Which company to book with for swim with turtles?

[stanford's girl]

We booked a snorkle and sea turtle tour with Shasa Catamaran in September and they were truly the best! We do not like excursions that you feel like you are traveling as a herd of cattle, we opt for a smaller, intimate type of excursion. Jason and Tess are a husband and wife team and they will go above and beyond to ensure all your needs are met. The catamaran only holds 12 people which is perfect. We were picked up by Tess promptly at the pier and transported to the catamaran, where Jason was waiting for us. We boarded and were served unlimited rum punch, water, beer or soda. Jason sailed to the first site which was a shipwreck and he actually gets in the water and points out sea life and feeds the fish so you get an up close view of everything. Then after about 40 minutes we sailed to swim with the sea turtles. That was the greatest experience. Jason brings small fish to attract the sea turtles and also shows you interesting other sea life:(blow fish, sting rays, etc.) while snorkling with the turtles. This excursion was the highlight of our cruise and it was due to Jason and Tess. They are lovely people and the price is very inexpensive $40/pp for a 3 hour trip. Once you return back to shore Tess is waiting to take you back to the ship or drop you off at another location if you wish. You can't go wrong with Shasa Catamaran, we can't wait to go back and see them again!:)

How long ago did you book this 3 hour excursion to get the $40 pp? I am interested in this but I just checked their website and the price for the same excursion is now $60 pp. :(

[Vehorn]

I have been on several of the catamaran trips to swim with the turtles and have found that http://www.calabazasailingcruises.com/ is the best. Others think so, too. check out tripadviser.com, attractions barbados. I will say all the cat trips I have been on were enjoyable, but you will get a more personal, less-crowded experience on Calabaza. Plus, you can't beat Gina's lunch, appetizers, and banana bread.

[flyingandcruising]

Has anyone tried Heatwave cruises? it looks pretty good and includes free admission to the Boatyard after the cruise.

 

http://www.heatwavesailingcruises.com/buffetlunchcruise.html

[flyingandcruising]

Can anyone tell me what food they serve on the cruises for lunch?

 

thank you

[Lsimon]

Can anyone tell me what food they serve on the cruises for lunch?

 

thank you

 

On Silver Moon they serve one fish dish (flying fish or Mahi) at least one other non-fish entree, a couple types of salads and a side dish or two. Banana bread for dessert.

http://simon-pics.smugmug.com/Cruises/Galaxy-March-2008-Caribbean/Barbados-and-Day-Sail-on-the/5625909_WgQJC#345665952_kduKD

 

Food is very good.

[pjwtrouble]

Hi everyone. Been reading lots of threads trying to figure out what to do while in Barbados for the day. We have been there 2 other times and did the whole turtle cat trip with El Tigre tours. We had a great experience but since we have seen the same thing twice now we are wondering if any of the tours that all you people have done go to someplace other then the barge. We would love to see the turtles again but would really prefer to see something other then the barge.

 

Thanks for all your help,

 

Kevin and Pam

[Lsimon]

Hi everyone. Been reading lots of threads trying to figure out what to do while in Barbados for the day. We have been there 2 other times and did the whole turtle cat trip with El Tigre tours. We had a great experience but since we have seen the same thing twice now we are wondering if any of the tours that all you people have done go to someplace other then the barge. We would love to see the turtles again but would really prefer to see something other then the barge.

 

Thanks for all your help,

 

Kevin and Pam

 

By barge do you mean the sunken ship not far from the turtles, same stop as for a nearby reef? As far as I know every snorkel/turtle excursion stops at the same places for snorkeling and turtles.

 

Silver moon does that stop then sails to a nice place to anchor off shore for a couple hours for swimming, lounging and lunch.

[CruisingEasy]

Hi everyone. Been reading lots of threads trying to figure out what to do while in Barbados for the day. We have been there 2 other times and did the whole turtle cat trip with El Tigre tours. We had a great experience but since we have seen the same thing twice now we are wondering if any of the tours that all you people have done go to someplace other then the barge. We would love to see the turtles again but would really prefer to see something other then the barge.

 

Thanks for all your help,

 

Kevin and Pam

 

Hike Barbados is a an amazing tour. He can also privatize your tour to do other things besides the caves and caverns.

[flyingandcruising]

Trying to decide wether to do the turtle excursion, but my wife is concerned about getting sea sick, is it easy to get sick on these catamarans if you are prone to sea sickness?

 

Thank you to all that reply

[CruisingEasy]

There is no one who gets more sea sick than me.

 

Tell her to take a Transderm Scop Patch and she will be fine. I always like to add a Valium with it but she does not have to do that.

 

You could very well get sick on the Catamaran just as you could on any other marine vessel.

 

Taking medicine is the best defense. If one gets sick after taking what I take maybe it is better they do not travel.

[rockost]

We just returned from Barbados and went with Shasa. Great tour! Jason and his wife Tess are wonderful. There were three ships in port that day and Jason took us to a spot to snorkel with the Turtles that the others don't go to. We were the only ones there and had them all to ourselves. I am diver and was surprised to see the largest sting ray I have ever seen swim on by. Jason also commented it was the biggest he had ever seen as well. He suggested we go to a reef instead of the wreck since it would be packed with three ships in port and I am glad he did. Again, the only boat in the area. The boat is smaller than the other tours, but that allows Jason to give you a more personalized tour. I can't say enough about the great experience we had.

[cle1]

We just got off the Silver Moon, and it is the ABSOLUTE BEST Catamaran tour in the Caribbean. Carol

[miss meow]

DrmnOfMaui - - we have bought an Olympus waterproof camera that is good up to 33 ft underwater ourselves....and I've been reading about people having issues when they take them underwater (which we haven't had a chance to do yet - but will be on our cruise next year)...did yours leak? If so, could you tell where/how? I'm thinking of buying a silicone skin for it to see if that helps at all....just as extra "security". Was it ruined?

BTW...we're considering the Shasa tour as well - and sounds like they are a good company to go with - we'll be cruising next April.

[Lsimon]

Trying to decide wether to do the turtle excursion, but my wife is concerned about getting sea sick, is it easy to get sick on these catamarans if you are prone to sea sickness?

 

Thank you to all that reply

 

These small boats do rock around quite a bit. They do travel under sail power which compounds the rockiness. I've never seen anyone get sick on the Silver Moon but we were on a catamaran trip in Maui on a similar boat where someone with a history of sea sickness had real bad problems. No offense, but I think you would be wise to save both your wife and your fellow passengers some major problems and take a pass on this if she is "prone to sea sickness".

 

...Tell her to take a Transderm Scop Patch and she will be fine. I always like to add a Valium with it but she does not have to do that....

 

...Taking medicine is the best defense. If one gets sick after taking what I take maybe it is better they do not travel.

 

I have a friend who was prone to sea sickness and tried a transderm patch on a cruise a few years ago. Not only did it not help but the ship's doctor told him that the medicine in the patch was making him sick too. They pulled the patch, gave him a shot and told him to take a mild non-drowsy type of over-the-counter sea sickness medicine for the rest of the cruise. He was fine after he recovered from the transderm and the sedatives in the shot. Moral of the story is that "medicine is the best defense" is not a solution for everyone. We find that when we are feeling the effects of rough seas (which we seldom do any longer) that just taking some ginger pills cures the problem.

[CruisingEasy]

These small boats do rock around quite a bit. They do travel under sail power which compounds the rockiness. I've never seen anyone get sick on the Silver Moon but we were on a catamaran trip in Maui on a similar boat where someone with a history of sea sickness had real bad problems. No offense, but I think you would be wise to save both your wife and your fellow passengers some major problems and take a pass on this if she is "prone to sea sickness".

 

 

 

I have a friend who was prone to sea sickness and tried a transderm patch on a cruise a few years ago. Not only did it not help but the ship's doctor told him that the medicine in the patch was making him sick too. They pulled the patch, gave him a shot and told him to take a mild non-drowsy type of over-the-counter sea sickness medicine for the rest of the cruise. He was fine after he recovered from the transderm and the sedatives in the shot. Moral of the story is that "medicine is the best defense" is not a solution for everyone. We find that when we are feeling the effects of rough seas (which we seldom do any longer) that just taking some ginger pills cures the problem.

 

Dr Simon. The Valium that I mentioned offsets the chemicals in the patch that make you sick. You need both together. He is the only person I have ever heard of getting sick from the patch.

[rebeljohn]

He is the only person I have ever heard of getting sick from the patch.

 

I tried the patch once, and had to take it off after a few days. I actually felt worse WITH the patch. I had just about every side effect you could have. Dry mouth, dizziness, blurred vision, dilated pupils, etc. Ginger and Bonine ended up working best for me..........

[CruisingEasy]

I tried the patch once, and had to take it off after a few days. I actually felt worse WITH the patch. I had just about every side effect you could have. Dry mouth, dizziness, blurred vision, dilated pupils, etc. Ginger and Bonine ended up working best for me..........

 

You were not aware that you might get blurred vision from the patch.......it says it is one of the side affects on the packaging. I believe the other symptoms you had are also listed as side effects.

[rebeljohn]

You were not aware that you might get blurred vision from the patch.......it says it is one of the side affects on the packaging. I believe the other symptoms you had are also listed as side effects.

 

I was aware of the side effects............I was hoping that I would not have ALL of them.....................

[rickcop44]

Does Shasa have a website that someone could post here?

[rebeljohn]

Does Shasa have a website that someone could post here?

 

http://www.shasacatamarancruises.com/

 

 

Have fun..................we certainly did...............