Excursions

[dimepiece814]

What are the best excursions for St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Nassau? I've done the Atlantis Aquaventure excursion on Carnival last year. I had all morning and afternoon to experience Atlantis and the water slides (which are awesome!). Because we're in Nassau from 1pm - 7pm, that doesn't leave enough time to exeprience Atlantis again. The excursion is costly and I would like to get my money's worth. I'm thinkin of doing the zip line adventure in St. Maarten, but the ATV excursion sounds like fun. Any suggestions will be highly appreciated.

[southend1112]

we're going in august and are trying to do as many excursions as we can, because we might only doing this as a family once, because of age ect...

 

we haven't booked anything in nassau, mainly because the early arrival on our cruise and we don't want to do stuff on the first day, so we're just going to go to a few shops beaches ect..

 

for Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas we have booked:

Skyride to Paradise Point

which is at our leisure for the times

and

BOSS Underwater Adventure

09:30 AM - 01:45 PM

so we have around 5 hours for the sky ride.

 

for Philipsburg, St. Maarten we have booked:

Seaworld Explorer

08:00 AM - 11:15 AM

its a undersea boat/semi submarine. thought it would be a nice family one so we booked it.

and we also booked

Explore the Boardwalk the Fun Way- On a Segway

03:00 PM - 05:15 PM

mainly because we went segwaying before and loved it.

 

but we have found out the ship departs at 05.00pm so we would be 15 mins late, so we are not 100% on this one and may cancel.

 

hope this helps, this is what we thought was the funnest things to do.

[JeffersonSea]

We're leaving in 2 1/2 weeks, and have booked the following:

 

St Thomas - The Turtle Cove snorkel sail trip. Thought the boat was a little different, we've been on enough catamaran's, and all the reviews we read about this one were glowing. Seems like everyone just had a great time.

 

St. Maarten - Scuba (part of the scuba lesson/dive on Oasis)

 

Bahamas - We're gonna do a nice relaxing beach day with the sting ray combo. This is the only one we're doing with our 3 yr old and my parents, since they're not much for scuba and snorkeling. Plus, as said before, we didn't feel there was enough time to do the water park at Atlantis.

 

Happy to give reviews on all of these as soon as we get back, if not while we're on the ship!

[dimepiece814]

Thanks for the ideas. I will look into them. Sounds like fun. KimAndJeffC, we're on the same sailing. 17 days in counting. I'm staying in Florida the day before we sail out.

[JeffersonSea]

Thanks for the ideas. I will look into them. Sounds like fun. KimAndJeffC, we're on the same sailing. 17 days in counting. I'm staying in Florida the day before we sail out.

 

Cool! Us too, we're staying at the W Hotel on the beach the night before.

[nydoll1]

We were on last week and did Blue Lagoon in Nassau which we absolutely loved. You pick either a dolphin encounter or a sea lion encounter. We did the sea lions because we had done dolphins before and have to say it was a very intimate, friendly experience. Very small group, lots of time with the animals. The folks who work there are very very considerate of the animals, tell you all about them, their habits, etc. Lots of photo ops, petting ops, etc. but not pushy about selling the photos. You can then spend some time on their beautiful beach. We were supposed to do the St. John snorkel but rough seas cancelled all day trips to St. John so we switched to the Turtle Cove snail. It is a snorkeling trip to a small island that is a turtle breeding sanctuary, you get to snorkel right next to the turtles and see them eating, swimming, etc. Also good reef with lots of fish. It was a fun boat, great crew, my DH and two kids, 11 & 12 loved it. Final trip was to Wakiki beach at Orient Bay. We were originally on the Lord Sheffield but after we snorkeled the day before because of the St. John cancel we decided we wanted a beach day. We did the ship excursion which included nice bus, reserved lounge chair (another 3 bucks for an umbrella) two rum punches and a really nice lunch. You get three choices in the restaurant, chicken, ribs or fish, with salad, bread and rice.

[JeffersonSea]

We were supposed to do the St. John snorkel but rough seas cancelled all day trips to St. John so we switched to the Turtle Cove snail. It is a snorkeling trip to a small island that is a turtle breeding sanctuary, you get to snorkel right next to the turtles and see them eating, swimming, etc. Also good reef with lots of fish. It was a fun boat, great crew, my DH and two kids, 11 & 12 loved it.

 

I think this is the same excursion we just booked for St Thomas. Did you guys go on the ship Bones? We wanted to do something different than the typical catamaran, we wanted to swim with the turtles, and we wanted to have a good time doing it. All the reviews we read were glowing about the ship, the trip and the crew.

[srf mom]

We're leaving in 2 1/2 weeks, and have booked the following:

 

St Thomas - The Turtle Cove snorkel sail trip. Thought the boat was a little different, we've been on enough catamaran's, and all the reviews we read about this one were glowing. Seems like everyone just had a great time.

 

St. Maarten - Scuba (part of the scuba lesson/dive on Oasis)

 

Bahamas - We're gonna do a nice relaxing beach day with the sting ray combo. This is the only one we're doing with our 3 yr old and my parents, since they're not much for scuba and snorkeling. Plus, as said before, we didn't feel there was enough time to do the water park at Atlantis.

 

Happy to give reviews on all of these as soon as we get back, if not while we're on the ship!

 

KimandJeff.

I'm also thinking about the Turtle Cove snorkel and sail trip, but I can't decide between that and the ST. Johns Bay Classic Schooner. Have you heard anything about this one? I'm having a hard time booking excursions because my sister in law whom I'm going with just wants to "walk around and see what we find" and I'm more of a planner! Well, I may just have to leave her on the dock and book my own fun!! Thanks for any info you can give regarding choosing between these two, and also I'll be on the April 24th sailing and can't wait to meet all the cc people!!

Kim

[srf mom]

Well KimandJeff,

 

I took the plunge!! I went ahead and booked the turtle sail and snorkel!! My sister n law will just have to walk the town with someone else!!

[JeffersonSea]

Well KimandJeff,

 

I took the plunge!! I went ahead and booked the turtle sail and snorkel!! My sister n law will just have to walk the town with someone else!!

 

Excellent, looking forward to meeting you. I think when it comes to excursions, you have to let everyone kind of go their own way. We're doing Oasis with my parents and our 3 yr old. My parents are more the "walk around and shop" types, certainly not into scuba, snorkeling, or enjoying rum punches on a boat. Well...maybe my dad might be into that...

 

But we all understand that there will be plenty of time to spend with each other on the ship and doing activities, shows, and dining, and excursions are separate times. We're doing scuba in St Maarten, and we're all doing the beach/sting rays together in the Bahamas...that's more their speed.

 

I don't think you want to sell yourself short on excursions when others don't share your interests, you'll regret it! We did last year when we took our DS on all 3 excursions with us, and it turned out he would've been a lot happier staying on board in the kids' area.

[srf mom]

KimandJeff,

 

couldn't agree more! I'm going on the 1 pm snorkeling and this will give her and I time to walk around and shop. Still not sure what we are going to do in the other ports. We may wait untill we get onboard to book those because then we can use our on board credit and not have to pay in advance. Although everything may be booked by then! Well I HAVE to get off cruise critic now!! It's so addicting!! ha ha. Have you signed up for the meet and mingle?

bye for now,

Kim

[nickiandmike]

We were on last week and did Blue Lagoon in Nassau which we absolutely loved. You pick either a dolphin encounter or a sea lion encounter. We did the sea lions because we had done dolphins before and have to say it was a very intimate, friendly experience. Very small group, lots of time with the animals. The folks who work there are very very considerate of the animals, tell you all about them, their habits, etc. Lots of photo ops, petting ops, etc. but not pushy about selling the photos. You can then spend some time on their beautiful beach. We were supposed to do the St. John snorkel but rough seas cancelled all day trips to St. John so we switched to the Turtle Cove snail. It is a snorkeling trip to a small island that is a turtle breeding sanctuary, you get to snorkel right next to the turtles and see them eating, swimming, etc. Also good reef with lots of fish. It was a fun boat, great crew, my DH and two kids, 11 & 12 loved it. Final trip was to Wakiki beach at Orient Bay. We were originally on the Lord Sheffield but after we snorkeled the day before because of the St. John cancel we decided we wanted a beach day. We did the ship excursion which included nice bus, reserved lounge chair (another 3 bucks for an umbrella) two rum punches and a really nice lunch. You get three choices in the restaurant, chicken, ribs or fish, with salad, bread and rice.

I've been thinking about doing one of the blue lagoon excursions but I wasn't sure if they were geared more towards kids or good for adults as well? How much time did they let you hang out on the beach? When i tried asking them about this before, they said we wouldn't get any beach time because it was closed on Sundays?

[nydoll1]

We had a little under an hour at the beach. We too were told no beach time and then all of a sudden, beach time! A very nice surprise, the place is lovely. As to the adult/kid question, we did sea lions so I cant speak to the dolphins. Basically they divided us into two groups, ours was two families each with two kids, the other group was a couple on their honeymoon, who were great, and another family of four. First they tell you about the sea lions, fun, entertaining, well done. Then they give you a wet suit if you want it -- take it! -- and then you go in the pool with the sealions. Each group gets their "own" and you have numerous chances to pet his belly, feel his fur, get a kiss -- yes I said kiss, talk about fish breath, and then to feed him a fish. There is then a little performance where he shows you a variety of his talents, high fiving, walking on his belly, etc. My husband and I , who both love animals, enjoyed this as much as the kids. You also get time to walk around and see the dolphins who are right below you in a big pen. It was a great experience.

[AlBell509]

We're leaving in 2 1/2 weeks, and have booked the following:

 

St Thomas - The Turtle Cove snorkel sail trip. Thought the boat was a little different, we've been on enough catamaran's, and all the reviews we read about this one were glowing. Seems like everyone just had a great time.

 

St. Maarten - Scuba (part of the scuba lesson/dive on Oasis)

 

Bahamas - We're gonna do a nice relaxing beach day with the sting ray combo. This is the only one we're doing with our 3 yr old and my parents, since they're not much for scuba and snorkeling. Plus, as said before, we didn't feel there was enough time to do the water park at Atlantis.

 

Happy to give reviews on all of these as soon as we get back, if not while we're on the ship!

 

So your gonna have to do a review of the turtle cove snorkel.. This is the only excursion i am 100% postive I wanna do! Please let me know how it goes for you!!!!! SO excited for you, and my waiting of 5 months cant come soon enough!

[JeffersonSea]

KimandJeff, couldn't agree more! I'm going on the 1 pm snorkeling and this will give her and I time to walk around and shop. Still not sure what we are going to do in the other ports. We may wait untill we get onboard to book those because then we can use our on board credit and not have to pay in advance. Although everything may be booked by then! Well I HAVE to get off cruise critic now!! It's so addicting!! ha ha. Have you signed up for the meet and mingle?

bye for now,

Kim

 

Awww, we're on the morning sail, sorry we'll miss you on that one. Maybe we'll see each other getting on/off the boat! Super excited to see the turtles, saw one once in Kauai, but it was a little far away. It's amazing how exciting it can be to see sights like that.

 

We're on the thread for the meet/mingle, but I can't keep up with them! Must be 10,000 posts on that puppy! We'll try and make it to the m/m.

 

AlBell509 - I will definitely post a review. I'm bringing my laptop and plan on doing a running "live" review of Oasis as we go, complete with pics.

 

nydoll - I just watched a youtube video of the sea lion encounter, and it looks fabulous!! I bet you had a blast. That is #1 on our list for our next cruise! Here's the link for the video for everyone wondering about it....

[srf mom]

KimandJeff,

Oh shoot! I was hoping to sail with a friendly face and fun people!! Oh well, I'm sure there will be both on my sailing. I choose the afternoon sail because I wanted it to be a little warmer and to give my sister in law time to shop and walk. I'm on the meet and mingle thread as well, but you're right, I can't keep up with it. There seems to be a "page turner" competition that I can't keep up. Take care and how many days till we sail?? Oh yeahh...16!! yippee.

[JeffersonSea]

KimandJeff,

Oh shoot! I was hoping to sail with a friendly face and fun people!! Oh well, I'm sure there will be both on my sailing. I choose the afternoon sail because I wanted it to be a little warmer and to give my sister in law time to shop and walk. I'm on the meet and mingle thread as well, but you're right, I can't keep up with it. There seems to be a "page turner" competition that I can't keep up. Take care and how many days till we sail?? Oh yeahh...16!! yippee.

 

Us too, but we usually do early excursions then hurry back to the ship and enjoy the emptiness and quiet. We love sitting by the pool on port days and relaxing with a drink, and actually getting a chair wherever you want.

[AlBell509]

AlBell509 - I will definitely post a review. I'm bringing my laptop and plan on doing a running "live" review of Oasis as we go, complete with pics.

 

 

Ok dont forget the webcams!!! Stand and wave at all of us waiting to set sail on her!!! lol

[kbleicher]

We're leaving in 2 1/2 weeks, and have booked the following:

 

St Thomas - The Turtle Cove snorkel sail trip. Thought the boat was a little different, we've been on enough catamaran's, and all the reviews we read about this one were glowing. Seems like everyone just had a great time.

 

Does anyone on the thread remember the name of the company for the Turtle Cove Catamaran tour? They took pictures on the boat and we can't find the website to view them (we looked and looked!). Thanks!

[willysgrandma]

Please let us know how this excursion is. I've seen reports that the turtles were small and there were not that many of them- this is the only excursion we are planning on doing on our Oasis cruise, but if there are not that many turtles, it may not be worth doing.

 

Thanks!

 

 

St Thomas - The Turtle Cove snorkel sail trip. Thought the boat was a little different, we've been on enough catamaran's, and all the reviews we read about this one were glowing. Seems like everyone just had a great time.

 

 

Happy to give reviews on all of these as soon as we get back, if not while we're on the ship!