Cruise past St. Lucia Pitons on Golden??

[travelhound]

For anyone who's been on the Golden and the route that goes to St. Lucia, does the ship sail past the Pitons on either the sail in or out? We're trying to choose an excursion and deciding between the cataraman cruise to the Pitons or snorkeling in the Marine Park. We'd like to do the snorkeling, but it doesn't say if the excursion is near the Pitons. If the ship sails past them, then I wouldn't mind if we didn't see them on the excursion. However, we can't go to St. Lucia without seeing the Pitons! They are so awesome. Any input is appreciated.

[crusdiva]

travelhound,

 

When we were on the Dawn a couple of years ago we did indeed cruise by the Pitons on our way to Castries. Our approach was along the coast from Soufriere towards Castries. The view was amazing, it was very early in the morning, the sun was rising and the haze was burning off. And the Pitons loomed in the distance - a good distance away.

I took a catamaran cruise along the coast to the Pitons (a ship's excursion) and enjoyed it very much. It was low impact, however - just a cruise and a short beach stop.

 

Hope this information helps.

Sharon

[AliceS]

We did the catamaran cruise from the Golden in November and really enjoyed it, there was no snorkel stop. We did stop at a beach and were approached by natives selling their wares. They were all over the boat. They didn't bother me, but some thought it was a bit much. The tour was great and the crew made it lots of fun.

[Twaincruisers]

We were on the Golden in May. I don't believe the ship passed the Pitons in daylight. We took the catamaran and bus tour where you either disembark or board at the port next to the Pitons...they were impressive. We really enjoyed the catamaran trip with beautiful Marigot Bay. Also, the volcano was something we had never experienced.

[travelhound]

Thanks for the replys. I was hoping we would sail past the Pitons on the ship. Ten years ago we were on a Regency ship and did the best all-day excursion. We got dropped off by the Pitons, went to the volcano, the rainforest, and a plantation before getting on a catamaran and snorkeling twice and sailing back to where the ship was docked. We sailed through Marigot Bay and several other inlets. It was one of the best excursions we ever done. There is an excursion just like this from land vendor, but they say it cannot be taken by cruise passengers because of timing. I suppose being dropped off in the morning was the key to making that work.

 

Anyway, being in St. Lucia again will be awesome. It's one of our favorites.