What's firstly amazing about Jungle Island is how missable it is after driving by it on this island…read moreFOR YEARS. Just makes finally having visiting this venue so much more special with how incredible it is. Secondly, amazing is how big it feels despite its size and location (granted, I visited at night for a special event, so your mileage may vary) - though I admit, the exhibits seem too small for some of their fauna inhabitants. Third and finally, visiting it for said special event, Luminosa, was ABSOLUTELY wondrous. Made the visit absolutely worth it (even if my bus almost missed the stop). Plus, the staff is so kind and accommodating. We as a society need to invest and support spaces and places like this that not only offer incredible experiences, but also give back to all its visitors and urban spaces they inhabit - even if they're on a small, missable island (jajaja).

Good afternoon I…read morewanted to State my concerns with the warfare of your animals currently residing at parrot jungle in downtown Miami. Two years ago, I was a scare actor at HorrorLand Miami, which has multiple violations and mistreatment of their actors when I worked there. My concern lays with having strobe lights, loud music loud noises going well past 10 PM sometimes 12 o'clock in the morning and having their animals visible during Haunted House hours. Which would be your goats who are out invisible in our harassed by the patron of the Haunted House, which can cause large amount of stress . To me as a patron and former employee of parrot jungle, I can see you do not have the animals best interest in mind. I would strongly suggest that you have a talk with the owners and managers of this Haunted House she can put the welfare and well-being of the animals as your top priority. Unfortunately, stress can kill birds very easily and I would not like to see your bird suffer because you want to have a Haunted House at your facility. Have a great day.

This was the boat we took from Miami to Cozumel, Belize and Harvest Cay…read more The boat is a pretty good size with plenty to do and great food options! This is the boat that had the delicious Asian restaurant that had dishes inspired by a handful of cultures (Korean, Japanese and Thai). There was plenty to do on days at sea. Marc (With a C) was very entertaining and did a great job keeping everyone entertained!

Our family had a great time on the Norwegian Escape for a 7 day cruise to the Bahamas, U.S. Virgin…read moreIslands, British Virgin Islands and the Dominican Republic. The restaurants were very good. My favorite was the hibachi and the steakhouse. But I really enjoyed attending Savor and Taste for our regular meals. Overall, we had great customer service on the cruise ship and we enjoyed the entertainment.

We love adventurous and thrilling rides! This ride was an…read moreadrenaline pumping and screaming ride of a lifetime on a speed boat! Our boat was going about 40 mph and making wild turns on the water. A word to the wise, if you don't want to get wet, then sit in the middle area and not the back. You will see the Port of Miami, the Miami downtown skyline, Star Island and Millionaires Row, Palm Island, Fisher Island, South Beach and speed to the Atlantic Ocean. Time it right and you will see the sunset. The Captain and crew are awesome and will give you great info. This is definitely something you want to do in Miami! Adult tickets, age 12+ are $45 and kids 3-11 are $35. Parking can be found at Bayside Marketplace Garage. Check Groupon for specials. You can show up and board fairly quickly. There are plenty of restaurants at Bayside if you are hungry afterwards.

This was one of the most disappointing experiences I've ever paid for…read more Calling this a "speedboat" tour is completely misleading. We spent about 40 minutes crawling at around 2 mph and only got about 5 minutes of actual speed. The rest of the ride was painfully slow. Because the boat barely moved, there was no wind at all, and we were stuck sitting in the scorching heat. When we complained, the manager didn't even try to help. Instead, she started yelling at us. She first claimed that higher speeds were "illegal" in the area. Then she also told us that the captain was still learning to operate the boat, as if that somehow justified the experience. I honestly don't understand what that has to do with the time and money I paid for. Customers shouldn't be paying full price to be part of someone's training. This felt like false advertising and a complete waste of time and money. If you're expecting a real speedboat ride, avoid this company and book somewhere else.

Tour time 7pm. Recommend in the hot dates, book the later…read moretour. 7pm was hot but cooled down as the sunset. Yes, arrive 30min early. Recommend on Fri-Sun, arrive really early to avoid all the traffic. We took an uber to avoid the parking lot and traffic. One negative experience was the (BLEEP) Language!!!! From the music!!! Wow!!! This is not a family boat ride! I was only offended when the person behind me was loud, dropping the N-bomb like 100 times, yelling, all while the tour guide was on the microphone sharing fun amazing experiences... The tour guide was 10/10. Just wish he would have told the man behind me to take the call downstairs. Also, I guess allowing music like 50 cent, and other artist that drop the f, b, and well every word, is just a warning if you bring kids. Can't get made is someone sings along dropping those explicit words. I play all sorts of genres in my car, house, headphones... I tend to avoid singing this aloud in public. So yes, that was why you don't get 5/5... the tour was great!! Wish they did their tours at night.

Whether you're a tourist or a local, I highly recommend Bayride Tours. Great way to see a nice side…read moreof Miami that's unseen by many. Located on the north end of Bayside, be sure to arrive early to start the wait if you wish to secure good seats on the upper deck for great views. Once the boat leaves the dock, they do open up the front area of the ship which I think is the best spot on the boat. For about $15, this tour is amazing as you cruise around seeing some unseen areas of Miami that not even locals may be able to see on the daily. Millionaire mansions and yachts owned by celebrities and billionaires can be seen. The tour guide does an amazing job narrating your cruise keeping you entertained. Highly Recommend the evening cruise we took to enjoy the sunset and breathtaking views of the city lights!

I had a great time! Captain Mike is in it for the right reasons--sharing his passion and knowledge…read morefor the Everglades--which makes it a really nice experience. The small boat is cool since you get to move quickly and drift around the turns. We saw big gators, baby gators, and several birds. I highly recommend it!

This was the second time I did one of River of Grass Adventure's boat tours. Both times, my guides…read more/ boat Captains were great. They are passionate about the Everglades, preserving it, and really love what they're doing. For about hour, we zipped and stopped around the park, through channels in between the high saw grass, over grassy flats, and within a few canals dredged many years ago. The fresh air felt great and I think maybe my blood pressure eased for a few moments. We saw wildlife, including a peregrine falcon, other birds and of course, many alligators, either resting on the grass or swimming off to do whatever it is they do. The guides I think know pretty much where to find the alligators, some of which have names. River of Grass is one of the first swamp tours west of Miami off of highway 41 past the casino. The boats take you pretty far into the Everglades where you don't see or hear any civilization, only the quiet rustle of the grass, i.e. when the engines are not powering the boat thru the glades (why can't they make a quieter engine?). The pictures I took really don't do it justice.

We spent over a week road tripping through Florida and on our way out of the state we drove past…read moreBuffalo Tigers Airboat Tours. It was late in the day and we had tried to do some Airboat Tours earlier in the week but we were traveling with our dog and they were not dog friendly. We decided to stop just to check and luckily for us, not only are they dog friendly but they were doing one last tour before the sunlight was gone. Our guide Fabian was awesome. He was super chill but informative and really did a great job. Especially considering that is was late in the day and he was only able to find one alligator. He definitely tried a lot of spots and it was clear that there would normally have been more wildlife to look as so even he seemed a bit disappointed but he definitely made the most of the birds and other wildlife that we did spot. There was a second alligator and even a baby gator when we arrived at the makeshift village stop that we watched swim in the water a bit. I really liked that Fabian was upfront about the fact that the "village" was just a replica for tourists and not really a relic. He also joked that he has a TV and it is nothing like how native people live today. We had a really nice time on the tour but it is incredibly loud and we spent some of the tour putting our headphones over our dogs ears to protect her from the sound. The office workers warned us about the noise though and they were so sweet they even offered to let her stay in the office with them while we took the tour. I definitely would not take her with us again if we did another tour, but only because I worried about her little ears. She did super well with everything else, including the gator being so close to us and getting on and off the boat. We spent well over $100 after tip on the tour for two people and a dog and it lasted about 45 minutes but I really feel like the experience was well worth the price and the employees here were just so friendly and kind. I highly recommend stopping here and taking a tour with this company.

What an amazing tour. I'm so glad that I chose this one, as the others in the area seemed a bit…read moremore built up/commercialized. Our air boat tour guide was Kenny who was a no frills kind of guy, gave us appropriate information, and answered all questions. Staff was really friendly overall and there was even a pizza spot on site for if anyone wanted food. We had the 5pm time slot so it was just myself, my husband, and another couple so a bit of a smaller crew. Saw multiple gators super close up and he even got one of them to open their mouths! Saw some cool wildlife as well. I honestly think this was the best time to go since we also got to see an amazing sunset reflected in the water. Overall, I would highly recommend!

The Empress is the smallest in the RCCL fleet, and maybe the oldest, with a recent total remodel…read more But some ports just can't handle the massive ships. The Empress is one of the few that is sailing to Cuba right now. Which I highly recommend seeing, and by ship it was just perfect. The itinerary allowed for two full days and an over night in Havana and time in Trinidad and Cienfuegos and the opposite site of the island. By doing it by ship you don't have to try to figure out airline flights in and out and which hotel is the most modern. But you are able to step off the ship just like walking out a hotel and enjoy the cities. The ship docks in the heart of the towns or you are tendered in. The rooms are a bit smaller, my was 20 square feet smaller. But didn't really care. It was always clean and freshened up twice a day with ice, water and clean towels. Sleep and shower is all you need a room for- get out and discover the WORLD !!! There is always plenty of choices on the 10th floor buffet or finer dining in the main dining room on the 5/6th floors- I recommend any time dining, you can eat when you are hungry. Several bars, a couple of small swimming pools, and a Megatron screen on deck to entertain you while on board. As well a a different show every night in the showroom. Cruising is a great way to discover and sample the world. Unpack once, wake up in a new city each day, and travel at night while you sleep. And I would easily sail this ship and itinerary again. PS- accepting new travel companions all the time, only requirement- a sense of adventure.

The idea of the cruises that you go to relax well for sure after 860 cruise from Miami to Cozumel…read morethe cost of the Ma The idea of the cruise is that you go to relax well for sure after a 60 cruise from Miami to Cozumel, Costa de Maya. There was certainly adequate time to lay around under the sun under the first deck with the only pool on the ship, seeing as this was the smallest ship available for this line I took it with a grain of salt what I didn't expect was how awful the food actually was, despise it being plated beautifully and served with grace and timing the flavor profile was watered down substantially so much that I typically enjoyed the buffet more than the places that made you pay. We did not opt for the alcohol package which I thought was a smart move on our part: (A) the ships alcohol by the bottle were so cheap! I'm talking 1L bottles of grade stuff! (B) the ice you got straight from the bar in drinks dissolved almost instantaneously anyways. Now if you tried to order a drink anytime on the cruise without getting the beverage package or alcohol package they would automatically charge an 18% gratuity keep in mind that the price is already jacked up to double what you would pay on your homeland. I'm talking nearly $28 for the total of two margaritas with the %. Some servers walked around the pool to give you extended bar service but if you requested a water with ice you would wait either half an hour or never get it at all. Rohit was kind enough to show me on two separate days. 750 people onboard with a 24 maximum room pool and 100 maximum people on deck chairs with only 10-20% of space taken up to be only forgotten after being approached for money. Rohit approached ME. then promptly forgot. If I had went out of my way to find him that's a different situation to me. But professionally if you go out to someone you should fulfill that request. I was taught to treat the CEO and the janitor the same.. but clearly they did not have that same training towards guests. Everyone on the ship and off the ship try to squeeze you for money and I always gave you a very expected but they don't care if you already paid for gratuity before you book the cruise. Also, when you first book the cruise online even though the ad says $500 there is going to be about a $200 tax involved The Wi-Fi package was an extra $122 per person and the Wi-Fi was better towards the top of the ship versus on the bottom. Luckily, this was a learning cruise for me. Also, you would think you could dig your toes in the sand, we didn't land anywhere near the beach. Not unless you paid north of $60 for the ride there and back, if you didn't book an excursion they would corral you into a spot with more of the same cheaply made souvenirs you can find in your local store or eBay. There are no street food vendors or locals near you. Also, they are so inauthentic in costa mayo and Cozumel that they will not accept peso over there US dollar. Very disappointing. Back to food, the last day the servers requested our feedback and I obliged. I waited for the manager to give me scripted responses with no real help. Waste of time.

Wasn't terribly impressed…read more Embarkation was fairly easy, even though your computer system went down for 20 minutes while the big crowd tried to check in. You staff in the terminal was nice and helpful The stateroom was adequate. We like inside staterooms due to the darkness of the room during the day and loving a good nap on vacation. Unfortunately, we were in room 8104 and it was the loudest room I have ever been in on a ship. It was crazy loud, including what sounded like some kind of ship repair going on with banging for hours and a loud saw cutting something (maybe a grinder?). Ridiculous amount of noise, day and night. I won't blame the ship for the drunk girls at 3:00am shouting in the hallway and banging on a door. Our room was serviced once, in three days (Fri-Mon). The food was disappointing to say the least. I have Celiacs disease and your food safety is awful. The only place I saw in the buffet that even mention gluten was in the Gluten Free Bakery section. Not a single other thing mentioned any allergy warning to gluten. I saw sporadic mentions/listings of nut and milk allergies throughout the buffet, but that was not consistent at all. I spoke with no less than 10 staff members about gluten in certain dishes, and not a single one even knew what I was talking about. Your food safety and allergen training is either awful or non-existent. I somehow ate some gluten and spent all day Sunday in horrible pain after beginning the horrible process on Grand Stirrup Cay, vomiting and other "fun" activities, leaving the island to come back and be in pain all day in my stateroom. Even if all that wasn't the best, the food was mediocre. I ended up eating eggs and bacon for breakfast and whatever chicken I could find to eat. The steak at the main dining room was passable at best. Another less than favorable review is the fact that you don't offer free drinks in the casino. I am sitting there betting a $60-$100 a hand at a table and being asked to pay $25 dollars for a bourbon and a Diet Coke. That is ridiculous and I would never have booked the cruise had I realized that in advance. What a terrible policy. Disembarkation was fine. We waited around for an hour or so before getting off the ship. I would like to give a shoutout to Anita, the bartender at the Mojito Bar. She is funny, engaging, delightful, and a great bartender. She was the highlight of an otherwise not-so-great cruise. The Ice Bar is a very "cool" experience, but the check-in was very hectic and took too long. The advertised $15 cover charge was actually $20, not sure how that happened. But I would recommend it and the bartender was very nice. The inside is gorgeous. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this ship or NCL. This was my first and probably my last cruise on NCL.

I've been on many NCL cruises, and this was the first time going on their "weekend" trips…read more It was a 3 night vacation, we left on Friday afternoon and arrived back in Miami port mi day morning 5am If you're looking for a quick get away to the warm climate, lots of sun and a great time, NCL does it right! This past weekend a group of friends did a trip together to the Bahamas, and we all had an amazing time. The amazing drink package, speciality dining, and shows and events that take place you will get your monies worth. There's always something to do, eat or drink on NCL!