Amber Cove Damajagua Waterfalls

Thanks for sharing the pictures. We leave this weekend for our cruise and we booked a trip to do all 27. My husband wanted to use a tour company so we are doing that route since its just the two of us. If our friends would have came we would have maybe done the taxi route. He is more brave with others :)

Thanks for sharing the pictures. We leave this weekend for our cruise and we booked a trip to do all 27. My husband wanted to use a tour company so we are doing that route since its just the two of us. If our friends would have came we would have maybe done the taxi route. He is more brave with others :)

You’re welcome!

Yes, had it been just two of us, a tour may have been more economical. Enjoy yourselves!

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We don't cruise for another 7 months, but I have already reserved the ship excursion. But it only does the first 7 watercourses. I booked it only because it is straightforward.

 

We would like to do the full 27, am just not sure of the options as to how to go about this. Maybe the taxi idea is best? I saw something about a charter bus, but you need a group for that I would imagine.

 

Anyway, will keep thinking on this and hopefully switch to the full experience as we get closer.

 

Thanks for the pictures and the info presented so far.

 

Don

We booked the DSRR bus rental for our June cruise. For $50, he will pick us up at the port, take us to the falls, including admission, gear, guide & lunch and take us back. This is a private tour. He has excellent reviews on trip advisor. I'll review our trip on cruise critic in June. This is why we cancelled our Carnival excursion of the falls - we wanted to do all 27 falls and liked the idea of not being in the crowds.

Sorry - too late to edit, but to clarify, the cost for DSRR bus tours is $50 per person not $50 total.

So when you get the taxi, do you just ask them to take you to the falls? If you don't go with a tour company, how do you get a guide?

No tour company. We walked out of the port area where taxi drivers were waiting. We agreed to a price of $100 round trip, and we paid the driver after we were returned to the cruise port. He was waiting for us at the falls when we finished. The waterfalls were about $14 USD per person, and we were assigned two guides who we tipped at the end. The company tried to sell us a photo package, but I brought my own water camera that one guide carried the entire time and filled with pictures and videos of my entire family.

 

 

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So when you get the taxi, do you just ask them to take you to the falls? If you don't go with a tour company, how do you get a guide?

Yes. They offered a more robust taxi tour, but we declined and chose just a round trip ride to the falls.

The guides are assigned at the falls, and the life jackets, helmets, and optional lunch are provided as well. Anyone selling a tour is actually just providing the transportation and paying for your waterfall tour for you.

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FWIW, we just got off of the Magic this morning and the trip to the falls by taxi is just as described.

We were in port approx 9:30 to 3:30pm and didn't get out to the taxi line until around 11:30am. We talked to a taxi driver who quoted the $100 round trip fee and he would wait for us. We got to the falls and there was a huge group of about 30-40 people from a Carnival excursion who had already suited up.

Our taxi driver quickly got us the equipment and got us into this group. I assume it was one of the last groups of the days (was around noon thirty at this point), just cause of the time and the fact that we had to be back on the boat in 3 hours.

We did the 45 min hike with a couple rest stops and then got into a huge log jam with others. There must have been 100's of cruisers at our first water fall. I think some of them were coming down from falls higher up. It took quite a bit of time to get thru our 7 falls. By the time we got done, it was after 3:30 but were very comfortable knowing we were with 100's others from the ship.

We got back to the ship around 4:30 beating the buses. We ended up giving our driver $180 which took care of the $100 ride plus $13x4 falls admission. $10 tip for the guides at the falls.

If I ever went back I would probably find a way to miss all of the crowds. It did get pretty chilly standing in the cold water or shade waiting for 100's of people to go down the slides and jumps.

My wife and I are very interested in doing this excursion. We are both very active but she did have back surgery a couple years ago and still has some sciatic discomfort. My fear is that she will jolt something in her back on the slides or jumps. I've seen notes of stairs or ladders and wanted to know if there was an option of getting down without sliding or jumping if (after going first I think it might not be good for her back)? TYIA

My wife and I are very interested in doing this excursion. We are both very active but she did have back surgery a couple years ago and still has some sciatic discomfort. My fear is that she will jolt something in her back on the slides or jumps. I've seen notes of stairs or ladders and wanted to know if there was an option of getting down without sliding or jumping if (after going first I think it might not be good for her back)? TYIA

I have herniated discs for years now (no surgery). I was worried about this too. I exercise all of the time but every now in then i will just get random bolts of pain that leave me frozen for a second or two. I did the trip no problem. Most of the jumps aren't bad. The slides were all fine. There are stairs to climb down if you don't want to do any of the big jumps. I ended up doing all of them. They show you the correct way to jump. Make sure you jump like pencil on the tall jumps. So you hit feet first.

I have herniated discs for years now (no surgery). I was worried about this too. I exercise all of the time but every now in then i will just get random bolts of pain that leave me frozen for a second or two. I did the trip no problem. Most of the jumps aren't bad. The slides were all fine. There are stairs to climb down if you don't want to do any of the big jumps. I ended up doing all of them. They show you the correct way to jump. Make sure you jump like pencil on the tall jumps. So you hit feet first.

Thank you! We really want to do this excursion but I'd hate for our trip to be ruined because of a bumpy slide (this is our first stop). Hopefully this can put her at ease and we can get back to fun excursions :D

How long did it take to hear back from Carnival? Thanks for the heads up too!

Heads up - Shore Excursioneer is advertising the same excursion as Carnival for $59.99 and the Carnival excursion is $104. You can book through Carnival and file a claim for the price protection guarantee for 110% on board credit for the difference. Our claim was granted and we were given $49 on board credit for the price difference. However, after further research, we are going to cancel our Carnival excursion reservation and book directly with DSRR bus rentals so we can do all 27 falls.

How long did it take to hear back from Carnival? Thanks for the heads up too!

It was within 24 - 48 hours. I believe I received a confirmation that they had received my claim right away and then they responded with the approval within a few days.

I did exactly what was shown below in the previous post on Saturday, and I got my onboard credit on Tuesday! My credit was $56.10 per person because Carnival was charging $110.99, and Shore Excursioneer was charging $59.99 with the special they had. So, the difference plus another 10% due to the price guarantee... IT WORKED! Thank you for sharing this HUGE money saving tip!

I can't wait to share with everyone once I am back from the cruise what this shore excursion experience is like.

This is the shore excursion offered by Carnival for my trip.

https://www.carnival.com/shore-excursions/amber-cove-dominican-republic/waterfalls-of-damajagua-adrenaline-adventure-445108?b=4B6D46585352394C78666F583379346C6A43696973413D3D

 

This is the shore excursioneer excursion that I used for my price match guarantee claim.

https://www.shoreexcursioneer.com/amber-cove/damajagua-waterfalls.html

 

All I did was use the price match guarantee claim form with Carnival here

https://www.carnival.com/request-forms/shore-excursion-best-price-guarantee.aspx

 

You do have to book the Carnival excursion first and then fill out the form. If they approve the claim, they will send you an email confirming that you have been awarded an on board credit for 110% of the price difference. Note: If you have other excursions booked with Carnival, this will bundle all of your excursions and you will no longer be able to cancel another reservation without cancelling all of them - including the newly discounted reservation.

Can you tell me if the 45 minute hike for the 27 falls was strenuous?

Can you tell me if the 45 minute hike for the 27 falls was strenuous?

I think it depends on your fitness level. I am 49 and carrying extra weight and I never exercise. I was able to do the hike, but was grateful for the breaks they gave us after each incline. I was a little winded but never felt like I couldn’t do it. Also, it is shaded most of the time so that helps. My teenagers and college-aged kids who are athletes had no problems at all with the hike. They really do give you lots of breaks.

Be careful when they tell you to be careful! I did slip on some rocks going downhill and bruised my knee pretty badly.

We had a wonderful time. The falls are beautiful and I’m so glad we did all 27. We were the only group there until we reached fall #7 and it got really crowded. I am glad we got to experience the upper falls before joining the masses!

I think it depends on your fitness level. I am 49 and carrying extra weight and I never exercise. I was able to do the hike, but was grateful for the breaks they gave us after each incline. I was a little winded but never felt like I couldn’t do it. Also, it is shaded most of the time so that helps. My teenagers and college-aged kids who are athletes had no problems at all with the hike. They really do give you lots of breaks.

 

 

 

Be careful when they tell you to be careful! I did slip on some rocks going downhill and bruised my knee pretty badly.

 

 

 

We had a wonderful time. The falls are beautiful and I’m so glad we did all 27. We were the only group there until we reached fall #7 and it got really crowded. I am glad we got to experience the upper falls before joining the masses!

I agree with this poster. Having the first 20 waterfalls to ourselves made for an amazing experience. My group, however, only had one break. They must work to accommodate the group. Since we were keeping up during the hike, they must’ve thought we didn’t need more breaks. Our ages ranged from almost 10 to 35, and we’re in good shape. A lot of heavy breathing though. I wish I could do that workout and be rewarded with those waterfalls every day.

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Can you tell me if the 45 minute hike for the 27 falls was strenuous?

Me and the wife hiked the trail for the 12 waterfalls. It didn't seem that bad. We took like 3 breaks for the 12. The wife and I are 46 and 52 and we smoke. No health issues and not overweight. We don't work out at all and made the falls just fine. Even though breathing heavy still wasn't that bad. Good Cardio for one who smokes and doesn't work out(LOL). I contribute my physically demanding job is why it seemed OK.

Me and the wife hiked the trail for the 12 waterfalls. It didn't seem that bad. We took like 3 breaks for the 12. The wife and I are 46 and 52 and we smoke. No health issues and not overweight. We don't work out at all and made the falls just fine. Even though breathing heavy still wasn't that bad. Good Cardio for one who smokes and doesn't work out(LOL). I contribute my physically demanding job is why it seemed OK.

Around how long did the hike take? Thanks.

Looking for a excursion in Amber Cove that our son can go on with us. We’ll be in Amber Cove on July 30 and he turns 8 October 6. Almost all of the excursions have a minimum age of 8. Any ideas? He’s a good swimmer, think he could handle the waterfalls? Thanks for any ideas.

Looking for a excursion in Amber Cove that our son can go on with us. We’ll be in Amber Cove on July 30 and he turns 8 October 6. Almost all of the excursions have a minimum age of 8. Any ideas? He’s a good swimmer, think he could handle the waterfalls? Thanks for any ideas.

Have you checked with private vendors? We used Marysol Tours for the Waterfalls a few years ago and I am sure there was at least one child under 8 on our trip. Iguana Mama is another vendor that gets good reviews. Both offer longer tours than what usually is offered on the ship excursions.

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Around how long did the hike take? Thanks.

I would guess 45 minutes to an hour is what it seemed like for the 12 falls.

Looking for a excursion in Amber Cove that our son can go on with us. We’ll be in Amber Cove on July 30 and he turns 8 October 6. Almost all of the excursions have a minimum age of 8. Any ideas? He’s a good swimmer, think he could handle the waterfalls? Thanks for any ideas.

I would agree with JT1962-- we used Iguana Mama and they were great!!!!!!

Around how long did the hike take? Thanks.

Sorry for the late getting back-- about 45 min-hour. 2-3 15 minute stops along the way for the 12 falls

Thanks, just trying to gauge how much whining I will encounter on the hike [emoji16]

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I think it depends on your fitness level. I am 49 and carrying extra weight and I never exercise. I was able to do the hike, but was grateful for the breaks they gave us after each incline. I was a little winded but never felt like I couldn’t do it. Also, it is shaded most of the time so that helps. My teenagers and college-aged kids who are athletes had no problems at all with the hike. They really do give you lots of breaks.

 

Be careful when they tell you to be careful! I did slip on some rocks going downhill and bruised my knee pretty badly.

 

We had a wonderful time. The falls are beautiful and I’m so glad we did all 27. We were the only group there until we reached fall #7 and it got really crowded. I am glad we got to experience the upper falls before joining the masses!

How did you like using Dsrr? How many other people were you booked with. We are thinking about giving him a try. Doesnt look like Marsol does the full 27 falls