My 2 Cents on Mexican Riviera Shore Excursions

[Brooklyn]

Ok so we just got back today and I wanted to share my 2 cents about our shore excursions...

CABO SAN LUCAS
Family Beach Party - NOT WORTH THE MONEY!!!
It does not live up to the hype in the description at all!!! You CAN'T swim in the ocean. The water is SOOOO rough. I did not believe them till I got there. The "lunch" was ok but it was half breakfast/half lunch. The food was OK (at best) and did not hold a candle to the ship. Others just went to a local hotel/beach...got great lounge chairs and spent about $20 total including lunch. If you booked this one I would consider canceling.

The Magic was so close to us I just wanted to go back on the ship!!!!

MAZATLAN
Canopy Adventure (Zip Line)
We LOVED this. DH and I did it. It was awesome. The company was great. You start at a tequilla ranch. It was neat hearing how tequilla is made. Then you have about 15 minutes to walk around before being taken to the zip lines. The guides for the zip lines was GREAT. There were 9 lines total. The equipment was very high quality! I felt totally safe the whole time. I highly reccommend this one.

The vehicles you ride to the first platform.

saftey first!!!

Here I go!!!

PUERTO VALLARTA
Sea Life Park
We decided to book this one on our own. Disney does not offer an excursion to this place. This place was GREAT!!!! The dolphin experience was WONDERFUL. The best part of this one is that you can have a child as young as 1 enjoy this experience. Our DD 3 LOVED it. Also children 5 and under are FREE with a paying adult. You just mention at time of booking that you have someone 5 and under.

The cost for the Swim Adventure....ages 8 and up is $99 a person.....a huge savings over Disney's tours. This includes the belly swim, kiss, handshake, boogie board ride and free time. It was AWESOME. DD (7 - we were not so honest about her age but it was well worth it!!!) and I did this one

The Dolphin Encounter is for those ages 1 and up. Adults are $69 and children 6-11 are $59. DH and DD (3) did this one. They are similar and in the pool at the same time. You just don't do the belly ride and boogie board ride. Again, children 1-5 are free on this one!

The taxi ride from the port was about 20 minutes and cost $7 pp. The ride back cost $5 pp. We used the governement approved taxis both times. Other taxi companies are cheaper but not protected in cases of accidents, etc....

The cost of the dolphins ALSO includes admission to the waterpark and use of tubes all day. It was so awesome. There slides were AWESOME and the lazy river was soooooooo relaxing!!!! It was much better then the "kid soup" pools on the magic...

There was also a GREAT toddler area with a bunch of small slides. DD 3 loved it here.

Belly Ride - It was sooooo much fun!!!!

Ok, I am getting off my soapbox now!

 

[ktnryansmom]

wow--thanks for the tips!

How did you do both children at Sea Life Park with them being different ages?

I'm assuming you didn't go at the same time?

Were you allowed to take pictures or did you have to purchase them?

 

[Brooklyn]

wow--thanks for the tips!

How did you do both children at Sea Life Park with them being different ages?

I'm assuming you didn't go at the same time?

Were you allowed to take pictures or did you have to purchase them?

My husband took DD 3 and I took DD 7. We were in the "pool" at the same time so DH got to see all of the neat rides and everything DD and I got to do.

No you can't take pictures yourself, you have to buy them. From what I heard is that dolphins will think the cameras are toys. That and they make a fortune off of us buying pictures. haha

It really was a great day!

 

[Dancing Mickey's]

I am looking into doing this same Sea Life Park on our own. Did you purcahse before you got there or did you just go? I have a DS 14, DS 7, DD 18 months. Was the water park portion crowded? What time did you get there and back? This is the only adventure we were thinking of because of the water park section...I swam with the dolphins in Cancun several years ago and it was in the same type of set up and we LOVED it. Did you interact with the sea lions?

Thanks for all the information....only 28 more days for us!

 

[4fosterkids]

great pictures! Your DD and the dolphin are pricelss!
Thanks for the info

 

[Crazycoach23]

That park looks very fun!! Where did you have to tell the taxi driver to take you? We are signed up for the Dolphin Encounter in PV. Is this the park where DCL takes their tour group to?

 

[IrishCowboy]

Great Pics...thanks for sharing!

 

[Brooklyn]

I am looking into doing this same Sea Life Park on our own. Did you purcahse before you got there or did you just go? I have a DS 14, DS 7, DD 18 months. Was the water park portion crowded? What time did you get there and back? This is the only adventure we were thinking of because of the water park section...I swam with the dolphins in Cancun several years ago and it was in the same type of set up and we LOVED it. Did you interact with the sea lions?

Thanks for all the information....only 28 more days for us!

Yes we did purchase it before we got there. The prices are a little cheaper if you do it on line ahead of time. Also you might have a harder time finding a taxi driver to take you there if you do not have a reservation. The taxi driver was trying to explain to me why....basically bc Sea Life Park does not give commission to taxi drivers who bring them people wo reservations. There is another dolphin only encounter (no water park) that does offer an incentive to taxi drivers.

The waterpark was empty....we never waited to get on anything. Because it is a weekday most locals are at work. There was only one other cruise ship in port that day too.

We did not do the sea lions...the people who did sign up for it though had basically a private class, there were only 3 people signed up so it was very nice for them! The Sea Lions are on display so even if you do not interact with them you will be able to see them.

We had an 11:15 reservation time. We left the ship around 10 and got to Sea Life Park around 10:30. We put our stuff down on chairs and started using all of the slides. Then at 11:10 we went and waited for our dolphins. It was so organized. I loved it. The encounter was about an hour in total. Then we went back and rode the slides. Even at that point there were really not a lot of people there. We got some snacks there....nachos and chicken strips. It was priced like a theme park back home would be. It was $20 for snacks and drinks. Then we hung out a little longer and then headed back to the ship.

The walk back to the ship from where the taxis drop you off is a little bit of a walk. Both DD's fell asleep on the way back so someone in a golf cart drove us right up to the ship.

The girls were soooooo tired after that. Because it was Pirate Night we brought them to the room and had them keep sleeping. It worked out great bc they were able to make it through all of pirate night. I am so happy there are no other shows that night. I was also very thankful for late seating at dinner. I won't do early seating again. Having late dining avoided all of the rushing around!

great pictures! Your DD and the dolphin are pricelss!
Thanks for the info

That park looks very fun!! Where did you have to tell the taxi driver to take you? We are signed up for the Dolphin Encounter in PV. Is this the park where DCL takes their tour group to?

Just "Sea Life Park"....they knew exactly where it was. It is basically just straight down the main road coming out of the terminal.

This is not the park DCL takes you to. The one DCL takes you to is just your dolphins and then you leave. They shuffle people in and out of there all day long.

 

[Crazycoach23]

Thanks Brooklyn. I just went online and made our reservations. Ironically, we have the same time you did. So, I know exactly what to do. My parents will be coming with us to the park. Are there any shaded areas for them to sit? Also, I had read on another thread about the water in the kids pool area being a bit "murky". Any problems with that? Thanks again!! Now I need to go cancel my DCL Dolphin Encounter.

 

[vossjemi]

So glad to hear all about Sea Life Park. We have the encounter booked for our family of 4. My kids are 6 and 8...we didn't book the swim for the 8 year old because I just knew if my son saw her doing it I'd have to deal with "its not fair" all day. Kinda funny though as my 8 year old daughter is the more skiddish one who might be scared to do it...my 6 year old son is definitely more adventurous and would definitely be up for the swim. I read another post about some people who called in and got telephone approval to have their 6 year olds do the swim, but when they got there had to argue w/the manager to be allowed since it was only for 8 and up. Rather than deal with that type of confrontation, we just all booked the encounter. I see your 7 year old did it...did they ask her age? Did you have to lie? Were there others 6 and above doing the encounter? Or just the young babies? Will my kids enjoy the encounter?

The water park looks fun, and you did exactly what we have planned...enjoy the dolphins and the park for a while and then go back to the ship for a nap since its Pirate Night.

Also, did the taxis have seatbelts? Just concerned about the children's safety...and how do you recognize gov't approved taxis? Thanks. Can't wait! This looks really fun.

 

[jlima]

I will throw in my 2 cents too:

We did the Dolphins in Cabo and this was really special for all of us. Loved not having to ride a bus; it was a 5 minute walk from the pier after you got off the tender. Same drill with photos as other dolphin centers; they don't want you to take pictures so you can buy theirs. Photo purchasing was slightly more organized that the Puerto Vallarta center was in 2005; but after you picked out what you wanted in the photo area, you had to walk all the way back to the center's main entrance to pay, then bring the receipt back to the photo area to pick up your photos. For what they charge, can't they hire one more cashier so you don't have to walk all over their building?

DS14 at Cabo Dolphins:

DS8 at Cabo Dolphins:

Both of 'em:

In Mazatlan we did the old city walking tour. This would have been a better experience if we had a better tour guide. Our tour guide had limited English skills and didn’t deliver the tour as well as it could have been. We were driven from the terminal to the Malecon where the tour began. There was another tour about 5 minutes ahead of us and at one point both groups were in the same museum together and I actually listened to the tour guide with the other group for a few minutes. The tour was just OK. It wasn’t as much walking as I thought it was going to be. DS8 didn’t complain too much. In 2005 we paid a taxi $50 to drive us around and that guy took us to a lot of the same places the walking tour did. The walking tour even went to the same gift shop the taxi driver took us to three year ago! We went everywhere there was to go – the Cathedral, the Opera House, a few hotels, the Malecon and took a quick trip through the local market. Would have appreciated a warning before we went into the Market; it was very crowded and crazy and when we got out we were actually missing two people! We went back to the ship in taxis; the tour guide called from her cell phone and the taxis did show up almost light-speed. In hindsight, I'd hire a taxi again.

Cathedral in Mazatlan:

Market in Mazatlan:

Courtyard in an old hotel:

In Puerto Vallarta we did the Sierra Madre Off Road Adventure. It was run by a company called Vallarta Adventures. The took us to their headquarters by putting us all on a small boat and driving across the marina. We were then put into the back of a truck and after stopping at 2 tiny villages, we were driven into the mountains, went on a 45 minute nature walk (complete with 1-inch winged ants, fire ants and gecko lizards), then were taken to secluded beach and served a Mexican BBQ. Our tour guide Gustavo was an absolute hoot. There was an ice chest with soda and beer; and on the ride back to the ship he had more beer, rum and a bottle of tequila, complete with lime & salt (I am not making this up!). He had all of us doing tequila shots in the back of this truck. My only gripe was that Disney’s description of this tour was 6.5 hours and it wasn’t . . .we were gone for 9 hours; we left the ship at 8:30 and got back at 5:30. Loved this one but if you planned on getting back by 4 pm, it wasn't going to happen.

Truck we rode in for Sierra Madre Off Road Adventure:

Pics from nature walk:

Beach we went to:

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

subscribing

 

[Andrew DEREK UK]

Great report.

I know from past expedience the Pacific is far more active, than the Caribbean and hard to swim in and colder.

 

[GrumpyMom1]

Thanks Brooklyn. I just went online and made our reservations. Ironically, we have the same time you did. So, I know exactly what to do. My parents will be coming with us to the park. Are there any shaded areas for them to sit? Also, I had read on another thread about the water in the kids pool area being a bit "murky". Any problems with that? Thanks again!! Now I need to go cancel my DCL Dolphin Encounter.

That was me that reported that the water in the kids area was murky. It looks much better in Brooklyn's photos so I'm not sure what was up with it when we were there. The water in all the other areas was fine and the slides were GREAT with no lines.

I forgot to mention one other thing. For all of the slides you walk up the same central structure. If you go all the way to the top to the red and yellow slides, you can see the Magic in the harbor.

 

[Brooklyn]

Thanks Brooklyn. I just went online and made our reservations. Ironically, we have the same time you did. So, I know exactly what to do. My parents will be coming with us to the park. Are there any shaded areas for them to sit? Also, I had read on another thread about the water in the kids pool area being a bit "murky". Any problems with that? Thanks again!! Now I need to go cancel my DCL Dolphin Encounter.

The water was not murky at all for us. Maybe because we went early in the day?

So glad to hear all about Sea Life Park. We have the encounter booked for our family of 4. My kids are 6 and 8...we didn't book the swim for the 8 year old because I just knew if my son saw her doing it I'd have to deal with "its not fair" all day. Kinda funny though as my 8 year old daughter is the more skiddish one who might be scared to do it...my 6 year old son is definitely more adventurous and would definitely be up for the swim. I read another post about some people who called in and got telephone approval to have their 6 year olds do the swim, but when they got there had to argue w/the manager to be allowed since it was only for 8 and up. Rather than deal with that type of confrontation, we just all booked the encounter. I see your 7 year old did it...did they ask her age? Did you have to lie? Were there others 6 and above doing the encounter? Or just the young babies? Will my kids enjoy the encounter?

The water park looks fun, and you did exactly what we have planned...enjoy the dolphins and the park for a while and then go back to the ship for a nap since its Pirate Night.

Also, did the taxis have seatbelts? Just concerned about the children's safety...and how do you recognize gov't approved taxis? Thanks. Can't wait! This looks really fun.

Well we booked the encounter for all four of us to start. When we got there I knew my DD 7 would want to do more then just the encounter. I went back to the desk and said I wanted to upgrade. Which cost me more then the online price so do it now and not there to save a few dollars. I did lie. I told them she turned 8 on Friday, she had turned 7 on Friday.

The only part I could see as a problem is the boogie board swim. The dolphin uses his nose to push you throw the water. You have to keep your legs completly straight and not kick your feet. if you do then the dolphin is trained to stop. DD did fine with it but some adults could not get it. It is also a little painful. Not in a terrible way but it just applies alot of pressure to your feet.

DD3 was by far the youngest in the encounter. It was mostly adults and elderly. Most of the kids were in the swim and the royal swim.

The white taxis are by the government. The yellow taxis are the ones to becareful in. Your cruise director will explain this the night before. He goes over how it is cheaper by a few $$ to go with the yellow but much better to go with the white. The white taxis are waiting for you when you leave the ship. To get to the yellow ones you have to cross a pretty large street. Our taxi driver told us that if you are in an accident in the yellow taxis and they do not have insurance you have to pay. Also the governements police will come help you if you are in a white taxi, if you are in a yellow taxi it is up to the locals. Yes there are seatbelts. DD3 was so worried she was not sitting in a car seat. It was soooooo funny!

 

[discruiser]

Wow...Sea Life Park looks great! We are on the repo in August and now I'm considering this for my family. I have 4 kids...ages 10, 8, 4 and 22 months.

A couple of questions for you...

If the 2 oldest kids wanted to do the Adventure with either DH or I, do you think they would allow that? Then the other one of us could do the Encounter with the younger 2? Although that would probably be too difficult. I suppose we could all do the Encounter. Do you know how deep the water is? Just wondering if my 2 oldest would be able to stand in it?

How much were the photos you bought with the dolphins, and do they give a discount if you buy a certain number? They really turned out great. Do they give them to you on a disc or do you get the actual photo?

What time did the ship dock in PV? I think we're scheduled to dock at 9:30. Just wondering if we'd have enough time to make the 11:15 Encounter?

Thanks for your help!
Kim

 

[Brooklyn]

Wow...Sea Life Park looks great! We are on the repo in August and now I'm considering this for my family. I have 4 kids...ages 10, 8, 4 and 22 months.

A couple of questions for you...

If the 2 oldest kids wanted to do the Adventure with either DH or I, do you think they would allow that? Then the other one of us could do the Encounter with the younger 2? Although that would probably be too difficult. I suppose we could all do the Encounter. Do you know how deep the water is? Just wondering if my 2 oldest would be able to stand in it?

How much were the photos you bought with the dolphins, and do they give a discount if you buy a certain number? They really turned out great. Do they give them to you on a disc or do you get the actual photo?

What time did the ship dock in PV? I think we're scheduled to dock at 9:30. Just wondering if we'd have enough time to make the 11:15 Encounter?

Thanks for your help!
Kim

The two oldest would be fine with just your husband. They have it organized really well. Since everyone is wearing life jackets the whole time you basically just float. I would just put one of you with the 2 older ones and then the other with the 2 younger ones. It is nice to be in pool at the same time. My DH had a great time with my DD3 and also liked watching me and DD do our thing.

I think the pics were 11 each. Yes there was a discount. The more you ask the more you get. They also sell a video. I did not think I would buy it but I did. It was like $32. It was awesome. I did not get the one of DH and DD though. Did not seem worth it. I just bought more pics of the little one. Ijust scanned those photos in to post them.

We were docked early. We wanted to get off the ship earlier then 1000 but DD 7 was having a bit of a "grumpy" spell. The ship was docked earlier then 930. It was docked when we were eating breakfast. There were excursions that were meeting at 815 that morning so I know people got off earlier.

There is a "ledge" to stand on the whole time in the water. Then when DD had to swim out for her belly ride or anything he had me swim out with her. She would go first and then me second. He would probably do the same with your DH. He could swim out with the 2 kids and then they would go first and wait on the ledge for them.

I would email them and see what they say. Maybe they would let one of you go for free again in the encounter to help with the little ones. You little ones will just love it but you might need an extra hand.

 

[discruiser]

Thanks for answering all of my questions. I read on another website that someone thought the park was run-down and in need of repair. Did you feel that way at all? Was it clean? Also, did you have any problems with mosquitoes while there?

Thanks again,
Kim

 

[wheelerkidz3]

can you tell me if a wetsuit had to be worn for the dolphin encounter? i was going to go as an observer on the dcl excursion cuz i really don't want to squish into a wetsuit!! LOL!!

 

[jlima]

can you tell me if a wetsuit had to be worn for the dolphin encounter? i was going to go as an observer on the dcl excursion cuz i really don't want to squish into a wetsuit!! LOL!!

In Cabo we wore life jackets only . . . no wetsuits.