Tanned & Tanked Tour June 19-29, 2009

[BeachMan]

Hey Pia et al. -- that was going to be my next question ... Has anyone else used "Bad Kitty"?

The thing about going to VG is it's a haul and it seemed because they are faster that we can get there and make a few more stops if so desired.

Seriously, I'm thinking with some general interest from folks this is totally do-able.

And it will be nice to be on board with extended forum family rather than a bunch o' strangers (not that I'm anti-social or anything!).

I heard back from Calypso and from what they said initially it looks like the price is still $145 pp + $25 for customs fees and folks are responsible for their own lunch money.

The only other twist according to them is there's a 15% gratuity automatically added to a private charter. I think kids are slightly less.

This is a decent sized boat with plenty of space inside that's safe for the kiddos.

I think FF may be more interested if someone else was also bringing youngster-- although for the other grown ups on board I think keeping the young one's to a minimum would be best. But three would work.

Anyway, I'm still waiting for clarification from Calypso.

Seriously though -- this is workable!

Stay tuned!

The wife and I went on this very trip back in October. Here’s my mini review:

Spanish town - Not much to see here. There is a small group of shops were you can pick up sunscreen, disposable underwater cameras, Cuban cigars (dat's right!), misc tourist trap stuff. We were probably there less than 1/2 hour...just long enough to get us checked into the BVIs.

The Baths - Cool place, nice beach. I felt a little rushed from one "room" to the next as we crawled through the Baths. Some very nice sights but can get old for those who don't like climbing, crawling and waiting for others to do the same. We were told it wasn't busy the day we were there but there were several times we had to wait while one group came back through the hole we were going into. It's one of those places everyone wants to check off of the list. I think I would have enjoyed it much more given the chance to go through in a small group.

Cooper Island - Nice stop for lunch. Nothing fancy here just a stopover for a bite and hanging out on the beach.

Snorkeling - We got to snorkel the RMS Rhone wreck http://www.saildivebvi.com/rhone.php off of Salt Island. The captain said it was not normally an option because it is semi open water but the seas were very calm that day. This was by far the best part of the trip for me. Cool ship, lots of fish around that day.

Soggy Dollar - It's a "Sunny Place for Shady People"...that about sums it up. Seriously this is a unique experience. We had been to the Soggy Dollar on our previous trip on 2003 and found the second time around some of the appeal was gone. It was fairly crowded the day we were there with lots of college age folks partying and drinking. If you are in to that this is the place for you. The beach is great and if you walk a ways down it's not too hard to find an empty hammock to relax in while the painkillers work their magic.

All in all this was probably the best day of our trip. The Bad Kitty and crew were both very nice...lots of rum and fun! It's a full day with the drinking, climbing around in the Baths, drinking, snorkeling and drinking some more. Highly recommended!

[Bob & Anita]

Looks like Bad Kitty needs a minimum of 15 to make it a "private" charter. Here's the link to their site: http://www.calypsovi.com/kitty.html

But I'm thinking with this board we could easly get another 10 people for a good time. A forumite gathering like that would ROCK!!

Anyone else who might be interested?

We'll be on STJ 6/20 - 7/1 and are definitely interested.

[Pia]

OK, I have a corection to make

Yes BK is a fast boat - but not that fast it takes approx 60 mins to VG depending on the weather/ocean conditions

Pia

[ScottB]

So has anyone made an executive decision on a date for this boat? The 23rd thru the 27th works for us. We are 100% in...and looking forward to meeting many folks from the forum. This should be a great time if we can make it happen....

[Tracy in WI]

Although we will be on island, I think we are going to pass on the boat trip. If it was just the hubby and I, we'd be in for sure.

I'm not sure my 10 year old would make the best company for the day and I don't want anyone holding anything back!

So, we would love to have a beach day with those of you on island during the same time frame...!

Great idea though Gromit!

[KTinTX]

Hi All!

I'm new to the forum with only a handful of posts and PM's to my name, but my wife & I will be there from 6/24-7/1. We'd definitely be interested, but with the date window listed it would have to be the 25th for us to do it. I'll keep watching here, but put us on the list if going the 25th! If you go the 24th, maybe we'll see you at the Beach Bar.

You experienced folks could break in us USVI first-timers the right way!