owlgiveahoottravel@gmail.com
631-745-4103

Owl Give a Hoot Travel

Garden Of The Groves And City Tour

Day Trip, Group Tour

Offer Image
This all inclusive half day tour includes a guided city tour, a visit to the famous Garden of the Groves gardens and shopping at Port Lucaya Market Place.

Garden of the Groves and City Tour

A grand half day awaits on this fun-filled Grand Bahamas City Tour that includes Garden of the Groves and much, much more!

This narrated bus ride will first take you through the industrial area of Grand Bahama. Unfortunately, the island suffered significant damage from Hurricane Dorian in 2019; however, as you ride through the area, you will witness the ongoing recovery efforts to restore the affected areas. Get a first-hand look at the resiliency of the people of the island as they continue to rebuild during challenging circumstances from one of the most devastating hurricanes to ever hit the island.

Your first stop and the highlight of this excursion is the Garden of the Groves, which fared surprisingly well during the hurricane. Here you'll explore winding trails through lush vegetation, cascading waterfalls, and sparkling fountains. Visit the picturesque chapel, which has been consecrated and is a favorite place for weddings, prayer, and meditation. Explore the Garden Shoppes and discover the sacred beauty of the Labyrinth.

At Garden of the Groves, indigenous and migratory birds and butterflies take insects from the many newly planted flowers and shrubs. Since the Garden was re-opened, it has been certified as a Wildlife Habitat by the U.S. Wildlife Federation. This means the new operators are providing the four basic habitat elements needed for wildlife to thrive: food, water, cover, and places to raise young. You can take a walk down into the cool fern grove and admire the imposing limestone boulders that tower over both sides of the trail, or relax on the "Lofty Fig" deck, where you will have the opportunity to purchase local delicacies and cool Bahamian drinks.

From there, this Freeport cruise tour takes you to the famous Port Lucaya Marketplace, a collection of twelve island-style buildings nestled on a five-acre peninsula, which overlooks one of the most complete Marinas in The Bahamas. Stroll among the eighty specialty stores, boutiques, restaurants, outdoor and indoor bars and cafes. You'll find the most luxurious and respected names in jewelry, china, crystal, perfume, and designer apparel and accessories, all at duty-free prices. Should you opt not to explore the marketplace, you also have the option of spending approximately 45 minutes at the nearby Lucaya Beach--a white-sand coastline, which is perfect for sunbathing and swimming.

Afterwards, as you make your way back to the cruise ship, you'll be taken through Royal Palm Way, which was also once known as Millionaire's Row. View some of the local residential areas while also getting a glimpse of the famous Cooper's Castle. This 46-acre property is situated on the island's highest point of elevation and has become a local symbol of determination and hard work. The castle owner, Reverend Harvard Cooper, was born into a poor family in 1931. As an adult, he became a successful entrepreneur and owned franchises in the Bahamas for Kentucky Fried Chicken, Burger King, and Pizza Hut, in addition to other businesses that included a chicken farm. To this day, his family still lives in the estate.

Guests wishing to stay longer at the Market Place or Lucaya Beach, are responsible for their own transportation back to the pier. Taxi shuttles run between the market (or the beach) and pier most of the day.

Please Note: This tour is only for guests arriving in Freeport via cruise ship.

Interests
  • Gardens, Foliage, and Nature
Starting At
 
Tour Type
Group
 
Group Size
Standard
 
Activity Type(s)
Eco, Nature
 
Tour Duration
4 Hours
 
Activity Level
Easy
 
Tour Leaves From
An approximately 5 to 10 minute walk from the cruise ship pier.
 
Food/Beverage Provided
None
 
Special Instructions
We recommend wearing comfortable clothing and sensible walking shoes. Sunglasses and sunscreen are also suggested.
 
Restrictions
Guests must be able to walk over paved, gravel, wooden planked, and packed dirt surfaces.
Location Overview
Freeport
About Shore Excursions Group
Shore Excursions Group logo

About Us
Shore Excursions Group is the market leading and world's largest shore excursion company. Since 2008, we've provided cruise passengers with higher-quality, lower-priced, and smaller group shore excursions from a portfolio of nearly 4,000 tours in over 300 ports. Over the last 16 years, we've delivered more than 4.6M excursions with a 4.7 out of 5 star rating from more than 47k reviews.

Exceptional travel experiences are created by exceptional people. Our incredible team of cruise and travel experts has more than 100 years of combined industry experience, and we work in close collaboration with a network of exceptional tour operator partners dedicated to providing personalized and immersive excursions to cruise passengers in the ports they visit around the world.

Our excursions are higher quality, lower priced, and travel in smaller groups averaging just 12 guests per departure, allowing our guests to truly connect with the local culture and enjoy a more enriching travel experience. Our website provides a personalized shopping experience highlighting the top-rated and most popular excursions in each port of call with authentic photos, videos, and reviews from other guests.

Our proprietary itinerary search technology makes booking easy by displaying the excursions guaranteed to work for your ship's scheduled arrival and departure into each port of call. We also feature hand-curated multi-port packages with the top-rated excursion for each port bundled together at an additional discount.

Our Unique Approach
While the cruise lines and other companies also offer excursions, we are the experts and our experience and approach set us apart. Our exceptional excursions travel in smaller groups and visit more interesting and authentic locations, using more personalized tour guides.

Our team uses a comprehensive approach to select the leading guides and best tour providers around the world. Every excursion is carefully curated and closely monitored through quality control and customer feedback.

In today's fast paced world, vacations are an important way to relax, reconnect with family and friends, and discover new and interesting places - and our portfolio of the highest quality tours was created to provide authentic and rewarding travel experiences on your next trip.

High quality service is very important to travelers and leads to better experiences with higher satisfaction. We encourage you to call us, so our experts can answer your questions and help you select the best excursions for your cruise.

Our Exceptional Tours
Our priority is providing cruise guests with exciting and enriching tours with personalized service and smaller groups.

Our small group tours range from 2-12 people - far less than other tour companies with larger tours up to 50 people. We also offer outstanding private excursions - exclusive experiences for only you and your group with options to fully customize your tour.

Our "Scenic" tours provide up close and personal access to some of the most spectacular natural environments on Earth from majestic glaciers in Alaska to spectacular reefs in the Caribbean.

Our "Cultural" tours allow customers to experience local customs, entertainment and culinary delights ranging from tribal dances in Alaska to an outstanding local meal in Santorini, Greece.

Our "Active" tours offer a multitude of exciting and adventurous ways to experience our destinations. Kayak the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, hike to a spectacular waterfall in Hawaii, or bicycle through quaint villages in France.

Our "City" tours allow travelers to see the highlights of great cities around the world with unique insights provided by our expert tour guides.

Our Guarantee
We stand by our excursions, and we're committed to meeting your expectations. Our team and our guides are dedicated to delivering exceptional experiences, which we've achieved consistently over many years and millions of tours. To the extent you are in any way dissatisfied with the experience we deliver, we will work to resolve your concerns - up to and including a full refund of your tour price. For more information visit the Shore Excursions Group website.

Read More

About Shore Excursions Group

About Us
Shore Excursions Group is the market leading and world's largest shore excursion company. Since 2008, we've provided cruise passengers with higher-quality, lower-priced, and smaller group shore excursions from a portfolio of nearly 4,000 tours in over 300 ports. Over the last 16 years, we've delivered more than 4.6M excursions with a 4.7 out of 5 star rating from more than 47k reviews.

Exceptional travel experiences are created by exceptional people. Our incredible team of cruise and travel experts has more than 100 years of combined industry experience, and we work in close collaboration with a network of exceptional tour operator partners dedicated to providing personalized and immersive excursions to cruise passengers in the ports they visit around the world.

Our excursions are higher quality, lower priced, and travel in smaller groups averaging just 12 guests per departure, allowing our guests to truly connect with the local culture and enjoy a more enriching travel experience. Our website provides a personalized shopping experience highlighting the top-rated and most popular excursions in each port of call with authentic photos, videos, and reviews from other guests.

Our proprietary itinerary search technology makes booking easy by displaying the excursions guaranteed to work for your ship's scheduled arrival and departure into each port of call. We also feature hand-curated multi-port packages with the top-rated excursion for each port bundled together at an additional discount.

Our Unique Approach
While the cruise lines and other companies also offer excursions, we are the experts and our experience and approach set us apart. Our exceptional excursions travel in smaller groups and visit more interesting and authentic locations, using more personalized tour guides.

Our team uses a comprehensive approach to select the leading guides and best tour providers around the world. Every excursion is carefully curated and closely monitored through quality control and customer feedback.

In today's fast paced world, vacations are an important way to relax, reconnect with family and friends, and discover new and interesting places - and our portfolio of the highest quality tours was created to provide authentic and rewarding travel experiences on your next trip.

High quality service is very important to travelers and leads to better experiences with higher satisfaction. We encourage you to call us, so our experts can answer your questions and help you select the best excursions for your cruise.

Our Exceptional Tours
Our priority is providing cruise guests with exciting and enriching tours with personalized service and smaller groups.

Our small group tours range from 2-12 people - far less than other tour companies with larger tours up to 50 people. We also offer outstanding private excursions - exclusive experiences for only you and your group with options to fully customize your tour.

Our "Scenic" tours provide up close and personal access to some of the most spectacular natural environments on Earth from majestic glaciers in Alaska to spectacular reefs in the Caribbean.

Our "Cultural" tours allow customers to experience local customs, entertainment and culinary delights ranging from tribal dances in Alaska to an outstanding local meal in Santorini, Greece.

Our "Active" tours offer a multitude of exciting and adventurous ways to experience our destinations. Kayak the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, hike to a spectacular waterfall in Hawaii, or bicycle through quaint villages in France.

Our "City" tours allow travelers to see the highlights of great cities around the world with unique insights provided by our expert tour guides.

Our Guarantee
We stand by our excursions, and we're committed to meeting your expectations. Our team and our guides are dedicated to delivering exceptional experiences, which we've achieved consistently over many years and millions of tours. To the extent you are in any way dissatisfied with the experience we deliver, we will work to resolve your concerns - up to and including a full refund of your tour price. For more information visit the Shore Excursions Group website.

Read More

Prices are per-person based on double occupancy, unless otherwise noted.