Pitons adventure - We had an incredible tour! Bucket list worthy! This is a challenging hike, but well worth it. I didn’t realize the tour didn’t include the entrance fee, so just be mindful of that and it is far from the port (about a 2 hour ride). So it’s best to allow PLENTY of time. You can also rent walking sticks for $5 (Definitely worth it) Our driver was fantastic, knowledgeable, friendly and an amazing navigator! We were pressed for time and she did an amazing job getting us back to the port in time. We made it back to the ship with other cruisers cheering us on from their balconies. I want to give a special thanks to her!!

Unfinished Business! - Hiking the Pitons - “Unfinished Business” This review is at the request of Ada McGlone Lester. We booked a private tour through St. Lu Taxis and Tours. Upon exiting the ship promptly at 9:30am, we made our way to the taxi area where our driver Richard had a sign with our last name. We quickly found his van and off we went. The drive is around 1 hour and 45 minutes. Inasmuch as we watched YouTube videos to be adequately prepared, a time constraint was not one of the pre-excursion factors. Richard, who was born on St. Lucia, but also served in the US Army, was full of information on the island as well as the surrounding islands. Over our three hours in the van round trip, we learned more about St. Lucia than our prior two visits combined. As a side note, we took the ‘eastern’ route there and ‘western’ route back, which you can see on the maps screenshot I took at the beginning of the trail. We arrived at the base of the Pitons and were assigned a guide that works for the Foundation. It’s $50 a person to hike and that money is used for everything down to guide uniforms. Of the 3,200+ passengers onboard, a grand total of 6 (including us as 2) attempted to make the climb. This should have been a sign, but being a dumb American this was our DESTINY. Our Guide Abigail showed us the washroom, made sure we had an adequate amount of water and off we went… The trail is broken down into 4 quarters, each becoming progressively more difficult as you make the trek. Leaving at 11:22am and having to be back to our van no later than 3:00pm we had 3 hours and 38 minutes to climb the mountain. At this point you fully comprehend what 2 hours up and 2 hours down AT A GOOD PACE really means… At the first 1/4 stopping point we knew. You slowly start working through the five stages of grief as your body gets worn down, you are sweating more than you are drinking water and the usage of your hands on the rocks increases. But between 1/4 and 1/2 you still have HOPE. And while hope is a powerful thing, it can only take you so far in the game of the Pitons. After a long hour+ grind we made it to the 1/2 way point were ran into 3 out of 4 of our fellow cruisers. The lone 1 was giving their all to making it to the top. At this point Abigail had to break us the news this was it. Mathematics was not our friend and we could go no further. Nooooo! I tried the stage of bargaining to little reception and slowly worked my brain into the final stage, acceptance. This was it, if we continue, make it to the top, hopefully, and miss the ship all aboard time. Nooooo! After a few pictures with a stunning view, back down we started… Now going down has its own set of challenges, but we made it with one break. Once we said our goodbye's to our trusted guide, we named this adventure “unfinished business” as we will be returning to complete the task. Richard got us back to our ship and after a second set of goodbye’s and a thank you for his service to our Country we hit a couple shops and back on the ship. Upon arriving to our cabin, our incredible Head Butler AG had a much needed cheese plate waiting. Sometimes it really pays to share your upcoming plans. This is being written at the Martini Bar before we give Fine Cut on The Beyond a try. Another food review to come later… Cheers from The Beyond where the score is Pitons: 1 Us: 0. Safe travels…

Great Experience - Richard was an amazing driver! He gave us so much history and information on the ride to Gros Piton! He has a great personality and is so much fun!

Our driver Raffi was terrific. The... - <p>Our driver Raffi was terrific. The pitons were great and our 7 year old had no trouble with the hike at all. Do to the time constraint with our cruise ship we only made it to the 1/2 way point but it didn't compromise the enjoyment of the trip at all. We loved it.</p>

Worth it for the views - Please be warned there is an entrance fee to gros piton not included in this purchase! We got caught out but luckily had some money on us. The hike itself was absolutely stunning, as you walk through some lovely forest and get some lovely views. It is very steep with big steps and rocks and can be strenuous in places. The tour guide for the hike (not our driver) appeared quite grumpy and most of the time was ahead of us. We cannot fault our taxi driver, he pointed out places of interest along route and was happy to stop along the way for us to take photos. Overall was worth doing 🙂

One rock climbing adventure for sure. Challenging climbing / hiking is what you will get. - This is more of a rock climbing event than a hike. Don't expect a smooth steep path. It is basically a steep set of rocks to traverse with some paths in between. The stopping areas are nice and offer amazing views. If you are up for a serious cardio challenge and have strong knees and ankles, go for it. Getting to the top would be worth it. But a leisurly hike it is not.

We enjoyed the Gros Piton hike and... - <p>We enjoyed the Gros Piton hike and the ride worked well. The hike is quite strenuous and be sure to take water. It is well worth the time and work as the views are amazing. Our tour guide was not the best. I saw other groups with more fun and talkative tour guides. This is the luck of the draw. Overall still a fun day for us.</p>

This tour is a taxi to the park and back - Hike is amazing! But this tour just buys you the taxi there - it’s an additional 50 per person for the mandated guide. Pay attention to the pricing. Taxi driver was very nice.

Definitely Go but don't book with Viator - The EXPERIENCE itself was GREAT! But, I would never book with Viator again. I feel like we paid too much since Viator did not provide a tour guide or anything other than transportation and 2 bottles of water. Our hotel offered a guide, transportation and tickets to the Park for less money. You are better off booking this with your hotel in St. Lucia OR just paying for transportation and going with a guide provided by the park itself. The fine print on the Viator booking was contradictory. On one part of the document it stated that entrance fee was included, on the same document it said they were not. The park did not honor our tickets with Viator and we paid an ADDITIONAL $100 to get into the park and the tour was provided by a park tour guide, as they all are. Sometimes during busy times the guides are hard to come by, so if you DO have a trip with a guide from your hotel or other tour guide it might be safer to do that, but know before you go and reserve. I was pretty ticked off that $205 was not covering all that was expected. The price of the entrance fee not included should be CLEARLY stated on the Viator 'ticket'. As for the actual tour itself, it was wonderful and our guide was very kind and even offered to carry my 2 liter bottle that the driver gave us which we were not prepared for. Definitely have sturdy shoes, a back pack and snacks. It is nice (but not expected) to share snacks with other guides (one actually asked me for some when they saw I had several that I brought with me and I ended up sharing with all the guides up there- luckily our hotel failed to provide an early departure breakfast for us and our taxi driver who was really nice, stopped at a grocery store for us and I had gotten enough to sustain us and a few others). It is a STRENUOUS hike and takes at least 1.5 hours up and one hour down, some areas of scramble. The offer walking sticks to rent at $5 each. I have never used one, so I didn't feel comfortable. If I was familiar with their use, I could see them to be helpful for the joints. The return is hard on the knees. We took 2 hours and 15 up and 1 hr. 30 coming back. The views are spectacular and it is well worth the time and expense, and the windy roads that are stomach churning to get there (dramamine is encouraged if motion sickness bothers you).

Worst day of our lives. Total SCAM and you might die or get in a car crash - This company is a SCAM. They charged me for a private tour and hike of the Gros Piton and all they did was drive me there and back. I had to pay for the actual hike in addition. Their driving was very dangerous and we almost got into a crash and fell down a ravene. We thought we were going to die. Also they took pictures of us without consent. I have requested a partial refund and they sent me a letter refusing to do so. I will be suing them, Viator and Trip Advisor for what I consider one of the worst days of our lives.