Freeport ideas on a budget

[blestmom3]

Taking the NCL Sky the week after Thanksgiving with 3 friends and we'll be stopping for full days in Freeport, Nassau & Great Stirrup Cay. Freeport will be our first stop. We are all on a budget and would love ideas for a fun, yet inexpensive day.

 

I've been there once before and we got a cab to the main shopping area (can't remember name) and walked to a water taxi which we took to Taino Beach (I believe) and walked out to the beach. We didn't have to pay, but we ended up eating at their outdoor restaurant there. There was a beautiful beach club next door with a gorgeous pool that had a winding "river" and a little bridge. Anyone know that name of this place?

 

Any ideas for us? We are 4 moms from FL who are getting away from it all for a week!

Thanks!

[blestmom3]

Any Freeport ideas that won't bust the bank? Thanks!!!

[blestmom3]

Hasn't anyone been to Freeport lately? :-)

[FunShipCruiser05]

Taking the NCL Sky the week after Thanksgiving with 3 friends and we'll be stopping for full days in Freeport, Nassau & Great Stirrup Cay. Freeport will be our first stop. We are all on a budget and would love ideas for a fun, yet inexpensive day.

 

I've been there once before and we got a cab to the main shopping area (can't remember name) and walked to a water taxi which we took to Taino Beach (I believe) and walked out to the beach. We didn't have to pay, but we ended up eating at their outdoor restaurant there. There was a beautiful beach club next door with a gorgeous pool that had a winding "river" and a little bridge. Anyone know that name of this place?

 

Any ideas for us? We are 4 moms from FL who are getting away from it all for a week!

Thanks!

 

 

 

Well for twenty five dolla per person, you can do a inflatable banana boat ride out into the ocean and into this little cove, where you can spend 5-10 mins watching the dolphins and see them do a few tricks, see the ghost ship from the pirates of the carribbean, see some beautiful million dolla homeowners homes that are absolutely beautiful. The inflatable boat is tied onto a little motoried boat and the operator pulls you out for about an hour ride and i mean, it seemed longer than an hour. Goes into this little cove area just off the main ocean about 3 miles down from the beach you start off at, and its beautiful. That's the cheapest thing in terms of excursions I think you'll find. Definitely will not get anything that cheap with carnival and a lot of the stuff when you get to the free beach area is jet skis, parasailing, and other stuff that cost 100 dolla per person. This banana boat excursion is found when you get to the beach, there is a little booth along w/ people that work there walking around selling excursions. The bar area is somewhat average. 5-7.00 for a small or large drink, the food is pricey tho, arund 7-10 dolla for a sandwich and a little more for the conch food stuff

[2ndTimeCruiser73]

Just wondering which beach you are referring to for the $25 banana boat rides? It sounds like a lot of fun, just wondering if you had a bit more details.

[kids-in-2-centuries]

We were there in January (and will be back in March, LOL). There is a market just off the boat, and we spent a few hours going through the shops then got back on the boat and hung out at the pool. Since you are going to a private island I would use that as your beach day and just stick close to the port in Freeport. There is also a brand new Senor Frogs right there.

Some on our cruise went on the pirate ship that is docked there. I don't have any details about it but they had fun.

Enjoy!

[Megan_Strick]

Just wondering which beach you are referring to for the $25 banana boat rides? It sounds like a lot of fun, just wondering if you had a bit more details.

 

We did one. You walk to the beach by the police station down a long walk way. They have jet skis and banana boat rides

[live2learn]

First, I want to say to TPTB that this isn't a recommendation, but rather a discussion about my own research. (I am surprised at the narrow scope of the responses, hence the point towards locations listed in other threads and on other travel sites.)

 

I haven't been there yet, but will be in a couple of weeks, and am also budget conscious. I have been looking at Deadman's Reef/Paradise Cove for an out of the way (secluded) place that offers snorkeling or kayak packages for 35pp with a cruise dock transfer included. They include a simple lunch for an additional $6.

 

http://www.deadmansreef.com/

 

Another place that you can get a taxi and pay an entrance fee is Junkanoo beach. The reviews on Tripadvisor are hit and miss for that one, though. It seems that (because it appears that it is more in the normal path of travel) it can be overrun on days with a lot of cruise traffic. Otherwise, your fee includes use of their facilities (loungers, kayaks, peddle boats, etc.) The link to the site claims that all of it is included for the nominal fee, but if you read the reviews on tripadvisor, there are some things they charge extra for. Still, it seems relatively inexpensive.

 

http://junkanoobeachfreeport.com/

 

For me, I popped in on the Bahamas ports of call, because we are bringing our own snorkel gear, and don't necessarily need facilities, and are more interested to hear if anyone has an inside scoop on a place (other than deadmans reef) where the reef is accessible from the shore. ...I'll go back to looking, now.

[thehorrocksfamily]

We found www.chad4naturetourz.com Trip Advisor raves about them, as do people here on CC. We go in 16 days -- can't WAIT! Kayak, snorkel, see some sights, easy to reserve.

[live2learn]

We went to Deadman's Reef instead of Junkanoo Beach. I am so glad that we did. We had a wonderful time snorkeling! Although we didn't go on the "package deal" there was no problem following along with the group that the staff member was leading. Possibly because I have taken a tropical ecology class in school which covered a lot of ground in reef identification, I could appreciate the guide pointing things out to the snorkel group. There were sea turtles, sting rays, spotted eagle rays, a nurse shark, a full array of tropical fish and even some cuttle fish on the reef.

 

Regarding the value, due to the cost of a taxi, when I go again I might take the shuttle package from the site ($35) instead of bringing our own gear. Although, having good quality dive gear that we are used to, I may still bring my own and take the package for the kayak instead, and bring the gear so we can do both. (Gear looked sufficient, but is standard basic as you would expect for rentals like this.)

 

I was surprised at the size of the "resort". It appeared to be a small establishment whose primary business is in serving the cruise or land based travel industry (resorts in town, etc.). They did appear to have a few bungalows, unless more were tucked away somewhere else. This fact actually increased our enjoyment of the place because it was removed from all the typical craziness. I would say, at best, there may have been 50 people there the day we were there, even though there were 2 ships in port. The burgers were good, and pricing was extremely reasonable.

 

Had I wanted another sarong (to add to my 20) or some other "island" souvenir from my Freeport stop, there were a some items that looked interesting. I didn't look too closely, as I am past the point of hauling trinkets home from most vacations.

 

To sum up, I was least enthusiastic about this port of call, and it ended up being my favorite. I fully intend to rent a house on the island sometime in the near future, and I will be going back to Deadmans Reef. I like my beach time to be free of massive crowds, and with activities available. There appears to be a decent stretch of beach for walking, and with the kayaks and snorkeling opportunity, this is perfect for us.

 

As long as you are not looking for fancy food and cabana boys, this place is perfect. They are very gracious, and do their best to take care of you. I am not an expert on island culture or anything like that, but this strikes me as "real island and real people".

[iamaqt2]

There was a beautiful beach club next door with a gorgeous pool that had a winding "river" and a little bridge. Anyone know that name of this place?

 

This is Taino Beach Resort, a timeshare resort. My family will be spending a week there this summer :D

 

Because we will be on the island for a whole week, I have made a point of searching out budget conscious ideas of activities for us.

 

Some of the more highly recommended and wallet friendly I've come across:

 

Lucayan National Park and Gold Rock beach :

http://www.bnt.bs/The-National-Parks-of-The-Bahamas/Lucayan-National-Park

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g147422-d147585/Lucayan-National-Park:Grand-Bahama-Island:Gold.Rock.Beach.html

 

Rent a car for the day and drive out to see the caves and mangroves at Lucayan National Park (3 dollars per person fee) then walk across the street and visit Gold Rock beach during low tide. This is often hailed as being the most beautiful beach on the island.

 

Also with a rental car you could visit Garden of the Groves (15 dollars per person admission)

 

http://www.thegardenofthegroves.com/

 

As mentioned above, Deadman's Reef is a great bargain option if you'd like to do a snorkeling excursion.

 

Also consider Ocean Motion Watersports

http://www.oceanmotionbahamas.com/

 

They have the banana boat tour for 15.00 per person. And their other watersports seem reasonably priced.

 

Chad4Nature tours also come highly recommended as well as Pat and Diane's snorkeling tours.

 

Another somewhat budget friendly option I came across was this little gem:

Robinson Crusoe Beach Party & Snorkeling Cruise in Freeport

Not sure what your port times are but, The Robinson Crusoe Beach Party departs on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 11 am to 4pm

 

http://www.superiorwatersports.com/crusoe.htm

 

All you can drink Rum Punch, 90 minutes snorkeling, buffet BBQ lunch, and beach party time. 5 hours. Not bad at 60 pp.

[SteelerCruiser]

catch a cab from the pier $5 pp each way to Our Lucaya. Free beach access next to the police station. Beach is Beautiful!!! also there is shopping, casino, and food to be had in the area as well.

[GradUT]

I think the best budget thing to do in Freeport is to stay on the ship and enjoy it without everyone else there. That's what my daughter and I did last year on the Carnival Ecstasy and we enjoyed great deck chair seating, being able to eat lunch without standing in line, going on the waterslides without a crowd and playing some minigolf. It was such a relaxing day and we didn't spend a dime--except for the fancy cocktail my daughter bought to celebrate the day.

[*Luv2Cruz*]

catch a cab from the pier $5 pp each way to Our Lucaya. Free beach access next to the police station. Beach is Beautiful!!! also there is shopping, casino, and food to be had in the area as well.

Been there done that excellent!:cool: