Cayo Levantado

[Softball20]

Not a fan of the "fake ports," either. I call them Beach Camp :) They're such a sanitized version of a Caribbean beach, where you don't get to experience any of the culture of the surrounding port. That said, someone earlier mentioned Falmouth. It's not a fake port; it's in an area on the North Coast of Jamaica between Montego Bay and Ocho Rios. It's the new port built by Royal Caribbean, I believe, so they'd have some place for their bigger ships. We've never sailed into Falmouth, but we have passed the port area a couple times by car. While they are building up stuff around the port area, as there wasn't too much there before the port opened, one is free to go out and about as you would in any other port. Jamaica is my favorite island. Been there 17 times (only once or twice by cruise ship), and it has sooooo much more to offer than most give it credit for.

 

Sorry for the digression off topic :)

[digtexas]

Back to the original subject, CAG and GRG just stopped by the house on their way to Miami to board Riviera on Friday; one of their stops is Cayo Levantado; apparently Oceania has added a whale watching excursion, as this is the season for it, and that's a great area for it. I would recommend that as well as the speedboat to the national park.

 

Don,

The available shore excursions shown online do not mention whale watching. Do you have some other information regarding this?

 

Thanks

[Paulchili]

Our cruise (3/22/15) includes this port.

The tour I am considering is described on O website like this:

 

Tour Length: Half-Day (Approximately 3 1/2 hours)

Tour Description Cruises Visiting This Port

This charming half-day tour gives you a great overview of Samaná and allows you to indulge yourself in the sights and sounds that are unique to the Samaná Peninsula. Boarding your coach, you'll enjoy expert narration from your friendly and knowledgeable guide as they point out many points of interest along your route, including La Churcha, an historical church that was brought from England in the 1800's and re-assembled piece-by-piece in Samaná.

 

Traveling on, you'll find yourself at the Whale Museum where a short visit is in order. Although small, the museum affords a fascinating look at the history and mysteries of the humpback whales that have made an annual trek to the waters off Samaná for centuries. Leaving the museum, it's a drive through the scenic countryside to Villa Vicenta, where you'll be afforded a short photo stop. The views from this location are simply breathtaking so you'll want to be sure to bring your camera long.

 

Your final tour stop is the quaint town of Las Terrenas. Once a sleepy fishing village, this highly popular destination is now home to a variety of well-appointed gift shops and delightful, European-influenced restaurants and cafés. Free time will be allowed in Las Terrenas to explore on your own, or do a bit of shopping before it's time to re-board your coach for the return trip to the pier.

 

This sounds pretty OK to me (esp. Las Terrenas) - time will tell.

 

This is what I found about Las Terrenas:

The main town contains some beautiful old buildings along a typical fishing village main street which ends at the ocean. The street is a mix of modern and classically rural Dominican, with good restaurants, bars, and hotels. But the highlights of Las Terrenas are the ten miles of beaches and surrounding landscape—arguably the most picturesque in the country. The large sunny beaches are surrounded by green hills and pure blue sea water. The harmony between the three colors—creamy white sand, blue ocean, and green trees—is magical.

[hondorner]

Don,

The available shore excursions shown online do not mention whale watching. Do you have some other information regarding this?

 

Thanks

 

Sorry, no, I beleve she said she received an email about it, contacted her TA, ang got it booked. My impression is that it was a late addition. They were only here a couple of hours, then they headed on south. If you're on that cruise on Riviera this Friday, you should check with Destinations.

[hondorner]

Paul, sounds good to me, too. It certainly sounds better than any of the previous alternatives.

[Paulchili]

Paul, sounds good to me, too. It certainly sounds better than any of the previous alternatives.

 

Don,

yes - it sounds reasonable. Not very much different (on paper, anyway :)) from some other Caribbean ports.

Plus I hope to add to my collection of monies from visited countries.Hopefully they might even have a bank in that town to change money (or just get some from the guide or stores).

We'll see how the tour works out in reality.

[CAG]

Sorry, no, I beleve she said she received an email about it, contacted her TA, ang got it booked. My impression is that it was a late addition. They were only here a couple of hours, then they headed on south. If you're on that cruise on Riviera this Friday, you should check with Destinations.

 

That is exactly what happened. Notification didn't come from Oceania until February 10th, just 3 days before our boarding date.

 

Cenia

[Caroldoll]

and I am happy for you. When we went the first tour in January there was absolutely nothing. They tendered you to the beach and told you you couldn't do anything else. They had a picnic, but it poured rain. At least you will see something. Yeah.

[digtexas]

We just returned from the Riviera. The day that we anchored near Cayo Levantado was overcast and a bit rainy. My wife and I opted to stay on board. The beach lovers in the group, who went in, enjoyed the place but some were dismayed that they were not allowed in the nearby resort. We were very happy staying on the ship and in places like Nassau, Tortola and Gran Turk, spent very little time off of the ship. San Juan and St. Barts were a pleasure, however.

[IFlyHarder]

OK, so I'm clearly a weirdo, but I actually enjoyed the Cayo Levantado stop. In general I'm not a beach person and I pretty much didn't want to go on a Caribbean cruise. I prefer going places where I can try different foods, see theater and music, spend time in museums, and look at architecture. I've been to about 15 Caribbean islands (both on and off cruises) and find it to be pretty dull. But for some reason I enjoyed it for what it was and spent a few hours in and out of the water and chatting with people.

Definitely DON'T buy the "excursion", which gets you a wristband for the buffet (pretty basic) and drinks (not much of a drinker). The promised beach umbrellas aren't actually offered at all. And the people who bought the excursion were all waiting in a long line to get their wrist bands while everyone else walked past them and got some of the prime beach chairs! But the beach was kind of nice, the water calm, and I had a good time.

[Tansy Mews]

Back to the original subject, CAG and GRG just stopped by the house on their way to Miami to board Riviera on Friday; one of their stops is Cayo Levantado; apparently Oceania has added a whale watching excursion, as this is the season for it, and that's a great area for it. I would recommend that as well as the speedboat to the national park.

 

Agreed. We loved our cave and kayaking trip to the National Park. The tour boat picked us up off the Marina, rather than going by tender to the port. Lovely day.