Lawrence of Antigua and Long Bay Beach

[csaeroach]

We were a group of 46 people who have mostly all read excellent reviews of Lawrence on CC. We booked 46 of our CC members on this tour for the Oct 20th sailing of the Crown Princess. We asked him several times how many people he could accommodate, and he told us he could accommodate how ever many we wanted to take ... boy is this statement so incorrect!!!!!

 

We had a large bus which was newer, but he was putting people in the jump seats in the middle of the bus... for $45.00 pp no one should have to sit in a jump seat. We also had a smaller bus, which he was giving people half a seat to sit on as they were bench seats, and he also hired a small van which was a taxi to sit 6 other people, which he had them jammed in there pretty tight as well.

 

His sound system in the van he was driving was not working well. Could not understand a word he was saying. The driver of the other two vehicles were not talking at all, so no one knew anything that we were passing.

 

First stop was Nelson's Dock Yard, and we immediately went to Lawrence as soon as getting off the bus, as two members of our party which we were traveling with were sitting in the jump seats. One with a very bad back, and we told him we would not be getting back on the bus if we had to sit in JUMP seats. He told us, oh not to worry about it, he had three vehicles, he would move us to another bus. He was just planning on moving someone else out of one bus, and putting them in JUMP SEATS. We did not agree with this at all, and told him to forget about it we would just hire a taxi and leave the tour. He would not let us do that, and we refused to get back on the bus, and sit in JUMP SEATS. He was not happy with us, and told us this was the seats he offered. I told him, with paying $45 for a tour, you should have a comfortable seat, and no one needs to be packed in like sardines.... 4 of us refused to get back on the bus. He went and hired another vehicle which was sitting at Nelson's Dock Yard. This vehicle was not fit to be on the road. It was falling to pieces, had plywood on the doors to hold it together, it was very dirty, and a very bad smell.

 

We followed along behind the other 3 vehicles, with no one saying a word, not knowing where we were going, or what we were to see.

 

He knew we were not happy, so he sent us back to the port early with the van rattling so bad you could not hear a word otherwise...we missed half the tour and back to port over an hour early.

 

It was rush, rush, rush at all the stops. He did not care if you needed more time, and would like to look around, he just wanted to get you back on the bus as quickly as possible.

 

When we booked the tour, he agreed that he would not charge us the full amount, he was going to take $5.00 off the price. Well different story when it was time to pay. He told our young driver, our price would be $35.00 with no beach, and we paid our own way into Nelson's dock yard which was $5.00. So for $40.00 this tour was very bad, and very disappointing to us. I would never use Lawrence of Antigua again, and I would not recommend booking large groups with him, as he can not accommodate more then 15-18 people at a time, and get the proper tour he advertises. I have to say I have done many, many Island tours in the past, and they were all very enjoyable. This tour was very bad, and kept getting worse and worse....

 

Be careful when booking Lawrence, and might be a good idea to ask how many he plans on taking that day as he will pack in as many people who contact him, he will pack the bus full, and when your squeezed in and sitting on top of each other, it does not make for a very enjoyable day.:mad:

[Bustaty]

So sorry to hear you had such a bad experience with Lawrence.

 

Many months ago, I sent email to him discussing options for tours. He was very quick to respond and he indicated in his mails, I could have anything I wanted and this would be the best tour, yada yada. We corresponded many times, as I had a few questions. Finally, we decided we would go with this tour.

 

Nothing...no response. I sent several reminders, politely, and still nothing. I checked out the Roll Call and saw there was large group going, so I figured that is why my request for 2 spots was now not available. Tho he was still telling me in his emails there was room.

 

I don't care how busy he is. He had time to answer all my other mails. A simple, Sorry Mrs. X all spots are filled for my tours would have sufficed. The total lack of manners....red flagged me ...and I decided it probably was a good thing there was no room.

 

So, I decided to 'wing it'. We approached a cab and told him what we wished to see and price. It was wonderful. The 2 of us in one cab, got to know lots about the island, and saw what we wanted and took his suggestions too. In fact, he encouraged me to go back to a store, I thought I did not think I had time for, and I was not rushed in any way. He chatted of his life and family and to me, that was Antigua.

 

Sounds to me like he has gotten a little bigger than he can handle and needs to get more organized. However, us as the paying customer should not have to worry about that. When you advertize a package that is agreed upon, it should be delivered. End of story.

[clerky96]

Thanks for your review of your tour. I am sorry it was so disappointing. There have been mixed reviews of Lawrence's tours on this forum. We will be in Antigua in Feb, and I will be looking for a different tour guide. I know that you can't please everyone, but there has been too much controversy about him to suit me. Thanks again.

[LA_FadeAway]

I agree. We will likely just hire a taxi at the pier and ask him to take us to a few sites and then to a beach. Sounds like a lot less hassle and then we also get to pick and chose what we are going to see.

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

We were a group of 46 people who have mostly all read excellent reviews of Lawrence on CC. We booked 46 of our CC members on this tour for the Oct 20th sailing of the Crown Princess. We asked him several times how many people he could accommodate, and he told us he could accommodate how ever many we wanted to take ... boy is this statement so incorrect!!!!!

 

We had a large bus which was newer, but he was putting people in the jump seats in the middle of the bus... for $45.00 pp no one should have to sit in a jump seat. We also had a smaller bus, which he was giving people half a seat to sit on as they were bench seats, and he also hired a small van which was a taxi to sit 6 other people, which he had them jammed in there pretty tight as well.

 

His sound system in the van he was driving was not working well. Could not understand a word he was saying. The driver of the other two vehicles were not talking at all, so no one knew anything that we were passing.

 

First stop was Nelson's Dock Yard, and we immediately went to Lawrence as soon as getting off the bus, as two members of our party which we were traveling with were sitting in the jump seats. One with a very bad back, and we told him we would not be getting back on the bus if we had to sit in JUMP seats. He told us, oh not to worry about it, he had three vehicles, he would move us to another bus. He was just planning on moving someone else out of one bus, and putting them in JUMP SEATS. We did not agree with this at all, and told him to forget about it we would just hire a taxi and leave the tour. He would not let us do that, and we refused to get back on the bus, and sit in JUMP SEATS. He was not happy with us, and told us this was the seats he offered. I told him, with paying $45 for a tour, you should have a comfortable seat, and no one needs to be packed in like sardines.... 4 of us refused to get back on the bus. He went and hired another vehicle which was sitting at Nelson's Dock Yard. This vehicle was not fit to be on the road. It was falling to pieces, had plywood on the doors to hold it together, it was very dirty, and a very bad smell.

 

We followed along behind the other 3 vehicles, with no one saying a word, not knowing where we were going, or what we were to see.

 

He knew we were not happy, so he sent us back to the port early with the van rattling so bad you could not hear a word otherwise...we missed half the tour and back to port over an hour early.

 

It was rush, rush, rush at all the stops. He did not care if you needed more time, and would like to look around, he just wanted to get you back on the bus as quickly as possible.

 

When we booked the tour, he agreed that he would not charge us the full amount, he was going to take $5.00 off the price. Well different story when it was time to pay. He told our young driver, our price would be $35.00 with no beach, and we paid our own way into Nelson's dock yard which was $5.00. So for $40.00 this tour was very bad, and very disappointing to us. I would never use Lawrence of Antigua again, and I would not recommend booking large groups with him, as he can not accommodate more then 15-18 people at a time, and get the proper tour he advertises. I have to say I have done many, many Island tours in the past, and they were all very enjoyable. This tour was very bad, and kept getting worse and worse....

 

Be careful when booking Lawrence, and might be a good idea to ask how many he plans on taking that day as he will pack in as many people who contact him, he will pack the bus full, and when your squeezed in and sitting on top of each other, it does not make for a very enjoyable day.:mad:

 

I also posted a few months back that he used the jump seats and crammed people in like sardines.What was the feeling of the other 43 people?

[csaeroach]

I also posted a few months back that he used the jump seats and crammed people in like sardines.What was the feeling of the other 43 people?

 

 

All of us were upset with this, and we all had the same feelings about the tour. We were/are still using the Princess Roll Call Oct 20th Sailing of the Crown Princess. There are a few comments on Lawrence from the group on there, if anyone is interested in reading ... I know a few other CC members said they were going to post a neg. feedback as well, but I have not run across any yet on the Antigua boards....

[smitty3000]

Just read the reviews on Lawrence. Wanted to let you know about Gordon of Antigua. He was very nice and his vehicle was clean and air conditioned. I emailed him ahead of time and he responded very quickly. He was there waiting for us just like he said he would be. Another friendly couple from the ship that we did not know came on the tour with us and they seemed very happy with the tour also. So there was just the 4 of us and Gordon, not crowed at all. He took us to all the sights and then we swam at Turner Beach for a little over an hour. I would definitely recommend him. He told us about his family and alot of history of the island. I don't know his email or website address but just google Gordon of Antigua and it should come up. Our tour was on October 19, 2007, we were on Carnival Destiny . I believe his cousin takes larger groups. Happy Cruising!!!!

[piratefan]

We were in Antigua last friday (Destiny). As soon as we walked through the gates at the pier we asked how much would it cost for a taxi to take us to Turners Beach. The drivers name was Desmond. He is 70 years old (his birthday is April 15th). He took hubby, myself and a young couple from Italy that was also on the ship to the beach and because of the price of gas waited for us for 4 hours. It cost us $32( US) for each couple.The ride was about 25 to 30 min from the pier. He told us all about the island and how things had changed in the last 34 years (He had been a driver for that long). It was a great day, just hated to leave to go back to the ship. If you go, try the conch fritters and the island beer, it was great.

[CinWin]

We toured with Lawrence a couple of years ago and had a very enjoyable tour and beach stop. Of course, there were only 6 or 8 of us on the bus and were very comfortable.

Cindy

[CrusinAgain]

There are alot of reviews on him here and it is now tilted heavily against his tour. He responded to e-mails in the beginning but hasn't responded to any of my e-mails for the last 5 months so we would rather walk around the port than get ripped off.

 

Thanks for the warning and sorry that your group had their day ruined.

[Host Caroline]

We got a response the next day.. this is the busy season but that's no excuse. Our group of 10 is doing this tour in early January so I'll let you know how it goes....

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

We got a response the next day.. this is the busy season but that's no excuse. Our group of 10 is doing this tour in early January so I'll let you know how it goes....

 

My friends told me it took 6 days for a response and they forwarded it to me.The odd thing when asked if he will be driving,he states he has two other drivers and depending on the date it might not be him.

[One Eye Open]

Was leaning towards Lawrence now leaning away.... I'll just keep shopping. Thanks for the heads-up and sorry that your group had to endure such bad service.

[212cruiser]

Was leaning towards Lawrence now leaning away.... I'll just keep shopping. Thanks for the heads-up and sorry that your group had to endure such bad service.

 

There are so many other tour operators you should have no problem. It is not like touring Paris or Rome. The island is small and the operators go to exactly the same "sites."

 

We will not be using Lawrence either because of our experience with him, and I am not in the least bit concerned about it.

[brendy1]

Lawrence of Antigua was wonderful!!! I am so glad we did not cancell him out Thank you Lawrence for a wonderful day you were so informative. We had a great day. Your bus was clean and wonderful, you gave us alot of information Thank you vikki:D :D :D

[Bison]

Lawrence of Antigua was wonderful!!! I am so glad we did not cancell him out Thank you Lawrence for a wonderful day you were so informative. We had a great day. Your bus was clean and wonderful, you gave us alot of information Thank you vikki:D :D :D

We also enjoyed out tour with Lawrence on NOv 29th. Would recommned him !

[growinassets]

As we figured the good reputation that Lawrence has established over the years can't be smashed with one bad experience. I'm not sure that some of the experiences talked about here are even the same Lawrence. Our tour was in a relatively new high top air conditioned van. Lawrence wears a headset and describes many historical and interesting facts about Antigua along the tour. He knows his way around the island, so we weren't seeing other tour vans from the cruise ship. It really was much more enjoyable compared to our friends that took the cruise tour. We can only say good things about Lawrence and the effort he made for making it a great experience. He must be pretty consistent too, because friends that cruised on the Serenade of the Seas in February '07 took the same tour and raved about it. Our December '07 experience was really the highlight of the entire cruise. Make sure you email Lawrence in plenty of time, I'm sure his tours will be booked far in advance with the value of his tour. :)

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

As we figured the good reputation that Lawrence has established over the years can't be smashed with one bad experience. I'm not sure that some of the experiences talked about here are even the same Lawrence. Our tour was in a relatively new high top air conditioned van. Lawrence wears a headset and describes many historical and interesting facts about Antigua along the tour. He knows his way around the island, so we weren't seeing other tour vans from the cruise ship. It really was much more enjoyable compared to our friends that took the cruise tour. We can only say good things about Lawrence and the effort he made for making it a great experience. He must be pretty consistent too, because friends that cruised on the Serenade of the Seas in February '07 took the same tour and raved about it. Our December '07 experience was really the highlight of the entire cruise. Make sure you email Lawrence in plenty of time, I'm sure his tours will be booked far in advance with the value of his tour. :)

 

I am glad you had a good tour, you were lucky as several others haven't.

Why would someone who charges twice as much as everyone else be such a good value? Did you yourselves actualy take a tour with someone else for $20.

What was so great on this island and his tour that makes it worth twice the cost of everyone else?

What did your friends rave about?

 

Now if you are comparing his tour to the ships tour then you are correct and I understand.He is the much better deal than the ships tour.My daughter took the ships tour with her Camp teen group and it is poor compared to everyone else's as she also took a $20 tour a year later.

[brendy1]

We did the "Lawrence of Antigua" tour on December 1, 2007. We booked his tour back in June. In October I e-mailed him hand he confirmed back to me the next day. In his confirmation e-mail he told us when and where to meet him. We walked to the area where Lawrence told us to meet us. We looked for the plaid vest, just like the one he has on his website photo. We found Lawrence and he looks like his picture on his website. We waited for the rest of the people on our tour to show up. We had a total of 9 people in our tour. After they showed up, Lawrence went to get his mini-bus from the parking lot, the mini-bus was very clean and very new (in talking with Lawrence during our tour, he stated that he just got it 3 months ago). Lawrence had a head set on so you could hear everything clearly. He was very informative, funny and patient with the passengers(we had 3 ladies on our tour who kept asking all sorts of questions). Thru-out the tour, he explained everything clearly and professionally. At one point we were talking about pineapples, so he stopped at a roadside fruit stand and bought a pineapple and had them cut it up for all of us to try. While on tour, he had a cooler full of rum punch, fruit punch, water, soda and beer to drink thru-out the tour. After all of the stops of sight seeing, he took us to a local beach and we were able to spent two hours there. After the beach, Lawrence had special seat covers on the seats to protect the fabric seats. At the end of the tour, he dropped us off at the front gate of the pier. Out of all the tour on this 9 day cruise, this was by far the best tour we had. We had 3 NCL tours and 2 private tour with Lawrence being one of them. The cost of his tour was $US dollars and to be paid at the end of the cruise. This tour lasted almost 7 hours long and in my option well worth the money spent. If someone were to ask me about Lawrence of Antigua tour, I would have no problem giving him a great recommendation. I would book his tour again if in Antigua.

 

Doug & Vikki

[Co. Cruisers]

We also did the Lawrence of Antigua tour from the Emerald Princess on Nov. 29th - VERY good tour, very informative, great sightseeing and generally a good time by all. Met us right and where he said he would. Would NOT hesitate to use him again or recommend to anyone!

[hula dancer]

My husband and I were on the same tour with Bison and Co.Cruisers. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves as I am sure the other members of our group did. (We were a group of 18 and Lawrence used two vans.)

 

We enjoyed our time with Lawrence and felt he was an excellent guide. We visited so many great spots and even had time at Turner's Beach. His van was nice and very comfortable.

 

We would certainly recommend Lawrence of Antigua to anyone. I don't think you could find a better guide or a better price.

 

Molly

[B&C-Cruisers]

Laurence was great!

 

This was our second time touring with him, first time we took the “canned” tour he advertises last year, had a good time, tour was as advertised, and he is very good about explaining what you are seeing and the history of Antigua.

 

This time we were in Antigua on the Brilliance December 14th. and asked to see more of the island that we didn’t see the first time, and to eat at a local restaurant that serves island fare rather than the typical “tourist” food as we are adventurist eaters and like to try the local food wherever we dock.

 

He delivered an excellent tour of out of the way places, we enjoyed seeing his home town and went to a restaurant outside of the tourist areas and had a excellent lunch for a very reasonable price. He is a very personable man, he is on time, his van is spotless, and he is honest, what more could you ask for?

 

We will be going with him again when we cruise on the Jewel November 8, 2008.

 

We realize tour people can’t make everyone happy and sometimes things go wrong, but this was our experience with him.

[Host Caroline]

Our group of 10 has tour with him next week so can report back after that

We heard good things from someone on the ship with us and are ooking forward to it!

the thing next to the K does not work on this computer so nothing between k and : appears:confused: :eek:

 

which is why I put "ooking" btw;)

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

Our group of 10 has tour with him next week so can report back after that

We heard good things from someone on the ship with us and are ooking forward to it!

 

the thing next to the K does not work on this computer so nothing between k and : appears:confused: :eek:

 

which is why I put "ooking" btw;)

 

Can you be fair and impartial?

Can you post what you paid,can you ask other drivers at the pier what they are charging.(for a group of 10 people)

 

Also ask what they would charge to follow him the whole way.

 

Can you note what places you are going to and whether there are others going to that spot as well.

 

Why do I ask this, because as a host you come off more credible and the truth IMHO is he is charging twice as much for the same tour as everyone else and is cramming them in like sardines.

I would like to know what he does that is worth twice the cost?

He has stuck several CCers over the last year and I have not seen or heard of anything of any substance that warrants the cost difference.

 

Thank you in advance.

[MariTenor1]

Caroline: I, too, look forward to hearing what you have to say about him. We will be in Antigua on Feb 5th (I think it is) an are still trying to make plans.