Is grabbing a tour at the port a good idea?

[hrmkr]

Hello,

 

In early December we will be on the FOS.  One of the ports is Bonaire.  We are thinking about maybe just finding someone at the port to take us on a tour of the island.   I know there will probably be many people offering to take us on a tour.  Are they trustworthy?  When you  book with a private tour company, they know that if you would miss your ship or have a problem, people here on CC would say something which could ruin their reputation and severely hurt their business.  With a taxi driver, they may not care less .

 

We are currently scheduled to do the 3 hour snorkeling tour with Woodwind in the morning.  We would like to take the 4 hour tour in the afternoon 

 

I have been looking online and through CC (Bonaire thread) for short 2-2.5 hour tours in the morning but can't find any. A few I found would not get me back in time for the 4 hour snorkeling tour.

 

This thread gets much more activity than the Bonaire one.  Hoping it does not get removed. 

 

Thank you for your help

[GTO-Girl]

2 minutes ago, hrmkr said:

Hello,

 

In early December we will be on the FOS.  One of the ports is Bonaire.  We are thinking about maybe just finding someone at the port to take us on a tour of the island.   I know there will probably be many people offering to take us on a tour.  Are they trustworthy?  When you  book with a private tour company, they know that if you would miss your ship or have a problem, people here on CC would say something which could ruin their reputation and severely hurt their business.  With a taxi driver, they may not care less .

 

We are currently scheduled to do the 3 hour snorkeling tour with Woodwind in the morning.  We would like to take the 4 hour tour in the afternoon 

 

I have been looking online and through CC (Bonaire thread) for short 2-2.5 hour tours in the morning but can't find any. A few I found would not get me back in time for the 4 hour snorkeling tour.

 

This thread gets much more activity than the Bonaire one.  Hoping it does not get removed. 

 

Thank you for your help

we have done tours with vendors as we walk off the ship without a problem.  We didn’t do one the last time we were in Bonaire...we just came off the ship and went to the left and wound up at a small open air bar/restaurant right over the water.  Saw so many beautiful fish...it was so fun!!!

[hrmkr]

3 minutes ago, GTO-Girl said:

we have done tours with vendors as we walk off the ship without a problem.  We didn’t do one the last time we were in Bonaire...we just came off the ship and went to the left and wound up at a small open air bar/restaurant right over the water.  Saw so many beautiful fish...it was so fun!!!

Were they tour companies or just grabbing a taxi? 

 

I found 2 different companies that will be at the port trying to fill up their vans but they are a little too long to fit everything in. Also, concerned that these companies say the tours are 3 hours long and may be delayed starting as they try to fill up their spaces. 

 

Tours I have taken in the past have just taken the people that signed up with them and immediately started.  I would not have the luxury if they spend an extra 30-45 minutes  trying to fill up.

[plaz70]

We've walked off the ship and found tours a few times and were never disappointed.  We've been to Bonaire only once and we reserved a couple golf carts.   We drove around the island and found small beaches with lots of fish.  We went back to the ship to grab our googles.

[Coralc]

I don't know what sort of shape you are in, but I was kind of tired after Woodwind snorkeling. It was awesome, but I wouldn't have been up for a second tour. We walked to/from the Woodwind departure from the port. On the way back we stopped at a bar/restaurant for a while. Then shopped at the port for a bit, and checked out the craft sellers. We may tour next time. 

[Hoopster95]

2 hours ago, hrmkr said:

One of the ports is Bonaire.  We are thinking about maybe just finding someone at the port to take us on a tour of the island.....

 

We are currently scheduled to do the 3 hour snorkeling tour with Woodwind in the morning.  We would like to take the 4 hour tour in the afternoon 

 

I have been looking online and through CC (Bonaire thread) for short 2-2.5 hour tours in the morning but can't find any. A few I found would not get me back in time for the 4 hour snorkeling tour.

 

http://www.voyagerbonairetours.com/

They have a booth at the pier as well if you don't book on-line... first come first served. There's a couple of other land tour companies available as well.

 

Like you have planned, I did Woodwind in the morning and then in the afternoon the island tour with the above company

Scroll down to post #145 to see a photo review & description of the afternoon land tour

Post #134 - #145 is a Woodwind photo review.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2310655-adventureabcs-aug-20-272016-review-wlots-of-photos/page/6/

 

 

Edited October 10, 2019 by Hoopster95

[mugtech]

9 hours ago, hrmkr said:

 Also, concerned that these companies say the tours are 3 hours long and may be delayed starting as they try to fill up their spaces. 

 

 

Aka the Gilligan Dilemma.  Beware of 3 hour tours. 

[mets123]

Try looking at viator.com . You could find something that fits your criteria.

 

[sellwingri]

We like to book private tours for 2 of us and often just try to find one when we get off the ship.  Hopefully we’ll find someone at the pier when we’re in Bonaire in December, also on Harmony.   We’d like to see something other than the salt flats and flamingos.

[asalligo]

Finding a tour after I get off the ship is all I do now unless I have something very specific I do not want to miss. We have had some of the best tours of our cruising in this way and at a quarter of the price of ship excursions. 

[Nebr.cruiser]

We sometimes pick up a tour from the vendors right off a ship.  So far, we've always had a good tour.  I like that often you can go with someone just yourselves and go to where you want to go by doing this.  For instance, skip shopping stops or set your own time to be back at the ship.

Edited October 10, 2019 by Nebr.cruiser

[jsf]

We always arrange tours at the port,besides being cheaper we seem to get personal tour. We also dicker on pricing that you can't do with ship tours, we just state how long we want to tour and what we are willing to pay. This has worked for us for about 35 cruises. The cruise line try's to scare people about missing ship but mostly  they want your money from the tours.

[bouhunter]

11 hours ago, Coralc said:

I don't know what sort of shape you are in, but I was kind of tired after Woodwind snorkeling. It was awesome, but I wouldn't have been up for a second tour. We walked to/from the Woodwind departure from the port. On the way back we stopped at a bar/restaurant for a while. Then shopped at the port for a bit, and checked out the craft sellers. We may tour next time. 

Agree. 

 

Woodwind is a GREAT snorkel tour BTW

[hrmkr]

Currently, we are booked on Woodwind from 8:30-11:30. Their afternoon (4 hour) snorkel tour begins at 12:00-4:00.

I want to find a land tour from 8:30-11:00 or 11:30 and be dropped off near where we would pick up Woodwind.  I would love the extra hour to go snorkeling.

 

If we stay with the Woodwind morning tour, I have looked into Bonaire Vista Tours and Bonaire Photo Shoot.  I have not checked out voyagerbonairetours yet from Hoopster's post. Those are all in the afternoon.  None that I have found are early morning that would fit our tight schedule.  That is the reason I may have to go with a private person and go where we want in our allotted time. 

[hrmkr]

20 hours ago, Hoopster95 said:

 

http://www.voyagerbonairetours.com/

They have a booth at the pier as well if you don't book on-line... first come first served. There's a couple of other land tour companies available as well.

 

Like you have planned, I did Woodwind in the morning and then in the afternoon the island tour with the above company

Scroll down to post #145 to see a photo review & description of the afternoon land tour

Post #134 - #145 is a Woodwind photo review.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2310655-adventureabcs-aug-20-272016-review-wlots-of-photos/page/6/

 

 

Hoopster,

 

I thoroughly enjoyed your posts during your stop in Bonaire.  When you did the Woodwind tour, was it 3 or 4 hours? 

 

Now that I have seen what you did on your tour with voyagerboanire tours, I need to compare them to what is seen on the other tours I have looked at.

[Hoopster95]

Just now, hrmkr said:

Hoopster,

 

I thoroughly enjoyed your posts during your stop in Bonaire.  When you did the Woodwind tour, was it 3 or 4 hours? 

 

Now that I have seen what you did on your tour with voyagerboanire tours, I need to compare them to what is seen on the other tours I have looked at.

 

Thank you for the kind words. Pretty sure it was about 3.5 hours... I believe we started at 9am'ish and got back around 12:30pm as we quickly walked back to the pier area to our afternoon tour. 

 

I would email voyagerbonaire and ask them what your options could be in the morning (I believe they ran the same tour I took in the morning) in order to get you back in time for Woodwind (all these tour providers know each other by name, the island is small), and also contact Woodwind again to confirm if their afternoon snorkel truly starts at 12, or  maybe they meant 1pm? 

[hrmkr]

1 minute ago, Hoopster95 said:

 

Thank you for the kind words. Pretty sure it was about 3.5 hours... I believe we started at 9am'ish and got back around 12:30pm as we quickly walked back to the pier area to our afternoon tour. 

 

I would email voyagerbonaire and ask them what your options could be in the morning (I believe they ran the same tour I took in the morning) in order to get you back in time for Woodwind (all these tour providers know each other by name, the island is small), and also contact Woodwind again to confirm if their afternoon snorkel truly starts at 12, or  maybe they meant 1pm? 

Did you stop at 2 spots for snorkeling or 1?  How was the drift snorkeling?  I am not a very good swimmer and use a snorkel vest to feel comfortable in the water.  Just having to drift (float) would be great. Dierdre will definitely keep an eye on me  LOL. 

 

I already emailed voyagerboanire to ask for the times of their tours. I would like to do the combi tour.  Were there any stops you felt were not worth the time?  Might see if we can do a private tour (depending on price) that would fit our schedule and still see the highlights of the island. 

 

I have been in contact with Woodwind.  They have 2 tours that day to accommodate people. the morning tour is from 8:30-11:30 and the afternoon tour is 12:00-4:00.  Our ship is in port from 8:00-5:00

[Hoopster95]

4 minutes ago, hrmkr said:

Did you stop at 2 spots for snorkeling or 1?  How was the drift snorkeling?  I am not a very good swimmer

 

It was 2 stops both times I did their tour. You will have zero issues with the staff keeping an eye on you... I was extremely impressed with how they help novice snorkellers. 

 

Like you say, interesting to see the morning tour at 3 hours vs. the afternoon tour 4 hours.

If the extra hour has more value (you see more and snorkel more for the same price), I would tend to stick with the afternoon snorkel, as a land tour on the island would take 2nd place to Woodwind for sure... the island is very small and truthfully there's not a whole lot to see and do (unlike Aruba, St Marten, Antigua, etc) unless you're a diving enthusiast.

 

I personally would like to travel to and spend more time in the national park and Rincon during high season (instead of a full island tour) the next time I visit Bonaire to see more of the people and the culture... we were there off season and it was literally a ghost town.

 

Have a fabulous cruise!

Edited October 11, 2019 by Hoopster95

[hrmkr]

We will be there on December 5. 

 

The difference in price between the 3 and 4 hour tour is only $10.  Well worth the money.  I am going to email Ulf to get more details about the difference. 

 

I really want to fit in an island tour if we can.  We love to get a taste of every island we visit.

[Sunshine3601]

We have used both local travel guides you find at ports and we have hired local taxis to drive us around.   We have always enjoyed the local flair and having a more personal experience.  Just go with your gut if you dont like the look of the person or they are too pushy I walk away and find someone else.

[packedandready]

We did just what you're wanting to do. We did woodwind in the am and then as we were walking around after they dropped us off there was a line of canopies for different tours/tour companies. Found one that was just about to leave and grabbed it. One of the best excursions we've done. 

 

[TinkBellaMom]

On 10/10/2019 at 8:49 AM, asalligo said:

Finding a tour after I get off the ship is all I do now unless I have something very specific I do not want to miss. We have had some of the best tours of our cruising in this way and at a quarter of the price of ship excursions. 

We do the same.  Sometimes we just want to see an island, not do anything.  We have had a lot of doing it that way.

One piece of advice, always negotiate the price before you get in.

[xpcdoojk]

I have spent a couple of weeks in Bonaire doing nothing but diving in the past but my last trip was 20 years ago.  That said, Bonaire is a sleepy island.  Unless things have radically changed.  The entire west side of the island 360 days a year has flat water, and most of the dive snorkel sites are a short walk from the road that circles the island.  They are marked by number by rocks beside the road.  The snorkeling is good at most of these, that said one of the best spots is the old town pier.  In other words if you have your own gear and you rent a car or golf cart there is really no reason to book a snorkeling tour.  JMHO and YMMV.  Things to see on the island are the wild burros often by the airport and the green parrots and of course the flamingos that might number in the 10s of thousands south of the town near the salt flats.  There are slave huts south as well that can be a sobering visit.  

 

jc

[lakelorain]

We took a tour right outside the ship in Bonaire in May.  It was an island tour.  Exactly the same as one offered through the ship without the shot of rum.  Half the price.  Great tour.  

[Baron Barracuda]

Bonaire is a sleepy little island that is easily navigable on your own.  After reading great online reviews we rented a golf cart from Bonairecruisers.com.  Not expensive at all.  Best to reserve online ahead of time as they often sell out.   Carts were waiting at end of pier.  They gave us a map and off we went.  Did a leisurely circuit of the island in only a couple of hours.  Could have stopped along the way for snorkeling if we'd wanted.  Recommend heartily.