Romney Manor, Clay Villa or Fairview Plantation

[2009]

Hi Everyone,

 

Trying to decide between Romney Manor, Clay Villa or Fairview Plantation for St Kitts.

 

Which one to you all suggest from your experiences.

 

Interested in seeing Tropical Gardens and hearing about history.

 

Any and all input would be appreciated.

 

Thanks in advance...Amy

[Sunny AZ Girl]

We have a tour booked through Clay Villa that includes a guided tour of Clay Villa, Romney Manor & the Caribelle Batik Studio, and Brimstone Fortress along with a few other historical and scenic stops. It is called the "Best of St. Kitts". They do have a wide variety of tours offered, but this one seems to fit our interests the best. After the tour a beach option is available for those who would like a little beach time that day. While I can't speak for the tour from personal experience yet, the reviews on TA are excellent. TA also rates Clay Villa as the #1 attraction, yet no other tour operators seem to go there. I am guessing since CV operates it's own tour services and they are private property they don't allow outside operators? Just a guess. They have been extremely easy to work with. Since we are a group of 10 and I am in charge of organizing this tour for the group that is something I appreciate.

 

We are going in May and I will provide a report upon our return.

[2009]

Hey Ginny,

 

Thanks for the response. I will definitely look into the excursions thru Clay Villa.

 

We are going in April 2014 so I'll be there before you get a chance to review the tour.

 

Again thanks...

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Hey Ginny,

 

Thanks for the response. I will definitely look into the excursions thru Clay Villa.

 

We are going in April 2014 so I'll be there before you get a chance to review the tour.

 

Again thanks...

 

Great! If you decide to go with them I would love to see a review from you about them.:cool: We leave for San Juan on May 1st, though. So you gotta be fast, LOL!

[canadarocks]

We're doing the same "Best of St Kitts" tour in March and I've already promised Sunny AZ Girl a review when we get back. So you can watch for that! :)

[Sunny AZ Girl]

We're doing the same "Best of St Kitts" tour in March and I've already promised Sunny AZ Girl a review when we get back. So you can watch for that! :)

 

That's right and I'm holding you to it!:D

 

Our cruises are getting closer. It seems like so long ago we first talked about this. :eek:

 

 

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[canadarocks]

That's right and I'm holding you to it!:D

 

Our cruises are getting closer. It seems like so long ago we first talked about this. :eek:

 

 

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I know and that's a good thing! We're in Florida right now and it's freezing!! Not as bad as Canada I know, but still.....

Edited January 17, 2014 by canadarocks

[Sunny AZ Girl]

I know and that's a good thing! We're in Florida right now and it's freezing!! Not as bad as Canada I know, but still.....

 

When in March is your cruise? I want to be watching for that review of Clay Villa!

 

If anyone else has done this tour please chime in. We would love to hear about your experience.:)

[canadarocks]

When in March is your cruise? I want to be watching for that review of Clay Villa!

 

If anyone else has done this tour please chime in. We would love to hear about your experience.:)

 

We're on a B2B and then we have the long drive back to Canada, so look for my review sometime in the last two weeks of March. :)

 

It's strange how you and I seem to be the only ones doing this tour, right? I think it sounds great and Philip has been awesome to correspond with! :cool:

[Sunny AZ Girl]

We're on a B2B and then we have the long drive back to Canada, so look for my review sometime in the last two weeks of March. :)

 

It's strange how you and I seem to be the only ones doing this tour, right? I think it sounds great and Philip has been awesome to correspond with! :cool:

 

Well, have a great cruise and stay warm!

 

Over the years I have noticed that those of us on CC get hooked on a couple of great operators who tend to really cater to the cruisers and there is very little branching out to try other operators. There is security in knowing that certain tour operators are well tuned to the needs of people on the cruise as far as timing and working in a short time frame are concerned. I have depended on this experience myself and have not gone wrong with well recommended operators on CC.

 

That being said, sometimes there are other experienced operators out there who should be "brought into the fold". Clay Villa provides a service not provided by other operators who are popular on this board and that is to include the Clay Villa Plantation House on their tour. On this upcoming cruise I have been branching out a bit to find operators who can fill our desires and needs, not just those currently popular on CC. I have also done this on St. Lucia with Serenity Tours. Both of these operators are well known on Trip Advisor and have had very high reviews there. Both have worked with the cruising public, just maybe not with the CC crowd too much, and have excellent reputations and reviews on that forum. I hope I can add positive reviews here on CC upon our return.

[canadarocks]

You have me intrigued by Serenity Tours now. We currently have Spencer Ambrose's Land & Sea tour booked. But I've checked Trip Advisor for Serenity Tours and they look promising as well.

 

Can I ask which tour you have booked and is your ship docking in Castries?

[Sunny AZ Girl]

You have me intrigued by Serenity Tours now. We currently have Spencer Ambrose's Land & Sea tour booked. But I've checked Trip Advisor for Serenity Tours and they look promising as well.

 

Can I ask which tour you have booked and is your ship docking in Castries?

 

We are docked in Castries. We booked the Land Tour. It does not include the beach. Once again I found that Serenity can offer us a unique experience. It is all inclusive with lunch at a restaurant overlooking the Pitons, which appeals to me a lot. The reviews are wonderful for both the tour and the lunch. All admission fees are included. Some operators do not include admission fees into parks, etc. So, the value is there.

 

We decided against the land and sea options from Spencer and others for several reasons. For one thing, not everyone in our group enjoys the beach and, unlike the Clay Villa tour, the beach is not offered as an optional add on. For those of us who do like the beach the boats used are questionable concerning access. This is an older group (ages 50 - 80) and a few of us do have some mobility issues. Catamarans with dock entry are fine. Speed boats with water entry and a fast, bumpy ride are not. Also, the reviews for Spencer and others have become rather off and on. I think some of them have become too busy to give a consistently good experience. JMHO. Also, the reviews of Jalousie Beach are mixed. Sometimes great, sometimes not so great. All of this together made me look elsewhere.

Edited January 17, 2014 by Sunny AZ Girl

[canadarocks]

Thanks so much Sunny, I'm going to give Serenity Tours an email.

 

And sorry to take this thread so off topic everyone else! :o

[2009]

No worries. I love hearing everyone's experiences and also what they plan on doing on their other excursions.

 

Sunny I did email Clay Villa and got a response from Philip this afternoon. We will probably take the "Beyond the Ordinary" Tour.

 

Thanks so much again for responding.

 

I will post a review of this one when we return. We sail on the Jewel April 19, 2014.

[Sunny AZ Girl]

No worries. I love hearing everyone's experiences and also what they plan on doing on their other excursions.

 

Sunny I did email Clay Villa and got a response from Philip this afternoon. We will probably take the "Beyond the Ordinary" Tour.

 

Thanks so much again for responding.

 

I will post a review of this one when we return. We sail on the Jewel April 19, 2014.

 

That sounds like a good tour, also. We'll look forward to the review. :)

 

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[poolwife]

What is the e-mail address to contact Phillip for the Clay Villa tours?

 

You guys have me intrigued and will look into this more.

 

We are sailing on Celebrity Silhouette and are on St. Kitts on March 5. I am looking into what to do.

 

I am wondering if this is any time left at the end of the tour for beach time.

[canadarocks]

What is the e-mail address to contact Phillip for the Clay Villa tours?

 

You guys have me intrigued and will look into this more.

 

We are sailing on Celebrity Silhouette and are on St. Kitts on March 5. I am looking into what to do.

 

I am wondering if this is any time left at the end of the tour for beach time.

 

Here is the website with all the different tours they offer. I'm sure you could arrange beach time after a tour if you wish.

 

http://www.clayvilla.com/tours_main.asp

Edited February 3, 2014 by canadarocks

[kjquilts]

When in March is your cruise? I want to be watching for that review of Clay Villa!

 

If anyone else has done this tour please chime in. We would love to hear about your experience.:)

 

 

If you want to start a new thread asking for info on Best of St Kitts tour through Clay Villa I'll be happy to answer and include some photos. We did it last week .... great tour :)

[canadarocks]

If you want to start a new thread asking for info on Best of St Kitts tour through Clay Villa I'll be happy to answer and include some photos. We did it last week .... great tour :)

 

I'd love to read about it and see the pictures. Not sure why the need for a separate thread to tell us about it? :confused:

[gumballz]

We just returned from our cruise and loved it!

 

We booked a tour in St Kitts through Phillip Hurd. We did the Beyond the Ordinary tour, and cannot recommend it enough. Our driver was fabulous! Phillip was so friendly and gave us a very informative tour of his home/grounds and we left feeling like our visit to St Kitts was the best day of the cruise.

 

Meeting up with our driver was very easy. He was right where we were told he would be. We immediately felt like he was a new friend. The van we used was like brand new. The AC was cold and it was a nice ride. Our guide was just wonderful, bottom line.

 

We were given plenty of time to take photos in many different places, we were given a plethora of information and were encouraged to ask questions, if we had any.

 

Loved Caribelle Batik! It was a great stop! Loved the people....so friendly. Watching the woman waxing the material was nice. The gift shop is pretty large, great prices and they take credit cards.

 

I'll be happy to answer questions, if anyone has any. I recommend booking directly through Phillip Hurd, via his website (someone posted it above). He's quick to reply and very friendly. You won't be sorry if you choose to book with him! St Kitts is beautiful!

[canadarocks]

Good to read about someone else booking with Clay Villa tours. I'm very surprised they haven't become more popular on these boards. Philip is indeed a very charming host. :)

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Good to read about someone else booking with Clay Villa tours. I'm very surprised they haven't become more popular on these boards. Philip is indeed a very charming host. :)

 

I agree. One of the best tours we have taken!:D

[CRUSINGFAMILY]

I agree. One of the best tours we have taken!:D

 

Review please?

[canadarocks]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1986067&highlight=clay+villa+best+of+st+kitts&page=2

 

If you do a search other threads will, I'm sure, come up as well. :)

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Review please?

 

I have a very thorough review with pctures as part of my Jewel B2B Review in my signature. This link should take you straight to the Clay Villa Tour. If you have the standard page set up, it begins on Page 8, about half way down the page, post #154. This was the second week of our B2B and St. Kitts was our only repeat port stop. Week one we spent at Carambola Beach Club and that was also excellent.

Edited February 26, 2015 by Sunny AZ Girl