Catamaran Snorkeling Help, Please

[Tablet]

Read good things about Eagle Catamaran on this site. Unfortunately, after numerous attempts over the course of 2 weeks, I am unable to get them to respond to any emails or messages.

We are a group of 4 adults looking to secure a fun day on the water that includes snorkeling. Will be in port from 1000-1900. I am aware of the speedboat options (Capt Bob, Billy Bones) and will go that route if I have to, but really hoping to find a good catamaran option instead. The ship, Celebrity, is not offering any snorkeling excursions on this particular trip.

Can anyone recommend a catamaran snorkel tour on St Maarten other than Eagle?

[LeeW]

Might be tied up with cruise ship contracts since they seem to be accepting bookings for April that way. We really enjoyed something called Power Rafting that seems to be running again (did this twice and one more booked). Large inflatable side speedboat that goes through Simpson's Bay to French side for snorkeling, beach stop just north of airport, quick stop off of airport to watch planes and then back to port at 50 mph+. Snorkeling location had excellent variety with both shallow and deep views. Beach stop includes floating bar. Royal Caribbean calls this Ultimate Island Tour. Just search Trip Advisor for them to get details and say hi to Trevor and Melissa on the boat. Not a cat but a lot of fun.

[EatonDoolittle]

Not sure if they are operating yet, but Random Wind's owner bought a new catamaran to replace the original boat that was lost in the hurricane.

A while ago they were offering 30% off gift certificates for the new boat (I'm going next year, its a nice savings), and other discounts.

 

Give her a try.

 

https://randomwind.com/

[Tablet]

Thanks for the recommendations. They both sound wonderful. I thought about the competition with other boats as a reason I can't get a response from Eagle but then checked the ships in port data and found out our Celebrity ship is the only one schedule the day we are there.

[VPIcruiser]

Not sure if they are operating yet, but Random Wind's owner bought a new catamaran to replace the original boat that was lost in the hurricane.

A while ago they were offering 30% off gift certificates for the new boat (I'm going next year, its a nice savings), and other discounts.

 

Give her a try.

 

https://randomwind.com/

 

Random wind is operating. We are spending a day with them next week.

[cpayne]

We have sailed on Random Wind with their old boat before the storm. They made for a great day!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[CruiseGal999]

Read good things about Eagle Catamaran on this site. Unfortunately, after numerous attempts over the course of 2 weeks, I am unable to get them to respond to any emails or messages.

We are a group of 4 adults looking to secure a fun day on the water that includes snorkeling. Will be in port from 1000-1900. I am aware of the speedboat options (Capt Bob, Billy Bones) and will go that route if I have to, but really hoping to find a good catamaran option instead. The ship, Celebrity, is not offering any snorkeling excursions on this particular trip.

Can anyone recommend a catamaran snorkel tour on St Maarten other than Eagle?

 

How were you going to use Eagle Catamaran for a snorkel trip? It's posted that ALL of their day trips (except the sunset cruise) leave the dock at 9am. So that means everyone needs to be ON the dock, checking in at 8:30 a.m. (?)

 

The snorkel catamaran's I've used in the past are also the same. Early morning departure and return about 6pm at night.

 

Oh, and the sketchy communication, I'm sure, is still a result of the hurricanes that ravaged the island.

[lcgvol]

Random wind is operating. We are spending a day with them next week.

 

We are booked with Random Wind in May. Can you please report back on your experience? I have been checking their FB page and webpage and have not seen any photos or recent reviews. They were supposed to be up and running in February so I was a little concerned. Thanks!

[Tablet]

How were you going to use Eagle Catamaran for a snorkel trip? It's posted that ALL of their day trips (except the sunset cruise) leave the dock at 9am. So that means everyone needs to be ON the dock, checking in at 8:30 a.m. (?)

 

The snorkel catamaran's I've used in the past are also the same. Early morning departure and return about 6pm at night.

 

Oh, and the sketchy communication, I'm sure, is still a result of the hurricanes that ravaged the island.

 

Since we are the ONLY ship in port on the day we arrive, all the operators I have reached out to were more than willing to adjust their start time in the morning.. No one seemed to care if they left an hour later and came back a bit later since all potential customers via the cruise ship were on the same boat.

 

I would be happy to chalk up the sketchy communication to the hurricane except for the fact that other tour operators on the same island were able to get back to me often within 24 hours.

[VPIcruiser]

We are booked with Random Wind in May. Can you please report back on your experience? I have been checking their FB page and webpage and have not seen any photos or recent reviews. They were supposed to be up and running in February so I was a little concerned. Thanks!

 

We went out with Random Wind on Wednesday. Their new catamaran is beautiful. We had a wonderful day. Their Facebook pages has several photos from this past week, which was their first week.

[VPIcruiser]

Since we are the ONLY ship in port on the day we arrive, all the operators I have reached out to were more than willing to adjust their start time in the morning.. No one seemed to care if they left an hour later and came back a bit later since all potential customers via the cruise ship were on the same boat

 

 

I think the resorts aren't up and running yet, so all the customers are probably cruise passengers.

[lcgvol]

We went out with Random Wind on Wednesday. Their new catamaran is beautiful. We had a wonderful day. Their Facebook pages has several photos from this past week, which was their first week.

Thanks for the follow up! Couple of questions: did you still meet st Skipjacks? Is it open? And did you have any trouble returning to the ship with the road work/pipes being laid? Thanks!

[VPIcruiser]

Thanks for the follow up! Couple of questions: did you still meet st Skipjacks? Is it open? And did you have any trouble returning to the ship with the road work/pipes being laid? Thanks!

Yes, for now, the meeting place in still Shipjacks even though it is not open.

 

Ughh. Traffic is always a pain. Last year, there were so many ships in port, traffic was bad. This year, it was bad because of road construction (I think pipe work actually) near the cruise terminal. Thankfully, we made it there and back with time to spare.

[ladylyn915]

We have booked Golden Eagle through RCCL for our July cruise stop on St. Maarten. I, too, have had no luck in reaching them.

 

Perhaps someone who has done this excursion can tell me about the stop at the beach? I was curious if there are chairs/umbrellas etc. I was considering buying a roll up mat for the sand if needed.

 

Thank for any insghts