alwalaska

I can't figure out which of their current tours best matches what we did, but we went to Coloma and Calima. We visited an archeological site, a small museum with photos and history of the volcano, a marketplace where our guide Jupiter (I would definitely ask for him if he is still doing tours, we went in 2018) explained the cultural significance of the building and some of the items in the market, and so much more. There was a lunch included, but half of the group skipped the lunch and was given a credit back on the price. I believe we had 8 people from our cruise critic group. I wasn't the one who organized the tour, so it took a bit of digging to find the info, but the company is Admire Mexico Tours. Admire Mexico Tours

We did an amazing private tour in Manzanillo when we were there in 2018. I can try and dig up the info if you want. Someone on our roll call put it together and we joined along. In a way, it was everyone's worst nightmare of possibly missing the ship, but we made it back almost exactly at all aboard time and the Princess Tours didn't make it until almost 2 hours later. There was a massive accident on the only road that leads from the port to the cities that everyone wants to visit. Our tour guide explained that he times things so that he knows he is leaving at least 30 minute before the last of the cruise busses. That way, even if the worst happens, the tour busses are behind us and the ship will likely wait for them, which they did. While we were sitting in traffic, he was on the phone with the port and with his office, coordinating everything and keeping updates on when the road would reopen, and confirming that the ship was waiting for the Princess busses. This experience not only had me worried at the time, it also gave me comfort that the private tour guides truly understand how important it is to get people back on time and have plans so that it happens. I'd gladly go with them again, if I was going to Manzanillo.

Oh and I forgot before https://jeeparuba.com/ will have the jeep at the port and includes "limited insurance" but I haven't found anything else about them yet, other than they reply to emails quickly.

On our first trip to Aruba we did a small group tour that gave us a nice overview, but I can't remember the company name. On our second trip, we used Around Aruba and did the UTV tour and really enjoyed every part of it. This time, I'm thinking about renting a jeep and trying to do it on our own, but having a hard time finding reviews and good info about using it off-roads in the National Park. Both my credit card and travel insurance for rental cars have exclusions for jeep and or going off-road.

@MBCruising For the jeeps, are you allowed to take them off road? I'm wondering about going to Arikok National Park locations. Thanks for taking the time to post about your experience!

On our 2023 NCL Dawn cruise, we were parked in the industrial area of the port and didn't see much in the way of tour operators on our way out. There were a few in a pavilion, but not very many. Probably because of where we were located. There were no other ships in port until RCCL arrived later in the day.

Thanks! That tour is very close to what we did as a private tour last time in Puntarenas. I appreciate the link to their site and a personal recommendation over just what Google turns up.

Thank you so much. We will be in Mexico in February, but late in the month. I love your idea for PV and thank you for sharing the company. We've been there twice, so I was looking for something new to do, outside of the main city areas.

Thanks. Yeah, it looks like a cruise has not made it to Nicaragua since the COVID shutdowns. My fingers are crossed, but I'm not booking it until at least one ship makes it there. The Coral Princess (our ship) is supposed to go in July, so here's hoping. It is the only new port for us and it looks interesting, so I'm hoping we make it. I did post this question in all of the different areas too. People frequently post in the Mexican Riviera area that Huatulco should be posted here and not there since most Riviera cruises don't stop there. Hopefully, I get some info somewhere. 🙂

Our cruise stops at the following ports: Puerto Vallarta Huatalco, Mexico San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua Puntarenas, Costa Rica Fuerte Amador, Panama Aruba Does anyone have recommendations on a good location for the following activities? Even better, do you have a specific tour operator or do it yourself way to accomplish it? Horseback riding Snorkeling Ziplining with an option for people the other people who don't want to zipline. UTV type thing, but something with 1 driver and one passenger or everyone as passengers. In Costa Rica, I'm hoping to see sloths, but the sanctuaries seem pretty far from the port. We do have a 12-hour day there. Thanks!!!

Our cruise stops at the following ports: Puerto Vallarta Huatalco San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua Puntarenas, Costa Rica Fuerte Amador, Panama Aruba Does anyone have recommendations on a good location for the following activities? Even better, do you have a specific tour operator or do it yourself way to accomplish it? Horseback riding Snorkeling Ziplining with an option for people the other people who don't want to zipline. UTV type thing, but something with 1 driver and one passenger or everyone as passengers. In Costa Rica, I'm hoping to see sloths, but the sanctuaries seem pretty far from the port. We do have a 12 hour day there. Thanks!!!

Our cruise stops at the following ports: Puerto Vallarta Huatalco San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua Puntarenas, Costa Rica Fuerte Amador, Panama Aruba Does anyone have recommendations on a good location for the following activities. Even better, do you have a specific tour operator or do it yourself way to accomplish it? Horseback riding Snorkeling Ziplining with an option for people the other people who don't want to zipline. UTV type thing, but something with 1 driver and one passenger or everyone as passengers. In Costa Rica, I'm hoping to see sloths, but the sanctuaries seem pretty far from the port. We do have a 12 hour day there. Thanks!!!

Thanks. I was hoping to get opinions on comparisons here since the port was labeled Panama Canal and not Panama and most of these are common PC cruise stops. I'll post the same thing in every port thread that is on my cruise. Thanks again for taking the time to reply.

Our cruise stops at the following ports: Puerto Vallarta Huatalco San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua Puntarenas, Costa Rica Fuerte Amador, Panama Aruba Does anyone have recommendations on a good location for the following activities. Even better, do you have a specific tour operator or do it yourself way to accomplish it? Horseback riding Snorkeling Ziplining with an option for people the other people who don't want to zipline. UTV type thing, but something with 1 driver and one passenger or everyone as passengers. In Costa Rica, I'm hoping to see sloths, but the sanctuaries seem pretty far from the port. We do have a 12 hour day there. Thanks!!!

Hi. How you had a great cruise. Do you have any info on shuttles or if we can catch an Uber at the port?

I was just looking at my 2017 photos and saw the pillars for that bridge and was thinking that the full bridge should be there by now. Kind of cool.

Yes. I too am having this problem with the web page, but it is too early for us to make reservations, so I didn't know if this added to the problems or not. I just wanted to try things out so that I could get the dining reservations as soon as we made the final payment.

I'm having a hard time with the website today. I will try again and point you to where I added my allergies if I can find it again. I can't even get to the dietary requests section today.

@mrell345 Thank you for the review and photos. Did you do a ship tour or through a 3rd party company? If 3rd party, which one did you use? Thanks!

Hi. Can you please tell me more about your experiences on this tour? My typical experience with Princess tours is they load everyone onto a bus stuffed into every available seat. Then after driving a distance, you all get off of the bus where you walk to place 1, stand around and wait for everyone to catch up. Hear about place one, walk to place 2 (at a fairly rapid pace) then wait for everyone to catch up, hear about place 2, and repeat. The other type I've seen is where you load and unload the bus multiple times which takes forever each time since there are so many people. There are a couple of ports on this cruise where I'm tempted to give the Princess tours another try, but I don't want to be disappointed again.

Please come back after your visit and tell us about it. We don't sail until Feb 2025.

The web version of the app has an "other" box that can be filled in. That is where I put my citrus and rolled oats allergies because they are too abnormal to show up on anyone's lists.

1) It allows the cruise line to plan for how many people will be sailing with special dietary needs. 2) When I've added the info to my account (used to be email, now I used the web version of the app to add the info to my reservation), it is in the computer system and easier for the busy people in the dining room to look something up than try and enter all of the information into the system.

I'm glad I used the website. I don't have "popular" or "normal" allergens and there is no way to list other items from what I can see here. On the website, there is an Other box with a freeform entry.

I haven't sailed Princess in a while and my allergies are different from yours, but I was watching videos on YouTube and they showed a whole section of gluten-free pastries and muffins at breakfast and at least one gluten-free dessert was shown each day. Every cruise I have been on they recommend that you not eat in the buffet if you have allergies, but mine are mostly annoyances, not life threatening. At the buffet, someone can get a chef to help you with ingredient info. I'm sure there is at least one non-dairy "milk" on board, but if you want a specific brand or type, I would recommend bringing your own. Although this is a really old email address, you can and reach out to dietaryrequest@princesscruises.com with your questions.