal]

just off the crown princess and we did Sunny's tour and it was terrific. He was a blast and we greatly enjoyed him. CAN'T GO WRONG WITH SUNNY

[Sandi149]

just off the crown princess and we did Sunny's tour and it was terrific. He was a blast and we greatly enjoyed him. CAN'T GO WRONG WITH SUNNY

 

Did he sing the "Days of the week" song on your trip? :D Sunny was great. We took his tour last month and had a blast.

[travlngrl1996]

We took Sunny's tour a week ago yesterday and yes he sang Evry day of the week. I am still singing it Woop-Woop!:D

[mkmkenn]

Have been in contact with both today. We are traveling to St. Thomas within the next 30 days, so I don't know if that impacts any of the terms, but:

 

Sunny - prepay 100% through Paypal. 1,2,3 hour option shopping to start the day. 1.5 - 2 hour tour of island. 2 hour beach time. Still awaiting a response as to whether it is any beach you want to go to, or his choice. Full refund if ship doesn't make port. $25 per person. 48 hour cancellation policy for 100% refund.

 

Henry - prepay 100% through Paypal. 9am pickup @ dock. Beach chosen by consensus of passengers. Tour follows beach time & lasts 1.5 hours. Shopping after tour (option to return to ship). Pickup at shopping area & return to ship. Full refund if ship doesn't make port. $35 per person. Under 5 free. 24 hour cancellation policy for 50% refund.

 

Have heard good things about both of these gentlemen & their tours, just wanted to give an FYI to everyone...

 

Mike

[Annabella29]

Thanks for the input - we will be in St-Thomas in the next month as well, and I'm still hesitating between Sunny, Henry and Godfrey. Every time, I think I've decided, I read something else that makes me waver! Oh, well, I guess I still have a few days to decide.

 

Does anybody know if you can take a chance and NOT reserve in advance, just sign up on the docks? Or are all the tours usually booked online and I risk being out of luck?

[rainyfromsharon]

My 14-year-old daughter and I did Sunny's tour from the Crown Princess about a week ago. We had a really great time and it was well-worth the $25 each, but just a few points:

 

If you want to shop, take the 9 am trip. We opted to do the 10 am pick up with 2 hours of shopping. Since the Crown leaves at 4 pm (which was not new information), Sunny cut the shopping time to 1 hour. We really only had about 45 minutes and felt like we missed a lot of the shops.

 

Understand and accept that majority rules. Sunny is flexible and will go to your choice of beach or stay longer or shorter here at any of the places you visit. However, if you are in the minority, you have to just go where and when the majority decides.

 

Sapphire Beach? Our group decided to stop for an hour at Sapphire Beach. We did have an overcast day, but our stop at Sapphire Beach left us a little disappointed. It was small, did not seem very pretty to us, and since it was not a good day, there was only snack food being sold at the store. When I read the reviews about the beach's beauty, and snorkeling and parasailing there, I wonder if we went to the same place.

 

Be prepared to have the "Days of the Week" song stuck in your head for the rest of your cruise and maybe longer! It was so much fun to be driving around and singing those songs.

 

My daughter would like me to add that you do not want the "window seat" if it's windy and raining; keep your hands inside the bus; and to make sure you button down the plastic rain cover. The whole thing, pole and all, ripped right off the bus on our tour!

 

To answer Annabella, I am pretty sure that Sunny would have accepted you on the day of the tour. We were not nearly full on our bus and he picked up folks on the way back to the ship for taxi fare. Again, we were coming off the Crown Princess at that out-of-the-way dock and it was not a beautiful day, but there were plenty of tour guides vying for last-minute passengers.

 

While my daughter and I were on Sunny's tour, my husband and boys were on the Jolly Mon. They sailed and snorkeled with giant turtles. If anyone has any questions about Sunny's tour or the Jolly Mon, feel free to write me directly.

 

Lorraine

lorraine220@yahoo.com

[gamomluvs2cruise]

We booked with Sunny for 7/21, but Tim from Tim's tours showed up instead. Although, I was disappointed that we weren't with Sunny for the day because we missed out on his singing. Tim was actually an excellent tour guide, and we had a very nice time. The ride to the Mountain Top was beautiful, and the bushwhacker was very tasty!:D It was a scorching day, though!:eek:

[Northender]

"Sapphire Beach? Our group decided to stop for an hour at Sapphire Beach. We did have an overcast day, but our stop at Sapphire Beach left us a little disappointed. It was small, did not seem very pretty to us, and since it was not a good day, there was only snack food being sold at the store. When I read the reviews about the beach's beauty, and snorkeling and parasailing there, I wonder if we went to the same place."

 

Please elaborate a little more. We are planning Sapphire with a group. Was there parasailing available? That is our main reason for this beach.

 

Thanks:)

[kylescoolmom]

This is the first I heard this point of view on Sapphire. Wow I am shocked. I too would like to know a little more details. I would not want to be disappointed.

 

Thank you

[gamomluvs2cruise]

We went to Sapphire Beach. It wasn't that great to me; a little run down and on the small side. I was expecting more, and I think that is why I was disappointed. Don't get me wrong, it was still pretty. They do have more beach activities offered at Sapphire than the other more beautiful beaches, and it is also less crowded. So you do have to choose which is more important to you.:)

[mamaofami]

Magen's Beach definitely has rental chairs and umbrellas. The entrance fee was nominal and it is a beautiful beach. I've been many times and will go this winter again.:)

[Annabella29]

Thanks for your answer, RainyfromSharon - we still haven't decided if we will book in advance or just wing it. If we reserve in advance, and have confirmation, will that get us off the ship more quickly (even if it is not a Carnival excursion) ?

[cot427]

When I take Sunny in October, my group of 12 wants to go to Magen's Bay (with 12, hopefully other people want to too). Some of us already went to Sapphire Beach, and we were disappointed. So I really want to go to Magen's Bay, or I will be disappointed.

[mkmkenn]

I was told by Sunny that Megan's Bay is no problem, but that it would be an additional $5 (for the group, not per person) for the trip back to the ship. Not sure why this is, but it is what it is...