Full-Day Tour Isla Bonita Deluxe

We enjoyed our excursion and didn't feel that it was a scam. The pictures clearly show that it's a sandbar in the middle of the ocean (yes, there are some rocks here). The excursion takes you through the rural towns in the north coast. Yes, the roads are rough and the 70ish km will take some time to get through as the bus navigates over the bumps on gravel roads. We loved the catamaran ride out to the natural pool at first then to the island. You will get wet on the boat. They fed us fruit salad, boiled eggs and sandwiches, this was included as well as champagne and all other alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. At the sand bar, snorkeling equipment (mask and life vest), were included. You cannot bring towels or shoes because they do not want to remove any more sand from the bar. We swam for just over an hour. The only downfall was we had to wait a long time for our boat to return. Had we known, we would've just stayed in the water longer. Once we returned back to Paradise Island resort, we had a lobster lunch and then headed back to our resort. It was a long day, but I feel we got value for our money.

If your are coming from Cabarete Its a 45 min ride to the bus and than another hour and a half to get to the boat so it was a long ride. We had to leave at 630 in the morning which was hard. So just a warning. Other than the extremely early pick up time the beach was amazing the natural pool was nice. My son had a ball going off the slide. The snorkeling was amazing my son and husband saw a bunch of different fish and turtles.

We loved our day. Departure around 7:10 from our resort, some stop to welcome other travelers to the excursion. About 3 hours bus (comfortable and air-conditioned) with a guide who informs us about the surroundings and the history of Puerto Plata to Isla bonita. Departure by catamaran with bite, aperitif, sparkling wine and music. Snorkeling on the island and drink included. Stop in a natural pool and again, music and aperitif are served in the water. Before returning to paradise island where a lobster dinner with pina colada we stopped to visit a mangrove. After the meal we had some time to relax. On the way back, we stopped at a souvenir shop and they explained how cigar making is with demonstration. We arrived at our resort around 18:00. A beautiful and full day.

+1

This one is hard to give a star rating for a review. The bus ride is far to long and wasn't discussed with when booking. It was a nice way to see the countryside, but we spent more time going there and coming back then we did on the boat. When we did arrive to the beach it was definitely 5 star from that point, the boat staff were awesome and service for drinks or food was great. We had a younger child with us and it was fun for her also but our group was mostly adults and the atmosphere was more a party. Everyone was very courteous about our child on the boat. I dont think it stopped anyone from having a good time and she still had fun also. I think we got to the boat around almost 11. Went to the shallow spot for a 15-20 minute swim which was nice cause it was pretty hot so it was a good cool down time. Slid off the top deck slide a few times which was a fun feature. Loaded up then took another ride to the sand bar. Was 2 other boats with people that were there over the same time period so got a little crowded. The snorkeling was the highlight of the trip. Seen lots of neat fish but only did that for about 20 minutes then sat on the sand bar and had a couple drinks and some fruit for snack, not much for shade so lots of people were huddled around the shacks to get out of the sun after swimming. It was a very neat place and cool to see but definitely got busy with other boats. The mangroves weren't really much just pulled into a bay gave a little speech about the ecosystem and the importance of the Coast Guard, (aka the mangroves). Then worked our way back to a spot further down the beach then we arrived at, which was an excellent late lunch of chicken, rice, lobster, and some sort of fried fish. Everything tasted great. Was a short time to eat then back on the bus for the long ride back to the resort. Loaded on around 3:30-4pm. The ride back was quicker even with the stop at the little store on the ride back. Got a couple items and worked our way back to the resort. It was a funtime on the ocean and snorkeling but definitely be prepared for the journey there. There was a photographer there taking pictures the whole time on the boat, we bought the photo package off of him because we wanted some great memories from the trip and we think his prices were reasonable and we got alot of great photos, he did a great job and really appreciate it. If it weren't a family thing for us we probably wouldn't of bought the pictures but he took some awesome shots and will have them to look back on. We could tell lots of people weren't interested in buying the pictures but for us it was worth it. We got over 100 pics and a 15 minute go pro video as part of what he took of us.

+1

The island and natural pool was incredible. Too many people on the island to really enjoy - snorkelling was quick and not a lot of fish - water was rough for us and tide was high. The mangroves were not a highlight but interesting to see. Lunch was incredible! Service on the boat was fantastic. Our bus guide was good but we didn’t realize we would spend 3hours on the way there without a bathroom break or refreshment. The way home was 2.5hours and better as they incorporated a stop at a cigar place with shopping and a bathroom! We were staying at the Be Live Puerto Plata.

I gave this excursion a 2 out of 5 but probably would give it a 2.5 if I could. A 3 just seems a little high so basically a 5/10. I booked the Isla Bonita Deluxe for my family of 4 including 2 teens ages 13 and 15. A coach style bus picked us up from our hotel (Emotions) at 7:25 am. We made a few other pickups before continuing on. We were on the bus for over THREE HOURS before we arrived at the location were we boarded the catamaran. There was a lot of stop and go, and slow spots that made the journey long. There were a few people complaining about having motion sickness, including myself by the time we arrived. Had I known how long the journey would have been prior I would not have booked this particular excursion. This is important information that should be conveyed to anyone booking this tour. Once we boarded the catamaran drinks and snacks were immediately made available. The staff was friendly, music played and the atmosphere was party-like. We arrived at the island for snorkeling which was small but beautiful and unique. There were several other tour groups there. The water was quite rough and the conditions were not the best for snorkeling so we didn’t see many fish. The tour operators kept the drinks flowing and offered fruit to snack on while we were there. We swam and enjoyed the scenery. Unfortunately there was no shade available to take a break from the hot sun and we were there for about 3 hours which seemed long. You could tell people in the group were becoming restless. I am not sure if this is the typical amount of time but it seemed a bit too long in my opinion. Eventually the catamaran returned with another group and we were able to leave. From there we went to look for manatees but there was none to be seen. We then went over to the natural pool and were able to do some more swimming. We were able to slide off the back of the boat which was fun. My youngest son is about 5 feet tall and he was able to stand in a few places. After that the boat was brought to shore and we were taken by bus to a location for lunch. By this time is was about 4:00 and many in the group were heard talking about how hungry they were. Lunch was delicious and consisted of fried chicken, stewed chicken, lobster, rice, veggie salad, pasta salad, dessert and coffee. We were there for a little over an hour before boarding the bus. The tour group leader asked if we wanted to go to the tobacco factory but after a long day in the sun the group unanimously declined and we began out 3 hour journey back to our hotels. Overall I would say the staff were friendly and courteous but the travel time was too long and I’m disappointed to have spent 6 plus hours on a bus to experience this. Organization of time also needs to be improved as too much time was spent on the island and “lunch” was much too late in the day. I would not take this tour again if given the chance, and would not recommend it to others traveling to Puerto Plata.

Nr 1 in Puerto Plata, have done all activities, 27 Faldas, boggy car, monster trucks etc, and today (tripnr 5/last 10 years) i do Paradise Islands again. FANTASTIC 🥰❤️😀

Our Isla Bonita Delux Tour on 12-28-22 began with hotel pickup at 6:45am and ended with hotel drop off about 6:45pm! Everything was wonderful - but our English speaking guide Eddy, was the best! He was so personable, informative, and helpful throughout the entire day and he was always available and happy! Our boat was full, but not crowded. We had a delicious breakfast of ceviche, cheeses, cold cuts, breads, and fruit. The drinks (beer, rum, sodas) were available nonstop on the boat and on the island. The first stop at the Natural Pool is shallow, warm, and beautiful! The champagne toast afterwards is fun and the boat crew was awesome! We snorkeled with a guide around Paradise Island and then hung out on the sand bar with fruit and drinks for over an hour. It became a little crowded but everyone was considerate and it was fun taking photos and soaking up the sun! We got back on the boat and headed to Punta Rucia for our delicious buffet lunch that included shrimp and lobster. Our tour ended with a stop at a cigar factory/gift shop where we got to sample Mama Juana. I’m so glad that we chose Camel Safari Exploring for our trip out to Cayo Arena and I’m glad we chose the “delux” or VIP version. I don’t think the speedboat tour would have been nearly as relaxing and fun! We appreciated the patient guides, great food and drinks, comfortable boat, and hotel pickup. We definitely recommend Camel Safari Exploring!

+2

My sister and I booked this tour in December while vacationing at Iberostar through WestJet. The excursion was planned for December 8th. Once we got on the bus they told us they had to cancel due to poor weather (it actually ended up a beautiful day). We could not select another day as we were leaving a few days later. Our west jet representative Jonathan assured us that we would get the refund within two weeks. Here we are a month later with no refund and no one is getting back to us. Don’t book through this company, I just lost over $400 booking here!

Eddy was an exceptional tour guide! All staff on boat were helpful and attentive in every way. It was a once in a lifetime for some guests in our party and they had an amazing time!! So much to see and so in a short amount of time! It is worth the money to book privately! However, be aware of the lengthy bus ride depending on where you are coming from!