There's no shortage of beach shore excursions on a Caribbean cruise, but an opportunity to spend it a beachside villa sounded remarkably fun.
While sailing on Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas, our ship spent the day in Roatan, Honduras.
Through the cruise line, there are a variety of tours that will take you to Turquoise Bay Dive & Beach Resort. It is rated 4.6 stars on Google, and is situated along a white sand stretch of sand. Looked to me like a great option for a beach day.
Truly the thing that sold me on this tour was the fact we'd get our own villa. I've done beach cabanas, but never a true villa and it sounded like a fun way to spend the day. I value having space, shade, and good service to go with it.
The cost was $1,258.99 and it includes up to six people. The cost is fixed, so it doesn't matter how many people you have with you. That cost also includes food, drink, and transportation.
My concern about this tour was like any cruise line beach excursion that we'd go to an oversold and super busy beach that didn't deliver on the relaxing vibe advertised.
Royal Caribbean provided roundtrip transportation, taking us to the beach. It's about a 40 minute ride, but the large van we were in was very well air conditioned.
Upon arrival, we were escorted to our villa at the far end of the beach.
Turquoise Bay has many of these villas, which are set back from the ocean and face the water. It provides the right mix of views and privacy.
There are also over the water bungalows, beach beds, and a few other upgraded options you could book. Ultimately I chose the villa because it seemed like there was the most space.
Each villa has sliding doors (both screen and glass) that lead into the main room.
There's two couches, a television, mini-fridge, and even your own private bathroom. There's no air conditioning, but it does have a ceiling fan.
Outside the villa is a dining table and chairs. There's also a few beach loungers in front of the villa.
There's a dedicated server that will get you food and drink delivered to your villa.
I thought the drink menu was varied enough to suit most needs. It covers the basics you need for day drinking at the beach, along with plenty of non-alcoholic beverages too.
The lunch menu is small, but it has lobster, steak, and shrimp.
I wish it had a bit more variety of food, especially more non-shellfish choices. But we found enough to be able to eat, and my kids are pretty darn picky.
Our server was attentive and brought us a fruit platter upon arrival, and kept checking on us. She even had churros for dessert brought as a surprise.
The great thing about this room was how much space there was, along with privacy. You could really seclude yourself from the rest of the beach crowd.
The walk to the ocean was a mere few steps, making it easy to get back and forth.
As for the beach itself, it was a beautiful set up and any concerns I had of it being crowded was quickly forgotten.
The beach is quite large, and they spread people around quite nicely. We had just a few people in the ocean near us, so there was no issue with overcrowding.
I was equally satisfied with the level of service. I never felt like I "lost" my server, and they checked in quite regularly.
Of course, this was not a cheap shore excursion. Paying $1200 for a villa rental is not inexpensive, but I really felt like it was worth the cost given the quality of the space, and service provided.
The reason to book this villa is if you have a group and want premium seating with lots of privacy and service to go with it.
Without a doubt you can have a great time at Turquoise Bay with just beach chairs and beer in hand, but everyone has different tastes.
Given the villa has sliding glass doors and is totally enclosed, I wish they'd add air conditioning to the units. I think that would really elevate the experience and justify the cost even more.
Anyone looking for a beautiful beach to enjoy in Roatan will enjoy Turquoise Bay, and if you want a VIP type day, the premium villa is a great choice.
