Questions on Bully Tours in Aruba??

[2Canucks]

Has anyone ever done a tour with Bully? Please share your experience with me.

 

Are there any other private tour operators available in Aruba?

 

What did you do in Aruba? This will be our first visit and would appreciate some guidance. We'll be in Aruba on Jan 16/08 and again on Jan 24/08. (We're doing a B2B on Summit.)

 

Thanks in advance for any info you can share with us.

 

Pat :)

[Arubalisa]

Has anyone ever done a tour with Bully? Please share your experience with me.

I was the person who originally reccommended him here in this fourm. He was reccommended to us by someone in another forum. He drove us around the island exclusively for our 8 night stay last September. I do not know how many years he has driven a taxi on the island, but he is a native and knows the island well. We saw places we had never seen in our 14 previous trips and on an island 26 miles long that is a feat in itself. My parents just returned from a land vacation in Aruba and they too also used him exclusively during their stay. My parents and I do not agree on everything, but they too loved Bully.

 

Are there any other private tour operators available in Aruba?

EL Tours

2Go Aruba Private Island Tours

WIX Tours Aruba

Watapana Tours

Kini Kini Transfer & Tours

 

What did you do in Aruba? This will be our first visit and would appreciate some guidance. We'll be in Aruba on Jan 16/08 and again on Jan 24/08. (We're doing a B2B on Summit.)

Below are some previous threads which may give you some ideas of things to do while you are visiting the island.

Come on cruisers help us out here

What is THE excursion in Aruba?

Aruba photos, trip report + tidbits

Options in Aruba??

Suggestions for Aruba

Suggestions of what to do in Aruba

Independent tour operators

[Arubalisa]

Forgot::)

You can check the excursion booth outside the terminal in Aruba

you find the members in Blue Unifor says A.T.O.A. (ASSOCIATION TOUR OPERATORS OF ARUBA) THEY CAN OFFER YOU VARIOUS OPTION OF EXCURSION

[Arubalisa]

I was the person who originally reccommended him here in this fourm. He was reccommended to us by someone in another forum. He drove us around the island exclusively for our 8 night stay last September. I do not know how many years he has driven a taxi on the island, but he is a native and knows the island well. We saw places we had never seen in our 14 previous trips and on an island 26 miles long that is a feat in itself. My parents just returned from a land vacation in Aruba and they too also used him exclusively during their stay. My parents and I do not agree on everything, but they too loved Bully.

I just found out that the Aruban Government has increased the hourly taxi rate to $40 per hour. That is per car, up to a maximum of 5 persons.

[Arubalisa]

On September 1, 2009, the Aruban Government has increased the hourly taxi rate to $45 per hour. That is per car, up to a maximum of 5 persons.

[Stormlover]

On September 1, 2009, the Aruban Government has increased the hourly taxi rate to $45 per hour. That is per car, up to a maximum of 5 persons.

 

 

We will be in Aruba in April on a cruise that stops there, we are going to try to reserve Bully, How long would a good tour of the Island take? We are there from 7-4. Not sure how long to reserve him for. Would a cab with 5 be over crowded? There will be 3 of us an I was thinking of inviting another couple but dont want to be crowded.:confused:

[Arubalisa]

Bully has a large air conditioned van which holds 5 people comfortably.

 

 

For a tour, personally I would email him and give him an idea of what you are interested in and then see what he would suggest.

[Casey2]

We toured with Bully 2 years ago. He took us all over the island- wherever we wanted to go. We had suggested some places and with his suggestions we put together an itinerary. All you have to do is tell him you want to see the island and he will know where to take you. Our tour was for 4 hours but ran closer to 5. He only wanted to charge us for 4 hours be we paid him for 5 anyway. I highly recommended him.

[theblonde]

We were a group of ten (including one three year-old) in December '09. Bully and a peer met us at the pier for our comprehensive tour of the island--approximately 6 hours. Bully was very accommodating and let us set the pace. He provided water and local beer and carrots to feed the donkeys. He was knowledgeable and personable and made buddies with the three year-old. We enjoyed our day and highly recommend Bully!

 

Donna

[twene]

We are heading to Aruba next year.

 

Can you give me a general idea of the price?

 

Thanks!

[Arubalisa]

$45 hours per hour for private tours. Taxis by law are only allowed to take a maximum of five people. If you have more people than that, Bully has some family members who also drive taxis and are just as nice as he is.

[Saraj]

We did a 3 hour tour with Bully on March 6 and we could not asked for anything better. We requested a tour which did not require a lot of walking as I have knee problems and we were very pleased. We saw just about everything I read about on the Island and got some great pictures. Bully arrived right on time and went out of his way to be sure we were comfortable. I would recommend him to anyone looking for a personalized tour rather than just "where the bus takes you".

[wacalla]

We had a three hour tour by Bully on March 15th. He is just a wonder at taking you to all the places that you wanted to see and many places that you would never think of. He is thoughtful and efficient throughout.

[vplsh]

Add my recommendation of Bully to those above. We toured with him on April 2, which was Good Friday. Unfortunately for us, the island has a national holiday, so many things were closed. But Bully was waiting for us at the pier with his very large, airconditioned van. He took us all over the island, even having cold local water and beer for us to try!

He is a great guy and a wonderful tour guide!

[Missa]

Bully is a personal friend to a co-worker of mine. # years ago he was great, took us all over, stopped for a local beer then afterwards dropped us off at a nice family beach :)

He lived on the island all hiss life, his wife works for a major tour operator, or used to. He also used to be a bouncer many, many years ago for Carlos & Charlies, here he got his nickname, Bully :)

 

He is a great nice guy, you'll love your tour with him :)

[Gordo]

We booked Bully for a private tour while on a cruise to celebrate our mom's 70th birthday. He was absolutely fantastic from the first point we contacted him, through the planning stages and the actual tour.

 

Bully was waiting for us at the pier and in his van he had a piece of almond cake with a candle for mom to celebrate her birthday. What a nice touch and a great way to start the day. He then proceeded to give us a wonderful tour of his beautiful island stopping with informative historical information and taking pictures wherever we wanted.

 

After three hours he dropped us off near the Marriott/Holiday Inn, and then provided transportation back to the cruise terminal four hours later.

 

Bully provides a wonderful tour and shares the love of his "home" with you. We would highly recommend him for your visit to Aruba.

[itsnevereasy]

Group of 5 from the Serenade of the Seas toured with Bully last week. Good with email and he was waiting for us on the pier. Super nice guy gave us a good overview of the island. No rushing around, take your time and enjoy the complementary drinks.

[4275princess]

We have done 3 land tours in Aruba and always use Bully for local transportation. He is dependable, on-time and so accommodating. Once my husband got ill & had to go to a dr in Aruba...called Bully...made it to that dr appt when his cousin showed up to take us. I would NEVER hesitate to use Bully for any transportation needs and if he can't be the driver; his family is just as dependable.

[Arubalisa]

Once my husband got ill & had to go to a dr in Aruba...called Bully...made it to that dr appt when his cousin showed up to take us.

In a similar story, a friend our ours was hospitalized while in Aruba. He was released with a few prescriptions. Bully picked the gentleman and his wife up at the hospital and drove them back to their hotel. The wife continued on with Bully to the Botica (pharmacy) and while driving, Bully phoned in the prescriptions so that the pharmacist had the prescriptions ready upon their arrival.

 

Like the birthday almond cake story above, he does go above and beyond to please his "guests". :)

[lovevacadays]

In a similar story, a friend our ours was hospitalized while in Aruba. He was released with a few prescriptions. Bully picked the gentleman and his wife up at the hospital and drove them back to their hotel. The wife continued on with Bully to the Botica (pharmacy) and while driving, Bully phoned in the prescriptions so that the pharmacist had the prescriptions ready upon their arrival.

 

Like the birthday almond cake story above, he does go above and beyond to please his "guests". :)

 

Wow, thanks for sharing that experience. It's so nice to hear of these kinds of people in the world. We have Bully booked for our cruise in Dec 2011.

[2Canucks]

How long does it usually take Bully to reply to a tour request email?

 

I've sent 2 emails from two different email addresses to bullytaxi79@hotmail.com and I haven't had a reply yet.

 

Can anyone suggest another way to reach Bully?

 

Thanks in advance for your help with the above problem.

 

Pat :)

[canadarocks]

When I first contacted him I waited a week for a response. I think he is very busy. :)

[Arubalisa]

Make sure you check your spam folder.

All replies with come from Amador Lacle. :)

[2Canucks]

Make sure you check your spam folder.

All replies with come from Amador Lacle. :)

 

 

Thanks Lisa...

 

For the heads up on Bully's real name. I received his reply this evening and have booked him for our Feb/11 tour day in Aruba. :D Can't wait!

 

ps... His email came thorough just fine and it wasn't even in the Spam folder.

 

Pat :)

[lovevacadays]

How long does it usually take Bully to reply to a tour request email?

 

I've sent 2 emails from two different email addresses to bullytaxi79@hotmail.com and I haven't had a reply yet.

 

Can anyone suggest another way to reach Bully?

 

Thanks in advance for your help with the above problem.

 

Pat :)

 

Have you heard from him yet? I've emailed him 3 different times now to book and with questions and received a very quick response. Did you check your spam folder?

 

Oops sorry didn't see your later response. I hope you write a review when you get back. We are very excited for our tour next year but would love to hear what others did on their tour with Bully!

Edited October 28, 2010 by chloedmom