How does Carnival's St. Lucia Land and Sea Combo compare to private operators' tours?

[lolavix]

I have been doing a ton of research on the ports prior to booking a Southern Caribbean tour. I booked the cruise today (:D) and when I paid the deposit, I had a pop up come up which is offering a 20% discount on various shore excursions if we book them within 2 days. (That was a surprise!) I have 2 adults and 3 kids, so the savings could add up.

 

I am wondering if anyone has done the Carnival sponsored St. Lucia Land and Sea combination tour as well as one with a private operator (e.g. Herod's, Spencer's, Cosol). If so, is there anything we would miss if we went with Carnival's? I am leaning toward one that does both a land and a sea portion (like Carnival's), so that eliminates some of the tour operators right now, since some of them do sea round trip or land round trip.

 

Thanks for any advice or input.

[Micahs Grandad]

All things being equal will see a lot more using a taxi or van than a 50 passenger bus where it will take forever for people to get off and than back on.

 

and more likely you will get the passenger who thinks it is ok for you to get back in 20 minutes but it will be ok if we take 30.

 

This is the biggest reason we tend to only do private tours.

[christyran1228]

I haven't tried a Carnival excursion, but I honestly can't say enough about Cosol's.

 

They easily made St. Lucia our favorite stop on that Southern Caribbean itinerary.

 

☺

[mrpayroll]

We did Herods land and sea. It was fantastic. Lunch at his mother's house was a real treat.

[poz222]

I also can vouch for Cosol. We compared what we did with the "similar" tour offered through the cruise line and there was NO comparison. Cosol tours was fun,friendly and professional and we got to do sooooooo much (lunch, scenic overlooks, boat to Pitons, snorkeling below Pitons, waterfall swim, volcano stop... It was amazing!

[Crusin Karen]

We are going to St. Lucia in March. I am BEYOND excited. I have ALWAYS wanted to stop there. I recognize the name COSOL from various reviews. Do I have to book in advance or is he at the pier? TIA

[Micahs Grandad]

We are going to St. Lucia in March. I am BEYOND excited. I have ALWAYS wanted to stop there. I recognize the name COSOL from various reviews. Do I have to book in advance or is he at the pier? TIA

 

I would book in advance so you know you have a spot.

[jazm2011]

For what it's worth... After reading rave reviews about Spencer's, we booked this tour thru him. The tour wasn't bad. But based on our experience, I could not recommend him nor would I book that tour again.

 

Everything felt rushed, chaotic and unorganized. Crowded too. Not one of our stand-out excursions.