Amber Cove tour cancelled. What to do?

[kadams718]

We just got notice that our deluxe catamaran tour was cancelled tomorrow. Does anyone have a suggestion of what to do on such short notice. We will have 4 kids with us ages 12-15 so we want something safe and kid friendly. And don't want to risk not getting back to boat on time.

 

Thanks in advance!!!

[mrpayroll]

Just hang out at the port. Kids can enjoy the two watersides , ( free ) and also enjoy the ziplines. They are pretty reasonable. The pool is very nice.

[HawkIVette]

Just hang out at the port. Kids can enjoy the two watersides , ( free ) and also enjoy the ziplines. They are pretty reasonable. The pool is very nice.

 

Have to agree with above. Pool is free and right next to the ship. Zip line was only $20 for the day, I think.

[riclop]

Stay on the ship.

[IntrepidFromDC]

And we are so happy.

 

Our excursions typically leave from the same congested areas Carnival excursions do, but when our vans pull away, the Carnival excursions are still (sometimes frantically) taking headcounts. Never been anywhere close to late. TripAdvisor is a great place to search for better excursions and if you are going to St. Kitts do not miss the "Grand Tour" offered by Grey's Tours. Thenford Grey is charming and amazing, and the value cannot be beat.

[easyboy]

And we are so happy.

 

Our excursions typically leave from the same congested areas Carnival excursions do, but when our vans pull away, the Carnival excursions are still (sometimes frantically) taking headcounts. Never been anywhere close to late. TripAdvisor is a great place to search for better excursions and if you are going to St. Kitts do not miss the "Grand Tour" offered by Grey's Tours. Thenford Grey is charming and amazing, and the value cannot be beat.

It is also our primary source of info. Very useful reviews too.

[FloridaMommyof3]

This has NOTHING to do with you question (lol and sorry) but since you are currently on the Magic now, and I will be on her in June, can you please find out the answer to this question for me.

 

Regarding the wine packages, can you ask if you can purchase more then one package and take the unopened bottles back to your room? Since these packages aren't sold in the fun shops and have to be purchased on board I cannot seem to find a clear answer. I don't want to purchase Cheers next cruise but if I can purchase 5 (or more) bottles of wine for the room that would be awesome. I'm typically just a wine drinker and only drink those fancy drinks on a cruise with Cheers.

[angela12345]

We don't take a lot of excursions. Maybe once per cruise, sometimes not even that. In Dominican Republic, we had a taxi driver for the whole day. He was FANTASTIC ! In addition to the sites we wanted to see, we asked him to take us to see how people really live there. He showed us many things and told us about stuff along the way. He also took us to a grocery store to buy vanilla. He came in with us, called the manager over to ask questions about the different vanillas we could choose from, paid for the vanilla himself with his own money (he had DR currency so we didn't have to pay exchange fees), and he gave us each some DR currency as souvenirs. We tipped him an extra $100 on top of the $80-90 that was the taxi fare for 4 of us (there was room in his minivan, we could have taken 6 maybe 8). By the way, buy vanilla in DR at a regular store !! We paid approx $2-3 for a BIG BOTTLE like 32oz I think. In the cruise port it was about 2-3x the price for a tiny little bottle.

 

Walk out of the port and there will be people with price signs that will help you get a taxi driver. Ask for an English speaking driver !!! Our driver name was Michael I think ????

 

Here are the notes I had copied before our trip to Amber Cove . . .

Almost all below I copied from other people's postings.

 

Amber Cove. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g147290-Activities-Puerto_Plata_Puerto_Plata_Province_Dominican_Republic.html

Amber Cove - beaches are short cab ride away, but if you want to stay at port, the pools and children’s splash pad area are open and complementary. Lounge chairs are also complementary but umbrellas are available for rent. +Watersides at pool are free ?!!!! : )

Amber Cove - public transportation just outside port. $5 pp Javilla Tours is the public buses and they are safe. Can use them for the cable cars and to go to Santiago the next largest city in the country

Amber Cove - Taxis are very well organized at the dock, taxi supervisors find out where you want to go, the price is $15/hour, they signal the next taxi to pull up, he hands your driver a paper with the negotiated rate on it and where you are going, and you get in. We did the cable car, then the fort, then walked the boardwalk in Porto Plata while he waited at a prearranged place, then drove to the shopping area (forget it), and then back to the ship, just over 4 hours, $70. - make sure you get pricing, items and an English speaker

Amber Cove - Expect to bargain in local stores, but you will find fixed prices in larger stores, and at the airport

Amber Cove - Be careful how much money you choose to exchange into Dominican pesos while on the island. Travelers are only allowed to change back up to 30% of one's pesos for foreign currency upon departure. You will be given exchange receipts each time you change money during your stay, so keep them if you need to change back for dollars, pounds, etc!

Amber Cove - WHALE WATCHING - Samana Bay Jan - early April - maybe see humpback whale as we sail into or away from DR ?

Amber Cove cable car EL TELEFIRICO http://telefericopuertoplata.com/

go before NOON, often mist/clouds obscure visibility later

approx $ 7.65pp 350 pesos. http://www.google.com/search?q=350+RD$+to+dollars Isabel de Torres. A short cable ride will take you up to the mountain peak to see the gardens there and the panoramic view. That is where the famous statue, Christ a la Rio de Janiero stands. (note: depending on exchange rate, may be cheaper to pay with pesos than dollars. I think it was $10 when we went but would have been $7.65 for 350 pesos with the exchange rate at that time)

Amber Cove - AMBER MUSEUM Displays pieces taken from the amber mines in the Northerm Mountains with millennial fossils. Duarte Street #61, close to the Central Park. The building that houses the museum is considered a splendid sample of neoclassical architecture with Victorian influence. Open every day except Sunday, from 9 am until 5 pm. Tel. 809-586-2848.

Amber Cove - SAN FELIPE FORT The Fuerte San Felipe (San Felipe Fort) is located on a small peninsula on the Bahia de Puerto Plata, the bay Columbus once had such high hopes for. The Fort is, in fact, the only vestige of Puerto Plata's colonial past. For a little admission fee, you'll be able to look in on a small historical museum, and the tiny cell in which the hero of the Independence movement, Juan Pablo Duarte, was briefly confined. You'll find a number of guides hanging around the entrance to the fort, who for a small fee, will give you a tour. The Malecon leads along the seafront from the fort. It passes a small fish market on the beach and some fishing boats. The beach is tree lined and not suitable to sit there or swim. At end of the Malecon from the fort a rock in the sea has a Trident statue.

Amber Cove - CATREDAL SAN FELIPE - free located in the central park Independence Square (Parque de la Restauracion) Victorian architecture - Mariposa ice-cream shop ,best ice cream in Puerto Plata without a doubt,80 pesos per scoop

Amber Cove - “Luperon Musuem” Calle 12 de Julio 54. A real find. This museum tells the story of General Luperon through the artifacts of the day as well as through an interesting film (as others have said -- insist on seeing the movie first, otherwise the tour is does not make a lot of sense). The building is a replica of the house in which this Dominican hero died and it is beautifully presented. The guides are very friendly but their English is quite limited. I visited twice -- once with a Spanish speaking visitor and realized how much more informative that guided tour was then the English one. Even though the museum is new the signage and information on the exhibits are only in Spanish and the section with audio-clips was only in Spanish. Too bad they did not follow the lead of the Taino Museum (in Samana) or the national museum in Santo Domingo and have English language printed materials and/or audio materials.

The Museum is conveniently located near the Central Park, the Amber Museum (interesting but a little too commercial), The Meeting Place (a volunteer information center where you can get free maps, info), and the Melacon (the beachfront boulevard) where there are lots of little huts and restaurants and which leads you on a short walk to the colonial fort at the end.

Amber Cove - BRUGAL RUM DISTILLERY? $3 includes tour and samples - cheapest prices for their rum is in their gift shop (better than duty free)

Amber Cove. - Vivonte cigar factory ?

Amber Cove - About fifteen minutes from Puerto Plata is the Gri Gri Lagoon. The foliage and wildlife in this area is breathtaking and make sure to visit the river which is surrounded by mangroves.

Edited December 19, 2016 by angela12345

[angela12345]

(snip)

Walk out of the port and there will be people with price signs that will help you get a taxi driver. Ask for an English speaking driver !!! Our driver name was Michael I think ????

(snip)

I know this will be too late for you, but hopefully it can help someone else in the future.

 

I asked my aunt & uncle, they said they thought his name was Johnny. I think they are correct, it was Johnny not Michael. He was fantastic.