Skip The Fury Snorkeling Half Day Trip in St. Thomas

[2boyzmom]

Ok- I dont usually write a negative review but felt this deserved it. I usually do my homework with excursions. We were placed on a 30 or 40 foot sailboat with 25 people and received a lecture about do's and don'ts on the boat- most were don'ts. The hints about "tipping" were said a half dozen times which was a totoal turnoff. We took a sloooow sail to buck island in the hot sun and handed a cup of water. Again we were lectured and had a 45 minute swim in the water before getting back on the boat. The "open bar" after snorkeling consisted of rum punch, soda or water. The tour was not worth the $75.00 I paid and in fact the ship excursion on the Cat looked much nicer, had 2 snorekling stops, and they paid less!

[Nana257]

Thank you for the post! We are going to St Thomas in a few weeks on the Dream and were looking for something to do. Now I know which one to stay away from. The Cat one does sound nice.

[Colorado Kat]

Oh, I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your day. We booked the Fury with Captain Mike in January, and had a very nice time. Loved the sailing, the sunshine, and the wonderful music. We had a great time snorkeling. The Rum Punch was quite potent and tasty.

[2boyzmom]

Oh, I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your day. We booked the Fury with Captain Mike in January, and had a very nice time. Loved the sailing, the sunshine, and the wonderful music. We had a great time snorkeling. The Rum Punch was quite potent and tasty.

 

You had music?

[Colorado Kat]

You had music?[ /QUOTE]

 

Yes, but just a CD or MP3 player hooked up to speakers.

 

Music, sunshine, rum punch & sailing - I was happy.

[lah66]

We sailed with Fury last week and we thought Mike and Chase were wonderful! The only do's and dont's I remember we're safety items...dont stand on the front part of the boat where it gets slippery from sunscreen, watch the lines if you are moving around, dont hit your head on the mast...I was glad they told us this since I had never been on a sailboat before.

We had a windy and sometimes rainy day so we were not able to snorkel where the turtles were. The snorkeling we did was in much calmer waters and was ok. We saw a sunken boat and many schools of fish..not much coral though. Afterwards we sailed over to see the turtles and understood why he did not want us to snorkel in that area. We did get to see the turtles!

Mike and Chase both made a point to talk to all the families onboard and really showed us a great time. We were dissappointed that we did not snorkel with the turtles but they cannot control the weather and we appreciated the effort to keep us safe.

Would I pre-book with them again? Sure..with the option of backing out and getting our $$ back if it was too windy or rainy...

Hope that helps...Lauri

[cruisingdude123]

Would I pre-book with them again? Sure..with the option of backing out and getting our $$ back if it was too windy or rainy...

Hope that helps...Lauri

 

 

So, is that policy listed on their website somewhere?

Do they make the call as to whether the weather is a factor or can you choose if you want to go or not?

 

We are looking at this excursion for our May Dream cruise.

thanks

[lah66]

Cruisindude,

If this was my first time going on the Fury, I would be happy wherever they brought me...but seeing that we have already done the "alternate" snorkeling site, I would not want to pay the $80 to go there again.

I would assume that Mike has a pretty good idea of where they will snorkel based on the current weather conditions. I would email Mike and ask those questions. good luck! Lauri

[cruisingdude123]

Thanks for the reply. I guess I misunderstood your post. I thought you were saying that it was stated that everyone had the option to back out and get your money back if they so chose on the day of the cruise if it was windy.

[sweetp0618]

We sailed with Mike a year ago and had a great experience. In fact, it was one of our favorite excursions ever (and we've been on a ton). Maybe they were having a off day?

[johneeo]

Did the Fury a couple of years ago, had a great time.

 

Turtles, reefs, snorkeling, sailing, sun, and beer.

[cherylroslyn]

I've done Fury twice and I think it is one of the best excursions inthe Caribbean.....

 

 

Truly the sailboat experience was lost on you and your family...that is a shame. It is rare to be able to go on an excursion in a sailboat and actually sail.....that was such an amazing experience.

 

Turtles were phenomenal, group ws small, guide was helpful when we went over and snorkeled away from the turtles......I honestly don't know what more you would want......

[momthecruisedirector]

We were on the Fury last Thursday and had a wonderful time. The do's and do not's were for your own safety. I don't know any tour that doesn't make a 'joke' or two about the tipping - some people don't know that it is expected so a little jolt is what they need. We had a beautiful day and were with a group of people with various degrees of snorkeling and/or sailing experience. Mike and Chase were helpful and patient with those that needed more help, they wanted to make sure everyone had a good time. We saw turtles, barracuda, sting rays, many fish. On the way back there were granola bars and pretzels if you wanted, soda, beer, rum punch and water - unlimited - throughout the return. We were the first boat to arrive and the last to leave and had fewer people from what I could tell so plenty of time and space to snorkel. I WOULD go again and recommend Fury Charters to anyone wanting a great experience that involves turtles, sailing and friendly people.

[2boyzmom]

Just not sure how you can justify one snorkeling stop for $75.00?

[lomo4]

We took the charter out last week and had a wonderful time! We were a party of 8 and it was my 4 kids first time snorkeling. The don'ts were what I thought were great rules for what were probably many who had never boarded a sailboat before. It was obvious that Mike and Nicki loved the boat and wanted to make sure it stayed beautiful. I understand that and appreciated the cleanliness of the boat.

 

We had a great day as there were only 4 other passengers besides our 8. We were offered sodas and water on the way down and beer, rum punch or fruit punch on the way back. The sail to the snorkeling spot was relaxing and the snorkeling itself wasn't remarkable in terms of coral but we did see many sea turtles which was the point of the trip for us. Mike and Nicki did a great job explaining how to snorkel to my 4 kids ages 12, 10, 7 and 7 and they loved it and had no problems. This trip was the highlight of our cruise!!!

[GAcruiser417]

We sailed with Mike on the Fury last year and won't do it again. I wouldn't recommend it for anyone with children.

 

We had several families with a good number of children aged 11 and under. Overall, the experience sailing out to the island was fine, and I appreciated his safety tips. The guide in the water did a great job. However, Mike was so grumpy and obviously annoyed by the kids that it ruined the trip for several of us. He complained loudly that kids weren't drinking the entire can of soda he provided or eating the entire granola bar he handed them. He got visibly angry with one of the children, which was very uncomfortable for everyone.

[2boyzmom]

We sailed with Mike on the Fury last year and won't do it again. I wouldn't recommend it for anyone with children.

 

We had several families with a good number of children aged 11 and under. Overall, the experience sailing out to the island was fine, and I appreciated his safety tips. The guide in the water did a great job. However, Mike was so grumpy and obviously annoyed by the kids that it ruined the trip for several of us. He complained loudly that kids weren't drinking the entire can of soda he provided or eating the entire granola bar he handed them. He got visibly angry with one of the children, which was very uncomfortable for everyone.

 

Funny you say that- my 13 year old asked for a 2nd can of soda and you should've seen his face. You'd think he was asking for gold!

[CarribeanDiva]

Despite some people being unhappy with this excursion, I am booking it. I would like to know if it is better to go in the morning or the afternoon, and does anyone have any suggestions for touring the island in the afternoon? All of the tours I find start in the morning and you shop until noon and then tour the island and a beach or two. I want to just skip the shopping part.

[aimodels]

I find snorkeling or diving is better in the morning because the water is typically calmer.

 

Cheers, P:)

[CarribeanDiva]

Thanks!

[kruton1971]

Funny you say that- my 13 year old asked for a 2nd can of soda and you should've seen his face. You'd think he was asking for gold!

 

It looks like the reviews are split. Based on what I have read and the fact I will have my 7 year old son with me, I will skip this one.

 

In the day of the internet where people can write reviews about everything, more companies should read their reviews. I know there are unjust reviews sometimes (everyone has a bad day or things happen that are out of their control) but they are a factor in the decisions I make.

[Mrs. Squirrel]

We went on Fury Charters last February from the NCL Sun. We snorkel everywhere both shore and boat trips when we cruise. Fury had great reviews on TripAdvisor. That and we were interested in the sailing aspect of the trip. Fury was more expensive than the NCL Cat trip. We were OK with it, because we'd be sailing.

 

Well, we found out that day that Fury is also the snorkel provider for a local hotel resort. By the time we loaded all the cruise pax, then motored across the bay to pick up their pax, we were running so late that Capt. Mike motored out to the island instead of sailed. We were very disappointed in this. By the time we got to the island, all the other excursions were already in the water. We had shortened snorkel time, so expected to at least sail back. No. . .motored again!

 

I can see why some complained about Mike's gruff manner. He was like that on our trip, too. He took a liking to our son and let him steer the boat back, but ignored some of the other kids, including barking at one about using the ship toilet. I agree that technically everything he said and did was very safety conscious, but his delivery needs work.

 

Niki the first mate was a gem. She looks a lot like Natalie Portman and made the trip fun for us.

 

If the turtles are out, you will see them and get great pics. Just know that all the turtle snorkel operators go to the same island and the same spot.

 

I would rate this excursion for fun a B- to C+.