Thomson Destiny, Valentines Day 2010 - Anyone going??

[MasterPoo]

Hi

 

Im a newbie, new to this forum AND to cruising! Anyone going on this cruise? Im going with my two sons. Im still searching for information regarding the port excursions. I've read mixed reviews about this ship, Im a bit worried. I would like feedback regarding the following excursions please.

 

1. La Romana, Dominican Republic - Saona Day in Paradise/Monster Truck

2. What to do in Martinique

3. Bridgetown, Barbados - Can I Get the Atlantis Submarine tour cheaper than £144? (1 Adult, 2 children)

4. Road Town, BVI - Dolphin Swim Adventure - Thomson guide price is £245 can I book this independently?

 

Any feedback will be much appreciated.

 

Thank you muchly

MasterPoo

[Booze Cruiser]

We will be on there then. Starting on 7th Feb. We have two sons (16 & 14) & our friends have a daughter (16), so at least there will be 5 kids on the ship. I have been on the destiny before & as you have read its mixed. We like it for the atmosphere, good food & service. The down side is it isn't all new & glitzy. You have to remember you only shower/sleep in the cabins.

It's best to look on the internet & google whatever you want to do. This will give you an idea of what you can book before going. There isn't much that Thomsons advertise what you can't do on your own & it's a lot cheaper. The only positive going with Thomsons is the ship will not leave without you if you are delayed.

Would like some feed back from anyone who has returned from this cruise recently.

Would like to some advice on what sort of mix of currency to take please. I was thinking of taking a mix of sterling American dollars & Eastern Caribbean dollars.

See you on the ship Masterpoo. You will see us in the Bar. My Son has dreadlocks & my mate is tall & bald.

[MasterPoo]

Hi BoozeCruiser

 

I was begining to think I was the only one going, lol!! My son is 15 turns 16 on the 30th May and my baby has just turned 9! Cant think of any distinctive way to describe us, eeeeerrrrmmm! I spoke to Thomson today to try and book a cabin, a bit confusing.

 

Why is your cruise starting on the 7th may I ask?? We leave the UK on the 14th returning on the 21/22.

 

I THINK i know which excursions we will be doing, but will decide for definite next week. I've managed to find the swim with dolphin MUCH MUCH cheaper than the ship if you are interested.

 

Thanks for replying.

[Booze Cruiser]

Yes we have pre booked a cabin. mid ship. Boys should get on ok, similar ages if they meet up? We are going for two weeks so starting on 7/2/10 & coming back same time as you. We are sorting ourselves out an itinerary over weekend & yes I would be interested in the cheap dolphin excursion.

[Cymro1953]

You can also get ideas of things to do and see on the islands on the Ports of Call section on here.

[SLODGE]

We will also be on the ship on 14th Feb with two boys age 15 & 11. Teen heaven or hell?????

We are going to book Catamaran tour/Turtles in Barbados, Trafalgar falls and tubing in Dominica and Royal Swim with Dolphins in Tortola. I think we will spend the day at the beasch in both St Kitts and Matinique.

We are going to book all our trips direct and not use Thompson as they are much more expensive

[MasterPoo]

Hi BoozeC and Slodge,

 

Well my kids are very fussy so I hope (pray) they are not bored, hate the food, hate the entertainment,lolol! The more the merrier!

 

Slodge who have you booked your excursions with? The only excursion im not going through Thomson with, is the dolphins, everything else is working out at the same price.

 

Booze Im booking the dolphin swim through Dolphin Discovery which is 50% cheaper!

 

So far we/I have decided on the following:

Martinique - Nothing, just swim and chillax

Barbados - Submarine

Dominica - Trafalgar Falls and Emerald Pools

St Kitts - a friend of mine who is from the island said there is nothing much to do, and that I could see the entire island in one hour! So swim and chillax

BVI - Dolphin swim

Dominican Rep - Saona day in paradise

 

I'd be grateful for any info/links that are cheaper than Thomson's Slodge.

 

see you all on board!

[SLODGE]

We are going to book Dolphins direct with dolphin discovery but havn't decided which level.

 

We are doing a catamaren/turtles adventure with Heatwave

 

And finally tubing and Emerald pool with http://dominicacruisesite.com/

 

We too are also heading for the beach in St Kitts and Martinique although i think if we told the kids we were taking them all on the scenic railway they would all be thrilled!!!!!:eek:

 

If they get bored they can all do it together whilst we hit the cocktails!

[MasterPoo]

Slodge thanks for the link, I cant believe its working out cheaper for BOTH tubing and falls!! THANKS!! Do you think if we got a group together we would be able to get a group discount, thats if you are interested?:eek:

[SLODGE]

I've just sent them a email to find out - so hopefully i'll get a reply later today

[Booze Cruiser]

Masterpoo/Slodge - Have you actually booked any tours yet? Can you let me know of costs please. We maybe interested in group booking. There are 7 of us. I haven't been able to find many tours that are much cheaper than Thomson & some of these web sites are quoting 2009 prices?

[MasterPoo]

Booze the link that Slodge provided is working out MUCH cheaper than the ships prices AND it combines both the river tubing and the falls tour in Dominica! Im sure we can include you. So just to confirm there is 7 (Booze)+ 3 (MasterPoo) +4 (Slodge) = 14

 

Barbados - Atlantis Submarines website has a 15% Discount/Sale on so thats 15% less than the ship!

 

Tortola - my 15 year old and I are doing the Dolphin Adventure Swim, my 9 year old doesnt like any sort of fish and would rather watch from the sidelines (can you believe that, lol)!!! At $99 per adult they are already cheaper than the ship AND at an extra 15% off they work out even cheaper!

 

On our last day in La Romana I would really like to do the Saona day in Paradise, any of you interested in grouping this? My flight back to Manchester leaves the island @ 21h30, so aim to be at the airport at 7pm so have almost 12 hours to kill!???

[SLODGE]

OK here goes

 

If want to do Trafalgar Falls, Emerald Pool and Tubing the cost will be $82 per adult, $57 per teen and $41 for under 12s. Minimum group size is 8. Pick up 9.00 and return at 3.30

 

To do just emerald Pool and tubing would be $57, $35 and $25 although again he will discount this if we have more than 8 people.

 

What do you think

[MasterPoo]

Would they give us a discounted price for the 14 of us? The falls/pool/tubing excursion sounds like fun, an ALL IN 1 Package for 50% cheaper!

 

BoozeC what do you think?

[MasterPoo]

Forgot to say THANKS for doing this Slodge!

[Booze Cruiser]

yes would be interested in all in one package. Just got a reply from Antours:

The detailed programme is as follows:-

 

Welcome by Antours Rep at the pier.

Visit the Emerald Pool & Waterfall in the Rain Forest Reserve (1 hr visit) with option to swim and have a great massage under the waterfall.

Stop at Mr. Nice for enjoying freshly-harvested fruits and other delicacies (Monday thru Friday).

Tubing on the Layou River includes briefing & drink at the landing site ( 1 hr 15 min ).

We dispatch from the Cruise Ship dock at 9.30am and drop off is scheduled for 2.30pm. We will pick you up at the pier and drop you off at the pier at the end of your tour.

 

 

 

 

Our prices include round trip transportation from the pier, site entry tickets to the Emerald Pool, River Tubing and drinks at the riverside after tubing. Current Prices are as follows:-

 

 

 

 

Emerald Pool & River Tubing

 

Adult – US$57.00 / Teens 12 to 17 yrs – US$35.00 / Under 12 yrs – US$25.00.

 

 

 

 

Group Discount you will enjoy

 

Groups of 10+ - 1 Free for every 10 persons paying.

[SLODGE]

They gave me a price for 15 but im sure that they would stretch to 14 people

Price would then be $77,$54 and $38.50. The question is whether it is worth the extra money to go to Trafalgar falls. My other concern would be if we were to sail into Portsmouth instead of Roseau which has happened a couple of times this year would we have time to do it all.

 

What do you all think?

[MasterPoo]

Hi Booze and Slodge

 

Personally I want to have a bit more extra time to lie on the beach!! So maybe just the tubing and the pool or falls??? Ive heard the falls , fall into the pool??? (If you get my drift) So it shouldnt take 3 hours to do that???:eek:

[Booze Cruiser]

We are down to 5 on the emerald falls & river tubing. 3 adults, 4 teens.

Ref -Other tours:

I don't think anything else I have looked at is that much cheaper. You have to bear in mind the ship will wait for you if you are on a Thomson excursion, it won't if you take a private one. So it's up to the individual, but personally if the cost is marginal I will book with Thomsons.

Has anyone found out if we did book as a group how we would pay, or even better not pay until we get there. I'm sure someone on here agrred not to pay until they arrived?

[MasterPoo]

Yes Booze you are right, there is not THAT much difference, but every little helps. I've managed to find the following:

 

Atlantis Submarine

Ship = £144

Direct with the company = £114.31

 

Falls and Pool

Ship = £86

Pools and Tubing = £72

 

Dolphin Swin Adenture is at a 15% discount as I previously mentioned!

 

Im no longer doing Saona, I think I will go to one of their local beaches, La Minitas and a couple of others seem to be highly recommended!

 

Slodge could you request that we pay when we get there??

[SLODGE]

Booze - can you just confirm your numbers cos 4 plus 3 = 7 not 5. I will then contact them again to see if they will do the booking without a deposit. If not i know they take paypal. so perhaps we can make a deposit each

 

do we all agree that its just for emerald pool and tubing then?

[Booze Cruiser]

Slodge - Sorry for the confusion. We are down to 5 from 7.

Confirmed: 2 adults, 3 teens. it's been a long day in the office. Sorry.

Agree on Emerald pools & tubing.

[MasterPoo]

Agree Pool and Tubing!!!

[capasamari]

Excuse me for butting in everyone, but if you fancy an excursion zip-lining on St. Kitts have a look at this: www.skysafaristkitts.com

 

We were on St. Kitts over Christmas and went (independently) on a rainforest hike with Greg's Safaris, and our starting point in the rainforest was also the starting point for the zip-lining. It looked really easy (compared to the zip-lining we did another year on St. Lucia!) and great fun. Should suit your teenagers!!

 

We enjoyed our rainforest hike and picnic lunch (included) and had time for a taxi to a beach afterwards as well. Great snorkelling, with many different types of fish.

 

Paul and Dave did the river tubing on Dominica (through Thomsons) and really enjoyed it.

 

We did the Dolphin Discovery (independently, booked on-line from home) on Tortola last year. We just had the five of us in our group with our dolphin and trainer compared to the twenty or so in the ship's excursion group, and we paid considerably less. We also had two spectators who didn't have to pay anything, unlike on the ship's tour.

 

If you book an excursion on one of the islands independently, you will not have to pay until you get there, so if the ship does not dock for some reason you won't be out of pocket. It's a good idea to programme the tour operator's phone number into your mobile, and take any e-mail confirmation print-outs with you, although we have never had any problems.

 

You will either be met at the dock by your tour operator as we were on St. Kitts, or there will be plenty of taxis to take you and bring you back as we were on Tortola. The locals are all aware that you need to be back at your ship in good time and will agree a return time with you.

 

Have a fantastic time!

 

Carol x

[SLODGE]

thanks Carol for the info.

 

Pool and Tubing is now coming out at $52,$30,$20.

 

There would prefer the full payment up from by paypal but i suggest we offer to pay 25%. He will send me an paypal invoice ( i think i can insert the link here somewhere so that we can each make a payment) and after wards he will then send a confirmation. They have stated that if for some reason the boat were not to dock we would get a refund.

 

Are you both happy with that?