Excursion and Transportation Questions West Coast

[astrangerinthewind]

My neice and I are going on our 3rd Disney Cruise. Previously Bahamas (with Freeport), and Eastern Carribean. We are both adults. It will be her birthday during the cruise and I told her to pick an excursion, but she came back with 6. There are 2 others I'm interested in and was looking for feedback from any cruisers that have taken these excursions. (please no other suggestions, this is our short list and we will be picking from it)

Cabo San Lucas

Land's End Coastal Cruise
Harbor Cruise & Scenic Drive
Coastal Highlights Tour


Mazatlan
Deer Island Kayack Adventure
Mexican Countryside Expedition
Sierra Madre Tour

Puetro Vallarta

Swim With the Dolphins
Sierra Madre Off Road Expedition

These are the only ones we will be considering. Any feedback of how you found these and what times you departed would be greatly appreciated.


Second I am looking at a 1 night stay at Disney Resort before flying back home on Sunday. I have Disneys transportation from the airport and back (I checked with DCL and and with the back portion we can go from the ship to the Disney Resort but would need to arrange our own transportation back to LAX). My questions are

1. What time do people generally get to the Disney Resort if they take Disney's buses after departing from the ship? Are there other options people have used?

2. What services have people used to get from the Disney resort back to the airport(LAX). Were you able to book a specific pickup time.

Thanks
Robert
aka astrangerinthewind

 

[astrangerinthewind]

PS. We will be sailing on August 6th

 

[diznefan76]

As far as excursions go...the one that I took and could comment on is in Cabo. We took the Harbor cruise and scenic drive. We loved it! We left the ship approx. 8:45 in the morning, got on the tender boat and boarded the cruiser. They start out with the harbor cruise which will take you out to see Los Arcos...(which is absolutely amazing) and the other rock formations. You will cruise to the other side (pacific side) and see the white sand beaches and home/resorts. It will take you back around so no matter where you are sitting on the boat you will have a great view. After the cruise they will take you air conditioned buses and will take you on a 15-20 min drive to a restaurant (Giorgio's) on a cliff where you will see a great view of the Magic and Los Arcos. After about 40 min. at the restaurant you wll be driven to downtown Cabo and if you want you can get off the bus and shop there..or you will be taken back to the Marina where you boarded the cruiser (right next to the tender boats). If you decide to get off in downtown you will be dropped off right across the street from the Hard Rock Cafe. And they say that it is only about a 20 min. walk back to the the tender boats from that point. All in all it was only a 3 hour excursion, I really liked it and would do it again. Hope this helps you out.

 

[skeegan]

We went on the Sierra Madre tour in Mazatlan and really enjoyed it. My kids and I weren't really excited about this tour when it was booked (this was my husband's pick) but we all commented on how much we liked it (including my 16 year old son). It has Disney influences although Guest Services didn't even seem to be aware of it. You are on a full size air conditioned bus. Your first stop is the adobe brick yard (so-so). The next stop is a village with a bakery (each person gets a free selection) and a tile maker (each family gets to select a free tile). The next stop is the town of Concordia. You visit the town square, 200 + year old church, mexican restaurant (beverage stop - complete with Disney pinatas hanging from the ceiling), and a hacenida. This is a nice town (sidewalks and lights) as the local industries are furniture making and mining. The next stop was a small town in the Sierra Madre Hills called Copala, much different town. There are children trying to sell you donkey rides and wood carvings, cobblestone streets. This is your lunch stop for a mexican plate and world famous banana coconut pie. Kids can have a hamburger and fries. The food is okay and the pie is good. There is an older church and a smaller town square. The last stop is a furniture maker and a pottery maker. The children get to make a clay mold of Mickey Mouse and to select a small finished piece to take home. Each stop had some type of vendor selling items. They were not overly pushy and the prices were very reasonable. The items were purchased were almost three times as much when we saw them in Cabo. We didn't bring enough ones with us as we didn't understand there would be so many purchasing opportunities. We would also bring a bag next time to put all the free stuff in as we all had our hands full coming back to the ship. Let me know any other questions you have. It was not a "beach break" like our other two excursions but very enjoyable.

 

[skeegan]

One other thing there are clean bathrooms as most every stop (except the first) reserved for only guests of this tour company. It was evident that many of these had been put in or upgraded recently. We asked about this and they said that Disney had come through about one year ago, picked which things would be included and what things needed to be changed.

 

[Mazatlan Frank]

This is off the original question, sorry, but I wanted to ask, who was your guide on this tour? Was it Maria? Just curious.


Mazatlan Frank

 

[SchultzFamily]

Robert, We're taking Super Shuttle from DL to LAX. We're doing the same as you DCL transport to DL after the cruise. By the way come over to the cruise meet forum, we're cruising August 6th also!
Vickie

 

[skeegan]

Mazatlan Frank, It was Eleazor, Bus 318.

 

[Mazatlan Frank]

He is very good. He also teaches English at a high school. I was asking because I thought that perhaps you went with my mother, who is Maria. She does the Sierra Madre tour for the Disney and is an excellent tour guide also.
I appreciate your answer amigo! Have a great weekend.


Mazatlan Frank

 

[jilljill]

PS. We will be sailing on August 6th

Robert, sorry I can't help you with the excursions, but I wanted to invite you over to join our thread on the cruise meets board: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=562499#
I just saw that Vickie invited you over as well.