Anyone been whale watching with Kim Bedell this season?

[lvs]

I have left her emails and a friend left her a voice message but absolute silence. Is she still in business?

[mlmc424]

I never had much luck trying to reach her either. We took the Whale Watch excursion offered by RCI on the Explorer last week and had a great time!

[ghouck2532]

Yes. We took a whale watching excursion on Friday, January 28. Saw 3 breaches: 1 full, 2 chin breaches. She's going out on most days only once due to lack of visitors this year mostly due to bad weather in the U.S. and Europe. The best way to reach her is by phone (809) 538-2494. The office is open every day and directly across from the main boat dock.

 

We weren't there by cruise ship, but spent a week at the Gran Bahia Principe Cayacoa in Samana.

 

Any questions about Samana, please feel free to ask. Been back almost 2 hours.

[lvs]

Thanks Ghouck. I tried that number a couple of days ago and it was set to pick up a fax. I'll try again. Sounds like you had a great experience! We don't get in until 10 am so maybe it will be too late anyhow. It's really been frustrating trying to get in touch with her. I wonder if she's just doing excursions with the ships the day they're in port. Would be nice for her to respond either way...

 

Would love some other suggestions for things to do for our day in port (especially if we don't do a whale watch). My cousin is flying into the DR and driving to Samana to spend the day with us, so we'll have a car.

 

Thanks,

Linda

[ghouck2532]

You could drive to El Limon and ride a horse down to the falls. Although I enjoyed the horseback ride and hike down to the falls I ound it a little overcrowded. Another alternative is to make arrangements with a tour guide located a little bit away from the falls. One operator who is recommended is Parada Ramona y Basilio who own a ranch. Their horseback tour consists of a ride through the countryside to the trail that leads down to the falls. Their contact information is (809)282-6309

 

Or you can drive to Las Galeras and arrange a boat ride to a nearby beach such as Playa Rincon, Playita, or Fronton.

 

A boat trip to Los Haitises would also be worthwhile depending on your length of time in port.

 

Having a car is definitely a convenient since you can stop off whenever you see anything interesting. Parada Ramona y Basilio is located a little past the falls if you're driving from Samana.

[lvs]

Thanks GHouck! I'm sure we'll have a great day no matter what we do. My cousin visits the DR all the time so we're in good hands.

[ike97756]

 

Would love some other suggestions for things to do for our day in port (especially if we don't do a whale watch). My cousin is flying into the DR and driving to Samana to spend the day with us, so we'll have a car.

 

Thanks,

Linda

 

Terry has great excursions including a whale watching one, I would check with him.

http://www.toursamanawithterry.com/

We loved our (low impact) excursion with him and are returning for another one in a few weeks.

[houlacruiser]

She did email me back after a few days, but I had already booked with Terry for a whalewatching tour. Terry's is more expensive, but he also has a beach stop afterwards, which we wanted.