Has anyone ever used Okeydokey tours with Charlie Soto

[macaroni]

Which did you like better, villa lapas or turubari for ziplining? Were there other things to do if you did not want to zipline at these 2 spots?

[ibfern]

Which did you like better, villa lapas or turubari for ziplining? Were there other things to do if you did not want to zipline at these 2 spots?

 

Villa Lapas was a good intro because it was easy, nothing scary at all, but it was in very bad repair. We noticed a lot of rust in bad places on the platforms that bothered my Safety engineer husband, and I did not like how 13 of us had to wait at each platform for all the zip liners to get to the platform before we move on. The guys running the zip lines literally had to crawl over each of us in order to set up the following zip line. It was hokey and cost more than Tu Ru Bari.

 

Tu Ru Bari is much newer, much longer, runs faster and smoother and higher with little waiting at any platforms. Its much more exhilarating, much more demonstrative of the zip line experience, and much much better all together! There are a ton of things to do at Tu Ru bari including waterfalls, botanical gardens, and lots more. Tu Ru Bari is MUCH better.

 

I hope this helps!

 

Amelia

[pandaruth27]

hi everyone,

I used Charlie Soto and OkeyDokey tours on my November 13 Carnival Miracle sailing. He was very prompt with his emails to my boyfriend who booked it. He meet us at the port along with three more of his collegues. We got in our van and were waiting for cruisers from the Celebrity Constellation who we had seen in Panama which were late to get off. Charlie decided to have us go and let some of his collegues to take those Celebrity passangers. He was very informative and funny. We did the A1 tour with him. We stopped at a food stand, the banana plantation, did a little river tour, and ate at a beach side restuarant. We did get a chance to go into town to a local grocery store and I bought a nice bag of coffee for like $2. If I go back to Costa Rica I will take his tours again.

 

Pam

[groovychick]

I found Charlie very prompt to reply to my emails, and was very happy we used his service in Costa Rica (Puntarenas). I had prearranged a tour for 2, and told him I would ask my fellow CC members to see if others wanted to join us. I checked in by ship's email with him to say there were 4 of us and maybe 6. There ended up being only 4 of us; up to 6 passengers is optimal for the van we were in (8 would have been ok), but I know he does have a larger vehicle available. I did ensure that Charlie was going to be our guide and not an employee. The other couple was a mother/son duo from France, so 3 languages were being spoken in the van at various points.

I had prearranged to meet him at 8am; we were right on time and there was Charlie in his Charlie Brown golf shirt waiting with a sign with my name on it. There was no attempt to solicit others to join us, and there were 2 ships in port that day.

Our day started with a visit to a farm where carpuchin monkeys came out of the treetops to be fed bananas out of the palms of our hands. A fabulous start. Next it was on to a mango plantation's roadside stand where I had the best pineapple I've ever tasted. We drove right by the national preserve and next door to a private resort that may have seen better days, but the ziplining was fun. With only 4 of us it was easy to negotiate everything with the 2 site guides. We drove further and turned off along a private drive that ran the ridge of the small mountain to a fabulous private resort with wonderful vistas of the Pacific. There we saw a Toucan, Iguanas, tiny poisonous tree frogs, and an interesting member of the raccoon family. On the driver's recommendation, we had the Costa Rican fajitas which had unusual spices (including Cinnamon) and were very tasty. We would have been happy with a more casual restaurant, but it was worth the visit to this beautiful site.

On the drive back to the ship we stopped at the Crocodile Bridge where we saw a Sloth curled up in a tree and about 25-30 crocs sunning themselves on the riverbank. We also stopped at a local supermarket to buy coffee for much better rates than at the tourist shops.

Charlie answered all of our questions well and really seemed pleased to show us his country. We really enjoyed our day and I would not hesitate to recommend his services. Tell him exactly what you're looking to get out of the day and he will deliver. If you want a quicker, more casual meal and more time to do other things, just say so. He's very willing to be flexible from his "set" tours on his website.

[anniversary cruiser]

We used Charlie and Okey Dokey Tours in November. It was a wonderful trip. We went zip lining, had lunch. He took us to feed some wild monkeys which was amazing and we called at a supermarket to buy coffee. There were 8 of us in his SUV and I would thoroughly recommend him.

[lets-cruz]

We took the Okey Dokey A-1 tour with Charlie Soto in early December. three family members, and we had our own van, driver, and guide. (just happened that way, Iguess it was a slow day). Same tour as described by others, and it was very enjoyable. We had lunch at the casual beach restaurant. Don't miss the delicious cassada, which is what our guide recommended.

 

Our guide was George - a courteous, patient, knowledgeable young man who really did his best to make sure that we enjoyed Costa Rica. He and the driver (Santien) had a challenge because we were there on a very rainy day. Despite the uncooperative weather, they did a stellar job of spotting wildlife, and showing us around.

 

I would not hesitate to use them again. Hope to get back again on a sunny day.

[macaroni]

How was the ziplining with Charlie at Villa Lapas for those who did it? I want to do it but am afraid it might be too scary for me. Are there alot of steep drops? It is either that or the skywalk.

[JNCRUISEBUMS]

We JUST got back, we were on the Celebrity Constellation and this is the 2nd time we used Charlie Soto. This time Ray was our guide and Stayton our driver, just the four of us and it was THE BEST day ever! We went to the new Veragua Rainforest and it was FABULOUS! Ray and Stayton were amazing!

[kgregory22]

Returned from our Panama Canal trip on the Coral princess, and booked with Charlie. I have nothing but positive thing to say. He met us at the end of the port, we also had Ray as our tour guide, (great guy, very friendly). We visited the monkeys, hit a couple fruit stands, visited a grocery store and bought "real" costa rican coffe for 2.25 USD a pound, we visited the croc's on the riverbed, ziplined, and did the suspension bridges and other stops!

 

Had such a blast, my wife was newly pregnant and it was suggested that she didn't zipline. We still paid full fare, but Charlie contacted me and said that he would be able to do a partial refund for her ziplining, without me even asking for it.

 

I highly suggest Charlie Soto tours! Please email me if you have more questions!

[Lady Meer]

We were on the New Year 2007/2008 Island Princess trip. In July 2007 one of our CC group booked the B2 tour with Charlie Soto in Puntarenas. He agreed to take just 12 of us on the tour and he would be our guide.

 

On the day we were met by someone else and taken to a place where there were 2 buses (both already had people on). There was no room on either bus for all 12 of us - one was going zip-lining (not to Villa Lapas) and the other was the crocodile tour. This was our first disappointment as we were not able to stay together as a group. Some went off with the zip-lining bus and the rest joined the crocodile bus. We were on the second bus but were told that he would take us zip-lining to Villa Lapas.

 

We stopped at a roadside pull-in (we realised later this was the animal place) where we saw 2 lots of monkeys - there was someone there with food for them so obviously was a bit of a 'set-up'. We were dropped off at the zip-lining and then joined another group from our ship (also with Charlie) so now our group was 15 (too many for the zip-line people to cope with). After a wait of about an hour we went to the zip-lining and the rest of the group went on the crocodile trip - their 2 hour trip now only being 1 hour.

 

We met the crocodile people again for lunch which was OK but at a really scruffy beach - not beautiful at all! The viewpoint was just a stop overlooking a valley and the supermarket was just that - a supermarket. Charlie showed us which vanilla to buy (but at the check-out we realised it was gravy powder and changed it).

 

The whole day was very disappointing for us all not least for our CC member who had taken the time and trouble to organise this trip for us.

 

We did ask to see some sloths but were told they were not in that area - but other trips did see them.

 

On the positive side our guide, Ray, was really very good and insisted Charlie came with us, we think because Ray knew we were REALLY annoyed. Charlie made hardly any contribution to the day at all.

[Jesterscourt]

We also just got back from our cruise on the Zuiderdam and used Okeydokey Tours arranged ahead of time with Charlie Soto. There were 5 of us and we had our own guide (also named Charlie, but not Charlie Soto) and a driver. We went to the Veragua Rain Forest and Research Center followed by a 40 minute Tortuguero river cruise (again, on our own motorboat). I noticed that our shipmates on the HAL excursion were on a bigger boat and I felt like we had a more personal experience and could actually hear our guide describing the flora and fauna we were passing. On the way back to the ship, we made a brief stop at Charlie's house to see his grandson and the rest of the family which was just as exciting as the rest of the trip. There was no problem paying at the end, and I am looking forward to sending Charlie some great photos of the trip and his family. Veragua has a nice gift shop, but buy your coffee in town at one of the grocery stores. Also, not to put too fine a point on it, use the bathroom wherever you see one as you won't always have one when you need it! (ladies, bring toilet tissue--no joke). If you have any other questions, ask away, as it seems many people have used this outfit and for the most part, were quite satisfied.

[Toheckwiththedow]

We just booked the same tour for the 25th of January ---can you tell me, is lunch included?

It also seemed like a lot of ground to cover in not very much time...did you feel rushed or was there enough time to enjoy everything?

Also, I was quoted a price of $120 pp--is that about what you paid and were you with a large group or just your party?

[Floflegs]

We were on the New Year 2007/2008 Island Princess trip. In July 2007 one of our CC group booked the B2 tour with Charlie Soto in Puntarenas. He agreed to take just 12 of us on the tour and he would be our guide.

 

On the day we were met by someone else and taken to a place where there were 2 buses (both already had people on). There was no room on either bus for all 12 of us - one was going zip-lining (not to Villa Lapas) and the other was the crocodile tour. This was our first disappointment as we were not able to stay together as a group. Some went off with the zip-lining bus and the rest joined the crocodile bus. We were on the second bus but were told that he would take us zip-lining to Villa Lapas.

 

We stopped at a roadside pull-in (we realised later this was the animal place) where we saw 2 lots of monkeys - there was someone there with food for them so obviously was a bit of a 'set-up'. We were dropped off at the zip-lining and then joined another group from our ship (also with Charlie) so now our group was 15 (too many for the zip-line people to cope with). After a wait of about an hour we went to the zip-lining and the rest of the group went on the crocodile trip - their 2 hour trip now only being 1 hour.

 

We met the crocodile people again for lunch which was OK but at a really scruffy beach - not beautiful at all! The viewpoint was just a stop overlooking a valley and the supermarket was just that - a supermarket. Charlie showed us which vanilla to buy (but at the check-out we realised it was gravy powder and changed it).

 

The whole day was very disappointing for us all not least for our CC member who had taken the time and trouble to organise this trip for us.

 

We did ask to see some sloths but were told they were not in that area - but other trips did see them.

 

On the positive side our guide, Ray, was really very good and insisted Charlie came with us, we think because Ray knew we were REALLY annoyed. Charlie made hardly any contribution to the day at all.

I agree. We booked a half day tour with Charlie as DH has back problems and didn't want a full day. We were met by Charlie, put on a lovely bus but then he came and said we had to go in an older van as a group were coming on bus. There was still romm on bus but obviously they didn't want others with them. We foillowed bus and did all the same thigsthen stopped for lunch. Only reminding Charlie we hadn't booked lunch he said he would cover it. We sat for 90mins before having a poor lunch. Still we were not taken back and it was almost a full day before we were which meant we couldn't even see the port area. Our guide was very good and we left him with our original price agreed and a copy of our email although we did give him a good tip as it was not his fault. Charlie is only concerned with making money. I would avoid him.

[gprentice]

Just got back from a Panama Canal cruise on the Zuiderdam. We stopped in Costa Rica and used a private tour with Charlie Soto.

 

http://www.okeydokeytours.com/

 

We arranged in advance a meeting at the end of the dock and we met Rey our guide and Carlos our driver who introduced us to Charlie Soto before the tour. We were a party of 5 and had a van to ourselves, but didn't mind if others would come along for the tour.

 

Tour A-1:

 

Tortugero Canal Tour - See exotic birds and animals of the Costa Rican jungle, Banana Plantation - Fasinating tour of plantation and processing plant, Bonita Beach & Restaurant (Lunch) Limon's most beautiful beach and good food, Viewpoint of Limon and countryside and Supermarket visit for wonderful Costa Rican Coffee, Vanilla, and much more at great prices.

 

My daughters really enjoyed holding a sloth. We tasted fresh pineapple, 'finger bananas' at a friut stand. It was a really enjoyable day. We visited a supermarket at the end of the tour where we bought Costa Rican rum, coffee, vanilla all at incredibly cheap prices. Rey even recommended the brands that were the best value. We enjoyed exchanging jokes throughout the day too.

 

This tour was a far better value than any of the the ship offered tours. Plus, the personal attention was well worth the price of admission. It was one of the best days of our cruise.

 

Graham

[GCurry]

We JUST got back, we were on the Celebrity Constellation and this is the 2nd time we used Charlie Soto. This time Ray was our guide and Stayton our driver, just the four of us and it was THE BEST day ever! We went to the new Veragua Rainforest and it was FABULOUS! Ray and Stayton were amazing!

Dec. 16 we did the A1 with Ray and Stayton, this was about the best tour we've ever had, two couples and the two guides. They speak excellent English and really care about your day. I would personally request them again.

We really enjoyed lunch (included) there at Bonita Beach, fish, plantains etc cooked in coconut milk with sauces and local beer. They had beer and water for us in the van as well. Tons of sloths some howler monkeys and the Emerald Basilisk on the boat ride and more at the animal rescue center. Sloths can really move for banana peels!

It was a great value especially when you see the ship people getting herded from place to place with none of the extras we enjoyed. We met Danilo Hall at Bonita Beach, he is another independent tour guide I would trust.

[JNCRUISEBUMS]

Dec. 16 we did the A1 with Ray and Stayton, this was about the best tour we've ever had, two couples and the two guides. They speak excellent English and really care about your day. I would personally request them again.

We really enjoyed lunch (included) there at Bonita Beach, fish, plantains etc cooked in coconut milk with sauces and local beer. They had beer and water for us in the van as well. Tons of sloths some howler monkeys and the Emerald Basilisk on the boat ride and more at the animal rescue center. Sloths can really move for banana peels!

It was a great value especially when you see the ship people getting herded from place to place with none of the extras we enjoyed. We met Danilo Hall at Bonita Beach, he is another independent tour guide I would trust.

We thoroughly agree with you,, Ray and Stayton were awesome, we did the Aquavera rainforest and it was the BEST tour we have EVER taken in our lives!!!!!! Nancie and Jim

[Prairie_Gal]

We booked the A1 tour with OkeyDokey Tours in Limon, Costa Rica on our November cruise on the Miracle. We had an excellent day, and the tour was exactly as described. You can click on the Miracle Review link in my signature to read my report and see quite a few pictures of that day. I would highly recommend them.

[chrisj1970]

I am confused a little here. I thought the a-2 tour was the zipline?? Was it this tour Brisas De La Jungla Zipline 13 platforms (extra charge) or Villa Lapas Canopy Tour - 7 hours Also how much did everyone pay for their tours??

 

Chris

[sherco]

We were on the holiday cruise last week. we booked a tour from Charlie Soto online after some friends used him earlier in the season. http://www.okeydokeytours.com/tours.htm

The tour was amazing and we saw many of the people from the ship on the HAL tours at each stop. We got to see several locations and the lunch provided at a resturant on Bonita beach was better than some of the meals on board. If you choose to book, I recommend their A-1 tour. If you do I would ask for Carlos as your guide. He has spent time in San diego so his english is perfect, but he really knows the area. He also stopped at a supermarket in Port Limon, where we bought Coffee at 1/2 the price at the dock. He was very helpful in selection and finding things in the store.

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[MariahJ]

My DH & I did the ziplining tour with Charlie on 12/30. I am scared of heights, so I'm amazing that I convinced myself to do this tour, but very glad I did. Charlie was great, and the ziplining was the highlight of the tour. He also took us to see the monkeys, the crocodiles, and we stopped at a souvenir shop and grocery store for cheap coffee. I recommend this tour without reservation, and it is a better value that the ship's tour.

[MariahJ]

I am confused a little here. I thought the a-2 tour was the zipline?? Was it this tour Brisas De La Jungla Zipline 13 platforms (extra charge) or Villa Lapas Canopy Tour - 7 hours Also how much did everyone pay for their tours??

 

Chris

 

We paid $95 pp including ziplining.

[MVTcher]

Had a fabulous time with OkeyDokey Tours. The small group of 8 was great vs traveling with 75 through a cruise line excursion. Carlos was our guide and he took very good care of us! He paid for everything up front including beverages (beer too), the zip line & lunch. We then paid at the end of the tour in (US dollars). I would go with okeydokey again and would recommend him to my friends and family. It was sne of the highlights of our Panama Canal cruise.

[Putterdude]

We used Charlie Soto and his Okeydokey Tours on 1/13/09 out of Puntarenas and found him to be a First Class operator. Our guide was a gentleman by the name of Rey who also was an English teacher. We did the Jungle River Cruise on the Tarcoles River and then went up to the zip line area where we toured a cultural area that included a reconstruction of a coffee plantation village. The trip also included feeding some white faced monkeys in the wild, a stop for a fruit breakfast, a lunch at Jaco Beach and unlimited soda, bottled water and beer. Because of the size of our group Charlie had chartered a small bus for the tour. It was a full day.

[Mscruisin]

Can anyone tell me what the cost for the A-1 tour is?

[pmc7704]

I think it depends on the number of people signed up. We're going on the A-1 tour next month, and was quoted a price of $59 per person.