Mini-Speedboat Excursion Review, LONG!!

[LaRue1975]

DH and I were on the Legend cruise out of Tampa on May 13th. We did the speedboat excursion in Cozumel and loved it. We think it was the best excursion we have done in seven cruises. I haven't seen much info on this excursion so I thought I would write a review for those interested. I booked this tour from Carnival online pre-cruise.

 

We were met at the end of the pier by our guide Carlos. We were rounded up, asked to sign waivers and hearded to the taxi area where we were loaded into large vans. The taxi ride from and returning to the pier was included in the tour package. This was great because there were a ton of people debarking and the taxi line was long and kind of chaotic where they were loading the people on and filling up the vans.

 

We passed through town and about five minutes later we reached the excursion headquarters which had clean bathrooms, showers, a patio with tables & chairs and a nice swimming pool next to the beach where the boats are located. There was also a dune buggy excursion leaving from this area.

 

There were about twelve boats in our group with two people in each boat. We were given life vests and there was a large locker in the back of each boat to store your valuables, towels, ext. so they wouldn't get wet. They loaded one boat at a time and we jumped in quickly and got right behind Carlos. Once everyone was moving we went in a big slow circle and each stopped in front of a boat with a guy with a camera so we could all pose for a pic in our boats. It was our best pic of the cruise by far!:)

 

We then headed out to the open sea and I was surprised at how fast we were able to go. DH had the throttle wide open all day and we never could catch Carlos, he must have had a little extra HP in his boat.;) We bobbed and weaved and went in big circles, hauling ass all the way and jumping wakes. It was a total blast and I found myself screaming for joy, yippie!!

 

About half of us were in the first group who were zipping along and the other half were moving slower but there was also a guide at the rear to keep an eye on them. It was pretty wet and wild so I would not recommend this tour to anyone that doesn't like boating or bouncing up and down on the waves or gets motion sickness. If you like a bit of a thrill on your excursions you will love it!! We have a ski boat at home so we were quite comfortable on the water.

 

After what I think was about 45 minutes we were led by Carlos to a private stretch of white sand beach and they helped us land the boats on the beach. We stayed here on the deserted beach for about 45 minutes just relaxing, swimming and enjoying our surroundings. Carlos pointed to the bushes to indicate where the bathroom was located.;)

 

Then it was back in the boats for another 1/2 hour or so of zipping around on our way back to the headquarters. It was plenty of boating time, as much fun as it was DH and I were both ready to head in when Carlos took us back. We also saw some pretty coastline and beach houses and resorts along the way.

 

When were returned we used the fresh water showers and swimming pool and then were served a nice Mexican buffet with Nachos, chicken fajitas, rice, ext. Punch and water were included and you could by a beer for two bucks. As expected Carlos reminded us of the fact that the guides appreciate tips and we were happy to oblige. This has been the case on most excursions, especially in Mexico, and Carlos efforts deserved extra compensation. We also tipped the other guide and cooks but there was no big pressure as sometimes can be the case.

 

Overall I would rate this excursion very, very high and recommend it to anyone that likes an active excursion with a little adventure. We had been to Cozumel on two previous cruises and were looking for something different, this was perfect!:D The boats were in excellent condition and I felt very safe and well taken care of the entire time.

 

Well, that about covers everything, any questions, just ask!!

[will work to cruise]

Janet,

 

Thanks for the review. I've posted a couple of times about this excursion and had no replies. The one question I have is about leg room for the driver. I'm 6'5" and don't want to be too cramped in the boat. How did the leg room look to you?

 

Mike

[LaRue1975]

Mike,

 

You should be fine, I don't remember any problems with leg room. DH is only six feet but I still think there is plenty of room, I asked him about it and he agreed. I am trying to remember, it may have even been open under the bow which would mean umlimited leg room. Definitely do not remember feeling cramped at all.

 

If you decide to do it I hope you have as much as we did! :D

[will work to cruise]

Thanks Janet,

 

We are going to book the speedboat excursion.

 

Mike

[soon to cruise]

do the guides take you? You dont go over to the East side of the island do you? I guess I'm just trying to figure out how "rough" of water can we expect? I know it depends on the weather and wind that day.

thanks for anymore info. We're doing something similar in Grand Cayman also. Trying to figure out if we want 2 boat days.

susan

[ArizonaRalphie]

Well, that about covers everything, any questions, just ask!!

 

Quantos Mucho?

[LaRue1975]

Quantos Mucho?

 

 

95 dineros or maybe dolares?, :confused: mi espanol es muy mal. :)

 

I think it was $20.00 or so more per person to book through the ship but by the time you paid for the taxi it would eat any savings. Our ship was an hour late due to a medical emergency and they just moved up the time of the tour one hour, no problemo.:D

[LaRue1975]

do the guides take you? You dont go over to the East side of the island do you? I guess I'm just trying to figure out how "rough" of water can we expect? I know it depends on the weather and wind that day.

thanks for anymore info. We're doing something similar in Grand Cayman also. Trying to figure out if we want 2 boat days.

susan

 

The guides are with you all the way. You drive around in a follow the leader pattern with a guide in front and one bringing up the rear. I think the guy in the rear was also a mechanic in case one of the boats broke down.

 

We stayed on the same side of the island as the town and ships dock on. The day we were there it wasn't rough at all, you had to jump another boat's wake to get a little air. The boats handled surprisingly well and DH was able to do some pretty tight turns.

 

Instead of doing two of the speedboats, why not do a waverunner excursion in GC? I think they have one that goes all the way to Rum Point. I wish we would have booked that one, oh well, another reason to cruise again.:D

[SparklyPinkCruiser]

How long is this excursion?? Were there places to snorkel?