indie

I uploaded a quick video clip with him in it on youtube. The little dog bark noise is him goofing around.

Do you remember the tour operator and would you recommend them?

I would absolutely recommend him and I would tour with him again next time I visit. He gave narration the whole time, had a great sense of humor, made sure we got out and took pictures of us at all of the beautiful locations, pointed out celebrity youth homes, and was very patient at each stop and interacted with everyone.

All of the tour operators have t-shirts that say Happy Tours but they have different individual tour company brands and pricing. He was an older gentleman and I cannot remember his real name but his nickname was "Kunta Kinte" and he went by Kunta Kinte Tours. I had his business card and phone number but cannot find it.

I tried to post some pictures just of the tour guide now but the image host appears to be blocked. I will come back and post some pictures if I can.

The tour took us to around the old city and we saw many of the statutes, historical buildings and celebrity homes like the childhood homes of Ricky Martin, Julio Cesar Chavez, and I cant remember who else. We drove through the new city as he pointed out different buildings and places. We made stops at a few scenic spots and he took us to different vantage points of the forts. We stopped at Paseo De Los Presidente with all of the president statutes, went a park like area with some other statutes and a very nice view of the waves and rocks, we got some snacks and drinks at a store next to this stop, we went into the Capital Building which was all decorated for Christmas and we even had a tour of all of the beautiful art on the ceiling of the capital and a lot of historical information about Puerto Rico. . We were there for about 20-30 minutes. We also stopped at a small beach area right next to a bridge with a view of one of the forts. We saw the governor's mansion. Then we went to see both forts and the cemetery between. We only drove by San Cristobal and we stopped at El Morro. We had the option to stay and tour El Morro but would have needed to walk back or catch a cab as the trolleys were not running yet, but we chose to be dropped off in a square right across from Cafe Puerto Rico and walk back the two blocks to the ship. It was a great way to spend a few hours.

I was there in early December. Tons of tours available right at the end of the dock from locals. Did an old and new San Juan tour for $15pp for nearly 3 hours, got dropped of in a beautiful square about 2 or 3 blocks from the ship and ate at Cafe Puerto Rico, bought a frozen sherbert from a street cart and walked back. Everything seemed to be open in Old San Juan and couldn't really even notice a hurricane had hit unless you looked for tree damage in some of the parks or roofs of the homes on the water between the Forts.

Buildings we're decorated for Christmas.

I have used Park n Cruise (2x) and Park Port Canaveral just a couple of weeks ago.

Prices fluctuate so keep an eye out.

Both are excellent and would not hesitate to use either again.

We shall be on a cruise in the middle of next month with a stop in St. Thomas. Does anyone know the status of Emerald Beach? It is our favorite.

We were at Emerald beach on December 6th. It is in good shape. Beach bar/restaurant has a few leaks (had a deluge of rain that day) but otherwise it was beautiful.

Had a great time.

Just back off of Oasis. You could not take 3 steps after leaving the dock without being offered a tour. We we're hit with 3 offers at $25, $20 and $15 per person. We went with a very nice older gentleman for $15 per person. All had nice air conditioned mini buses and offered 2 1/2 to 2 hour tours. We paid at the end and had a great time and many landmark and sightseeing stops in old and new San Juan. Everything was beautiful. We spent about 20 minutes at the capital building and toured inside. Last stop was El Morro Fort. We could stay there or be dropped of at a nice square 2 block from the ship. We got dropped off at the square and ate at Cafe Puerto Rico which was in the square. Had a frozen sherbert from a vendor as well on our short walk to the pier. Lots of vendors and seemed like everything was open.

All operators have shirts that say happy tours it seems but are operating under their own brand and have different prices. I need to find the business card of our operator as I would use him again. His tour company was Kunta Kinte Tours.

I will be with you on this sailing!

Thanks for posting - we are there in December and plan to go [emoji4]

 

 

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Have a great time. I should be there on December 6th!

Reopened today.

Here is a video

Video from today.

But my oh my, look at lindquist beach on November 10th.

Stingray City is one of those must do things! We use Moby Dick and have used them twice over the years. https://www.mobydicktours.com/

 

And in Cozumel, we usually go to Chakanaab. It is a National Park, entry is about $21 per adult ($2 off discount coupon avail on the web, use Google) and has most everything you could want. The food is good, the drinks cheap and is about a $12 taxi ride from the port. (That is $12 for the Taxi, not $12 per person). There are lots of different things to do, snorkel, swim with the dolphins, a Tequila tasting, lay out on the sand or under a palapa. Their website does not do the place justice. http://www.cozumelparks.com/eng/chankanaab.cfm I'm headed there again in about 70 days, will make my 7th time!

My exact recommendations. Awesome excursions. Moby dick was a great experience .

Chankanaab is sprawling and beautiful with a nature path with well done replica ruins and there is a free Sea Lion show. You can also book an excursion to swim with dolphins, sea lions or manatees.

I can't believe nobody suggested YouTube yet. By the time I get on a ship, I feel like it's immediate family.

Thanks everyone. We've been to Old San Juan before and love it. Can't wait to see it again.

I just spent some time reading your blog. Love it!

What are you planning on doing? Walking OSJ? I'm trying to decide whether on not to cancel the ship new/old San Juan tour and just walk around and maybe catch a cab or trolley to the forts.

I am also from Columbia SC. My wife and I will be celebrating my 40th Birthday which is December 3rd on the Oasis.

I found an hour long video that gives the best view I have found yet of what it's like in San Juan. It was a live stream done two days ago and the individual is speaking Spanish. It is still beautiful and I am looking forward to my first visit in December.

We'll be on Oasis of the Seas December 3rd and are scheduled to port in Puerto Rico. Is Old San Juan in pretty good shape? We just intend on walking around town and checking out the forts, churches, shops, etc.

I am with you on this cruise. Never been to San Juan and had a tour booked through the ship but was thinking of cancelling and playing it by ear once we arrive.

Brenda and Franko's Fun Tours! Brenda and Franko are absolutely awesome.

Dec 3rd back to original itinerary. What's going on?

I've used parkncruise three times and had a good experience each time. The first was a little messy due to a ship delay and everyone seeming to arrive at the same time, but no fault of the company. The cruise terminal was also a madhouse with an extremely long line line.

I am booked with ParkPortCanaveral this December because they had a much better rate at the time I was booking and it seems that the majority of cruisers have equally good experiences with these two services.

If things go well, I will likely book whichever has the best price between the two or if even, most convenient to where I am staying pre-cruise.

I just emailed my TA last night to try to book the Valor for a family cruise after Thanksgiving and 8 rooms. I specifically wanted Grand Scenic Oceanview 9201 which isnt on Liberty.

:(

Thanks for the updated info. We are also going with Brenda and Franko's next week. Brenda has been so responsive to our emails and thoroughly addresses each question that we've brought up.

It sounds like we made the best choice for us-history, landmarks and of course, some beach time. :)

I'm sure you're going to have a great day but let us know how it goes!

Question for indie: Did you contact them via the link on their website or via direct email?

I filled out the form on their website a couple of days ago, but haven't heard back yet. Thanks.

I'm sorry i did not come back to this thread earlier. I did email both emails directly. Brenda responded quickly.

Freedom of the Seas arrived at 12:00pm ship time (1:00 island time) which was much later than other ships

When we arrived in St. Thomas and exited the gates, there was someone holding a B&F sign, and we told him we were looking for Brenda and Franko.

It was Elvis who many have reviewed here and on tripadvisor who usually works with Sunny Liston. Brenda and Franko couldnt pick us up on time due to the late arrival, so they arranged for us to tour with Elvis and said they could pick us up after the Beach.

Elvis took good care of us and gave a fun/good tour. He also had water and soda which was much appreciated. He was fun and had a great personality, but didnt get too in depth with the island history and just kind of pointed out certain landmarks. He did give us adequate time at lookout points, and took us to Coki Beach and set us up with a waitress who took good care of us at the beach.

After an hour and a half at the beach, Elvis came back to pick us up and take us back to the ship. At a certain point he pulls over and speaks to another taxi driver, and then Franko comes and asks us do we know who he is, then asks us to come join him and Brenda.

They wanted to make things right and make sure we got the full tour and to stop at and get the history on all of the sites they mention on the website. We made several more stops with Brenda and Franko and spent about another hour with them, 99 steps, blackbeard's and bluebeard's and the governors house. We took lots of pictures, Franko gave us much more history and great stories than we expected. We felt like we became great friends with Brenda and Franko in our short time. They took us back to the ship and Franko and I had a couple of shots of flavored rum and my wife and I took pictures with them before toasting (Brenda had water!) and going back to the ship.

I understand the scheduling issue, and Franko really wanted to make sure we had a great experience in St. Thomas. He went the extra mile when he didnt have to. We paid up front online and had gotten our tour, but he made it special and we got a little extra private tour with just my Wife and I and Brenda and Franko when all the other tour drivers had clocked out.

I'll book with them again next time! Also ended up with an awesome private tour and a van to ourselves in St Martin.

I am booked to tour with them on December 2nd with a late arrival from Freedom of the Seas. I will say, they have been the most responsive and professional guides I have contacted. They seem on the ball. I also like that they provide refreshments.

Chankanaab!! And do the dolphin encounter which is at Chankanaab. Love that place.

While I'm glad to see Sabor added, I'm a little disappointed with the main update being more cabins replacing public spaces.

Glad the mechanical issue has been addressed as I was on the November 30th sailing which had the significant itinerary change and the layover in Nassau.

I'm booked on Freedom for this coming end of November again.

I'm hoping there is a new broadway style production show as was once rumored, any word?