Boat Trip From HELL!!!!

curlee · Post by **curlee** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 7:00 pm

BEWARE OF THE SANTA MARIA BOAT TOUR TO LOS ARCOS & LOS ANIMOS!!!! They CRAM 150 people on the boat, not enough snorkel gear & HORRIBLE FOOD & CRAPPY bottom of the barrel drinks. LOS ANIMAS IS SOOOO GROSS & DISGUSTING!

ronald · Post by **ronald** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 7:15 pm

I've always wanted to take one of these excursions. Being a tour I assume that you had a camera along. Never having taken this tour, just wondering how big is the boat, kind, etc?

Something that bad has to have some pictures that could reinforce the conditions you state... Please post.

Post by **webmaster** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 7:23 pm

Isn't that tour no longer available... wasn't it the boat that sank?

Mogens

katnsocal · Post by **katnsocal** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 8:38 pm

viewtopic.php?t=14185&highlight=santa+maria

Yep that was the one that sunk Mogens but they had two of them. The link above is the the discussion we had at the time it happened.

davilin · Post by **davilin** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 9:00 pm

Actually, Las Animas is quite nice if you go there when the tour boats aren't there. Linda and I spent a very nice day on tne beach by the restauraunt, during the time between boats. Hope this wasn't the only thing you did in P.V., Curlee.

katnsocal · Post by **katnsocal** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 4:13 am

Curlee,
Just curious what was it that you found so gross and disgusting about Las Animas? We make many trips there with customers and have never had any complaints. If people want a shorter boat trip then we usually go to Las Animas for lunch and then back, much quicker than going down to Yelapa.

pat · Post by **pat** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 8:37 pm

Since he hasn't posted back, I am going to take a guess and say that the tide probably brought in all the junk (tree bark, garbage, etc.)in the ocean from the rains on that day. Several years ago we went to Quiximito (sp?) and it was really gross. There was black stuff all over the beach and it didn't smell good. No one would go in the water and it was a hot day. I was told by folks on other PV boards, when I complained about it, that that is a day to day thing in the summer time and was probably very nice and clean the next day after the tide washed it out again. I was surprized because I had been there before and found it to be very nice. I guess the stuff just moves around in the bay during the summer time after heavy rains. You never know what you will get.
Perhaps the red tide was still in when he went too.

kcowan · Post by **kcowan** » Sun Jul 06, 2008 8:12 pm

Is the foam still on the beaches in Nuevo Vallarta? i know that was freaking some people out.

ronald · Post by **ronald** » Sun Jul 06, 2008 11:58 pm

Since he hasn't posted back, I am going to take a guess and say that the tide probably brought in all the junk

Don't think that was what he was complaining about. Post is titled "Boat trip from hell", so I'm guessing that the main complaint was the Boat itself... I don't know how big the boat is.... maybe somebody who knows can enlighten me... If I'm ever going to take this tour I would like to know in advance...because 150 people on a dinghy is pushing it, but on the Queen Mary it is minuscule...

Also appears he/she/it didn't like the food offered... What did they provide? Did it make you sick, or did you not like the taste?... was food supposed to be part of the tour package, or just an incidental? Had to have been a very busy day as the company appears to be buying its rum in bulk by the barrel/keg as he was being served stuff from the bottom.

Being curious people it would be nice if these one time posters would come back on and enlighten us a little more about their adventure..... after all we are assuming that it is a genuine adventurer that had a bad experience verses a competitor with an axe to grind, but you never know when they never return for a followup. IMHO

pat · Post by **pat** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 1:23 am

LOS ANIMAS IS SOOOO GROSS & DISGUSTING!

This is what my post was referring to. In the past I have found Los Animas to be very nice, but I haven't been for a couple of years.

He did post this on another board and did respond back. So, maybe he will here too.

deollafan · Post by **deollafan** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 3:30 pm

Take a water taxi from the Los Muertos pier or Boca. Cheaper, and you get there faster and can stay longer. You can grab a spot at the restaurant of your choice and then mock the folks who come on the bigger boats as they unload and load for their hour on the beach!

katnsocal · Post by **katnsocal** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 9:05 pm

I've done the Santa Maria boat tour that I believe that poster is referencing - it's the smaller, "cheaper" of the two SantaMaria's that were once offered (IIRC, it's the larger one that sunk and is no longer being offered). It's a real average, middle of the road booze cruise. Nothing to distinguish it from any of the others. If they put 150 people on that boat in low season I'll eat my hat - it's rarely that full in high season unless it's a cruise ship port day. I'm pretty sure that is an exaggerated guess of a number unless the poster physically counted every person including the crew. I'd bank on the boat's listed capacity with crew probably being closer to being between 75-90. As noted, a real average booze cruise, nothing to write home about from the food to the drinks to the tour itself. I wouldn't take it again, I wasn't impressed with their snorkeling safety and they were even less concerned about ensuring that everyone got back on the boat afterwards. There are definitely better tours in the bay.

Of course this was before I had my own boat, now I don't do "tour boats"