Barbados snorkeling tour

[curlyjoe]

we're booked on the Equinox for Jan. 7th. I've never done much snorkeling and wife has done none, doesn't swim well (but they use vests, right?). we're in reasonably good health, thought it might be fun to see some turtles and fish. anyone have any experience with the celebrity tour below? does it sound like it would be good for inexperienced? also do you catch their boat near where the shopping district is? looks like there would be some time to shop before the boat leaves around noon. would also think if you're on one of their tours the boat won't leave if the tour group gets delayed returning, yes? would like to know if anyone has a better idea, thanks!

 

"Swim with Turtles, Shipwrecks, Snorkel & Beach - BB38

 

You will start with a boat ride along the West coast of Barbados, the playground of the rich and famous, to your stop at "Turtle Bay." The guides will equip you with your snorkel gear, instruction, and information about the lives and habits of the underwater creatures. You will then be able to snorkel with the friendly turtles while observing them in their natural environment.Next you will then board the powerboat again and head to the shipwreck snorkel site. Here you will see the different species of fish and the wreck they call their home. You will then visit a beach, where you will have a chance to relax, swim, and sunbathe as the guides serve cool drinks and rum punch. You will head back to your ship."

[kitkat9438]

we're booked on the Equinox for Jan. 7th. I've never done much snorkeling and wife has done none, doesn't swim well (but they use vests, right?). we're in reasonably good health, thought it might be fun to see some turtles and fish. anyone have any experience with the celebrity tour below? does it sound like it would be good for inexperienced? also do you catch their boat near where the shopping district is? looks like there would be some time to shop before the boat leaves around noon. would also think if you're on one of their tours the boat won't leave if the tour group gets delayed returning, yes? would like to know if anyone has a better idea, thanks!

 

"Swim with Turtles, Shipwrecks, Snorkel & Beach - BB38

 

You will start with a boat ride along the West coast of Barbados, the playground of the rich and famous, to your stop at "Turtle Bay." The guides will equip you with your snorkel gear, instruction, and information about the lives and habits of the underwater creatures. You will then be able to snorkel with the friendly turtles while observing them in their natural environment.Next you will then board the powerboat again and head to the shipwreck snorkel site. Here you will see the different species of fish and the wreck they call their home. You will then visit a beach, where you will have a chance to relax, swim, and sunbathe as the guides serve cool drinks and rum punch. You will head back to your ship."

 

We don't like the ship's excursions, because they are usually more crowded and more expensive. You should check and see if Silvermoon is available for the date you are going. We had a wonderful experience with them and it included lunch, drinks (alcohol and other) and transportation. While we were snorkeling we saw the ship's excursion pull up. They were packed in like sardines, standing room only on those catamarans. Can you imagine all those people at once in the water? With Silvermoon they have a couple of smaller cats, one that holds 24 and one that holds 12. Believe me, since you are new to snorkeling you don't want to worry about a lot of people in the water at once. Yes they provide everything, fins, mask and vest if needed. I brought my own and take it with me because snorkeling is just so much fun and you don't have to use the mask after other people have used it. The vest will keep you floating in the water so there's nothing to be afraid of, you just float and watch the turtles and fish. Be sure to take a good underwater camera for pictues.

 

Here's the link for Silvermoon:

 

http://silvermoonbarbados.com/category/silver-moon/

 

We do our research on the tour operators through recommendations on the ports of call threads. You can be reasonably assured that they will make sure you get back to the ship on time because that is how they make a living and if they had problems doing that, it would be all over the boards. We really loved Barbados. It is a beautiful island. This is an excellent excursion and our favorite of any catamaran snorkeling trip we've done.

 

You will have time when you get back to do some shopping at the pier.

 

Here's some pictures for you:

 

 

 

 

 

[BroncosFan2010]

SilverMoon or Sasha are wonderful private excursions that are much better than the ship excursions. They are well worth the price, and the experiences are great.

 

Check out the Barbados port of call boards for more information, or google the tours for more information.

[Giorgi-one]

Been on Silver Moon twice - highly highly recommeded. Do the one that takes only 12 people. Very upscale. Drinks served in real glasses. Food served in real dishes. No rum punch - just margarhitas, pinc coladas, daquiris and good wines. Will be on calabazasailaiang tours this year. Same idea.

[2-4-cruisin]

It might be a good idea to go with the tours recommended above. We booked the ship's excursion to snorkel with the turtles and shipwreck snorkel, and it was horrible. The tour operators dropped us off to snorkel with turtles in a 3-4 knot current and before we knew it we were swept away from the boat and had to try to fight the current to get back while the tour boats around us were revving up their engines to leave. I found myself getting caught on the anchor rope for one of the other boats. My husband is a scuba diver and was angry, saying they never should have dropped us off in that current. The crew of the boat had to launch a smaller boat to bring some of the snorkelers back in! I think there are two turtle snorkel tours and the passengers on the other tour had no problems - they went in a totally different direction from the way we went out. I'd never do that again! I think our tour was operated by Ocean Adventures.

[Cruiser Susie]

I will second the vote for Silver Moon in Barbados. We have been lucky enough to have done this catamaran tour 5 times, and each time is fabulous. I would highly recommend it. Very small group, whether you do the 12 or 24 person catamaran; the food and drinks are wonderful, and the rum punch is the best I have ever had. The crew is marvelous, and we have always had a phenomenal time. Let us know if you book it, and if you have any questions. Book it sooner rather than later as it usually sells out fairly far in advance. It has spoiled me for any other catamaran tours, period. We are booked again for March for our cruise next spring, already.

[srpilo]

I will second the vote for Silver Moon in Barbados. We have been lucky enough to have done this catamaran tour 5 times, and each time is fabulous. I would highly recommend it. Very small group, whether you do the 12 or 24 person catamaran; the food and drinks are wonderful, and the rum punch is the best I have ever had. The crew is marvelous, and we have always had a phenomenal time. Let us know if you book it, and if you have any questions. Book it sooner rather than later as it usually sells out fairly far in advance. It has spoiled me for any other catamaran tours, period. We are booked again for March for our cruise next spring, already.

 

Hi Susie, hope you Larry are doing well.. :)

 

We Love Silvermoon, but unfortunetly I think they may have jumped the shark ! .. When we tried to book with then again for this January (4th time) after many try's they finally replied saying they now only deal through the cruiseline and we'd have to book through them :confused:. They did however after asking, recomended another day-sail company called " Sail Calabaza" which in fact we did end up booking with (fingers crossed :D)

 

Just a heads up

Srpilo

[Momorider]

Hi Susie, hope you Larry are doing well.. :)

 

We Love Silvermoon, but unfortunetly I think they may have jumped the shark ! .. When we tried to book with then again for this January (4th time) after many try's they finally replied saying they now only deal through the cruiseline and we'd have to book through them :confused:. They did however after asking, recomended another day-sail company called " Sail Calabaza" which in fact we did end up booking with (fingers crossed :D)

 

Just a heads up

Srpilo

 

Silver moon still have private charters but they are also working with the ships they are obviously not the same quality of tour. :D

[BroncosFan2010]

I was able to book the 24 person tour with Silvermoon for our April cruise on the Constellation. Not a ship tour!

[PelicanLvr]

Never been on Silvermoon...but I can tell you that the ship tour we took was quite crowded. Too many people in the water at once.....kicking in every direction.

 

Follow the advise here and try to book something with less people!

[RKD]

Does anyone know if either of those private companies have prescription masks? I am blind without my glasses. :rolleyes:

[Cruiser Susie]

Hi Susie, hope you Larry are doing well.. :)

 

We Love Silvermoon, but unfortunetly I think they may have jumped the shark ! .. When we tried to book with then again for this January (4th time) after many try's they finally replied saying they now only deal through the cruiseline and we'd have to book through them :confused:. They did however after asking, recomended another day-sail company called " Sail Calabaza" which in fact we did end up booking with (fingers crossed :D)

 

Just a heads up

Srpilo

 

Hi, Pete! We are doing well, just back from a week with our grandkids... ages 3 and 2 months; we were helping out our DIL while our son was at a conference. Had a great time!

 

Not sure why you couldn't book privately with Silvermoon, but I would guess that they had contracted out for that particular date. We are booked privately with them next March on the 12 person catamaran. I hope you have a great time on the other tour; let us know what you think of it! Thank you for your concern... wish we could meet up with you two on another cruise... :D

 

Does anyone know if either of those private companies have prescription masks? I am blind without my glasses. :rolleyes:

 

The Silvermoon does not. I did a google search and found multiple sites for ordering them. Amazon.com has them for just over $100... not cheap, but being able to see all the gorgeous fish and sea creatures clearly underwater would be worth it to me! My dh once took an old pair of prescription lenses, took the earpieces off and then glued them to the inside of the mask... as sort of a makeshift way to be able to see... now he wears contacts when we snorkel.

[srpilo]

Hi, Pete! We are doing well, just back from a week with our grandkids... ages 3 and 2 months; we were helping out our DIL while our son was at a conference. Had a great time!

 

Not sure why you couldn't book privately with Silvermoon, but I would guess that they had contracted out for that particular date. We are booked privately with them next March on the 12 person catamaran. I hope you have a great time on the other tour; let us know what you think of it! Thank you for your concern... wish we could meet up with you two on another cruise... :D

 

 

 

The Silvermoon does not. I did a google search and found multiple sites for ordering them. Amazon.com has them for just over $100... not cheap, but being able to see all the gorgeous fish and sea creatures clearly underwater would be worth it to me! My dh once took an old pair of prescription lenses, took the earpieces off and then glued them to the inside of the mask... as sort of a makeshift way to be able to see... now he wears contacts when we snorkel.

 

Susie

Someone on our rollcall has heard from another operator in Barbados, that Silvermoon doesn't have a contract with Celebrity but with another cruiseline (HAL ?) so if the other line is in port the same day as a Celebrity ship you're basicly out of luck. I'm thinking thats what happened on our date in Barbados.

 

Glad to hear that Gramma and Grampa are enjoying the kiddies :D:):D

Your Friend Pete

[Conanc]

Another vote for Shasha!!! We just got back from Barbados and had a wonderful excursion with Jason. The excursion is on a 30 ft catamaran and there were only six of us but the cat holds up to 12. Jason stays away from where the cruise ship excursions go and also takes you to another snorkeling spot afterwards. The cost was $60pp and included snorkel equipment and vests (which was nicer quality than many other excursion offer), beer, rum punch, water, etc. and they picked us up at the pier and took us to the beach where Jason was waiting for us on the catamaran and brought us back to the pier afterwards. Jason's wife Tess answers the emails and she is very responsive. We would do this excursion again in a minute! Any questions, just ask.

 

Nancy

[ArthurIhde]

We don't like the ship's excursions, because they are usually more crowded and more expensive. You should check and see if Silvermoon is available for the date you are going. We had a wonderful experience with them and it included lunch, drinks (alcohol and other) and transportation. While we were snorkeling we saw the ship's excursion pull up. They were packed in like sardines, standing room only on those catamarans. Can you imagine all those people at once in the water? With Silvermoon they have a couple of smaller cats, one that holds 24 and one that holds 12. Believe me, since you are new to snorkeling you don't want to worry about a lot of people in the water at once. Yes they provide everything, fins, mask and vest if needed. I brought my own and take it with me because snorkeling is just so much fun and you don't have to use the mask after other people have used it. The vest will keep you floating in the water so there's nothing to be afraid of, you just float and watch the turtles and fish. Be sure to take a good underwater camera for pictues.

 

Here's the link for Silvermoon:

 

http://silvermoonbarbados.com/category/silver-moon/

 

We do our research on the tour operators through recommendations on the ports of call threads. You can be reasonably assured that they will make sure you get back to the ship on time because that is how they make a living and if they had problems doing that, it would be all over the boards. We really loved Barbados. It is a beautiful island. This is an excellent excursion and our favorite of any catamaran snorkeling trip we've done.

 

You will have time when you get back to do some shopping at the pier.

 

Here's some pictures for you:

 

 

 

 

 

 

wow the pics are amazing

[Conanc]

wow the pics are amazing

 

They are amazing. Great shots! What kind of camera did you use?

[6502programmer]

I'll throw a vote in for Heatwave. We booked the lunch cruise with them, and it was the highlight of our cruise! We had an absolute blast. The lunch included wonderful chicken and AMAZING swordfish. I don't even eat fish, and I had three helpings of it--It was that good! It was a small group, and they gave us personal attention.

[curlyjoe]

Oh well...waited too long I suppose, none of the above charters appear to have availability.

 

thanks for the responses though, great pictures

[kitkat9438]

They are amazing. Great shots! What kind of camera did you use?

 

I have an Olympus waterproof. I've had mine awhile but the newest model is comparable is the Stylus 8010, waterproof up to 33ft.

[curlyjoe]

Yahoo! "Katrina" has confirmed our reservation with Silvermoon, she had indicated we have to be at their pier at 9:00. Equinox docks at 8:00. Hopefully this won't be a problem.

[HawaiianAndy]

we had a great experience with http://barbadoscruiseexcursions.com/BarbadosCatamaran.html

From what i can see, every sailboat in Barbados is doing the same tour, some just charge more and i don't know why. We got picked up at the cruise ship terminal, we had lunch on board, and drinks were included. We paid $80 each, and i have seen some of the other tours charging $100 or more. We had a great day in Barbados.

[shorebilly]

Cool Runnings does an excellent catamaran tour! Swim with turtles, snorkel over reef, great lunch served on board then swim up to a beautiful beach for a break before a lovely ride back to the dock, truely excellent!

Oh, rum punch included!;)

[mcrcruiser]

Looks like a great snoprkling tour .Next time in Barbados we will use them;).Thanks:)