Cosumel: We chose not to do a ship excursion. We had breakfast in the dining room and then walked into town. it was only 9am their time and most things were closed...which was nice. It was very quite and we liked watching the city wake up. We needed snorkels and bought some nice ones for $15 each. after a little while we grabbed a cab to Chakanaab Park ($9 plus $2 tip) it was an 8-10 minute ride. We paid $16 each to get into the park. It was a lot of fun...my first time snorkeling! The water was really clear. The waves were a little rough and the sun kept hiding behind the clouds so we didn't stay in long...there were lots of chairs under little huts. It wasn't crowded at all. We swam a bit, servers brought drinks, we walked through the botanical gardens, met the local iguanas. We took a cab back to town...walked around a bit. With our park ticket we were eligible to get a free drink at Carlos and Charlie's...so we stopped in there and it was a fun and festive atmosphere. Back on the ship we swam, watched pool games and were grateful we had the 2nd seating!
Costa Rica: Also choose not to do a ship excursion. Walked around town in the morning...not much to see. Shopped in the cruise terminal. Went back on the ship for lunch and planned on getting a cab to a nearby beach (Playa Bonita) after...at lunch overheard some other passengers complaining about a bad cab experience...not following through with what was agreed on. So we decided to find a tour operator near the boat...we ended up with David Carnegie of Caribbean Coastaricans...there were other passengers from our ship and we ended up getting a city tour with them. Then he took us for a tour of the Tortugerro Canal by boat which was very cool! We saw Camins, Sloth, lots of birds, bats, lizards, etc...We paid $5 each for the bus tour and $10 each for the boat tour...plus a tip...it was wonderful. I have his card if anyone wants more info. Turned out that Playa Bonita was too rough.
Panama: We chose the ships excursion for Portobello and Gatun Locks. Great choice! We had a fabulous driver and the bus was really comfortable. We went to the locks and saw a ship coming through...amazing! then we went to the town of Portobello and had an informative tour of that area...interesting forts...beautiful views. Worth it.
Columbia: we chose to do a ships excursion here too...we read so much about how most of the area is unsafe. We choose the city tour...and thought it was great. It moved quick (which was good for us) and you saw a lot. Loved the old city and the small gold museum...and the place of the Inquisition...very creepy. Felt it was a good value...saw many different parts of the city.
Cayo Leventado: my husband wanted to see a waterfall...so we chose the Salto Limon horseback riding ship excursion. While the outcome was good...I didn't care for this excursion for the most part. On the way over to the island by tender...it was pouring rain..they gave us all ponchos. The horseback riding was difficult and over muddy, large boulders...the waterfall was amazing and glorious. The hike down more muddy boulders after the scary horseback ride was not so fun. Then after swimming in the water you had to get dressed and hike back up to retrieve your horse and rise back to their base. It was cool that each of us had our own personal guide for the whole trip. If you choose this excursion be prepared to get wet and muddy and for some serious physical exertion. The waterfall was magnificent. We were supposed to do some shopping but everyone just wanted to get back.
No comments:
Post a Comment