Puerto Vallarta Pirate Boat - Take the Dramimine

[unionville]

We just got off the June 15 Disney Magic. I had read reports that we should take dramimine before the pirate boat excursion and I was glad I listened! We had an awesome day, but the boat really rocks. The pirates handed out dramimine for anyone that needed it during the day. Just thought I would send out a reminder for anyone planning to do this excursion in the future.

Quick Summary of the Excursion:
Your pirate for the day will meet you at the Magic and walk you over to the pirate boat. The pirates really stay in character throughout the day and are awesome. During the walk over, they will take your lunch order. Our choices were chicken, mahi mahi, hamburgers, and hotdogs (I think). We had a seasick child earlier in the day and decided not to risk going back down to the galley to eat. My brother-in-law had the chicken and said it was good. We had brought goldfish and crackers in our beach bag which worked out perfect for us. Once you arrive on the pirate boat, you will have your family picture made with the pirate. They will offer to sale this photo to you at the end of the cruise ($15 I think). We didn't purchase our picture. You will be given the chance for your child to have their picture made with the pirates at the end of the cruise with your own camera - no charge. During the entire trip, your pirate of the day will make sure that you have everything you need. Sodas, bottled water, smoothies, beer, and mixed drinks are available. You will also have the opportunity to eat breakfast on the boat before you leave. We have a picky eater and decided to eat on the cruise ship before we left, so I'm not sure of the options. The pirates get everyone involved from the very beginning. There is singing, dancing, and an ongoing skit as you make your way to the beach. They will also put up a sun shade as soon as they have fired the cannons and guns. The shade was a welcome relief on our very hot day. The ride to the beach was a couple of hours. You will be transferred to the beach by a small boat. We stayed at the beach for 2 hours. It was great. The water temperature was perfect. They have boogy boards, kayaks, and banana boat rides. Drinks were also served on the beach. You could also choose to snorkel, but due to the jelly fish we chose not to. After your time at the beach, you are transferred back to the pirate boat for lunch and the trip back. We had a fun day. The pirates went out of their way to make sure you were well taken care of.

 

[EmEyeSeeKayEeWhy]

Thank you so much for posting your experience! My family and I have signed up for it for next week's cruise, so it's great to know what to expect Sounds like fun

 

[Joy2theWorld]

Thanks for the report! You just convinced it me to cancel... Too many seasickness reports and jelly fish for my taste. We were debating between this and the massages at the one resort with beach access.

 

[Nevada]

I was there too! Boy did it rock! Holy cow. Sit on the bottom level. Take the pill. It wasn't good.

I was sitting in the floor on the bottom level because the mid was too much for me.

 

[Nevada]

In fact if you have a boy and a girl I was sitting next to you for part of the time!

 

[unionville]

I have one son and we were on the bottom level. My sister and her family were on the top level and did not deal with sickness at all. They also said it was not as crowded up top. My husband and I did not get sick, but we took several dramamine along the way. My son was fine once he "lost his cookies". He says that he would do the pirate boat excursion again!

 

[BabyFavorite]

Thanks for the report on this! I think we're going to cancel our reservation. Not so much for us, per se, but just being around potential seasickness will ruin it for me! I am a barfaphobe BIG TIME!

 

[EmEyeSeeKayEeWhy]

I have one son and we were on the bottom level. My sister and her family were on the top level and did not deal with sickness at all. They also said it was not as crowded up top. My husband and I did not get sick, but we took several dramamine along the way. My son was fine once he "lost his cookies". He says that he would do the pirate boat excursion again!

Good to know...we'll try to stay on the upper level. We don't typically get 'sick', and the more the boat rocks...the better we like it actually! I just met a woman in my hair salon who did this excursion (on a different line), and she couldn't say enough good things about it. Sounds like it's best if one isn't proned to seasickness Thanks for posting....

 

[cmash95]

my son wanted to do this excursion in may but unfortunately we were told that the ship was in drydock our cruise. DARN!! what made it worse was that we passed one pirate ship filled with what we assumed were carnival passengers as we left port. whenever you are on a boat it can get rocky. heck even the glassbottom boat at castaway cay got me a little sick to my stomach. Not enough to hurl as they say but enough to make me feel queezy. I do find that if you tend to have motion sickness, the further away from the water you are, the better. and of course bring bonine along.That being said, I am sooo glad you had fun!!!!

 

[tadmott]

It is very rocky. It was a neat experience, but long. We only got a few hours at the beach. It was a semi-pretty beach, but lots of seaweed and "junk" had been washed in there. By the time we got back, the only thing we had time to do was make a Wal-Mart run, which was a necessity. We wouldn't do it again, but if that kind of thing "floats your boat" --pun intended--you will like it.