Malemew

hey - we took our own mask and snorkel - I didn’t see anywhere to rent any, it appeared to be mainly snack shacks and paddle boat rental (but I didn’t explore the whole of puka) if you forget any thing, white beach would probably be worth heading too first as that was where all that kind of stuff could be brought. I brought a small waterproof bag from there for £2 and a waterproof phone cover for £1. Very cheap.

actually yes it was worth it. there is what appears to be an old sunken pipeline which was over towards where the rocks start to stick out to the right of the beach. we saw various tangs, triggers, angels, if you look carefully in the gaps between the pipes - anemones and clowns, parrot wrasse I also saw dragon wrasse. Lots to see! There were also some sea snakes but i just kept my distance when I saw them.

if you just want white beach, it might be even cheaper to pick up a taxi when you get there as it’s not really that far 😉 the ‘hoho’ bus is just like a little mini bus and the trip to puka felt like it took quite a while

Hi not sure if anyone will find useful. we sailed on NCL Jewel. The tenders took us straight to Boracay. there was a ‘hoho’ bus on arrival, unlimited travel for the day for 200peso. we found white beach was quieter with more access to food/drinks/shopping where as Puka was nice but felt busier with less ‘services’ but there was great snorkelling the bus did get busy so maybe allow extra time when coming back to ship

Edit : the small shuttle bus didn’t take us to muara town centre, but a small suburb if it can be called that.

Hi, I’m not sure if anyone in the future may find this useful, but I thought I’d start this as we found it pretty tricky to find any info on Muara before we came. My review may be pretty bleak but I welcome others to add any more info. in the terminal we saw a tourist info, a desk for the ‘dart’ taxi company. Some small local handicraft stalls, there was a lady selling tickets to the city for 20BND (she was surrounded and we couldn’t work that out as there was supposed to be a free shuttle) The money exchange had a long queue because of course you cannot buy BND at home. You are not allowed to walk out of the port, a free shuttle takes you to Maura town. We took the shuttle. There is nothing in Maura. It’s a small town with a few small grocery type stores, a money exchange and some beaches. It has a bank also, but they don’t do money exchange. We tried to use the local taxi app ‘Dart’ - but we couldn’t get anyone to accept our request. we heard there was a public bus for 1BND that would take you too to capital but that would take 1 hour. Randomly, a bus turned up from no where offering a direct trip to the capital for 15BND return. So we opted for that. It took about 30 mins. We were given 2.5 hours free time in the capital and it was far too long. There isn’t really anything there. We could have gone over to the floating village but we actually didn’t bother (so maybe someone else can write about that below) We ended up organising a taxi on Dart (yes we managed to get one) to come back to the shop early. It cost us 21BND The driver was great, told us we were the first cruise this year (November!) and they only come maybe 1 to 3 times a year. This is quite evident as the area doesn’t cater for tourists. She also told us the beaches are desolate, no where for food / drinks etc We felt the whole vibe of Brunei was weird. It’s so calm, little to no traffic, the capital felt empty and hardly any people around. Definitely a different pace to other Asian countries. This definitely is not a port where drivers offering tours! We got propositioned by one but his starting price was really high and his car looked like a death trap. so either try hard to book something before you come or at least book the 20BND bus at the port. if you’re the cruiser who just likes to look around the immediate local area, stay on the ship. At least we can say we’ve ticked the ‘travelled to Brunei’ box - but it’s unlikely we’d return.

Hey we’ll be cruising with MSc for the first time on 3rd feb 2023 from Barcelona. does anyone have an idea / know what the theme nights will be and what the dress codes are. I’m hearing things about a flower night, gala night, 80’s night etc. do people go to dinner dressed up or is it eat and then get changed. I don’t want to take / buy extra clothes if I won’t be wearing them again. thanks in advance e

Hey does anyone recall or know the taxi rate from amber cove to puerto plata OUTSIDE of the complex. I see the fixed official fares are $35each way. But seeing as we were meant to dock in PP and now AC, this is an additional expense we didn’t budget for (currently on ship) also, does anyone recall if people were open to sharing taxis into PP? thanks in advance

Thanks all 👍🏼

Hey, hope you are all well. we are due on the getaway 7th November. Family are asking for gifts duty free cigarettes and liquor. does anyone know the cost of cigarettes on board vs on land in the states? also, if possible, does anyone recall how much 1 litre of gin may be in the duty free? thanks

Hey hey. Thanks to whoever started this thread 🙂 we are looking at this trip In November. do you actually do the to pig island in Exuma or is it a purpose made attraction where the pigs have been ‘shipped’ in? just curious as on the map the island in exuma seems quite a journey. thanks in advance