Silvermoon or Calabaza?

[spingal]

Anyone tried both? I am trying to decide which one to chose!

 

Thanks!

[SEASMOM]

We are just back from calabaza, it was a fantastic day. Gina had the best food and so much. Snorkeling was fun and the boat was great.

 

Lots of drinks of all kinds.;)

 

we would recommend this trip and will go back ourselves.

 

Both trips are highly rated so you probably can't go wrong with either.

[tiggerfan616]

Sorry cant help you with Silvermoon but I would recommend Calabaza without hesitation. Gina, Steve and Chad are the best.

My 9yr old son had never snorkeled off a boat before and Chad was wonderful with him in the water. He cant stop talking about the turtles, said it was his favorite excursion ever!

[spingal]

Awesome!! I just talked to Gina and booked!! Good thing because we needed 4 spots and that is all she had left!!! :D

 

Thank you both for the information!

[ExRockyMountainGal]

We have been on both Calabaza and Silver Moon, and you can't go wrong with either one. That said, I have to give the definite edge to Calabaza.

 

We sailed with them on January 18, 2011. Unfortunately, Gina wasn't feeling well, so we didn't get to meet her. Captain Danny did a wonderful job, as did Chad and Gregory. The only bad thing about the trip was the weather, but that clearly wasn't something that anyone had any control over. We still had a fantastic time.

 

The taxi was waiting for us when we got off the ship and took us straight to the boat. There were 10 of us in total, and we had plenty of room. We passed a couple of other catamarans, and they were all very crowded.

 

There was coffee and tea waiting for us as soon as we got on the boat. Once we started moving, we got homemade banana bread (still warm) and then fish hush puppies with a Bajan remoulade sauce. They were very tasty.

 

Our first snorkeling stop was over a sunken wreck/reef. There were tons of fish. Chad went snorkeling with us to make sure we saw everything there was to see. When we got out of the water, they had put out crackers and three types of Mediterranean dips. We also tried the rum punch, which is the best we had on all of our excursions. The fresh ground nutmeg really made the difference.

 

There was a short sail to the next stop, which is where we saw with the turtles. There were at least 6 of them, and they got close enough to touch them. Best of all, there were no other boats around us, so we had the turtles all to ourselves.

 

Lunch was amazing. There was tons of food, and it was all good. A picture is below:

 

 

There were plenty of beverages, but several of us had white wine -- served in real wine glasses. It was casually elegant.

 

After lunch, we had the option to swim to the beach, snorkel with turtles some more or just hang out on the catamaran.

 

On the way back, we had dessert: fresh coconut bread and and a warm brownie.

 

A cab was waiting for us when we arrived, and we had no problem getting back to the ship.

 

The very next day we got a thank you email from Gina with all of the recipes.

 

I would do this excursion again without hesitation. It was one of the highlights of our cruise, and I just don't have enough goood things to say about Gina and the Calabaza family.

[spingal]

AWESOME!!!! I definitely made the right choice!!

 

Question on the food. I don't eat seafood. Were there other main entree choices?

 

Thank you so much for the information!

[ExRockyMountainGal]

We had curry chicken in addition to the flying fish. I'd let Gina know in advance so she can be sure that there are alternatives. Based on the recipes, it looks like there are several dishes that she makes.

[spingal]

We had curry chicken in addition to the flying fish. I'd let Gina know in advance so she can be sure that there are alternatives. Based on the recipes, it looks like there are several dishes that she makes.

 

Thank you!! I just sent her an email. :D:D

[Choozin Croozin]

We have been on both Calabaza and Silver Moon, and you can't go wrong with either one. That said, I have to give the definite edge to Calabaza.

Unfortunately we waited to long to book Calabaza and they were full. So my second choice was Silvermoon. Would you mind describing your experience with them if you don't mind? Thanks

[ExRockyMountainGal]

Our experiences with Silver Moon were great! We have sailed with them twice, and actually tried to book them this time, but they were full. The folks at Silver Moon were the ones who recommended Calabaza, and they both have the same high standards. The stops were pretty much the same, although we did see many more turtles with Calabaza. I think the biggest differences were the little touches -- just a little more personal service with Gina (in absentia) and her crew. I would not hesitate to book with Silver Moon, especially if Calabaza is full. You will still have a wonderful time.

 

If you have any specific questions, I'm happy to try to answer them.

[Choozin Croozin]

Our experiences with Silver Moon were great! We have sailed with them twice, and actually tried to book them this time, but they were full. The folks at Silver Moon were the ones who recommended Calabaza, and they both have the same high standards. The stops were pretty much the same, although we did see many more turtles with Calabaza. I think the biggest differences were the little touches -- just a little more personal service with Gina (in absentia) and her crew. I would not hesitate to book with Silver Moon, especially if Calabaza is full. You will still have a wonderful time.

 

If you have any specific questions, I'm happy to try to answer them.

 

Thank you so much! Was the food, drink and size of catamaran about the same too?? I am really excited about this excursion.

[ExRockyMountainGal]

Was the food' date=' drink and size of catamaran about the same too?? [/quote']

 

We sailed on Silver Moon I and Silver Moon II, and my hazy recollection is that Calabaza was between the two of them in size. The food on both was very good, with Calabaza having an edge in variety -- they were always serving something wonderful. The drinks were also about the same. Both had beer, wine, soft drinks and, of course, rum punch. Again, if my memory serves me, Silver Moon also had killer pina coladas for the trip home. I wish you good weather since I know you will have a wonderful time.

[Choozin Croozin]

We sailed on Silver Moon I and Silver Moon II, and my hazy recollection is that Calabaza was between the two of them in size. The food on both was very good, with Calabaza having an edge in variety -- they were always serving something wonderful. The drinks were also about the same. Both had beer, wine, soft drinks and, of course, rum punch. Again, if my memory serves me, Silver Moon also had killer pina coladas for the trip home. I wish you good weather since I know you will have a wonderful time.

 

Thank you SO much for all your help!! I appreciate you taking the time to respond. I am so excited about this trip. Thank you for the good wishes....we are very ready. Happy and safe travels to you.

[Cruisin KLS]

Just returned from the 02/06 sailing of AOS. Booked Calabaza for our stop in Barbados on 02/08. Gina was very prompt in getting back to me from the very beginning. The cost was $100pp and it included transportation to and from the pier.

 

Picked us up at the pier on time and off we went. The boat is very nice. Like others said, they could definitely put more people on the boat but 12 is very nice. Gina, Danny and Chad were wonderful. Made us all feel at home. Served drinks from the time we got there until the moment we left. Beer, rum punch, fruit juice, water, soda...whatever you wanted. Banana bread was to die for and the fish cakes were wonderful also.

 

First stop was the reef. Then on to the turtles. Swimming with the turtles was amazing. Chad jumped right in and made sure we all had close encounters with the turtles. While we were anchored there, there was one other excursion as well. Didn't feel crowded at all.

 

The lunch was out of this world. That previous picture does not allow you to taste how great it was. During lunch, they anchored off a beach and you could eat and then swim in to the beach if you wanted to. Then there were brownies with chocolate syrup.

 

I do have to say that the weather when we were there was not ideal. It showered on and off most of the day. The crew really made the most of it and we didn't mind a little cool shower now and then.

 

Gina followed up with an email that included some of the recipes for the banana bread and the rum punch. We are going back to Barbados next year and I think that DH and I will book with Calabaza again. Booking with a small company is definitely worth the extra money for the experience and attention that you get.

 

-Kristi

[Cinder Again]

Unfortunately we waited to long to book Calabaza and they were full. So my second choice was Silvermoon. Would you mind describing your experience with them if you don't mind? Thanks

I recently sailed with Calabaza, but my friend sailed Silvermoon about two weeks earlier than me. Yesterday, we sort of compared experiences and they seemed pretty comparable, with both of us having great experiences. They were on the smaller Cat, I believe. Have fun! Either one looked great, especially compared to the much larger Cool Runnings. Everyone looked like they were having fun on that boat, but it looked really crowded to me. If your goal is sailing and actually swimming, to me the smaller boats are worth the money! We never felt like a "tour" if you understand what I mean...

[Choozin Croozin]

I recently sailed with Calabaza, but my friend sailed Silvermoon about two weeks earlier than me. Yesterday, we sort of compared experiences and they seemed pretty comparable, with both of us having great experiences. They were on the smaller Cat, I believe. Have fun! Either one looked great, especially compared to the much larger Cool Runnings. Everyone looked like they were having fun on that boat, but it looked really crowded to me. If your goal is sailing and actually swimming, to me the smaller boats are worth the money! We never felt like a "tour" if you understand what I mean...

 

Thank you for the reassurance. It sounds like we were just lucky to get one or the other.:D

[iflyrc5]

Calabaza is FANTASTIC!! We were on the tour with "cinder again" in Jan. Here are a couple of photos.

[Choozin Croozin]

Calabaza is FANTASTIC!! We were on the tour with "cinder again" in Jan. Here are a couple of photos.

 

Your photos are wonderful. What kind of a camera did you use?

[spingal]

I just came across another thread that explained that Gina lost her boat in a hurricane last year. She was using a rented boat. Does anyone know if she has her own boat back yet? Thanks!

[iflyrc5]

Yes - she lost her orginal boat in the Hurricane last year. She rented one for several weeks and then got a new one. The photos above are of the current Calabaza.

 

Question about the camera - It is a Canon D10. I have done a little photoshop to enhance the lighting - other than that they are straight out of the camera.

[irishayes]

Can someone tell me whether Silver Moon also goes to a shipwreck site to snorkel as well as with the turtles? I can't tell from their description of the all-day snorkel tour.

 

I waited too long to book Calabaza and now I have to book Silver Moon, but I want to know if they are basically the same tour.

 

Thanks!

[ExRockyMountainGal]

Silver Moon does the two stops, just like Calabaza.

[Choozin Croozin]

Question about the camera - It is a Canon D10. I have done a little photoshop to enhance the lighting - other than that they are straight out of the camera.

 

I was hoping that was what you were going to say. I just bought a d10 because of the wonderful color that I have seen on other's photos (as well as yours now). I can't wait to use it. Thank you!!