ABC Jeep Safari

[A.Emgee]

Are the jeeps stick shift or automatic? I would love to drive one when we take our tour, but I only know how to drive automatic...:rolleyes:

The one we were in was a stick shift. Not 100% sure about the others but I think they are all manual transmission.

[spicy1]

Thanks

[staceyverdino]

I hope this doesn't sound like a silly question - is the jeep tour "rough"? My parents are hesitant to go with us because they are afraid it will be too much for them and I don't want to get them into something that may hurt them in our first port!!

[Birdnutty]

How old are your parents? When we did this trip a year ago, we were in our early 50's, and as long as you're capable of hanging onto the rails behind you installed on the the sides of the jeep, the jostling is quite do-able. If they don't feel confident about it, though, don't push them. There are also some bus tours that you can take that get you to many of th email sites. Here's what happened to us....

 

ABC jeep tours

 

We took the Extreme Safari 1/2 day tour. Advertised as from 9 AM to 1 PM. There were up to 12 in a Land Rover (which actually was more fun, I think) and we bumped and rolled all over Aruba. It was a blast. We took off from their office at about 10 AM, once we got everyone settled. The full day and half day tours went together for the beginning, then the full day split off after lunch and continued on. Everything runs on "island time" and takes much longer than we're used to here in the states. The stops were timed pretty punctually, and the swimming in the natural pool seemed too short. However, we sat at the restaurant waiting for our chicken and fries lunch for well over an hour and a half. Seemed to be a ploy to get us to buy drinks at the bar there. Would've preferred more time at the Natural Pool snorkeling. We finally got back to our ship at 4 PM, instead of the 1PM we expected. It's a really good thing we did not have another tour set up for the afternoon, or we would have been screwed. Many of the folks who'd signed up for the full day quit after lunch, and I'm really glad we did only the half day. The other would've been too much. In retrospect, I would've preferred to go to Baby Beach than the Natural Pool, if I'd had the choice. It was novel and very pretty, but not spectacular.

 

Word of warning: If you are going to book your own tour, make sure you bring along seemingly unnecessary items like a first aid kit and plastic Ziploc type bag. Companies that are not associated with the cruiselines do not have to adhere to the same stringent rules as those that do, and sometimes it can lead to a "not as great as it could've been" experience like I had. At the very first stop, I had the misfortune of severely twisting my ankle on the very rough rocky terrain. I crumbled to the ground, creating a 6 inch by 5 inch abrasion on my leg from the coral rocks (similar to scraping along on small, sharp gravel), gashing my elbow and a variety of other places. The guide did have a first aid kit, but it wasn't well stocked, and as the guide explained, people take things from it without replacing them. OK, I can deal with that. All he really had that I could use was a small handwipe, which I used on the scrapes and a thin gauzy -type bandage, which I wrapped around my ankle. He had ice for the drinks he supplied, but there was no bag in which to put it. So I was not able to ice my ankle at all. The abrasions bled like crazy, filling up the wipe quickly. I had brought nothing, although I had thought of bringing baby wipes, which I'd forgotten. Big mistake. I continued on with the tour, my ankle throbbing and swelling, and my leg dripping. I REALLY wanted to do this trip, and even if I'd been given an opportunity to leave it (which I wasn't) I was going to give it my all and continue on. Three stops later, the last stop before lunch, was the Natural Pool. I was glad to have the salt water to wash out my cuts, as there'd been no antibiotic or even cleaning agents in the wipe I had. I wish I'd been told how much of a haul it would be to get to the Natural Pool - it was a lot of treacherous walking and climbing - probably a good 100 feet (at least) down steep, rocky, uneven steps/rocky steep path. I never would've gone. It was brutal and the guide paid no attention to my plight. Once I finally got down the cliff, I found that getting into the water entailed climbing over large, slippery rocks. But I did it. The water felt wonderful (the ride is hot, dusty and very windy) Since it took me so long to hobble down to the water, he was calling people out of the water shortly after I got in. Then I had to get back up the cliff. Oy. There was no time to rewrap my ankle before climbing back up the hill or after returning to the jeep, and trying to do it while the jeep was in motion would've been suicide. The rough terrain we were traveling over was incredible, the views were absolutely beautiful and I had lots of fun despite all of this. It was exhilarating. And it would've been wonderful if I hadn't been hurt. Next time I will be more prepared. For the 3% of the time when something like this happens, it sure as hell is worth it to be ready for it.

[Birdnutty]

The previous post said "many of th email sites." - it was SUPPOSED to say "many of the main sites" Sorry about that....

[staceyverdino]

Birdnutty - sounds like you had quite an adventure! Parents are 50 and 60, relatively active but had no real interest in doing the full day tour with us. Maybe they will like the half day so they can see some things and get back to the ship at a "reasonable" time. Off hand, do you recall there being people in port you could just go with for a tour without a reservation? Chances are they will get the RCCL excursion but it's a lot more expensive than ABC's half day.

 

Thanks for your help!

[Birdnutty]

We had reserved it by ourselves - not through the cruiseline. We made reservations on their website, and paid when we got to their office. We were assigned a vehicle with 10 other people we had never met. Most of them were quite young (compared to us) They were probably more like your age. I'm sure if you continue doing research you can find exactly what you want.

 

Did that answer your question?

[PurrSusan]

My DH & I are going to sign up for the full day for our cruise there in October and we will both be 52 at that time. I never really thought about it being too rough for us---oh, well--life is short--we're going for it!!

[Birdnutty]

If you're in reasaonably good health, it should not be too rough on you. Especially since you now know what it's like, you'll be fully prepared and ready for it. It really is a blast, and the scenery is simply gorgeous. You'll see areas you would not have seen otherwise, that's for sure.

 

A tight fitting baseball cap or bandana for longer hair is a good idea - the wind is every bit as bad as being in the back seat of a convertible, with lots of dust thrown in for good measure.

 

And cover up, and wear LOTS of sunscreen. Some of the younger girls wore just their bathing suit tops or tanks with shorts, and came away from that full day tour totally burned to a crisp. It can ruin the rest of the vacation. I wore a long sleeve loose shirt with the collar up and was really glad I did.

 

Neck straps are good ideas for sunglasses too. One guy's blew off in the wind, and he had to go te rest of the trip without them!

[PurrSusan]

Thanks for the tips! If my DH lost his sunglasses he would be miserable as his eyes are very sensitive to the light---we will definitely take straps!!

[staceyverdino]

Just back from AOS. We did the 4X4 tour and let me tell you, we got our money's worth! Claudio was our guide and he was great. We went everywhere you could possibly imagine. On our way to the natural pool, our landrover got stuck on a rock and had to be jacked up and pushed off of it. The ride was quite "bouncy and bumpy" but it was very exciting. It rained most of the morning so the road were not too dusty. I think from start to finish, we were out for 9 hours. We had a great time there and I would definitely recommend the tour. There is a bit of climbing so you need to be careful, and definitely wear sneakers! People were climbing rocks in sandals and I know that was not comfortable. But if you are looking for an active, action packed day, this tour is the way to go!

[Birdnutty]

Glad you enjoyed it! Did your parents go too?

[staceyverdino]

Parents did NOT go with us - they opted for a more mellow, half day tour with the ship. We ran into them when we got back on the ship at about 6:30 that evening and we were too brain jumbled to even tell them what they missed. It was great! Thanks again for your help Birdnutty!

[PurrSusan]

Staceyverdino, Thanks for your post regarding your 4x4 experience! Our cruise isn't until Oct but I think I am going to go ahead & contact them---I don't want to miss it! So glad you had such a great time. Between you & Birdnutty I think I have gathered enough info to be prepared for the adventure :) Susan

[PurrSusan]

I have one more question. Did you pay for this in advance? Did you have to use your credit card & send them the info over the computer? Are they a secure sight? Any problems? Thanks again! Susan

[Missybud]

PurrSusan,

If you search on the Princess forum for , Golden Princess Motley Cruisers October 24,2004 review by CRUISAYEAR, you will find a section devoted to our ABC Xtreme Safari. It was one of the highlights of our cruise. Do not miss going down to the Natural Pool. It is a hike, though, but so well worth it.

When I booked this for 18 of us, ABC charged my card for the total amount on receipt of the reservation and I was not informed of this until I received by cc bill. YIKES! It took 2 weeks of emails and phone calls to confirm this was their policy. Anyone who reserves a large group needs to type the number of people in the message portion of their reservation and be sure to save it and make a copy. ABC was trying to tell me I only booked 12 which is the largest number they display, but as I had everything in the correct place, they were unable to dispute my reservation. In defense of ABC's problems with this, Ivan was brushing their coast and tearing up the Caribbean as I was booking the tour. We had a great time.

[staceyverdino]

PurrSusan,

There is a secured page on their site and it was not a problem at all. Once I made the reservation, I received a confirmation immediately telling me that they received it and would be in touch to confirm. I got another email the next day from Marvin confirming that we were all set to go and that they would be charging my card immediately. When we got to their office the morning of the excursion, they just had me sign the receipt. If you have the time, defnitely do the full day excursion. Claudio was the best!! Have a great time!

[PurrSusan]

I was able to chat online with a representative who answered some other questions for me but when I asked about their cancellation policy I did not get a response. Their website shows that there are no refunds if the cancellation is not done 48 hours or more prior to the reservation date. What happens if your ship is unable to dock? There is no way to know this until the actual date of scheduled arrival. Do they keep your entire payment? I could understand this if you were just a "no-show" but this would not be the case. I have e-mailed their company but I thought I would ask on here too in case they don't respond. Thanks for your help, everybody! Susan

[kristen3525]

I asked the company the same question about the cancellation policy. They e-mailed me right back and said it was 100% refundable if the our cruise ship doesn't get into Aruba for some unforseen reason.

[PurrSusan]

Kristen, Thanks for the info! I got an e-mail back from the owner, Marvin Kelly, and it stated the same thing--100% back. I made a copy of it (just in case) and plan to book on-line sometime today. This really sounds exciting! Susan

[PurrSusan]

OK, this might sound like a dumb question but here goes! We booked this tour on-line & I received an e-mail back stating that we need to go to the Information Desk & call them when we get to the pier. What information Desk? The one on the ship or is there one located at the pier. We will be on AOS so if anybody has done this please let me know what you did. I am a big "worry-wart" and I try to get everything straight so I don't stress-out! Hope someone can answer this for me :) Susan

[Birdnutty]

Don't fret. We did this last year. The info desk is located on the left in the pier terminal (after you've disembarked) The folks there are very nice. There will probably be others also going ont he same tour. Just go to the desk, tell them you have an ABC tour, and they'll tell you the guide's here, or if not, to sit and they'll let you know when he comes. Don't worry - it's pretty obvious as the groups solidify which one will be yours. WHile you're wating, pick up an "Aruba magazine" at the desk and leaf through it. There's lots of good info in there. There's other stuff at the desk too, all there for the tourist. Have fun!

When are you going? We're on AOS too, leaving this Sunday.

[PurrSusan]

Thanks Birdnutty! We aren't going until 10/02/05 but I always plan way ahead of time. I was just a little confused because it said on my confirmation for me to call them---so you are saying I don't have to call, to just let somebody know I am there? One other question (I keep saying that!) -- I would love to take my video camera. Do you think it would "survive" the trip if I keep it hooked to me? I was worried about the bumpy ride. Thanks again & I hope you have a great trip! Susan

[Birdnutty]

Well, they may have changed their routine. Either that, or my aging brain doesn't recall well. If you've been given a phone nmber, there's probably a phone booth in the terminal that you can call from. If not, talk to those info guys - they'll help.

As to the camera, well, I don't know. There's no way you could take videos while the jeep is in motion. (especially if you're at the end of the truck bed, like I was) You need to hold on with both hands almost all the time. There are seat belts, but you get tossed around unbelievably. If you could anchor it around your neck AND around your waist, it might be safe, but otherwise....?
Thanks for the good wishes re our trip. We are planning on a FANTASTIC vacation!

[lmmn]

[quote name='PurrSusan']Thanks Birdnutty! We aren't going until 10/02/05 but I always plan way ahead of time. I was just a little confused because it said on my confirmation for me to call them---so you are saying I don't have to call, to just let somebody know I am there? One other question (I keep saying that!) -- I would love to take my video camera. Do you think it would "survive" the trip if I keep it hooked to me? I was worried about the bumpy ride. Thanks again & I hope you have a great trip! Susan[/QUOTE]
I just got back from the ABC tour. When you get off the ship you will see the information booth. In that area there will be several tour guides holding up signs...one will be ABC Jeep Tour. If you don't see anyone, I would just ask. We did not need to call...good thing because I didn't have their number. As far as video camera, I cannot imagine using any kind of camera except during stops. The terrain is extremely bumpy...and I'm not sure if I would want to bring an expensive camera. Between four jeeps, we got two flat tires. We loved the tour and we'll probably do it again next time we go to Aruba.