Almonds And Corals Or Oscar Brown? Advice Please

[PINEY10]

What is the difference between the two? It is my understanding from these threads that Oscar Brown uses the zip line tour at Almonds and Corals. I know that Oscar Brown and the Almonds and Corals group pick up at the cruise ship and take you to the resort, both stopping to see different things on the way to and from the ship. I also believe lunch/fruit is included in both. Is the difference in the price? Or is there much difference in the tours? Would like some advice please.

 

For those who have done the zip line tour, how scarey is it? It looks like great fun, but do the tour operators assist the people if they are a little scared? Also, I understand that you walk up stairs to go to the first zip line. Do those stairs have railings? Also do the platforms have railings. Just concerned whether there is any chance for falling, understanding that for the zip line part, you are attached to cables. Are the bridges also safe--can't fall over the sides? Just need some reassurance. Thanks.

[khuff7]

I have a tour booked with Oscar in Dec. Our tour includes transportation to Almonds and Corals, where we will pay them $40.00 pp for the zip-lining tour. Either before or after zip-lining, Oscar will take us to the banana plantation, to a friends house to see and hold a monkey and a sloth. Also, he will give us a guided tour of the area. He charges $30.00 pp. I guess that A & C charges $75.00 for transportation, tour, and zip-lining. I am looking forward to this tour with Oscar because of all of the great reviews on this board. Also, I don't know the number of people that A & C takes, but with Oscar, his van only seats 14, and as of right now, there are only 2 of us scheduled on the tour.

[Cruisechik]

Hi Piney -

 

You are very safe on the ziplining tour - no danger of falling over the side. You are hooked in three different places to insure safety. The bridges and the stairs have rails. Some of the platforms did not have rails, but as I said you are hooked in at all times. If you are scared, the guides will help you. They will even hook you on and zipline with you. Try to do it yourself, though. I'll admit I am afraid of heights. I was scared and thought of turning around before the first zip but I am glad I did not. What an adventure. The platforms were alittle scary for me, but the zipling itself was worth a little fear :) The zipping part is incredibly fun. My 7 year old was amazing. She showed no fear and it is now her favorite thing. She talks about it all the time. DH loved it, too. You may be alittle scared, maybe not, but you will be amazed. Have fun. I highly recommend this tour.

 

Almonds & Corals picked us up at the pier. It's a shuttle bus. Air-conditioned and comfortable. The guide, Danny, was informative. Total cost was $75pp. You can do it either way - Almonds & Corals or Oscar. I'd be inclined to go with Oscar for more personal service but only if his van/car is newer model, I'd hate to break down in Costa Rica.

[PINEY10]

Cruisechik

 

Thanks for your inspiring and reassuring words--will give it my best! It sounds like both Almonds and Corals and Oscar are excellent choices.

[Cruisechik]

Hi Piney-

 

Have a great time! Be on the lookout for toucans, sloths, and monkeys while you're up there. Also, bring your camera & if you wear sunglasses, get one of those strappy things, just in case they fall off. Try to be the last person in line. Although you will have to wait longer for your turn, chances are you will have a smaller group. We ended up last and the three of us had two guides to ourselves. Hardly any waiting on the platform and a more personal experience.

[Driftwoodgal]

I just thought I would post that Oscar's Van is in good condition and has AC. He had a cooler full of drinks for us all iced down. You are completely safe the entire time you are zip lining. At no time are you not connected to the cable, except when you are climbing up the stairs to the first level. That is like climbing your stairs a home, and there is a railing to hold on to. If you book with Oscar you will have a very full day. Our tour with him included the zip line, bananna plantation, visit to friends house where the lovely Rosita resides with a sloth, tour of the city, stop at his sisters house, stops to photography wildlife in the trees along the highway.... etc. We did all that even with our ship docking 1 1/2 hours late. Next time we go I want him to stop at a grocery store so I can stock up on their wonderful coffee. I have been told that it is cheaper in the grocery store than the vendors at the end of the pier.

[Ronzoco]

I have been considering doing a tour through Greenway that goes to Almonds and Corals for zip-lining, a banana plantation, and the beach at the National Park for $89 p/p. I have read many postings from people who have been to Costa Rica and they claim there is no way they would chance a private excursion there as the country is so remote they would fear getting back to the ship in time because of a flat tire, mud slide or some other unforeseen problem. Even people that never book an excursion through the cruise ship seem reticent to venture out in CR on a private tour. My question, to those of you who have done this is simply did you worry about returning to the ship on time? Did everything run smoothly? We are going in mid November which is considered the rainy season. Is there really a threat of mudslides at that time of the year. Do we dare venture out on our own? Any input from those who have been there and done that would be helpful.

Ronnie

[Driftwoodgal]

I would like to point out to you that if you want to zipline you will have to use an independent tour guide. Even though the zipline is very safe, I don't think the cruise lines will take on the liability risks of having someone 80 feet in the air. IMHO the zipline is safer than doing a white water rafting tour that the ships do offer.

 

The roads getting to Almonds and Corals are terrible, but with Oscar Brown as our tour guide I felt very secure in getting back to the ship. He drove about 2 miles per hour through the bad stretches of the road getting to A & C. Not all of the countries roads are as bad as the ones getting to the zipline. The tour operators are aware that you could miss the ship if not gotten back in time. I felt very comfortable that Oscar had his cell phone with him and could have called for assistance if need be. Besides.......it seemed like everyone knew him and said hello to him as we passed by. You do need to be sure that you use someone that is licensed as the government does stop guides that are not licensed. On the old boards there seemed to be a problem with one of the tour companies in Puerto Limon. Oscar takes you to the zipline as your first stop, so you should have plenty of time to get there and back with time to spare to do other things. A good portion of the roads we traveled on were black topped and they were in good shape. The roads that were bad had potholes that hadn't been filled in so the going was slow. Maybe others can post their experience with the roads. I would book a dependable independent tour guide again without any reservations.

[Ronzoco]

Thank you for your response. You made me feel somewhat better about trying to do the excursion on our own. I will try to contact Oscar Brown and see if he is available for the dayw e will be in port.

[llund]

We have booked with Oscar for our Coral Princess cruise and will be in Limon on 12/31/04. I went with Oscar because of the personalized tour. I am really looking forward to it. I was wondering what to wear when ziplining. I imagine long pants, but should one wear a long-sleeve shirt? Also, how do you take pictures? Is is best to have a disposable camera. By the way, there are 10 in our group and 2 do not want to zipline. Oscar will keep them busy while the rest of us zipline. It makes it nice so a group can stay together.

[Driftwoodgal]

I would think the temperatures would be about the same as our Feb cruise. I was in shorts and a tee shirt. I took our digital camera..... not to my husbands liking. If you drop a camera you might not see it again.......nope I would think it is history. A lady on our tour kept her camera around her neck the entire time, I put ours in my fanny pack when I was actually doing the zip from one platform to the other. Make sure that you wear tennis shoes and something comfortable......shorts and a tee would be great. You really don't have to do alot of work... gravity does it for you. The only time that you would have to really exercise would be if you applied the brake to soon. The brake is your hand on the cable...... hope this helps.

[llund]

Somebody had told me that they were in Costa Rica and people who went ziplining came back with bruised arms wearing short sleeves. Is this possible?

[Cruisechik]

Somebody had told me that they were in Costa Rica and people who went ziplining came back with bruised arms wearing short sleeves. Is this possible?

 

 

No, I don't think so. We had no bruising, no reason to bruise. We all wore shorts & t-shirts. It is hot & humid.

[Driftwoodgal]

Llund,

 

Can you please tell me where you found a post about getting bruised on the Zipline? I must say that everything was completely safe on our tour with Oscar Brown and then to the zipline. Oscar was our driver for the day and made sure that our articles where safe while in his van while we ziplined. It is interesting to me that post by a few, that haven't done a tour, can post the craziest things that keep people from doing a tour. I remember some things that I read before our cruise that would have kept me off the Almonds and Corals zipline. I will say that they have everyones safety in mind, just as Oscar has your time frame, as well as your interest in the country and sites to see in his tour. Our day with Oscar and the zipline were the highlights of our cruise.......well that isn't the truth......sorry Oscar and Aurora.....the Panama Canal out ranks you.

[llund]

It wasn't a post. I have some friends who spent a week in Costa Rica but did not zipline. The reason they did not do this was because their were others who they met in Costa Rica who had brusies on the arms and legs after ziplining. It scared them away from ziplining. Of course, I realize that there are fly by night operations that may not have the best equipment.

[Driftwoodgal]

Llund,

 

If you are doing the tour with Oscar Brown out of Pureto Limon and going to a zipline it will be Almonds and Corals. All of the cables are free from any type of limbs etc. I don't see how anyone could get bruised doing the zipline there. You really don't do an lot of work, gravity does it for you. You are above all of the foilage so you wouldn't be hitting anything. We were there in February and I had no need for the bug wipes that I thought I needed. Shorts and a comfortable tshirt are what I wore. I would suggest that you wear tennis shoes instead of Teva's or sandles. When you approach the next platform you could get a sandle toe caught on your approach.... even that is very unlikely, but I am trying to play the devils advocate since you haven't done the tour. If you take a camera, which I did, I would suggest that you have a fanny pack or a good strap to put around your neck. A Meet and Mingle friend, scared to death of heights, had her camera around her neck the entire time. I put mine in my fanny pack as DH was worried I would drop it to the rain forest floor. This tour is very, very, very safe and will be the highlight of your cruise unless you get stranded on an island. Oscar will make it a special day for you. He is such a treasure..... you can see that he is so proud of his country and loves showing it off to others. I just hope the people that I book on our next cruise are half as good as he is.... if so we will have a great tour. Oscar goes the extra mile to make your tour a Kodak moment...... and no I don't get any thing for singing his praises, I just want to share a good deal to other cruisers that are sailing there behind me. I got a tip about Oscar from these boards and I am very thankful that I followed the tip.

[cdmcmunn]

Does anyone know what type of payment Oscar Brown will take and what type of payment at Almond & Corals for the ziplining?

[Driftwoodgal]

We paid Oscar with US dollars cash for our tour at the end of it and included a tip as he did an outstanding job so much cheaper than the cruise line.

 

Almonds and Corals does take cash and credit cards. I am not sure what credit cards that they accept as we paid the $40 cash to them. Some of our other cruisers paid with a credit card and had one turned down because A &C didn't take it... I think it was American Express.....not sure though. You could email them as what type of credit card they take. If you use Oscar and stop at Almonds and Corals you will have a day to talk about for months...... I am still talking and posting about our day.... and it is close to a year ago...Hmmmmmm time for my next cruise. I just hope that I have as wonderful a tour as we had in Costa Rica.

 

Colleen

[winkle]

My vote is Almonds and Corals for the zipling and the tours, Danny is great and Aurora will communicate with you very quickly. It was the highlight of our trip. We did not get any bruises zipling, it was hot and humid so most of us wore shorts, t-shirts and tennis shoes.