This was an unforgettable experience! I booked a private tour with a festive Christmas eve dinner... read more
This was an unforgettable experience! I booked a private tour with a festive Christmas eve dinner... read more
The trip into the nature reserve was astonishing. We got to see thousands of birds and wildlife in... read more
The taxi driver we also had for the Port of Spain city tour took us here in about 30 minutes. We hadn't prebooked, but found a seat in one of several rather big boats run by Nanan's. We later saw that there are companies, which run smaller boats for less people.
The boat trip feels crowded and not overly comfortable, also picture taking is not that easy, when everybody is standing up front, left and right doing the same at the same time. The boat was also of a size that one could not always well understand the guide's comments.
Despite all that we enjoyed the trip through the mangove swamps, just because of the sight of the many flocks of scarlet ibis, flying from all direction before sunset to roost on a rather small island. Spectacular!
We like to take our out-of-town guests on private boat tours of the Caroni swamp Bird Sanctuary, guided by Lester Nanan of Nanan's Tours. While the public tours are fine, a private boat gives you a much more personalized experience for a very reasonable price. As the son and grandson of the company's founders, Lester knows the history and animals of the Caroni Bird Sanctuary better than anyone. He makes a special effort to ensure that each guest has a chance to see the sometimes elusive animals that make the swamp their home. We saw silky anteaters, snakes, crabs, and dozens of bird species including several rarities for the swamp. Watching hundreds of scarlet ibis and great egrets flying in to roost for the evening is an experience not to be missed. The Caroni swamp is only about 30 minutes from the center of Port of Spain by car. Be sure to take a hat, sunscreen, sunglasses, insect repellent, camera, binoculars and a bird book if you have one. Take along a cooler with cold drinks to enjoy a "sundowner" while the birds come home to roost. An unforgettable experience.
Arrived late for the last tour but was offered a ride by a lovely couple and their friends on their own private boat ride which they had paid for. We were their guests. Had a great time. The tour guide was a really great guy. Had a great time with there.
However on the return my mother told me that she was asked to pay for our seats on the private boat ride. She had paid the owner the money he demanded. On our return we asked to pay the couple but mum told us she had already paid the guide operator. The couple demanded he return the money. He argued that he was in his right to demand payment from us even though the couple payed for the boat. He delayed returning the money and the couple waited until he finally did. He returned the money to my mother telling her she was "damn cheap". He was rude from the beginning and down to the end. He missed out on a big tip and any future tours with us and the couple, their families and friends.
My final say. .. try another operator who won't try to con you
In an effort to ensure that guests are afforded the opportunity to go on the boat tour, we make certain provisions and accommodations at ridiculously low prices.
In this particular instance, we allowed some friends of friends to go on the last boat by themselves at an extremely low price just to cover costs.
As they were about to depart, two guests turned up late and wanted a tour. Since there were no other boats and because our reps did not want to turn them away, the group was asked if they wouldn't mind if they were joined by the two guests.
Anyone boarding the boats must pay the fee...which is an extremely low $10 usd per adult for the tour.
One comparison, if a restaurant allows you to share a table with others, don't you still have to pay for your meal?
This was not a free tour for the late arrivals.
Our charitable gesture towards the group was rewarded by abuse on their return. Had they paid the full rate for chartering the boat, other considerations would have been effected.
What we realize is that when we bend over backwards to accommodate guests, there is little thought by guests as to the losses we incur as a result of our kindness nor is there any appreciation for the exceptions we make.
I had two visitors from England.... Paul and his charming wife. Paul loves to photograph birds, so though that is the perfect place for him.
Booking with Nanan Tours was easy (online ). I got a responce immediately.
The tour took aprox. 2 1/2 hrs..... It's a boat (flat bottom) tour where we went into the Caroni Swamp. We saw a couple of snakes Cooks tree boa, on the mangrove trees, and yes... some birds feeding.
The highlight was the birds..... Scarlet Ibis flying in to roost. We anchored about 600 meters and saw these flocks swooping inform all directions. Soon the greenery of the trees disappeared and was replaced by the birds color...scarlet. What a wonderful sight.
We had a great time canoeing through the swamp with Nanan Tours. The guide was really good at picking out all of the exciting creatures in Caroni and bringing us to the most epic sunset view!
One of a few tour companies on the Caroni swamp. Nanans seems to be well established and reliable. We called a couple of hours before the 4pm departure and got seats. They carry larger groups. Our boat had about 40 people. Guide/boatman was knowledgeable. It costs TT$ 60 per person. Get to the swamp departure area by 3:30pm. Boats leave at 4pm and are back just after 6pm. The scarlet ibises coming into roost are the stars of the show for sure. We also got to see other birds, snakes etc.