Disappointing Experience
I'll start with the Good: - Boat was fairly clean - Nice shade for the kids - Some fruit was provided - They cleaned the fish at the end Now the Bad: - We requested that we did NOT want to troll all day and that we had 4 young kids who would get very bored with trolling... guess what happened, we trolled for 3/4 of the day and only in the middle when I started complaining did they do some bottom fishing. We caught a few TINY snapper, grouper, and blue runners. - We only bottom fished for 1 hour because they ran out of bait because they thought we were trolling all day. - The reason why we ended up trolling all day was because the person we're communicating with on FishingBooker is NOT the captain of the boat but their booking agent who speaks English, while the actual captain spoke very little English. - Outside of trolling, the fishing was very cookie cutter, they would take you to points A,B,C,D and hope there's fish there. If not, they just troll around to pass the time. There's ZERO personalization. - The equipment was old and used up, rods and reels were low quality, the trolling lures were chewed up, color half gone. - The captain and mates don't actually seem like fishermen, they seem like tour operators. - If you just want a cookie cutter experience to past the time and bend the rod on fish that happen to be at the points A,B,C,D it can be okay. If you want anything more personalized, or memorable, or have specific requests, book a place that actually listens with a captain that respects your time and money.
Hello Dennis: It's me Jose Vizcaino. Please let me tell you!! I am the owner of Guanacaste Adventure Tours. I own 2 boats and 1 Transportation Van. Naturally, I do most of the bookings. My company accommodates clients for both Fishingbookers.com and Boatbookers.com. Currently, Guanacaste Adventure Tours is rated #1 by Fishingbookers. We also books land Tours in all of Guanacaste Province. We make every effort to make each trip memorable and successful. As an experienced fisherman, I'm sure you agree that there are unsuccessful, disappointing days as well. Normally, a half day fishing trip is 4 hours. We always stay out for 5 hours at no extra charge. That’s what we do. It sets us apart from the rest. Our gear is well maintained. The rods are cleaned after each trip and the reels are cleaned and lubricated. Any broken or discolored jigs are discarded. Our Captains and first mates are professional fisherman. They have lived here in Playa Hermosa all their lives, carrying on what their families have done for generations. We do our best to work with the young children on the boat. We allot the majority of the time to trolling, because the adults want to catch the “Big ones". Unfortunately, as you stated, most children get bored with trolling. One child in your group got “sea sick" and the captain suggested going into shore at a calm beach, to which he was told, “no, that won’t be necessary”. We did ask. During another tour, while bottom fishing a young child hooked a fish and almost lost the pole and reel overboard. Luckily the captain was able to retrieve the pole and help the child. That’s what we do. We understand that it is disappointing that you didn’t catch any “Big ones", but the fish you did catch, were cleaned by the crew. We are glad you enjoyed the fresh fruits provided by the crew. The crew was happy to have you and your family on board and sincerely want to thank you for the very generous “Tip” you gave them.💰😁👍 Sincerely yours, Guanacaste Adventure Tours Jose Vizcaino, Owner
