Review of Oscar Brown Tour

[enzee]

We used Oscar Brown when we were in Costa Rica on December 17th, from the Carnival LEGEND. All I can say is GREAT !!!!! Oscar was very easy to get a hold of, and was very pertinent on answering all questions I had before the trip. He e-mailed back in a quick manner and was just GREAT !! His niece (?) had a sign for us as we got off the LEGEND, and we met Oscar. What a nice guy !!! He explained that he was taking a group to the Sloth Sanctuary, so he took us to meet his cousin, Ryan. Ryan took us (4 people total) on the Tour #1 that Oscar offers. Ryan was very nice and explained everything and was very informative. We did a little city-tour first, then Ryan took us to a beach to take pictures. Meanwhile, explaining all of the plants and such. Then we went looking for Howler monkeys. Unfortunately, Costa Rica does not have a dry season, and it was raining that day. The Monkeys stay buried in the trees when it rains, so no luck (YET). He took us to a friend's house who has a momma, and baby sloth and we got to hold it and take pictures. SOOOOO CUTE... !!!! (BTW - we watched the video of those that took a ship shore excursion to the sloth sanctuary -- they did not get to hold or touch the sloths -- we did !!!!! ). Ryan then took us to another friend's house who had toucans, and parrots, and other Island birds. We also got to try cocoa, fresh from the fruit -- which tastes NOTHING like chocolate !! Then we went to the Del Monte banana plantation and saw the works of that place. Man, you have to SEE it to believe it, and then learn how LITTLE they make for all of the MANUAL labor they do. Was incredible !!! Next was a trip to the Tortuguero Canals, where we got on a boat and sailed the canals. That was cool !! Again, there was only our group of 4, Ryan, and the guide on this boat, so it was pretty one-on-one which was nice. Yes, WE SAW MONKEYS !!! And the scenery was just as great. Last stop -- to the top of a hill to get a high-top view of Costa Rica. Was beautiful, EXCEPT , it was raining that day, so was dark and overcast. Would have looked better in the sunlight, but still fascinating. Then, we took other cruise critic advisers advice, and asked Ryan to take us to a supermarket so we could buy coffee. GOOD CALL !!! We got 7-8 bags of Costa Rican coffee for only $10 !!!!! Ryan was nice enough to even take us into the store, help us find it, and talk to the workers and stuff. If he hadn't gone with us, we would've never found it or anything. He really went out of his way for this.

All-in-all -- OSCAR BROWN's TOUR WAS GREAT !!! I'm so greatful to cruise critic for allowing people to post things like this. There was nothing offered by Carnival that would have allowed us to see all that we did, and only for $45 a head. NO WAY !!! What a great deal. And -- Oscar's troupe was so nice, considerate, helpful, and just a joy !!! I was very pleased !!!!!!!!!! GREAT JOB and I recommend him to help anyone see Costa Rica. Oscar offers more than just this tour -- so talk to him and he will do what you want !! It's only a small group of him and his cousin, so he wants to expand -- if he keeps this up he will have NO PROBLEM doing so. TRUST HIM -- contact him for your tour of Costa Rica !! Thanks Oscar and Ryan -- you guys were GREAT !!!!

[FastFreddie]

All I can say is that Oscar Brown does a fabulous job. I loved seeing Costa Rica and Puerto Limon is quite beautiful. Oscar takes you to his friends houses. You see pet sloths, local tropical flowers and fruits growing in these peoples yards. when we went to the Banana Plantation it was a holiday and there were only 2 or 3 workers there it was amazing. We went to the top of Puerto Limon to a local restaurant. The food was incredably inexpensive and really tasted great. In fact the restaurant manager, from our ship, and some of his staff were there dining. Oscar is a very knowledgable man. Not only about his country but also about how things grow. If you go to Puerto Limon don't miss this tour. There is nothing that any of the cruise lines offer that can top this.

 

 

FastFreddie

[blong2200]

We toured with Oscar off the Zenith on Jan. 4. I can't say enough nice things about him or the tour. It is worth every cent of the $45.00 per person he charges. He is so nice and you don't even want to leave him when you get back to the ship.

[BuddyR]

enzee,

You said that it was easy to get hold of Oscar by email--I'm having all kinds of trouble. Could you give me the address you used so I can be sure I have the correct email??

 

Laura

[Elcruzer]

I agree that Oscar gives a great tour. See my post in this forum on our tour Jan. 20. He can be reached by e-mail at cbrown@costarricense.cr and he usually answers within a day or two. If you have any other questions I will be gladly help to answer.

Eleanor

[houstontx]

How does a person contact this Oscar Brown? Does he have a web site, email, phone # ?? How do know what he has to offer in way of tours or whatever?

 

Any info will be appreciated.

Thanks very much,

houstontx

[Elcruzer]

houstontx - See my post just above yours, includes Oscar's address. I would check the tours the ship offers and tell Oscar what you are interested to see and do and he will suggest a tour for you. He is very accommodating and will try to take you to wherever you want.

Eleanor

[SusieQT]

When we were in CR, I was told it is illegal to have sloths and monkeys as "pets" in personal homes. Does anyone else know anything about this?

[YYZTOOL]

Hello Oscar/Benjamin.

We spoke on the telephone on Sunday (DAVE) and you suggested to place a comment here that you would pickup when you returned from your outing.

INFO: Arriving Celebrity GALAXY Wednesday March 16 Puerto Limon, Costa Rica, 7:00 AM

26 People Booked under name SAVARD See you at 8:30AM. You can e-mail me at info@beckard.com SUBJECT OSCAR

 

Oscar Cell: 011 506 350 6415

Home number: 011 506 758 1881

E-mail: cbrown@costarricense.cr (Very Unreliable E-mail)

[houstontx]

Hello yyztool,

 

You've talked to Oscar and you have 26 people booking with him....I haven't received a response yet from Oscar's email. I'd like to know what tours he offers. We wanted to do the Aerial Tram but have heard lukewarm to cold remarks regarding it. We're thinking about Canal trip.

 

So, what tour or tours are you booking with him? (ie: what will the tour for your group consists of?)

 

Appreciate any help/advice from you.

Thanks,

Alan

[mvago]

Isn't he just a TAXI DRIVER?

[Driftwoodgal]

Houstontx,

 

Email me through my website and I will send you all of the information on Oscar's tours. He actually will do what ever you want to do that day in Puerto Limon. You could call him and just use a telephone card. The internet is iffy at time in Costa Rica.

 

Mvago,

 

Oscar is a tour guide that takes you to interesting places in his country. A taxi cab driver drives you from place to place and then ask for money at the end of the ride. Oscar explains about customs, climate, flora etc.... so I wouldn't rank him as a taxi cab driver IMHO.

[phillipahain]

Cannot recomend Oscar highly enough and especially his driver Charles and the boat driver Harlyn

 

They were superb and we saw far more than anyone on the ships excursion would have done

 

Theirs one complaint though 4 of the 16 people booked failed to turn up at 8am ...........Oscar and the rest of us patiently waited till 8.15am but they did not show up

It was 8.45 am when Oscar is phoned on his mobile and they demand he goes back to collect them

 

Oscar arranges for the rest of us to tour a gift shop while he returns to the pier to collect the 4 ............only to discover they have gone off with another tour

 

Those 4 people know who they are and they are a total disagrace

 

They knew to turn up on time

 

They delayed and messed up 12 others

 

They deeply upset Oscar and his sister who try so hard to provide first class service and such behaviour is totally unacceptable

[GrannyB]

Just want to add my thanks to Oscar Brown. We had a group of 9 on Feb. 20. One of the guys was very hesitant about using a local guide. After the tour, he sang Oscar's praises to everyone he met! We had a wonderful time. Oscar is the best.

[sunworshipper3]

Just want to add my thanks to Oscar Brown. We had a group of 9 on Feb. 20. One of the guys was very hesitant about using a local guide. After the tour, he sang Oscar's praises to everyone he met! We had a wonderful time. Oscar is the best.

 

Hi Granny B! We're scheduled to do the zip lines with Oscar Brown on March 25th. I don't remember ever getting an actual cost. If you don't mind my asking, what did you pay per person for Oscar's tour? Thanks so much!

Pat :cool:

[Epp]

Hi all/Oscar, I have emailed Oscar twice and have not received an answer. We will be on the Brilliance of the Seas, in port in Costa Rica March 24. We were interested in doing the canals, banana plantation, shopping for some good local crafts. Any suggestions on how to reach him?

 

Thanks

[Driftwoodgal]

If you have trouble getting an email post back from Oscar, then I would call him. The email system in Pureto Limon, Costa Rica is not reliable.

 

Get a internaltional phone card from Target, Walmart, Sam's anywhere and call him on his cell phone. 011 506 350-6415.

 

It is well worth the call. YOUR computer might be blocking a return email from Oscar as spam. If you want a great tour.... pick up the phone and talk to him directly. He is well worth the extra effort, and he and his group will give you a tour that you will be talking about for months. One last tip... make sure you have a camera.

[GrannyB]

Oscar charges $45 for tour #1, payable at the end of the tour in dollars. Don't know what the zip line tour costs.

[Driftwoodgal]

The zipline at Almonds and Corals cost us $40 when we did it in January 2004. Our transportation with Oscar and all of the side tours with him cost us $30.....so a total of $70.00 for a fun an a fun packed day. If you went with the ship for this type of tour it would cost you well over a $100.

 

Can't wait to have our tour with Oscar in 2006..... We already have him booked for Jan 31, 2006.

[beagle lover]

I hear such good things about his tours. We have never booked a non-ship tour. We want to see the wildlife, rain forest, (not zip lining), maybe interact with the sloths. Have e-mailed Oscar but no reply as yet. Any suggestions as to tour, price, where to find him upon disembarking, method of payment. etc.

 

This is my first post so I hope everyone see this.

 

Eleanor:) :confused: :confused::cool:

[houstontx]

Hi all/Oscar, I have emailed Oscar twice and have not received an answer. We will be on the Brilliance of the Seas, in port in Costa Rica March 24. We were interested in doing the canals, banana plantation, shopping for some good local crafts. Any suggestions on how to reach him?

 

Thanks

 

I had the same problem using my standard email which I've had No Problem with anywhere else. But it's just the telecommunication infrastructure in Costa Rica.

So, here's what to do.... go to Yahoo.com and open an email address for yourself (it's free). Email Oscar from your Yahoo email and that should reach him.

This is what I did and I've corresponded with him (Actually, Carol) three times with no problems!!! I usually get a response from them the very next day.

 

Try this and I'm sure it'll work for you.

[tutzig]

I used Yahoo email and emailed Oscar 3 times, never got a responses back.... Still undecided on COasta Rica, but very hesitant to use him....

 

Tim and Colleen

[Driftwoodgal]

There is a very, very, very, very, simple way to get in touch with Oscar. There are several posts about the email system in Costa Rica having problems. The phones work great....... Use your telephone by calling directly from your phone or get a international phone card ( Get them at Target, Walmart) and again use your phone but charging it to the international phone card. Call this number 011 506 350 6415 and you will reach Oscar on his cell phone. That is how I got in touch with Oscar over a year ago, I was having trouble getting through to him by email as well. If you read the posts about him you will see that he is well worth the extra effort to have a magical day in Puerto Limon. If you don't want to buy the phone card you can just call directly from your phone. That is what I did, but later found out it is cheaper to have the phone card. I will post below an email that I got from Oscar for our up coming cruise in January 31,2006. Oscar if you read this be sure that Carol has us down for that day. For those that judge Oscar's reliability by not getting a return email then it is your loss, as he is a wonderful man and a great tour guide.

 

Tour #1.

 

The Tortuguero Canal tour is a tour through the rain forest, where you can see all wild life: alligator, monkeys, slots, different type of birds, Then I will take you to the Bamboo trade school, banana plantation, coco beans farm, City tour, the two biggest hotels around the coast, one is a botanical garden, and the other one has a nice vie and a tall hill, a white sand beach, the rich area, and a surprise stop; witch will take you to the highest part of the city . I include soft drinks along the tour. This is $45 per person.

 

Tour #2.

 

The Canopy tour: This is a sieve line where you switch from one three to a another: Hiking in the jungle., I include a stop on a white sand beach are a black sand beach, it is your chaise, a visit to the Bamboo trade school, banana plantation, coco beans farm, City tour, the two biggest hotels around the coast, one is a botanical garden, and the other one has a nice vie on a tall hill, the rich area, and a surprise stop; witch will take you to the highest part of the city. This is $70 per/person, no extra charge. This includes transportation and zip lining. I will make the reservation, it is better that way.

 

Tour #3.

 

Tour to the Aerial Tram:

 

This tour takes you to the highest part of Costa Rica giving you the best vie through the rain forest. And the way to this place you see pine apple plantation, carne fields and rafting river. This is $45 for transportation and you pay $49.50 for the going on the aerial tram. Then After I will take you to a surprise stop. This tour is for 6 to 7 hours, I include soft drink along the road

 

If you want to go the Sloth Sanctuary I will take you, but you have to pay a fee to enter this place, and with the tour that I give you will see sloth and other animals.

 

Please reply.

 

Tour #4

Costa Flores, and the butterfly tour, here you see lots of flowers all different variety , the same thing at the butterfly place, the only thing is that they charge to enter each places, and I charge a special price for the transportation to both paces; $60 per person. I include in this tour, pine apple and banana plantation, a stop at a place where you see all different species of fish, soft drink along the road.

It is possible that his prices might change with the cost of gas. I know that a tour that we had booked in Antigua was increased if we wanted to go to the beach because of the high cost of gas. Their cost was about $6.00 a gallon I think.

[djddjd]

They left us on the pier and never showed up. Never gave us a meeting time and we docked at 7 AM , planning to meet them at 9. Arranged another tour at the pier.

[patrickmoran]

enzee;

 

We also will be on the Legend and have booked OB for Tour #1. I just noticed that we are scheduled to dock at noon ET (11am Belize time). Was this the same time that you docked? How long was the total tour? Thanks