Isla Maragrita

[bikevegas]

Stopping at IM on the Golden in October. Anybody got any recommendations for excursions? I believe that I have seen some people recommend a beach that was within walking distance from the ship...Any suggestions would be appreciated! :USA:AL

 

[crusdiva]

I Loved Isla Margarita

My husband and I visited Isla Margarita on the Dawn, November 2000 and loved the Historic Margarita and Porlamar half day tour - which I believe is now called Discover Isla Margarita.
We visited the capital of La Asuncion - which has an ancient cathedral that is just beautiful, we visited the home of Santiago Marino - a traditional colonial home and the beautiful pink stucco Shrine of the Virgin of the Fisherman in El Valle a little village nestled in the mountains (don't miss the museum, it's awe inspiring).
The final stop was a local marketplace (naturally) where there was music and dancing and you could buy local crafts and spirits.
The island was beautiful from it's lush mountains to it's sweeping beaches.The people were friendly and outgoing more than happy to share their culture and history.
I had thought about cancelling this tour because the shore excursions desk seemed less than thrilled with this stop, it has become one of my favorite cruise memories.
Hope this helps.

Sharon

 

[PeabodyNVL]

All I can say is do not do the "Day at the Dunes". We were looking forward to a nice relaxing day on the beach (the only lengthy beach time we scheduled for that cruise) and could not stay on the beach for even 10 minutes due to the vendor harassment. At soon as you step of the wooden planks of the resort and onto the beach, it is a public area. The vendors were about 15 deep and wouldn't leave us alone despite repeated requests...even as I was trying to set up my beach chair. I mean in your face, touching you type of stuff. Also, due to all of the venors around, I would not want to leave any of my belongings unattended even for a second. Sad thing was, that excursion is rather long and we were going to have no time to shop when we got back to the ship, so if the vendors hadn't been so aggressive I probably would have bought something. We ended up going back into the resort to sit by the pool (which wasn't very impressive).

My sister did the excursion to the La Restinga Lagoon and had a wonderful time!

 

[NDJollyMon]

I did the beach right where the ship docks/tenders. Very nice small beach with walking trails, sea shells, nice snokeling (no reef), no venders hassles, no transportation necessary. We rented 2 covered beach loungers for $10/day. Very nice.

 

[Sea-soned1]

We liked the bar and the music right at the dock, the little beach, and the vendors stalls. It was fun, and we had a great time, but I am kind of sorry that we didn't see more of the island. Oh well, it felt really tropical where we were, and now we have a reason to go back!

 

[kruznut]

:wave We did the same excursion that Crusdiva did and we truly enjoyed it. What we saw of Isla Margarita was very beautiful and the people were friendly as well. I wouldn't mind going back there some day. Happy cruising ! :cheers all =bigwave =bigwave =bigwave