Victor Bodden

[kmarie10531]

We will be on the dream that same week i think we are there the same day on jan 22nd ?

 

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[saatros]

Well isn't that a coincidence :-) It's the 21st though. I looked back on your posts & it looks like you may want to do the ziplining too?

 

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[AllAmericanAmy]

Thanks Amy! There's only 2 of us booked & I did mention it on our roll call but nobody bit. I'll try a more direct invite. If I were to stay placed with the group for the zip & dip, I wonder how many typically are in a group. Any idea? We're scheduled to be in port from 9-5.

 

You're still almost 3 months from sailing - may get some interest as you get closer. Keep bringing it up on your roll call.

 

Not sure how many in the zip & dip group. I think it varies - read some of the zip & dip reviews... I'm sure they say somewhere.

 

I am sure many, many people go on the zip & dip and have a great time with no complaints. Personally, I absolutely LOVE Roatan ---- it is my favorite port and the snorkeling there is absolutely surreal!!!!! (Schools of 100+ beautiful fish swimming around you, sea turtles, crazy lots of fishes!!) Because the snorkeling time is sooooo very important to me, there is NO way I personally would book the zip & dip and risk one of the not-so-happy experiences you do read reviews about every so often. There is NO place in the Carribean that I have been to or heard of that has the incredible snorkeling right off the beach as there is at Tabayana / West Bay beach area. (usually you have to book a boat snorkeling excursion and jump off a perfectly good boat into crazy deep water -- even then I've not had as good of experience seeing anywhere near as many fish as Roatan right off the beach).

 

So, if the zip-line is most important to people and saving the money (something I TOTALLY relate to!) is crucial ... book the zip & dip and have a great time and be happy with whatever amount of time is avail. after the zip to visit the beach. On the other hand, if the snorkeling is more important to you - and you can't afford or don't want to spend the extra $$ to book a private tour, you can book with one of the resorts directly to go snorkeling (some offer transportation, lounge chair and a drink for around $40 per person or thereabouts -- I think I'm NOT supposed to name names unless you ASK me to or sumfin lol I almost got sent to the naughty corner once before :eek:)

 

Hope that helps some! Take care...

Amy

Edited October 28, 2013 by AllAmericanAmy

[WisCruiser2]

Amy -- WHICH resort(s) have you liked??? Inquiring minds want to know :cool:

[saatros]

I just realized your wrote Dream, (not Dawn)... I too should switch to the private. Are you in port from 9-5 as well?

 

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[saatros]

Great advise Amy :-) Thanks!

 

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[AllAmericanAmy]

Amy -- WHICH resort(s) have you liked??? Inquiring minds want to know :cool:

 

I have only been to Roatan once (Jan 2013). I do ToNS of research before cruising or vacationing (for me, that's a BIG part of my fun ... I vicariously vacation for months before my actual vacation!! :D HEY - DON'T CALL ME LAME PEOPLE!! LOL)

 

Last time we booked private Bodden tour and did a little bit of an island tour, Southshore for ziplining, shopped in West Bay Village and ate some baledas, then went to the FREE (my favorite word!!) public beach access located next to Banarama Resort. We strolled down the alley past the little "guard" booth (pull up other posts by me for detailed explanation) and turned left onto the beach and walked towards Infinity Bay Resort and Tabayana.

 

Dropped our towels on the edge of the water, strapped on our snorkels and had a BLAST. We did NOT use a resort. Had no need. I was NOT there to sit in a chair and look at the ocean (we do that in Costa Maya --- another favorite port). Roatan was all about snorkeling. The guys in the kayaks are WONDERFUL and helpful and worthy of your TIPS. One kid kayaked alongside of my son and I and took us out to the "wall" ---- OMG OMG OMG. What a beautiful world the Lord created. It was a memory I will ALWAYS cherish and look forward to repeating!

 

That being said, we visit Roatan again in December 2013 - I will come back and post what we do this time. I plan to allow more time for snorkeling (I think we had about 1 1/2 hours last time). My husband is disabled (has a Traumatic Brain Injury) and we may see about renting a lounge chair for him to use while we are at the beach. My research indicates several resorts will rent them for about $10 per chair (this also entitles you to use their restrooms). Personally, I will NOT pay $10 for a chair -- I'll throw my towel down on the sand and plunk my cheap butt down. lol :D Our game plan is to zipline first, then snorkel for as long as we want to. When we get hungry we'll pop up to a resort and buy something to eat (thus utilizing their chairs WHILE eating and their restrooms as we will be PAYING customers). Wanna try the lobster nachos at Infinity Bay for sure.

 

If you are looking for a resort only (and since you ASKED me for a name to keep me outta the naughty corner lol) -- I read Banarama will provide transportation to their facility, give you a lounge chair and a drink for something like $40 per person. Pretty reasonable IMHO. Other resorts do that too -- google it or search the CC boards for more info. I am not interested in that because we want flexibility to zipline, sightsee, drop off some school supplies and do some grocery shopping while there (vanilla, coffee, etc). My driver (Frankie with Victor Bodden) even came in the grocery store with me and carried my stuff around!!! My teenagers LOVED that part!

 

Hope that helps... Man, I'm getting excited bout going again!

 

Counting down...

Amy

Edited October 28, 2013 by AllAmericanAmy

[kat4282]

I have only been to Roatan once (Jan 2013). I do ToNS of research before cruising or vacationing (for me, that's a BIG part of my fun ... I vicariously vacation for months before my actual vacation!! :D HEY - DON'T CALL ME LAME PEOPLE!! LOL)

 

Last time we booked private Bodden tour and did a little bit of an island tour, Southshore for ziplining, shopped in West Bay Village and ate some baledas, then went to the FREE (my favorite word!!) public beach access located next to Banarama Resort. We strolled down the alley past the little "guard" booth (pull up other posts by me for detailed explanation) and turned left onto the beach and walked towards Infinity Bay Resort and Tabayana.

 

Dropped our towels on the edge of the water, strapped on our snorkels and had a BLAST. We did NOT use a resort. Had no need. I was NOT there to sit in a chair and look at the ocean (we do that in Costa Maya --- another favorite port). Roatan was all about snorkeling. The guys in the kayaks are WONDERFUL and helpful and worthy of your TIPS. One kid kayaked alongside of my son and I and took us out to the "wall" ---- OMG OMG OMG. What a beautiful world the Lord created. It was a memory I will ALWAYS cherish and look forward to repeating!

 

That being said, we visit Roatan again in December 2013 - I will come back and post what we do this time. I plan to allow more time for snorkeling (I think we had about 1 1/2 hours last time). My husband is disabled (has a Traumatic Brain Injury) and we may see about renting a lounge chair for him to use while we are at the beach. My research indicates several resorts will rent them for about $10 per chair (this also entitles you to use their restrooms). Personally, I will NOT pay $10 for a chair -- I'll throw my towel down on the sand and plunk my cheap butt down. lol :D Our game plan is to zipline first, then snorkel for as long as we want to. When we get hungry we'll pop up to a resort and buy something to eat (thus utilizing their chairs WHILE eating and their restrooms as we will be PAYING customers). Wanna try the lobster nachos at Infinity Bay for sure.

 

If you are looking for a resort only (and since you ASKED me for a name to keep me outta the naughty corner lol) -- I read Banarama will provide transportation to their facility, give you a lounge chair and a drink for something like $40 per person. Pretty reasonable IMHO. Other resorts do that too -- google it or search the CC boards for more info. I am not interested in that because we want flexibility to zipline, sightsee, drop off some school supplies and do some grocery shopping while there (vanilla, coffee, etc). My driver (Frankie with Victor Bodden) even came in the grocery store with me and carried my stuff around!!! My teenagers LOVED that part!

 

Hope that helps... Man, I'm getting excited bout going again!

 

Counting down...

Amy

 

Hi Amy, Quick question. Did you take your supplies into town or hand them out at the pier? I have purchased almost 200 school supply items and have some people donating on the ship too. I am doing a private with Rony's tours but want to make sure and have as much beach time, so the plan is to find a place close to WB Beach or stop on our way back to port. Love the idea of giving back when visiting their beautiful island.

 

Katie

[WisCruiser2]

Thanks, Amy - I agree, half the fun of cruising is the planning, which is why I'm obsessing about it now :D We just want to do a beach day but want to rent a chair to sit & read when we're not snorkeling. Bananarama is one I'm looking into. Just need to figure out if we want to go with their package that includes the transportation or hire a driver from Victor Bodden. Sounds like they're the ones you definitely want to go with if you're doing a private hire!

[AllAmericanAmy]

Hi Amy, Quick question. Did you take your supplies into town or hand them out at the pier? I have purchased almost 200 school supply items and have some people donating on the ship too. I am doing a private with Rony's tours but want to make sure and have as much beach time, so the plan is to find a place close to WB Beach or stop on our way back to port. Love the idea of giving back when visiting their beautiful island.

 

Katie

 

Hi Katie-

I have NOT brought supplies to Roatan before (we've delivered supplies in Costa Maya and will do so again this cruise). My research on Roatan indicates you can contact Lynn at Roatan Children's Fund and they have a list on their website of several locations and their on-going needs, etc. According to their site, you can drop supplies with Yancsy at Playa Miguel located at CoCo View Resort in French Harbor or at the Rotary Booth located at the Cruise Ship docks.

 

There are also a few different missionaries I found online that you can coordinate a drop-off to. I also think you can visit the schools and/or childrens home if you want to and personally deliver items. I believe I had also heard that Victor Bodden collects items and distributes them thru his church. Could ask him about that if you want.

 

Hope that helps! :D

 

Counting down...

Amy

[kat4282]

Hi Katie-

I have NOT brought supplies to Roatan before (we've delivered supplies in Costa Maya and will do so again this cruise). My research on Roatan indicates you can contact Lynn at Roatan Children's Fund and they have a list on their website of several locations and their on-going needs, etc. According to their site, you can drop supplies with Yancsy at Playa Miguel located at CoCo View Resort in French Harbor or at the Rotary Booth located at the Cruise Ship docks.

 

There are also a few different missionaries I found online that you can coordinate a drop-off to. I also think you can visit the schools and/or childrens home if you want to and personally deliver items. I believe I had also heard that Victor Bodden collects items and distributes them thru his church. Could ask him about that if you want.

 

Hope that helps! :D

 

 

Counting down...

Amy

 

Great Info. Thank you so much :)

[Lovefuninthesun]

We are booked on a "best of..." with Victor Bodden for our upcoming Legend cruise -- prices are very reasonable and sounds as if they will pretty much do whatever you want.

We will dock in Mahogany Bay, so Carnival will not allow the private tours within the port compund -- we will have to take a serious hike uphill to where we can meet VB tours -- that is the only downside.

[saatros]

Another question... I'm still thinking this through. If we arrive in port at 9am, the bus leaves an hour later according to the email. It also says they have you back to the ship 2 hrs before it leaves. For me, this would be 3:00 because it leaves @ 5. How much time is typically spent zipping & with the monkeys?

 

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[geauxgirlgeaux]

Thank you so much !! I'm thinking best of is a way to go . I'm just nervous about not making it to the ship in time that's all haha

 

Hello! We did a private day with Victor Bodden (his brother Francisco was guide) and we had a great day! We did a wide variety of activities - sightseeing and shopping and eating. We went to Victor's house/farm where several family members have houses and that is where the zip lines, as well as farm field with banana plants (ask and they will show you, at least Francisco showed us), and monkey cages are. We did not visit with the monkeys as they are fed peanuts and we have a child with a peanut allergy. The cages were clean and well kept. We saw all of the island we wanted to see, went to a grocery store for coffee, snacks, etc along with West End walking around and eating. We went to West Bay and had more than enough time to sun, swim, snorkel. The banana donut man came by and we indulged. We were back on the cruise dock probably 1 1/2 hours prior to the time we needed to be back. Francisco said we could stay out longer but some of our party was tired and we decided to call it a day. We had enough time to enjoy a few drinks on the pier before boarding and had a relaxing and fun filled day in Roatan. One of our favorite stops ever!

What we wish we had done: wish we had taken school supplies - there is much poverty here and need for help for the students is great. Talk to them about their school system. I also wish I had bought some handicrafts at the mountain top area where the vendors are set up - someone had a few Honduran license plates for sale which would have been fun to have. I really wish we had reserved with them ahead of time the option for a guide for snorkeling. The coral at West Bay is shallow in some areas and it would have been nice to have someone leading us around. The fish and coral are really beautiful and it was wonderful to snorkel here! (We brought our own equipment)

You will have a great day with Victor Bodden!

[lovevacadays]

If I am interested in seeing some of the Island and some beach time, and there are only two of us, is the Fun-n-Sun package the way to go (financially speaking)?

 

 

No, in my opinion. Just do the tour that Victor offers that is open to whatever you want to do. I cruised with someone back in 2009 and we each paid $40 for a private tour and really got to say what we wanted to see and then our guide Tex made some other suggestions. It was truly a fabulous day. On this Island I would not get boxed in with a tour that has other people on it. Victor's personal tours are so much better and you have all day to pick and choose what you want to do.

 

Enjoy your day in Roatan. I loved it there.

[Eliot Ness]

The wife and I contemplated doing a private tour, and we had one booked last year when her aunt and uncle cruised with us, but unfortunately the Dream couldn't dock that day.

 

Next week we're doing the Fun-n-Sun tour because it basically goes to the same places we want to go anyway. A private tour for two isn't that much more, but I'd feel foolish asking to go to the same places the Fun-n-Sun went. In fact, if you get 3 people the private tour is the same cost and with four it is cheaper.

 

I'll report back how I felt the Fun-n-Sun tour went. It is a beautiful island and one year we had a great time horseback riding with El Rancho Barrio Dorcas that was very nice.

 

 

John

[wantocruisemore]

No, in my opinion. Just do the tour that Victor offers that is open to whatever you want to do. I cruised with someone back in 2009 and we each paid $40 for a private tour and really got to say what we wanted to see and then our guide Tex made some other suggestions. It was truly a fabulous day. On this Island I would not get boxed in with a tour that has other people on it. Victor's personal tours are so much better and you have all day to pick and choose what you want to do.

 

Enjoy your day in Roatan. I loved it there.

 

Totally agree. We did the Fun n Sun tour and regretted that we wasted time going to different photo ops and then in the end only got 30 min at the beach. Next time we will definitely do the private.

[jcumming]

Just back from Roatan this past week. We booked the Private Tour and it was a great decision. The weather was pretty dicey...raining on and off and Kenny, our guide, worked things around the rain so that we could still get everything in as much as possible.

 

We had two 90-somethings with us so we decided against ziplining, but had a nice tour, some good photo spots, played with the monkeys at Victor's and went up to Bananarama where we ate drank, and did some snorkeling. Everyone had a good time.

[TracieABD]

We just booked with Bodden. Sadly, Tex is already booked for the day. We will do a private tour. I have to say, we have travelled privately all over the world and I am still amazed at price for a private day! $40 per person per day is unbelievable. I am so glad that we got in under the wire.

 

:) Thanks for the suggestions!

[Eliot Ness]

We just did the Fun-n-Sun tour last week with Annie as our guide. Overall we were pretty pleased with the tour and Annie was a great guide. There were about 12 on this tour and we were in a very comfortable mini tour bus with excellent air conditioning.

 

We were taken to very poor parts of the island as well as wealthier sections and Annie offered great insights into life on the island, both good and bad. I really enjoyed that portion of the tour and learned a few things in the process.

 

You make a couple of picture/shopping stops, visit Monkey Business, and then we had 2 hours at Bananarama. I really liked Bananarama, the food was good and they kept the vendors at bay unless you wanted to approach them yourselves.

 

I see the pros and cons of the Fun-n-Sun vs private tour as follows:

 

Pros: A bit cheaper for just two people and the Monkey Business and beach (Bananarama) are included. If you don't know what you want to see and enjoy sharing your time with a handful of others you should consider this.

 

Cons: Depending on the size of your group your visit at Monkey Business could be a bit crowded and your personal time with the animals limited. Also, if you have other places you want to stop and shop then consider a private tour. While we still had time for 2 hours at the beach, others have complained of only having 30 minutes; not sure why that would happen, but keep that in mind when considering the different tours.

 

In either case I could recommend Annie as a very friendly and knowledgeable guide.

 

Warning: if you visit the monkeys hold onto your glasses as you walk by the spider monkey cage. That little rascal grabbed the glasses right off my face before I realized what was happening! He is very fast and sneaky, he waited until I was walking past him, touched me on the shoulder, and when I turned my head to look my glasses were gone in an flash. I finally got them back, a little worse-for-wear, but fortunately I was wearing my older glasses.

 

In-any-case have fun, it is a beautiful island!

 

 

John

[wantocruisemore]

We just did the Fun-n-Sun tour last week with Annie as our guide. Overall we were pretty pleased with the tour and Annie was a great guide. There were about 12 on this tour and we were in a very comfortable mini tour bus with excellent air conditioning.

 

We were taken to very poor parts of the island as well as wealthier sections and Annie offered great insights into life on the island, both good and bad. I really enjoyed that portion of the tour and learned a few things in the process.

 

You make a couple of picture/shopping stops, visit Monkey Business, and then we had 2 hours at Bananarama. I really liked Bananarama, the food was good and they kept the vendors at bay unless you wanted to approach them yourselves.

 

I see the pros and cons of the Fun-n-Sun vs private tour as follows:

 

Pros: A bit cheaper for just two people and the Monkey Business and beach (Bananarama) are included. If you don't know what you want to see and enjoy sharing your time with a handful of others you should consider this.

 

Cons: Depending on the size of your group your visit at Monkey Business could be a bit crowded and your personal time with the animals limited. Also, if you have other places you want to stop and shop then consider a private tour. While we still had time for 2 hours at the beach, others have complained of only having 30 minutes; not sure why that would happen, but keep that in mind when considering the different tours.

 

In either case I could recommend Annie as a very friendly and knowledgeable guide.

 

Warning: if you visit the monkeys hold onto your glasses as you walk by the spider monkey cage. That little rascal grabbed the glasses right off my face before I realized what was happening! He is very fast and sneaky, he waited until I was walking past him, touched me on the shoulder, and when I turned my head to look my glasses were gone in an flash. I finally got them back, a little worse-for-wear, but fortunately I was wearing my older glasses.

 

In-any-case have fun, it is a beautiful island!

 

 

John

 

How long were you in port? We did the exact same tour, Annie the guide, in Sept but only got about 30 min at Bananarama. We were very disappointed. We would gladly have skipped the first couple of stops. We had a shorter port day. My guess is you had a long one?

[saatros]

How long were you in port? We did the exact same tour, Annie the guide, in Sept but only got about 30 min at Bananarama. We were very disappointed. We would gladly have skipped the first couple of stops. We had a shorter port day. My guess is you had a long one?

 

Thanks for the detailed experience & perspective John. I've booked the zip & dip for 2 in January. Based on all of the wonderful feedback I've received here, I will likely change my reservation to a private tour. It's not as cost effective, but I think I'll be much happier in the long run :-)

 

Suzy

 

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[Pom Lover]

We are booked for a private tour with Tex next month and we are really looking forward to it. We have visited Roatan numerous times but this will be our first private tour. We are traveling with our 6 yr old granddaughter so we plan to take a backpack of school supplies and we are hoping to visit a school so she can give the supplies and learn about their schools.

[Eliot Ness]

How long were you in port? We did the exact same tour, Annie the guide, in Sept but only got about 30 min at Bananarama. We were very disappointed. We would gladly have skipped the first couple of stops. We had a shorter port day. My guess is you had a long one?

We were in port from 7 - 3 (6 - 2 local time). I expected a bit shorter stay at the beach because we had to wait on 2 couples to show up before we left. They won't delay the departure forever, but it will leave later if people are slow to depart the ship. Maybe another reason to consider a private tour?

 

All-in-all if it were just two of us again I would still consider the Fun-n-Sun as an option, but might lean towards a private tour of just the island and more time at the Bananarama or the like. I was pretty impressed with that area.

 

 

John

[journeyfan]

Eliot Ness,

 

Where on the island is Monkey Business located? I can't seem to find any info on it. Is it in Sandy Bay? I'm trying to find out how far from Mahogany Bay it is located so I can plan what's feasible to do in the time we have.