RiveraCruise

There is a scam in St. Maarten that I want everyone to know about... first a short background story. We are a family of 4... with a teenage girl and a teenage boy. We have been to St. Maarten in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2022. Each year we have hired a local named Leo Brown to be our driver / tour guide. In the five years we have known Leo Brown he has become more of a family member than just a friend. Every year, we end up at Maho beach to watch the planes land at the airport (if you don't know what I'm talking about, you haven't been to Maho beach). Likewise, every year we end up having lunch at SUNSET BAR & RESTAURANT at the end of the beach. This year (April 2022) my son was interested in getting his hair (about 7 inches long) braided by beach vendors. These vendors are NOT associated with the restaurant and there is a sign stating this. I followed my son towards the beach where a Jamaican lady asks us if we would like his hair braided. My son says "yes", and we proceed to a chair where he sits down and, once he is looked at by the lady, I ask her "How much will it cost?" Her answer is "Seventy ($70) dollars for the top and additional for the bottom". I reply with "OK, let's start with the top and I will let you know about the bottom when the top is done." She starts braiding. Two... yes, you read that correctly... TWO hours later she finishes the top and asked me if she should continue to do the bottom. Because of time, I said, "No. We are good." I follow it with, "How much to I owe you?" She says, "Fifty-nine braids at five dollars a braid is THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS." Again, you read that correctly... THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS. I reply with "you said it would be $70!!!" She repeats her $300 statement. I stand up and walk to the restaurant to get my two nuclear bombs... my wife and Leo Brown. I get to the table and tell them that the lady wants to charge me $300 for something she said would cost $70 (which is still too much but something I had agreed to). Before I am done telling them, Leo Brown, followed by my wife, are heading to the beach. As Leo Brown is asking the lady how she is capable of scamming us, my wife is telling her to take ALL the braids out. The lady replies with, "OK, I will just taker the $70." My wife replies with, "You either take them all out or I will... but you're not getting a penny from us." Mama Bear and Leo Brown were phenomenal. Other than our time spent sitting on the beach getting my son's hair braided, we lost nothing. After another 30 minutes, the lady finally finished removing all the braids and walked away saying, "Have a nice day. Enjoy my 70 dollars." My reply was, "We will. And I will give an extra $70 to Leo Brown." In the five years we have known Leo Brown, we have never seen him this upset. He was upset because he is a proud local from Sint Maarten and does not want any tourist (the number ONE revenue source for the island) to get scammed by anyone... locals or non-locals. I am sure the lady said it would be $300 because this scam has worked before. Tourists beware. My advice is not to get your hair braided at Maho beach. However, if you want to, please make sure you have the INITAL conversation when the lady tells you the price ON VIDEO. This way, when she changes the price at the end (and she will), you can show them the video of your agreement. Best of luck with your future trip.

Just want to listen to radio and or music from a website like MUSI... which one do you recommend? VOOM Surf + Stream Package OR VOOM Surf Internet Package?

sweet. Thanks.

I hear you. Question to Forum: If tickets are purchased for Coco Cay and then, 2-3 days prior to arriving at the island, we decide we don't want or can't have these tickets anymore. can we go to the on-board service desk and ask for a refund or credit for other on-board purchases... like CHOPS or WONDERLAND, or INTERNET or SPA... ?

Thank you for your speedy reply. After a little more research, I saw this on the RC website. Thanks again.

According to the RC website, they require a negative COVID test for travel and you are required to test no more than 2 to 3 days before your sail date. We are sailing on 4/16 (Saturday) out of Miami. We arrive in Miami two days early on the night of 4/14. I am sure local CVS and Walgreens Pharmacies will be booked for COVID19 test required by RC to sail. We are aware that RC offers test at the dock but they are (a rip-off of) $99 per test (there are 4 of us). We are looking for options and wanted this blog's advise. Here is my question: If we take the test on WEDNESDAY (4/13) in our state before our flight on Thursday to Miami, would that be within the 2-3 days before the sail date of 4/16? My math says "YES" (at 3 days) but wanted to check with this forum to see if anyone had sailed with a 4+ day old test that was accepted at the dock the day of sailing. Thanks in advance.

Same here. It's like dangling a carrot in front on them when they see the slides but then, the wait is a total turn-off.

If I called the theater (4x) and asked them if they had special seating for people with bad backs and they said "sure... those seats are never sold out, especially with one screening (ship) arriving at 75% capacity and then I arrived to find out they were sold out, yes, I'd be pissed. Bad back prevented me from purchasing tickets before I got answers from RC. Unfortunately, all the answers from RC (the owners of the ship AND the island) were wrong. They were lying because of the 4 calls I made and asked them 4 times if we were the ONLY ship docked that day, ALL 4 reps said YES. Only through this blog did I finally get the truth.

Thank you all for your replies... this RC blog community is pretty awesome. Here is my update from my original post this morning: Well, it's amazing to me that after 4 calls TO ROYAL CARIBBEAN to ask them if SotS was going to be the only ship at Coco Cay on the 4/22, the truthful answers were given to me by THIS blog community. Thank you. ALL 4 calls to RC, I was given the answer that YES, SotS was the only ship on Coco Cay on the 22nd of April. This also led them to tell me that I could wait to purchase my Thrill Waterpark tickets during the cruise or the day-of disembarking at Coco Cay. This morning, the website showed they were SOLD OUT. Which led to another call to RC. After a lengthy call (1hr, 40min) a truthful answer, that Odyssey was also going to be there was given to us. Nevertheless, a solution may have been reached. Like many of you, we have been waiting for this cruise for 2 years. It is a shame (but pretty amazing at the same time) that in order to get the TRUE answers to our RC questions, we had to rely on this blog community because RC themselves did not have a clue. Thank you all for your support and your comments. A big shout-out also goes out to the amazing two ladies that helped us out on this 5th and hopefully final call to RC.

we will be there on the 22nd of April (Symphony of the Seas).

Thanks. I am hoping for success. Everything seems to be sold out at coco cay for this day... except the floating mats. This trip has been postyponed for two years and it seems like nothing is going as planned. May be last cruise on RC for a while.

Thanks for your reply. According to RC, we will be the only ship docked at Coco Cay on that day. This leads me to believe it's a marketing ploy to get you to purchase NOW. Hopefully, I'm not in trouble with my wife and kids. Reason we didn't purchase earlier was because we were attempting to find out if we (adults with back problems) had to purchase a ticket to enter thrill waterpark to see the kids slide down the waterslides. Thanks again for your reply.

We (family of 4) are getting ready for our cruise the week of 4/16. Day 7 is a stop at Coco Cay. Went to RC website to purchase Thrill Waterpark tickets. It says they are SOLD OUT. I (husband and father), am in deep doo-doo. Has anyone ever experienced this BUT have been able to purchase either later online or onboard? As of two weeks ago, RC said that we are the only ship at Coco Cay that day and ship is 75% at capacity. Not sure I believe they are sold out. Please HELP!

I am sure this question has been asked... but here it goes in case anyone has heard of changes. We are two (older) parents with two teenage kids headed to Coco Cay in mid April 2022. Kids want to go to Thrill Waterpark and we (parents) want to join them but CAN'T go on any slides this park has to offer for medical reasons (back problems). We (parents) would just be sitting on a lounge chair the entire time the kids are in the Thrill Waterpark. Here's the question: Do we have to purchase FOUR tickets or can we just purchase TWO but still join them INSIDE the waterpark?

April 24, 2019 A week ago we (a family of four) were fortunate enough to visit Sint Maarten (Saint Martin) for a third straight year. And for a third straight year, we hired Leo Brown to be our private driver. Three years ago, we looked into booking a tour through the ship's excursion office. Now, there's nothing wrong with booking an excursion through RC but we wanted more. What we got was a lot more. We decided to research a few months before on how to hire a private driver. We found Leo Brown on the internet. He was recommended by previous travelers. We called him up and hired him for the day. The idea was that we would pay him the same amount that RC was going to charge us for their excursion. However, hiring Leo Brown has more benefits: a) You are helping the economy directly. All money you spend is going into local's pockets. Booking an excursion means that RC gets a percentage. b) More time on the island. The RC excursion will bring you back to the ship hours before it's set to sail. With a private driver, you get more time on the island for the same amount of money. c) You choose where you want to go. If the kid's wanted to go snorkeling, Leo Brown would take us to a great beach... if the kid's wanted big waves, Leo Brown would take us to another beach... when we got hungry, Leo Brown took us to the French side for delicious food cooked in a local and authentic island restaurant... Want amazing views for the family picture?, Leo Brown will drive you to one of the highest parts on the island so you can take that picture. d) Leo Brown is proud. The first time we met Leo Brown, he drove us around the entire island (Dutch and French side). He is a proud lifelong resident of Sint Maarten and it shows. Needless to say, we also learned quite a bit about the island through Leo. e) If you hire Leo Brown, you are it. No mini-bus filled with other passengers going to the same place where you will then have to wait in line and keep your eyes on the time in order to get back in line to board the mini-bus and get shuttled back to the ship. With Leo Brown, you are on "YOUR TIME". You tell Leo Brown what time the ship leaves, and he will have you back. Like I said before, this is our third straight year visiting Sint Maarten and hiring Leo Brown. Unfortunately, our plans for next year do not take us back to this wonderful island. However, if you are planning a trip to Sint Maarten (Saint Martin) via cruise ship or flying in, we HIGHLY recommend hiring Leo Brown. Leo Brown: (721) 553-4290 note: if you arrive by cruise ship, you will need to walk out of the cruise pier area to meet Leo Brown. There is a taxi area inside the pier terminal but Leo will be waiting just outside. You will see many passengers exiting here because it is a short distance to the town area. The attached picture is Leo Brown and his wonderful wife and daughter along with myself and my two kids.

good to know... I'm on the same boat (literally) with 2 kids. They still don't know they are going until we are at the dock. They think we are just going to FLA from Massachusetts to get away from the cold during school vacation. I booked this family trip Feb 2016. Its been a long 13 months and these last 22 days seem like a lifetime... for me!! Good to know they can board the minute they see the ship and not have to wait until 1:30.