Has anyone ever used Okeydokey tours with Charlie Soto

[Putterdude]

Can anyone tell me what the cost for the A-1 tour is?

 

If you email him he will give you a price...he is very repsonsive to emails.:)

[Loucat]

Can anyone tell me what the cost for the A-1 tour is?

We just booked an A1 today and we were quoted a price of $59 pp.

[cd2]

We were just on Charlie's A-1 tour and it was $59.00pp except, not a big deal, but, we gave him $120.00 and received no change. We had already tipped Ginny (quide) and driver so we just laughed as we had really enjoyed the tour. The couple that was traveling with us didn't get change back either, like I said, no big deal, but we would just have rather Ginny had the extra few bucks instead of Charlie.

[Loucat]

We booked with Charlie for our tour last week and come away with mixed feelings. We were a group of 18 for the A1 tour. Some of our group were off the ship early and by the time we met hime ( at the time he advised), we were a smaller group. We were put in an older, smaller van.

Things were OK until we left the main road onto a really rocky path into the jungle. As I have back problems, once we reached the area where they provide fruit (kind of hokey), I said I could not continue on that van and I wanted to return to the ship. Charlie showed up in his car along with a taxi. I thought the taxi would take us to the ship; instead he took DH and I on the same tour as we would have had. This was very nice. One word of caution regarding the canal tour. When we arrived at the canal, we were quickly assigned to a boat which was way too small for me. I have been boating most of my life and I would not do this again. It was about 16 foot with about 4 benches. DH and I were seated on the last wooden seat, which was low in the water. There were two other adults and three teenagers with us. The boat had OLD life preservers and I would not want to test them out. When they saw something of interest, they steered the boat back and forth to get as close as possible to an iguana, a termite nest, a bird etc. The canal had garbage floating in it.

The constant vibration from gear changes was worse than the van:eek:

Our taxi driver was wonderful. He sat with us at lunch and we really enjoyed his information. When our tour was over, Charlie was there in his car, waiting for the return of his vans. It was obvious he was there to collect his fees, which was fine. If I did it again, I would like to try another agent. My safety comes first. Others in larger vans had a very different experience; large van, large canal boat etc.

[shakespeare]

We just returned from a land vacation in Costa Rica. Due to the good comments about Charlie on this board, I contacted him regarding an airport transfer to our hotel. At first he tried to combine a tour with the transfer at $99 p/p...since our flight was arriving at 2:35....didn't feel there would be enough time to do any touring since the hotel was a long drive from the airport. I had gotten lower quotes...even the hotel was charging less. He came down on his price, so we figured it would be better to go with him since he said he would make a stop at a grocery and have refreshments. When we arrived at the airport...he had a small car....so we were a bit cramped in the back seat for a ride that took almost two hours. We did stop at a little store, but no refreshments in the car...I figured I misunderstood and that would have been provided with a tour.

 

We asked him for ideas of what to see and he suggested the Arenal volcano...he emailed me a price to include refreshments, admission and lunch and transportation in an A/C van. We agreed to the price and set up the tour.

 

The next morning...another person showed up stating he worked for Charlie. He did not know where we were supposed to go and had to stop at a pay phone since he did not have a cell phone as he said Charlie wanted to talk to us. The driver informed us that the trip to Arenal was 4 hours each way:eek:

 

Charlie tried to talk us into doing something else and we decided to go back to the hotel. We felt bad for the driver and we finally worked out a tour to do and he called Charlie as I had no intention of paying the same price for a lesser tour...we had to remind him about lunch and refreshments.

 

We had a decent day, but I was very disappointed in Charlie. I wish he had been straight forward with us. We could have taken the same tour through the hotel for the same price. We did make an extra stop that the hotel tour probably didn't do...but I'm sure we would have been in a better vehicle and had lunch in a nicer place.

 

The van did have A/C and looked ok on the outside, but the seats were pretty beat up.

 

We enjoyed our stay in Costa Rica, but I would not use Charlie again or recommend him to anyone due to our experience. It only cost us $20 more to use the hotel's transfer to the airport in a comfortable SUV in excellent condition...well worth it:)

 

LIz

[unklez]

............

We enjoyed our stay in Costa Rica, but I would not use Charlie again or recommend him to anyone due to our experience. ......

 

LIz

 

I had a bad experience with Charlie too. It seems to be a hit and miss with him. I think he is just a consolidator not a real operator.

[cruisinlawn]

any other recent trips with Charlie? we are booked for this Summer and wondering if we need to reconsider. Seems he may be hit or miss???

[unklez]

When I saw this question, I answered with our honest experience using this agent just two weeks ago. We are seasoned cruisers also and I put alot of effort researching tour operators. What I read before booking was all positive. Our experience was not as positive for the reasons I described. Others will have different experiences.

 

Mine neither. I have posted extensive info on what went bad for us with this agent.

[Loucat]

Mine neither. I have posted extensive info on what went bad for us with this agent.

I think that your previous post hit it. There is an obvious network of taxi drivers, van drivers, boat or row boat owners, restaurant owners etc. that work with Charlie. As stated, our taxi driver was great; our canal tour in a rowboat was not something I want to do again. I live in South Florida on a canal with alligators. I would not get into a boat the size of the one in we had in Costa Rica in my canal. CC is about information and we all have different experiences as I stated in my OP.

[unklez]

........... our canal tour in a rowboat was not something I want to do again. I live in South Florida on a canal with alligators. I would not get into a boat the size of the one in we had in Costa Rica in my canal. ............

 

Loucat,

 

While I agree with you on the poor service provided by this agent, I am not sure that the size of the boat for the Tortugera Canal Tour has much to do with him. The same boats were being used many other passengers at Tortugera Canal. I am guessing even operators that serve the cruise lines use the same boats.

 

Regards,

[Loucat]

Loucat,

 

While I agree with you on the poor service provided by this agent, I am not sure that the size of the boat for the Tortugera Canal Tour has much to do with him. The same boats were being used many other passengers at Tortugera Canal. I am guessing even operators that serve the cruise lines use the same boats.

 

Regards,

I have to disagree here. Our CC friends ( 18 in all) booked this same tour. They were alll in larger, safer boats. I have used RCC tours many times and I am sure they would never risk putting passengers in a row boat with four wooden seats and old, dried up life preservers. This was an event where anything that floats could be used.

 

Again, I am not anti-Charlie Soto. If I had read that someone advised checking out the boats that tour the canal, I would have had more information and made a better decision. I am trying share our experience so others are not put into the same situation. This canal could be a problem as it does have alligators.

 

Yes, the boats that are used do have something to do with the agent. When we arrived at the canal, our taxi driver informed the person loading boats that we were with Charlie's tour. We were quickly hearded onto this row boat.

My observation was the boat was owned by a young man and that was what he could offer. When we arrived back at the pier, a woman was there holding a baby. She helped us out of the boat.

 

This will be my last entry on this. I am offering information for others to consider and not looking for an analysis of tour agents; RCC; Charlie Soto or our experience.

 

I am beginning to feel that I have to justify my entry when I am only trying to say to others what I did not do- consider your safety when you travel.

[unklez]

....I am only trying to say to others what I did not do- consider your safety when you travel......

 

Yes Loucat, I absolutely agree that everyone should consider their safety. My beef with Charlie Soto was that he completely mis-represented what he would provide. I have posted the details elsewhere on CC. Having said that, I think Costa Rica is a fantastic location and we still had a good time in spite of everything.

 

....... the boats that are used do have something to do with the agent.....

 

Maybe someone who has taken this tour with RCCL can comment on the safety or otherwise of those boats, life jackets, etc?

[orangearmy]

We were in Costa Rica on April 27th and also took a tour with Okey Dokey Tours. We would take a tour with Charlie anytime. He and his driver Juan met the 4 of us at the end of the peir in Punterenas and off we went with Juan in a nice minivan stocked with Beer and soft drinks on a day filled with fun and memories. Yes, the tour changed a bit as we went along but Juan always gave us the option of what we wanted to do. We fed Monkeys, went to a fruit stand for some of the freshest tropical fruit I have ever had (Juan picked up the tab). We stopped at a bridge for some great shots of the crocodiles below us. Then it was time to Zipline at a resort hotel and have lunch there (Juan picked up the tab.) Heading back we stopped at a local store where all the merchandise was locally made. Lastly Juan stopped at a liquor store in Punterenas where we picked up some Wine. Juan came along to make sure we wern't ripped off. So in summary we had a great day with Okey Dokey and any changes in our tour were a choice we made. Thanks for a great day Charlie and Juan.

[cruisinlawn]

used them in mid-May and had a great time. Had Rey and Steyton. They catered to every request and had us back to ship as we asked. Went on the zip, banana plantation, canal tour. Enjoyed it all. I made clear to Charlie via email prior to sailing that we would like private tour for our group of 8. It was honored the entire tour. Had nice van with cold A/C. As for the canal boat, it was sufficient in our case though we would have like a little larger due to recent rains having water levels up..and swift. As stated, what we had was sufficient. I also had asked Charlie to be our personal guide, he stated that he would. This did not happen. Upon our arrival, we met and he introduced us to Rey and Steyton and explained we would be with them. We were fine with this, actually pleased as I had read much about these two guys. I think our day was prolly more enjoyable with these two based on our experience and what I have read here. Although, as in other posts, I was little disappointed in the way Charlie handled it. We did not let it interfere with our day in any way and had no second thoughts when paired with Rey/Steyton. We would return with these guys anytime. CR is a fantastic place and we hope to return some day via land vacation. Enjoy.

[unklez]

........CR is a fantastic place and we hope to return some day via land vacation. Enjoy.

 

CR is surely a fantastic place. The question is whether the tour operator, guide and the driver added some value in showing you their beautiful country. In our case, we got very little for our money from Charlie Soto and his tour. We still had a nice time due to the excellent country sights, beach, etc.

[dna515]

Can anyone tell me their experience with the A-2 tour in Limon, Costa Rica?

[cruisinlawn]

Can anyone tell me their experience with the A-2 tour in Limon, Costa Rica?

 

check couple post up (#64), this was my quick take with our experience. We took the A-2 though we chose to alter a bit due to our port times. No fault of Charlie and co. Let me know other questions. Enjoy.

[kyrisong1]

We did the zip line / plantation tour with Charlie and had an AWESOME time, we highly recommend him to anyone that asks.

We went with him in Limon because friends of ours had gone with him and recommended him to us. We were terribly satisfied with our tour, it was relatively inexpensive compared to a lot of the cruise lines tours and we got a LOT of bang for our buck.

Carole

[NCTribeFan]

Has anyone toured with Charlie recently? Several of us are planning on doing the A-1 tour in December. His website states that lunch is not included, so I guess that has changed since some of the earlier posts.

[salth2o5]

I just got back from the tour with okey dokey tours and had a wonderful time.

Lunch was provided at Bonita Beach, a beach called black beach because the sand is dark gray. Lunch was rice, beans, chicken or beef, and plantains. Beer is also included in tour, you have to ask for it at lunch or they serve local soft drinks. The banana plantation was interesting and we saw monkeys on the way in the van. Yes others have better boats, but Charlies were fine and not being in a big group was wonderful. It was very easy finding him at the port, just walk pass all the big charter buses and in the back of the parking lot are the smaller tour buses. We had 8 adults and 1 child in our van. Front seat is a good spot for listening and also keeping cool. We also were at the front of the boat and could get wonderful pictures. Have fun we were on the Carnival Freedom 9-26-09.

[NCTribeFan]

Sounds great! I already emailed him and got a response that night. Really looking forward to this.

 

I think I'm in a minority, but I really am not the least bit interested in monkeys. In fact, I rather do not like them. :o There were some in Barbados when we stopped at a beach/shopping and I just stayed away.

 

Now, big, colorful, tropical birds is a different thing. I really hope to see some on this cruise.

[biddy belle]

Charlie has been most responsive to our request for the end of Nov., A-5 tour. Will see how it goes, since it is a new offering this year.

[path145]

I emailed OkeyDokey tours last night requesting prices for the the A-1 and A-5. I just received this response:

 

Yes this is the A-1 tour .. only $59 each p. include river cruise admission , refreshments fresh fruits and lunch , the A-5 New veragua rainforest, cost you $110 each p. and if you want i can give you an special combo for only $125 for both : the A-1 w A-5 ....6 hrs include country side, bananas , the wonderful tortuguero canal river cruise, and in Veragua where you can enjoy ,the : reptil, frogs sanctuary , butterflies garden , rainforest walk , waterfalls, and aerial tram , all inclusions: diet & reg sodas, water , costarican beers, fresh fruits and lunch at the rainforest, full air conditonmed van , no extra charge, no deposit or payments, you can pay me at the end of the tour, wear: t shirt, short pants, hat, sneakers or tennis shoes, returning at 2p-m in plenty of time to the ship

 

Not sure how he can combine both tours and have it still be only 6 hrs. I'll keep looking at different tour operators but I might go with the A-1. I found it interesting that he doesn't even require a deposit!

[CruiserDoc]

We had 28 people in our group on the B-4 tour from Puntarenas, two days ago. We had a great time with Charlie & Okey Dokey tours. He was extremely attentive and the tour lasted longer than originally discussed with him. It was very fun and informative. I would highly recommend Okey Dokey tours for a Costa Rica tour.

Tom

Reunions at Sea, LLC

[mefrench]

I've been reading all the reviews of okeydoketours and have noticed that no one has posted that they've been on the whitewater rafting trip, which is what we're interested in. Has anyone taken this trip and can comment on it?