Need Quick Answer on Charlie Soto!

[Cruising Boomer]

Tried this question on one of the threads but no response so I started a new thread.

 

We have been emailing to Charlie about a Tour out of Puntarenas/ Puerto Caldera. We told him we do not want to zipline. He suggested the B4 tour described as follows:

 

Crocodile Man Boat Tour -7 hours

Crocodile Man Jungle Boat tour on the Tarcoles river to view animals such as the Coati Mundi, Macaw, Monkeys, Birds, Iguanas Crocodiles and others wildlife. (extra charge) (2 hours).

Jaco Beach & Restaurant (Lunch) beautiful beach and great food

Beautiful Scenic Viewpoint

Supermarket visit for wonderful Costa Rican Coffee, Vanilla, and much more at great prices.

 

Charlie quoted $80 for this tour.

 

Has anyone taken this tour?

 

I get a little confused with the postings and cannot always tell who is talking about the Caribbean side or the Pacific side.

 

Does anyone know where Charlie lives? Does he show up on both coasts??? :D

 

I have asked him twice how many people will be on the tour but have gotten no response. He has been very prompt and everyone seems to like him but we do not want to be packed on a bus like the ship's excursions. What was your experience on the numbers on the tour?

 

Thanks.

 

Cruising Boomer

 

Doug

[2Xayear]

Doug,

We just did that exact tour last week with Charlie. The Crocodile man Tour is FANTASTIC and well worth the extra money. Our tour was $49 per person PLUS the $35 for the Croc trip. And it's not just the Crocodiles...birds were INCREDIBLE too and the whole river setting was very picturesque. On THIS tour...4 of us did the Croc Tour and 4 did the Rainforest Canopy Tour. The other 4 were VERY disappointed in the Canopy Tour. Very dry, no wildlife, a couple of birds and very little else.

 

Our only issue was that Charlie quoted us (and another 2 people on this tour too) a different tour all together. It turns out he suggested a tour thinking we were coming from the Caribbean side but we arrived from the Pacific. He was there waiting, as promised.

 

Yes Doug...he works from both coasts. I remember him saying it was about a three hour drive from one side to the other. He lives on the Caribbean side.

 

Numbers depend on how many book with him. We had 8 of us on our tour.

 

Just in the process of transferring photos Doug, but I'll put a couple up for you asap.

[2Xayear]

Here's a photo for you Doug...

[2Xayear]

And one more....

[Cruising Boomer]

2xayear,

 

Thanks so much for the info and the pictures!

 

What was the weather like? My wife is interested in knowing about mosquitoes, insects, etc. on the river cruise. She was "eaten" by critters on a river cruise in Costa Rica several years ago - the river was to the north in Guanacaste province.

 

We have been on the Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and Prisendam. The upcoming cruise will be on the Veendam. What's your impression of the "dam" ships you have been on?

 

Thanks.

 

Doug

[2Xayear]

Weather was great. Dry and warm. No bugs to speak of. (I don't remember any to be honest)

 

BTW...on this tour (Crocodile Man Tour) with Charlie...the crocs are actually fed by the guides. From what I hear...other croc tours on this river don't always feed them. Just what I heard.

One more thing...this tour had only 6 of us on the boat that seats about 60. No idea if it's because we booked with Charlie or just luck?

 

Haven't sailed on any of the dam ships you listed. Zuiderdam, Volendam, Ryndam and Zaandam for us with the Volendam or Zaandam our favorites and the Ryndam our least favourite. Just ranking...NOT being critical of any. Loved them all!!!

 

This latest was our first Panama Canal transit. FAR AND ABOVE..our favourite cruise to date!!

[Cruising Boomer]

Great information! Thanks. This will be our first Panama Canal cruise too! Really looking forward to it!

 

Crusing Boomer

[madams]

We just got back from the Norwegian Sun Panama Canal cruise.

We visted both the east and west coasts of Costa Rica and toured with Charlie Soto both times.

From Limon he took us to a banana plantation, the canal boat ride, had lunch at the beach, took pictures from the viewpoint and went to the grocery store to buy coffee.

 

From Puntarenas,Charlie took us to Turu Ba Ri.

It is a tropical park that has lots to offer. Check it out "www.turubari.com"

There were 3 of us and we given a guide to spend the day with us.

He toured us all around the site and explained all about the plants, animals, insects and butterflys.

It costs $55.00 US to get in (lunch included). It was worth every penny.

We had people on our ship that paid that much just to go zip lining at another site.

Afterwards we went to a bridge to see crocodiles , went looking for some monkeys and then to a grocery store so we could buy some pop and water.

 

 

Charlie was at the pier to pick us us as promised and got us back to the ship in plenty of time.

[marshaatn]

Our tour was with Charlie in Limon and he was right there waiting for us as promised when we got off the ship. Our tour was wonderful and I would not hesitate to recommend Charlie. We did the banana plantation, zipline, boat ride -- it was terrific. Charlie is very personable -- you can't go wrong touring with Charlie.

[Cruise-Crazy]

Our tour was with Charlie in Limon and he was right there waiting for us as promised when we got off the ship. Our tour was wonderful and I would not hesitate to recommend Charlie. We did the banana plantation, zipline, boat ride -- it was terrific. Charlie is very personable -- you can't go wrong touring with Charlie.

 

Does he have a website?

[beanandme]

Hi Larry, it's Kristi from Legend roll call. We are booked with Charlie in Limon. If you have any questions, email him. He is very prompt at returning replies.

Hope you to see you on the tour.

Here's your website:

 

http://www.okeydokeytours.com/tours.htm

[Cruise-Crazy]

Hi Larry, it's Kristi from Legend roll call. We are booked with Charlie in Limon. If you have any questions, email him. He is very prompt at returning replies.

Hope you to see you on the tour.

Here's your website:

 

http://www.okeydokeytours.com/tours.htm

 

Thanks!

[motherchic]

We are thining about booking with Charlie in February...the Croc man tour.

Can you tell me:

is the tour very strenuous?can a healthy senior be comfortable?

the boat tour part, did the seats in the boat have backs to them? where they chair type seating or benches? Most important would be seating with a back.

Ok...heres the "anal" question: if the tour operator feeds the crocs...if an accident would occur--would there be others to help?

thank you for your help

Nadine

[ebslc]

We are thining about booking with Charlie in February...the Croc man tour.

Can you tell me:

is the tour very strenuous?can a healthy senior be comfortable?

the boat tour part, did the seats in the boat have backs to them? where they chair type seating or benches? Most important would be seating with a back.

Ok...heres the "anal" question: if the tour operator feeds the crocs...if an accident would occur--would there be others to help?

thank you for your help

Nadine

 

Hi Nadine,

25th picture in my Puntarenas album has a picture of the boat.

http://picasaweb.google.com/ebslcc/2006Oct1stADayInPuntarenasCostaRica

 

There are backs to the seats on this boat however they are plastic and seat type. You may want to bring a towel and put it on the back of the seat to be more comfortable. I am not sure if they have more than one boat?

 

You will be on the boat for about 1 1/2 hours. We didn't go on the boat tour as we went ziplining. From what I've gathered, I don't think you will be going too fast on the boat. There are crocodiles in the river and they don't want to hit them:) !! You will see a lot more wildlife on this tour vs. ziplining! There are lots of birds around the river.

 

When we drop off others for this tour, two guides were on the boat. One I assume is the 'Crocodile Man' and the other is the boat operator.

 

Some pictures other took on the croc tour: http://director.hu.mtu.edu/mtublogs/dave/archives/2006/03/carara_national.html

 

Videos!!:

[motherchic]

Thank you so much for answering my quirky questions.

I just booked the tour. Several years ago when we were in Limon we had booked a tour with Oscar Brown. It was a great tour. It sounds like Charlie will do the same.

Nadine