Full Day Tour to Tortuga Island from Jaco

This was NOT a good trip! No where in the description does it say that this is a party boat/trip/day. The boat had a DJ and music cranked to 100, which is fine, as we could move to a portion of the boat where it was quieter, but on the way back there was a storm, and everyone had to huddle inside the cabin, which was too small to hold everyone, (at least half of the people on the boat had to stand and try to hold on), and then they moved the DJ inside. Everyone was trapped within 20 feet of the amplifiers set on max volume. This would be fine for those who enjoy a rave/club setting, I do not. The description said, free natural drinks, which be forewarned, does NOT include water!! (I guess water isn't natural???!!). Water was an extra fee, I think $3 a bottle. We had our "included" sad little ham sandwich for breakfast, (this thing was maybe half the size of a piece of standard store bought bread). The beach time was an S show, not one of the companies people knew what was going on, they didn't know our trip had lunch included, didn't seem to have ever seen the Viator booking ticket bar code I was sent, which I thought they would scan and know our tour package, but this was not so. I broke out more email confirmations with descriptions, just to prove we got lunch included. I should not have done that. "lunch" was so terrible. The chicken breast selection was a piece of (maybe chicken), meat not exceeding 1/4" thick and about 3" in diameter, all cooked I'm guessing the day before, so it was shoe leather basically. I saw I would need something to choke this down and asked the person guarding the sauce dispensers for some BBQ and I received 1 pump of the dispenser, which dispensed an amount about half that of condiment packet you would get at any fast food joint, and wouldn't give me any more. The rice wasn't fully cooked and crunchy, or to be fair, if everything was cooked the day prior, maybe it was just, old crunchy. Again when I went to sign us up for the banana boat tour included in our paid package, they wanted an additional fee, I had to break out the emails again and prove it was included. We sat down in beach chairs, just to relax, and some guy came up and said we needed to "rent" the chairs or go away. WTH? There were outhouse type bathrooms that you HAD TO PAY TO USE!! Bathroom usage is not included in your 12 hour plus excursion. I really think if I asked for more sand in my shoe it would have been billed extra. I view this experience as something I survived, not something I would EVER want to do again.

This was not what I was expecting. The boat ride was extremely slow not exciting at all. We get to the beach, the excursions were unorganized. The food was cold and dry and the drinks were watered down . It was not worth the money that was spent . I actually want my money back. We were there all day with no adequate water, there were no showers to rinse the sand off so just sitting uncomfortable all day . The boat was overbooked to capacity, 4/10 experience

Party style boat ride. Dancing, Latin music and dance lessons. Hot tub on boat fun for kids. Amazing snokeling experience although need equipment for smaller children to be able to participate. Loved the banana boat. Where not informed about hikes or where to go to hike. Lack of communication on when next activities take place and where. Food was okay not great better options would be appreciated. Snacks were passed out but drinks were hard to get.

DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT book this tour! Tour lists 12.5 hrs and our experience was 16 hrs total. No where does it say you’ll spend over half of the tour time in the transportation van (5 hrs) to and from Jaco and on the boat to and from the island (5 hrs). The boat has limited seating in the below covered deck. AC was not working properly too. We were forced to sit in the hot sun for over 2 hrs to the island with no shade. The sandwich they provided on the boat was awful. The fruit was and banana bread was good. Upon arriving to Tortuga, chairs were broken and filthy. One bathroom only on the island for this tour, which was disgusting. They did not disclose no service or WiFi and they wanted to charge $46 US dollars. Food was below satisfactory. Bar service was decent because they were making $. Over 9 hrs without food and 3 hrs without water before returning to JACO. This tour is not worth the cost they are charging. Save money and just go to a local beach and have a nice lunch. Time is valuable and the 16 hrs we lost, we can never get back!! Don’t make the same mistake if you value time and your hard earned money.

The boat / Isla crew and driver were spectacular! Very kind and attentive. The drinks were very watered down. We ended up buying beer. The snacks and lunch were very tasty. Lots of fresh fruit and ceviche along with a nice buffet. Eat breakfast before you go… the ham and cheese Sandwich is not the best. SOME MAJOR THINGS TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION: this tour does NOT leave directly from Jaco. You will have several stops to pick folks up in Jaco and surrounding areas then head to Putenares. The boat ride from the port of Putenares is 2 hours each way with blasting music and a bar with free drinks. People get drunk on this trip so if you have small children, something to keep in mind. Also- the island is home to many other tour operators. There were a handful of older men that rented a catamaran and had each brought about what looked to be 3 hookers each. The gals ended up having a little too much to drink and fighting with each other and had to be taken care of by staff. Not a big deal but again , something to think about if you have kids. HEADS UP: the bridge between Jaco and Tracoles is being revamped so the traffic is absolutely terrible. Took us 5 hours to get back to our hotel and it should have been 2 hours. Bottom line - if you love to party, do this! You’ll love it!

This was by far the worst tour experience of the 26 tours that I have booked through Viator. Every other experience has been great. Book your Tortugas experience through another provider on Viator.

You can NOT miss going to the Island and you can NOT go with another company than Bay Island, they are the best!! Everyone super friendly and fun! They give you breakfast, lunch, drinks all delicious! On the island you can play volleyball, do dance class, Banana ride, snorkeling, all delicious!! We want to come back!! The trip back and forth, mega entertaining, we returned delighted!! Thanks again, pure life!!

The overall experience was disappointing. The beach was extremely crowded, which took away from the relaxing island experience we were expecting. The drinks provided were noticeably watered down. Despite clearly specifying vegetarian dietary restrictions in advance, there were no vegetarian food options available. This was frustrating and showed a lack of planning and consideration. Additionally, the staff appeared inconsiderate toward non–Spanish-speaking guests. There was visible favoritism toward friends or people they personally knew who were traveling on the tour, which made the experience feel unprofessional and uncomfortable. Unfortunately, I would not recommend this tour unless these issues are addressed.

Amazing experience!! Get it all! Banana boat and snorkeling!! Guides were super professional even with the non swimmers- no one missed out!! We loved our guides and this tour!

The postives: Tortuga Island is beautiful. Clear water and white sand. Also, the lunch they gave us was plentiful and tasty. And the banana boat was fun. But the positives end there. There were almost no fish when we went snorkeling. The light breakfast was a soggy ham and cheese sandwich. The brochure from our hotel promised “rum punch, margaritas, soft drinks and water all day long.”However, there was only rum punch and it tasted like orange koolaid and a touch of rum. You could only get 3 soft drinks a person. The brochure also mentioned an eco hike but that was not offered. We paid $160/adult.