St. Thomas Doubloon turtle cove sail & snorkle

[diznynut]

We are looking at this excursion for our upcoming cruise in mid March. Has anyone done this and what are the chances to actually see turtles this time of year?

 

[Wests4Disney]

We went on this excursion Jan. 2010, and saw some large sea turtles, and various other sea creatures. The guide said that you really only see them if you follow the guide, as they know where they "hide" at. We sure enjoyed the time snorkeling and we had an EXCELLENT guide.

 

[Grandma4ever]

We just did this in early November and had an awesome time. It was an excursion I would be willing to repeat. I saw several turtle and the tour guides did a great job of showing us were to look to see the turtles.

 

[jax1623]

HI, we are thinking of this excrusion as well, My question is how deap was the water when you are snorkling? My kids are 5 and 7 but not the strongest swimmers. I know they'd loved to see the turtles though. Thoughts?

 

[ashman]

I can not recommend this trip any stronger. It is in my opinion one of the best shore excursions period. I have done it twice. Once with just my wife on our 10th year anniversary 7 years ago. The second was last summer with my whole family and my kids who were 8 and 10 at the time. The water in the "turtle" area is anywhere between 5 to 20 feet. You WILL see turtles on this trip. I spoke with one of the mates on the ship who had been working the Doubloon for 5 years. He said there have only been three trips he was on that no turtles were spotted. My kids are good swimmers and had no trouble getting around. We each paired up with one and they were fine. You get a Mae West vest. Here is a picture of a turtle I took with a disposable camera.

Hope this helps. I love this excursion. More questions? Just ask!

 

[ltzol]

I agree with the others! My kids were 5 and 9 last year when we did the trip. The 5 year old chickened out, but the 9 year old still talks about it. We would do this excursion again in a heartbeat. We saw so many turtles. It was absolutely amazing. I am hoping our snorkeling with the sting rays in a few weeks doesn't pale in comparison...

 

[Grandma4ever]

If you are concerned with the kids ability to swim pair them with an adult. You float very well in the salt water and all you really need to be able to do is kick your feet with the fins provided to get around. They will be wearing life vest and they work very well. The kids well do fine.

Just a quick hint when putting on your mask make sure that you have no hair caught in it as this will cause them to leak.

I hope you enjoy your cruise I know I would and am really having a hard time waiting until I can return once again.

 

[castawaycayfans]

We went on this one Nov 09 and loved it. It was my first snorkeling trip and my DH loves to snorkel. The crew was very entertaining and now I am hooked! It was very easy to float and I actually had a hard time keeping my face down. The turtles were amazing, I came face to face with one. We also saw stingrays and fish. Our guide got into the water with us and interacted with the kids, pointing things out to them. I highly recommend it, just watch out for the free flowing punch and pirate tales on the way back.

 

[diznynut]

Thanks for all the responses. Does anyone know if there is a contact number for the place that operates this excursion? I found their website but did not see any contact info. I see lots of you have gone in the fall, but I am still curious about March. Our son is 12 and I really think we want to do this excursion.

 

[steelemdsd]

We just got back from the Eastern today (shucks) and had an UNBELIEVABLE time on the Full Day Turtle Cove and Honeymoon Beach Sail and Snorkel. This was by far my favorite event of the cruise and also my kids. The weather was perfect and we saw a ton of turtles. We got lucky enough to get on the Catamaran compared to the Pirate Ship (Bones). On the Catamaran you can sit on the edge of the boat with your feet hanging over and it was awesome. If you want to look at this, it is bolongobay.com and the Catamaran we took was Heavenly Days.

I would HIGHLY recommend this and also to recommend trying to get on the Catamaran compared to the Pirate boat.

Any other questions let me know and I will answer.

 

[diznynut]

Thanks for the positive review. I think we just want to do a half day because we want to find Del Sol in St. Thomas. My son thinks walking the plank will be cool. Did you have to search the turtles out when you snorkled? The only thing I have to compare this with is Stingray City in Grand Cayman.

 

[ashman]

You can find them on your own but if you hang off with the guide, your chances are better. Lots to see! Bring a camera!

 

[lucas]

Does it anchor where you can get to a beach? Or, is it just jumping off the boat into the open water?

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

We are looking at this excursion for our upcoming cruise in mid March. Has anyone done this and what are the chances to actually see turtles this time of year?

We did it.

It was good but, it is for " expieranced snorkelers only" you have to jump off the boat.
Very limited changing facilities, wear swimwear.
Must climb back in on slippery wooden steps.

Yes we saw turtles.

 

[DisneyGirlMI]

We did this in August 2014 and really enjoyed it. My kids were not strong swimmers but we just towed them around. The crew is great. They even gave my daughter, who was 8 at the time, an extra floaty to swim with. We saw turtles and a barracuda. The guides are good about pointing you in the direction of the turtles. The boat ride is a lot of fun as well.