Of all of the events we were looking forward to on the cruise, we were probably the most excited about riding the ATVs at St. Maarten. About three months before our cruise, one of the families in our DIS group actually found the ATV excursion outside of those offered through Disney and, because it sounded like so much fun, a lot of us jumped at the chance to go. My only regret is that The Big wasnt old enough to join us - - I know that she would have had a blast.
Anyway, after breakfast, we dropped The Big off at the Club, and proceeded to disembark from the ship.
The excursion confirmation we were provided said that someone would meet us near the security checkpoint and would be holding a sign for us. Although it took some doing, we finally found the security checkpoint and, as we were waiting someone pulled up and ushered us into his van, saying he was from the ATV excursion. I was admittedly a bit hesitant to go with him since we all kind of looked like tourists ripe for the picking, but, thankfully, within a matter of 10 minutes, we were dropped off at ATV haven.
Since our group was the first to arrive, we had first dibs on our ATVs. Once everyone arrived, we got our helmets and a quick crash course on how to operate our vehicles, and took off. Since Ive never driven an ATV, I really was worried about handling the thing, but it ended up being very easy. Also, our two guides were absolute pros in navigating us safely through the insanely busy streets of St. Maarten.
The tour was to take us around St. Maarten, and also offered an hour stop at Orient Bay. But, about 30 minutes into our ride, we got to stop right by the beach to take pictures and play with the sea creatures. Although they look frightful, they were quite harmless.
After driving for another 45 minutes or so, we arrived at Orient Beach. Although the excursion paperwork said that we were going to be on a public nude beach, we ended up outside of a restaurant/bar with a private beach area.
It was wonderful and, although we didn't swim ourselves, many DISers and their families were enjoying the water. If you opt for this excursion, though, be aware that you are going to get approached several times to purchase items. I actually ended up buying two bracelets for The Big, which she loved, but I hated being pressured into it. Still, it was a great time, although we found ourselves feeling super guilty that The Big was in the Club while we were enjoying this wonderful excursion. (And, since this is a "full disclosure" trip report, here I am in all my ATV glory.)
The ride back took another 30-45 minutes and we arrived back at the ship with no problems.
I would *wholeheartedly* recommend this excursion. It was everything that I was hoping for and so much more. The guides were very entertaining and informative, and they made me feel super safe at all times (one always rode ahead to stop traffic for us while the other made sure that we were all together). This experience will be a treasured memory for me, and I can't wait to go on the Eastern itinerary again so The Big can enjoy it with us.
Well, that's it for now...up next: Pirates in the Caribbean. As always, I appreciate you reading.
Did you end up booking the Dreams, by the way?
AND, we booked using DVC points so it only cost $95!!! What cruise did you end up booking?
Besides that; more cats are accessible so even a bit cheaper options. Yet, they couldn't give me proper acces. info for the Magic after having been sailing it for about 10 years. Makes me very wary to trust them to give me the proper info in 2011 after only a couple of months of sailing with the Dreams. Mistakes can be made, but the way they 'dealt' with it, nah I've had my share so to say. Really seriously would've loved to cruise again, esp. with great folks like your family, but as long as they can't provide proper info nor learn from that, I find it's not a smart move to rebook the Dreams and taking the risk of again being misinformed. 
Can understand the appeal of HP-land though. 
