Excursions advice - Jewels of the Windwards Islands

Hello,

I am looking for advice on when and which excursions to book.

My mother and I are booked for the Jewels of the Windward Islands in early December. Mom is not sure that she will like snorkeling, but plans to give it a try.

Any recommendations for non- snorkeling excursions or easy snorkeling excursion suitable for a beginner and is it best to book prior to the cruise or while on board?

Although Mom has cruised before (Cunard, River Cruises), she has not cruised on a small ship and this will be my first cruise, so we are in need your advice.

Thank you.

We have done this itinery twice, its lovely.

How fit is your Mum? We did the rainforest walk in St Lucia and enjoyed this. There were some steep slopes to walk up but nothing too challenging. A fu. Dip in a rainforest pool at the end.

The snorkelling trip is nice for the sailing on a catamaran, but you snorkel straight into deep water. I prefer to snorkel off a beach, and there are lots of opportunities to do that in port yourself. They provide you with snorkel equipment. There is good snorkelling off the beach in Tobago cays.

We have also done the river tubing in Grenada which was fun. There are also a few trips looking at chocolate farming etc. people who did these enjoyed them, if you like that sort of trip.

It is also nice to explore on your own. In St Lucia you can walk up to a ruined fort from which there are lovely views. In Grenada the castle offers the same.

The snorkelling excursion in Mayreau is not worth doing. The 'island' is nothing more than a small sandbank. Mayreau is a lovely island and the beach barbecue is great. Be sure to walk up to the church at the top of the hill. The views over Tobago cays are spectacular, particularly from behind the church.

In Bequia you can choose between going to the town or the beach by tender. There is not much in the town, although it is very pretty. The beach is lovely, and there is good snorkelling by the rocks on the left hand side. You are not In this port very long.

Astalarasta,

My wife and I are also doing this cruise in December. A couple of ideas for you:

St. Lucia: the water platform will be out (weather permitting) if your mom wants to practice snorkaling, also taking a trip to Soufriere to see the collapsed volcano was fun ( did this ten years ago), the ride was thrilling.

Grenada: if they dock at the main pier, you can take a water taxi to Grand Anse beach, they rent lounge chairs and umbrella and have bar service, The farmers market is great but people on the street will try to give you a tour of the area and ask for some cash for there service.

Tobago Cays: we are doing the Union Island/ Palm Island trip to see the resort. Been wanting to go there for many years.

Hope you and your mother have a great time!

Thank you for your replies.

Karen13,

Mom is a fairly fit -mid seventies and an avid traveler. She took a fall while shopping on a recent trip to Morocco which shook her confidence a bit and has me a little concerned about taking challenging excursions.

I think that if she is not distracted by agressive sellers in a market ,she will remain steady on her feet.

The St. Lucia rain forest hike and Grenada tubing appeals to me. Do you think she might be able to manage them?

Duck65,

I did not realize that you could snorkel off the watersports platform. This is a good idea for practicing in the sea. I had planned to bring my own snorkeling gear, so that Mom could try it out in the safety of the hotel pool in Barbados, since we are arriving a couple of days before embarkation.

Is the Palm Island tour a day pass to the hotel?

Thanks for the kind wishes, we are looking foward to a really special and relaxing "girls trip".

Astalarasta,

The palm island/union island excursion is a 3.5 hour catamaran trip with one hour at Union island, then a one mile trip to Union Island, do not know how long there but I'm guessing only enough time for a swim on the beach or a walk around the 100 acre island. Have fun in Barbadoes, we are also getting there two days early to explore the country.

I did the Grenada tubing excursion on this cruise a few years ago. Not strenuous and very fun

The tubing excursion is not strenuous at all. A pleasant minibus ride to the site then you kit up in helmet and life jacket and basically just sit in a rubber tube which goes down the river.

There are attendants to guide your tube and help you if you get stuck on the way. We enjoyed it.

The rainforest walk is mainly easy, but a couple of steeper slopes where there are ropes to hold on to. Maybe you should take advice when you are on the ship?

The Palm Island tour is when you are on Mayreau. I think it is a waste to do an excursion that day unless you particularly want to see it, as Mayreau is lovely and there is plenty to do on the beach that day.

They have a beach barbecue and bring the water toys ashore so you can kayak etc. you can also snorkel off the beach.

Thank you all for the information and recommendations. Is it Ok to wait until we are on board ship to decide or do the excursions often sell out?