What to do?!

[danf161]

My wife and I are cruising on the Victory on Nov. 8th for our 1yr anniversary. One of our stops will be in Dominica. We haven't found anything we want to do with the cruise line. What's the shopping/food like within a reasonable distance to the ship? What about non-ship associated tours on the island? Any suggestions? :confused:

 

-Dan

[138east]

The shopping is poor on Dominica - some nice baskets but that's about it. Not a lot of restaurants either. Dominica is an "Eco" island so there are lots of short hikes to waterfalls, hot springs, tubing, Indian villages, kayaking, etc. I have used Antours for tubing and Levi for the Roseau Valley tour. Folks also use Beno and Woody. There are many threads on this forum discussing the various options. Because this is a volcanic island, the beaches are not a major attraction. Dominica is a beautiful island and not to be missed. However, you should look at the independent tour options, make a reservation, and go for it. Most of the independents use vans that hold 10-12 people instead of larger tour buses. IMO this is much better on the hilly, windy Dominica roads and a smaller group is more manageable. I went with Levi earlier this year and our group got off about 8 am. We were the first ones to Titou Gorge. By the time we got to Trafalgar Falls, the tour buses were out in force and the trail was more crowded. However, we went beyond the observation platform and had a nice soak in the hot pools in the river. We stopped at the hot springs, drove through the Botanical Garden, and went up to an observation area to overlook Roseau. We then went out to Champagne Reef, but the surf was too choppy to snorkel from the shore. It was a great day - I would highly recommend this tour.

[chachi]

Wow, I can't believe you didn't find anything. This is the port where I am having the hardest time deciding. There are 8 excursions I want to do. I am hoping to squeeze in 2. I will have to see the times they are offered to see if it will be doable.

[Friscorays]

An old thread with a list of twenty possibilities:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=383177

 

Anything there catch your fancy?

[rjscott]

Dan, what sorts of things are you and your wife looking to do? We've toured twice with Reyno and he offers a variety of tours. You can contact him at reynotours@hotmail.com to discuss how long of a tour you'd like to do and what activities you might like to include. Reyno has several vans and drivers available, and he always provides a guide to accompany his passengers. We've had Rosalind both times and she was just so much fun. As Reyno drove, Rosalind would point out places of interest, and we would often stop for photo op's. Then, if we were on a walk or hike, she would identify plants, flowers or wildlife for us, making the walk much more interesting.

As mentioned the shopping is not great, but as you exit the pier area, there is a craft market where there are some locally made craft items, such as baskets and fans. Also, some nice soaps and other items from the island. There was also a woman selling some sodas and local beers from a cooler for a couple of $'s, and so my husband had a nice, cold beer to enjoy while I strolled around the craft market. :)

Edited November 3, 2009 by rjscott

[DiTomCruisers]

My wife and I are cruising on the Victory on Nov. 8th for our 1yr anniversary. One of our stops will be in Dominica. We haven't found anything we want to do with the cruise line. What's the shopping/food like within a reasonable distance to the ship? What about non-ship associated tours on the island? Any suggestions? :confused:

 

-Dan

 

We did the Kayak tour through Princess. We loved it..

[lcmslady]

My wife and I are cruising on the Victory on Nov. 8th for our 1yr anniversary. One of our stops will be in Dominica. We haven't found anything we want to do with the cruise line. What's the shopping/food like within a reasonable distance to the ship? What about non-ship associated tours on the island? Any suggestions? :confused:

 

-Dan

 

When we went to Dominica in December 2009, we booked a private tour with Beno and it was the highlight of the week. We wanted to go to the Caribe Indian territory, so he took us to the village where we took a tour and bought some baskets. He then took us to a waterfall (can't remember the name).

Dominica is still relatively unspoiled and beautiful. Enjoy the day and your trip!

[travelite]

When we went to Dominica in December 2009, we booked a private tour with Beno and it was the highlight of the week. We wanted to go to the Caribe Indian territory, so he took us to the village where we took a tour and bought some baskets. He then took us to a waterfall (can't remember the name).

Dominica is still relatively unspoiled and beautiful. Enjoy the day and your trip!

We are considering a Carib Indian Eco-village tour. Sounds similar to your tour.

This one reads: approx. 5 hour tour - With Carib Indian guide visit the Botanical Gardens; continue to Morn Bruce overlook; journey to Hibiscus Falls in the rain forest (approx. 60 stairs at falls -- option to take a dip in pool at bottom of falls); organic, vegetarian, buffet lunch at eco-village; Indian dancing; drive through Carib Indian territory with photo stop and craft stalls; photo stop at Castle Bruce black sand beach.

Is this the tour you did? If so could you be specific on what you liked and dislike and why.

We have been to Dominica before and went into the rain forest very far from Roseau. Looking for something different to do this time.