Help with Excursions In D.Republic

[dutchess43]

We are sailing on the Millie in 3 weeks. I am considering booking The Santo Domingo tour. Looking for any feedback regarding that excusion or any other.

Thanks

[andersonsrus]

Last year we took the Countryside tour.

We enjoyed it alot. Toured surgar cane , orchid fields, cigar factory and a tour of the countyside. It was about 4 hours and well worth the $.

 

We are leaving on this cruise 2/4 and in the DR we are doing the horseback riding tour this time. 1st time on a horse is 20 years should be interesting...

Luck with your decision

[badger71]

we are on the 2-18 sailing so please post your post cruise comments about your excursions while in DR thanks:)

[dutchess43]

Andersonsrus I am on the same millie 2/4 cruise. Did you sign up for the M&M party we have 26 so far for the party?

[Ginger08]

oops...double!

[Ginger08]

If I looked it up right, your stop in D.Republic is Casa De Campo, hubby and I did the Catamaran Sail & Snorkel there and it was a blast! I learned what a true "Rum Punch" was, one hand on the rum bottle and one hand on the sprite bottle and pour! They did serve before and after the snorkel, dont know if they were suppose to, but it made for a fun ride...I would suggest perhaps brining your own equipment, maybe thats why they gave us drinks before so we wouldnt notice as much?? HAHA! The mouthpiece might have been a little less than desirable, but oh well...I went with the flow. There was a van ride that was a fun part of it too, hauling butt to the water, and once there we walked down to the catamaran past a guard with a big gun. I would do it again in a heartbeat, but perhaps getting out onto the net next time! We didnt see much underwater, a transmission and a couple of fish...some people took off the gear and vest and dove down to collect some shells too.

[CaribbeanBound]

Casa de Campo, Dominican Republic

We docked at the pier in La Romana. You have an opportunity to purchase a number of excursions or take a shuttle, provided gratis by Celebrity Cruise Lines, to Altos de Chavon and Casa de Campo Resort. Altos de Chavon is a recreation of a medieval Spanish village with cobblestone streets. It's an interesting stroll, but not of interest to kids. Casa de Campo is a 7,000 acre resort. The shuttle took you to the marina where there are shops and restaurants. During the Port Talk, we were encouraged to visit the marina after dinner. Unfortunately, it closes at 7:00pm.

 

We chose to take the Bayahibe Beach Break excursion at a cost of $44 per person. An air conditioned tour bus took us to the Sunscape Casa del Mar La Romana Resort. This is a very nice all-inclusive resort on Bayahibe Beach, about 30 minutes drive from the ship. The excursion included transportation, beach lounge chairs, use of the resort beach and pool, and access to the open bars. This is an excellent facility for families. There is a big white sand beach and lots of shade. Food and watercraft are available at a small additional charge. The large pool has a 12-foot tall tethered floating "Iceberg" climbing wall/slide that the kids couldn't get enough of. We got hit by a late afternoon downpour, but it didn't dampen the fun. I do recommend it. We felt secure at all times. When you've got an excursion like this available, I do not recommend staying on the ship.

 

We would have done the Bayahibe Beach excursion on our own, but we couldn't get any enough information on the Ports of Call thread to feel comfortable about it. Let me remedy that right now. You can do this on your own, and you shouldn't hesitate. At the port, it is easy to arrange for your own transportation to Bayahibe Beach. (A fellow passenger arranged for a van for their group of ten for $10 per person. They got roundtrip transportation to Bayahibe Beach and the driver even waited for them for 3 hours while they enjoyed the beach). If you don't need the resort facilities, you can access and use the beach just East of the resort.

 

You can do the Sunscape Casa del Mar La Romana Resort on a Day Pass, which would be great if you arrive in the morning. A day pass runs $50 per person (less for children under 11), from 10:30pm until 5:30pm It includes unlimited drinks, food, and access to non-motorized watercraft, snorkel gear, beach chairs --- pretty much the works! The resort personnel are extremely friendly. Shirley Sánchez, the Chief Concierge, is very good at answering any questions you may have via email. A taxi for 4 should run in the $30 to $35 range each way. If the driver doesn't stay, the resort will get call a taxi for your return trip to the pier.

 

Isle Catalina, Dominican Republic

Catalina is a small island off the south shore of Dominican Republic. Our large section of the island featured a beautiful white sand beach (about a half-mile expanse), palm trees, free beach chairs, and umbrellas. Snorkeling was available along the left side of the beach next to a 12-foot cliff. A BBQ lunch, featuring hamburgers, hotdogs, ribs, chicken, salads, fruits, deserts, and drinks, was served by Celebrity beginning at 11:30am. Large tents with picnic tables were provided. No host bars, beach volleyball, and nice bathroom facilities were available. A quarter-mile walk past the restrooms to the old pier found you amongst cactus, scrub brush, lizards and nice views of the beach and ship. We were not bothered by locals selling trinkets unless you ventured past security into the shopping hut area. Shops, numbered 1 to 15, were located on the far right side of the beach. They were very aggressive. Snorkeling was uneventful but the water was very clear and comfortable. We returned to the ship at 2:10 and received a cold towel to refresh ourselves upon arrival. This was a free beach day excursion on Celebrity and a very enjoyable day at that.

 

 

 

http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/caribbean-secrets.html

[dutchess43]

Thank you all for your sugestions.

[Rob&Nancy]

...in the Dominican, may I make a suggestion?

 

We have stayed 4x over the last 5 years in the Dominican, and the island's people are among the friendliest, most gracious hosts ever, but the country is very poor.

 

If you have room in your luggage, please bring school supplies (pencils, pens, notebooks) and any medical supplies (bandaids, razors, etc.) We usually go to a dollar store before our trip and stock up on all that good stuff, which is generally pretty light, and packs flat, and give it to someone at one of the schools or homes that we visit on the tours.

 

Enjoy, you are visiting our all-time favourite island!

[dutchess43]

Rob&Nancy

What a great idea I have $ stores here. Being that you have been there a number of times would you suggest going to Santo Domingo? We are considering booking this excursion.

Thanks

[adjburch]

Question about Countryside Tour. I can't find anything on line about it. Did you book thru Celebrity or once you got off the ship? Any info would be greatly appreciated. Leaving on 2/4~~counting the days.:)

[Rob&Nancy]

Rob&Nancy

What a great idea I have $ stores here. Being that you have been there a number of times would you suggest going to Santo Domingo? We are considering booking this excursion.

Thanks

 

I am sorry, I can't help on that one - we have done the excursions from the resorts on the Monster Trucks, that is great fun, and a wonderful way to see the countryside. Be aware that the roads are typical of any third world country - rustic to say the least. We toured a school, a banana plantation, a home, and a stop at a ranch. The countryside is beautiful,and I have heard that Santo Domingo is also very beautiful, but we haven't been ourselves.

 

And, if I may make one more comment - please DO NOT bring candy, gum, etc. to throw to the children along the routes, this has become quite a problem in the country villages, the children will skip school on "tour" days and wait at the roadsides for the tour buses to pass by. You're much better to bring school supplies and hand them to the teacher. We did that at our last tour, and it actually brought tears to my eyes to see the pleased surprise and gratitude. And, we picked up packages of pencils with Canadian flags all over them, and sparkly pens, and the kids were SO excited.

 

Have fun