Bike, Hike and Kayak

[bedfordmom]

Just returned from EOS yesterday. We did the bike, hike and kayak. After much family discussion, we decided to do this excursion. We really did not want to go to the beach all day (we are not beach people plus we were really burned from Labadee) and were limited by the ages of our teenage children so this was basically the only tour left for us.

 

I agreed with the previous post about this tour that it was OK to see the countryside but not to shop (in fact I didn't see any shopping in Semana). I felt we did get a good sense of the land as we were on the bus for most of it. After driving about 45 minutes, we stopped at a hut where we were given one speed decrepit bikes. We did a two mile bike ride through severe pot holes. I was afraid to not watch the road for fear of falling into a pot hole. Then we did an easy hike through a path ending up at a "blowhole". We tasted local fruit (gave the lady a tip) and bought some overpriced beaded necklaces (wanting to give back to the economy). We saw the same necklaces in St Thomas half the price. Then we rode again for about an hour to Playa Rincon. The beach was absolutely beautiful. We only had about an hour there. We didn't use the kayaks much (much better condition than the bikes) even had safety vests but just floated in the water. The amenities of the beach were not very good. They had a restaraunt, the food looked good but we noticed they got the water out of a hole in the back. The bathroom/changing rooms were disgusting, with no running water or working toilet. Then it took 1 hour and 45 minutes on bumpy roads to return to the tender. Also the bathroom near the hike area was just a hole in the ground.

 

I will gladly answer any question about the trip. I was glad I did it but if I returned to Samana I would stay on the ship.

[figuremom]

I was interested in this tour when I will be on the Dawn in December. I was skeptical about the tour before reading your review. Now, I am leaning towards just going to Rincon Beach. My guess was that the bikes would have been old and rundown. Was it neat riding along the cliffs? That is what is intriguing me, not the blowhole, as those are overrated, in my opinion. Do you have pictures? Thanks!

[bedfordmom]

Though I was on the Explorer, I believe it is the same tour. You do not ride on or near the cliffs; the description is misleading. You are riding on a path looking upwards toward at 300 foot cliffs. Unfortunately since you are looking for potholes, you are taking your chances looking up. The bus meets us at the end so you do have the chance to look at the scenary on the way back. I have pictures but not sure how to load them on the site.

 

I don't know about NCL but RCCI did not have a separate excursion to Playa Rincon. They had the Caya beach instead. You can do an independent, but I personally would not take that chance as I felt like I was in a third world country.