I am literally still on the boat writing this review. That is how bad this experience has been. We are a family of eight who rented this as a private boat charter. I have taken private boat charters in Turks & Caicos, Grand Cayman, St. Lucia, and the Seychelles. This was by far the least professional and least enjoyable I have ever experienced. The photographer was the sole exception. He was fantastic. But the photos are not included, it was $120 for the photos. We bought them as he really captured some great shots of the family. The tour started an hour late, and then they actually attempted to end it an hour early. I had to argue to receive the full amount of time we paid for. That alone speaks volumes about how this operation is run. The snorkeling portion was worse. There was no safety briefing and virtually no instruction whatsoever. No explanation of how to use or adjust the life vests or snorkeling equipment, how to enter the water, or how to safely get back onto the boat. We were so uncomfortable with the complete lack of guidance that even those of us with snorkeling experience questioned whether anyone on board was prepared to assist if something went wrong. It also did not help that the crew member responsible for snorkeling instructions did not speak English, even though the tour is explicitly advertised as being conducted in English. If you are selling snorkeling excursions to English-speaking customers and stating that English is the language of the tour, then ensuring basic safety instructions are actually delivered in English is not optional, it is your responsibility. And it certainly wasn’t because they were understaffed. There were four or five male crew members sitting and standing around, drinking liquor from the bar, eating food grilled for our charter, and socializing with each other as though THEY were on vacation. They seemed significantly more interested in enjoying our charter than actually providing it. I complained directly to the captain. Nothing changed. The captain was largely disengaged unless he was trying to sell us something extra: banana boat rides, hookah, etc. If he wasn’t upselling, he wasn’t saying much. Ironically, the most engaged I saw him with the group was when he walked around with the tip bucket at the end. The crew did not assist us at all getting on or off the boat. They also did almost nothing to facilitate an enjoyable experience. We essentially paid for a private charter so the crew could drink, eat our food, socialize, and occasionally try to sell us more things. I have traveled extensively and paid for private excursions around the world. I understand the difference between a relaxed Caribbean atmosphere and piss poor service. This was poor service. Save your money. There are other boat tours available from Puerto Plata. Choose one of them.




























