Gumbalimba Beach/Snorkeling

[vtwiggy]

Hello! Hubby and I will be going on our second cruise in December on the Carnival Glory, a 7-nighter. Our last cruise was a shorter trip to the Bahamas, so we are still fairly new at this :)

 

We are looking into going to Gumbalimba Park but I am having a hard time finding straight answers about what to expect. What we'd really like to do is tour the park and snorkel, but Carnival doesn't seem to offer that option. If we book the Pirates, Birds, and Monkeys excursion, does anyone know if we can just rent snorkel equipment there? The Gumbalimba website says it is only $10 to do so, but I am not sure how structured this tour is on Carnival's end. Our other option is adding the kayak and snorkeling for an additional $25, but we are not that interested in kayaking. The Carnival site says you get an hour to relax in the park after the kayak and snorkel tours.

 

There are a lot of conflicting reviews on trip advisor - some people saying they were herded directly back on the bus and others who seemed to be able to stay and hang out on the beach. We'd really like to do the tour and have some time to just chill on the beach and snorkel on our own, but we're willing to do the guided snorkel if we need to.

 

Any insight you can give on how structured these tours are would be fabulous, and if you thought the tour was worth the price! Thanks!! :D

[Crystalbast]

If you really want to snorkel I would just recommend going to Tabayana Beach where you can rent gear. I did the Jolly Rogers Snorkel and Gumbalinda Park and, while the snorkeling was good, I was not impressed with the park. I talked to people later on who went to Tabayana Beach and heard nothing but wonderful things about it. And with Tabayana Beach you aren't locked into a set amount of time, buses return back to the ship every half hour.