Rancho Daimari ATV Tours

katherine · 04-20-2009, 02:21 PM

My husband would like to take our 5 year old son on an ATV tour - Rancho Daimari seems to have the best option that appears to allow children. i was reading that a couple of years ago a woman was killed on the tour, and someone was alleging that the guides were not first aid trained, they did not provide proper helmets and that the vehicles were unsafe. Does anyone have any experience with this tour company and know whether they are safe and reputable? Any info is appreciated. Thanks!

Randi · 04-20-2009, 02:42 PM

This topic has been discussed on this BB many times. There was a post (on this BB before it was revamped) from a woman's husband who was warning about the dangers of the ATV's. She was airlifted to Miami due to a severe head injury.

Go back and read some of the posts from people. IMO, I would not take a 5 year old on this type of tour. Not worth it, again IMO!

*Arubalisa* · 04-20-2009, 02:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randi

There was a post (on this BB before it was revamped) from a woman's husband who was warning about the dangers of the ATV's. She was airlifted to Miami due to a severe head injury.

http://www.aruba.com/forum/f7/atv-tours-read-3231/

More ATV info
http://www.aruba.com/forum/tags/atv.html

We used Kini Kini for a tour with our 12 year old. She rode with her Dad and held on tight.

Kini Kini's helmets were fine. We tried them on until we had one which fit "just right".

As a note, if you do decide to take a tour, wear "disposable clothes". I had a white t-shirt that no amount of bleach could remove the dirt. Sneakers were trashed as well. Dh wore water shoes on his feet and that worked out much better. And of course, gobs of sunscreen, especially the tops of your legs and shoulders.

katherine · 04-20-2009, 03:39 PM

Thank you for the info!! I checked out the Kini Kini website and sent them an email regarding a private 1/2 day tour. I am hoping that if we pay for a private tour and the 5 year old cannot handle a full 4 hours that they can cut it short. I am thinking 4 hours out in the heat will be a long time for him, which is why the Rancho Daimari appealed to us initially, they have a 2 hour tour.

jpsphr · 04-22-2009, 10:53 PM

I would NOT take a 5 year old on the Rancho Daimari ATV tour. It's fine for adults (mostly) but not appropriate for a 5 year old. We took the tour today. It was a lot of fun, and the scenery is spectacular. The Rancho Daimari people are friendly enough, but there are a few safety issues to consider. The helmets are in need of upgrade. The only child's helmet I saw was a bicycle variety - not good enough for an open off road vehicle that does 35 miles per hour. Also, the "instructions" from our guide lasted about 1 minute. He watched us circle the dirt parking lot and waved for us to follow him, at about 20 mph up a hill. Thankfully, the 7 people in our group seemed adept enough, but a true beginner would have a problem keeping up. Our guide did slow down every so often to insure people were keeping up.

All in all, we enjoyed the trip and felt it was one of the better activities we've done in Aruba. For a five year old, I'd probably opt for a Jeep tour instead.

Randi · 04-23-2009, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arubalisa

http://www.aruba.com/forum/f7/atv-tours-read-3231/

More ATV info
http://www.aruba.com/forum/tags/atv.html

We used Kini Kini for a tour with our 12 year old. She rode with her Dad and held on tight.

Kini Kini's helmets were fine. We tried them on until we had one which fit "just right".

If a 12 year old had to hold on tight, do you think a 5 year old might have trouble?

Don't take a chance and have your trip ruined if anything happens, not worth it, IMO!

Graham Flanagan · 04-23-2009, 10:52 AM

There are many reputable company's that provide ATV tours of the island. My personal favourite is Kini Kini and they provided me with a fantastic tour of the island (probably the best that I have had in all of my years going to Aruba).

That being said, I would not take a 5 year old on an ATV trip as it would be far too dangerous for them. A five year old would not be able to hold on to someone on some of the rougher parts of the tour e.g. the "path" to the Natural Pool. Indeed, there were a few times that I almost turned my ATV while on the tour (and I have been on an ATV before). Turning an ATV/falling off an ATV at even a slow speed could result in serious injury to the driver and or passenger aboard the ATV. Any type of injury would ruin your vacation.

I would suggest that you plan a jeep trip instead or rent a car/jeep and bring a car seat with you (or rent a car seat from the rental agency) to make sure your little one is safe. If you really want to take an ATV tour, I would suggest that you leave your child in the care of a baby sitter while you go on the tour yourself.

One last point, safety is the main reason why some tour companies do not allow children on ATV tours. I have to question how seriously a tour company takes safety if they allow young children on their ATV tours.

Randi · 04-23-2009, 11:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by graham flanagan

there are many reputable company's that provide atv tours of the island. My personal favourite is kini kini and they provided me with a fantastic tour of the island (probably the best that i have had in all of my years going to aruba).

That being said, i would not take a 5 year old on an atv trip as it would be far too dangerous for them. A five year old would not be able to hold on to someone on some of the rougher parts of the tour e.g. The "path" to the natural pool. Indeed, there were a few times that i almost turned my atv while on the tour (and i have been on an atv before). Turning an atv/falling off an atv at even a slow speed could result in serious injury to the driver and or passenger aboard the atv. Any type of injury would ruin your vacation.

I would suggest that you plan a jeep trip instead or rent a car/jeep and bring a car seat with you (or rent a car seat from the rental agency) to make sure your little one is safe. If you really want to take an atv tour, i would suggest that you leave your child in the care of a baby sitter while you go on the tour yourself.

One last point, safety is the main reason why some tour companies do not allow children on atv tours. I have to question how seriously a tour company takes safety if they allow young children on their atv tours.

very well said!

*Arubalisa* · 04-23-2009, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randi

If a 12 year old had to hold on tight, do you think a 5 year old might have trouble?

Don't take a chance and have your trip ruined if anything happens, not worth it, IMO!

Randi, poor choice of words on my part. You would have to know my dd.

We forced her to go on this trip. She would have been just as happy to stay in the swimming pool. So now she has seen the Natural Pool, our only reason for taking the trip anyway, and we never have to do it again.

Thank you again Graham for the suggestion.

Imo, katherine is a well spoken woman, who has made it obvious in other posts that she cares very much about her children.

She will make the decision she feels is best for her and her family...

Randi · 04-23-2009, 01:29 PM

Arubalisa, everyone does what they think is best, of course!

She was asking for input, I guess she got it!

04-20-2009, 02:21 PM	#1 (permalink)
katherine Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 78 Images: 1	Rancho Daimari ATV Tours My husband would like to take our 5 year old son on an ATV tour - Rancho Daimari seems to have the best option that appears to allow children. i was reading that a couple of years ago a woman was killed on the tour, and someone was alleging that the guides were not first aid trained, they did not provide proper helmets and that the vehicles were unsafe. Does anyone have any experience with this tour company and know whether they are safe and reputable? Any info is appreciated. Thanks! __________________ katherine Next Aruba Trip in

04-20-2009, 02:42 PM	#2 (permalink)
Randi Senior Member Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 1,043 Images: 9	This topic has been discussed on this BB many times. There was a post (on this BB before it was revamped) from a woman's husband who was warning about the dangers of the ATV's. She was airlifted to Miami due to a severe head injury. Go back and read some of the posts from people. IMO, I would not take a 5 year old on this type of tour. Not worth it, again IMO! __________________ *Randi* *HOPING AVIS IS TRUE TO ITS WORD! SEE POSTINGS!* http://www.aruba.com/forum/f38/avis-deals-read-own-risk-if-sounds-too-good-true-38383/index6.html http://www.aruba.com/forum/f38/who-has-received-avis-rental-car-special-39053/#post141559 Next Aruba trip in

04-20-2009, 03:39 PM	#4 (permalink)
katherine Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 78 Images: 1	Thank you for the info!! I checked out the Kini Kini website and sent them an email regarding a private 1/2 day tour. I am hoping that if we pay for a private tour and the 5 year old cannot handle a full 4 hours that they can cut it short. I am thinking 4 hours out in the heat will be a long time for him, which is why the Rancho Daimari appealed to us initially, they have a 2 hour tour. __________________ katherine Next Aruba Trip in

04-23-2009, 10:52 AM	#7 (permalink)
Graham Flanagan Senior Member Join Date: May 2007 Age: 39 Posts: 115	I would not suggest an ATV trip with a 5 year old. There are many reputable company's that provide ATV tours of the island. My personal favourite is Kini Kini and they provided me with a fantastic tour of the island (probably the best that I have had in all of my years going to Aruba). That being said, I would not take a 5 year old on an ATV trip as it would be far too dangerous for them. A five year old would not be able to hold on to someone on some of the rougher parts of the tour e.g. the "path" to the Natural Pool. Indeed, there were a few times that I almost turned my ATV while on the tour (and I have been on an ATV before). Turning an ATV/falling off an ATV at even a slow speed could result in serious injury to the driver and or passenger aboard the ATV. Any type of injury would ruin your vacation. I would suggest that you plan a jeep trip instead or rent a car/jeep and bring a car seat with you (or rent a car seat from the rental agency) to make sure your little one is safe. If you really want to take an ATV tour, I would suggest that you leave your child in the care of a baby sitter while you go on the tour yourself. One last point, safety is the main reason why some tour companies do not allow children on ATV tours. I have to question how seriously a tour company takes safety if they allow young children on their ATV tours.

04-23-2009, 01:29 PM	#10 (permalink)
Randi Senior Member Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 1,043 Images: 9	Arubalisa, everyone does what they think is best, of course! She was asking for input, I guess she got it! __________________ *Randi* *HOPING AVIS IS TRUE TO ITS WORD! SEE POSTINGS!* http://www.aruba.com/forum/f38/avis-deals-read-own-risk-if-sounds-too-good-true-38383/index6.html http://www.aruba.com/forum/f38/who-has-received-avis-rental-car-special-39053/#post141559 Next Aruba trip in

04-22-2009, 10:53 PM	#5 (permalink)
jpsphr Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Boca Catalina Beach Posts: 26 Images: 9	I would NOT take a 5 year old on the Rancho Daimari ATV tour. It's fine for adults (mostly) but not appropriate for a 5 year old. We took the tour today. It was a lot of fun, and the scenery is spectacular. The Rancho Daimari people are friendly enough, but there are a few safety issues to consider. The helmets are in need of upgrade. The only child's helmet I saw was a bicycle variety - not good enough for an open off road vehicle that does 35 miles per hour. Also, the "instructions" from our guide lasted about 1 minute. He watched us circle the dirt parking lot and waved for us to follow him, at about 20 mph up a hill. Thankfully, the 7 people in our group seemed adept enough, but a true beginner would have a problem keeping up. Our guide did slow down every so often to insure people were keeping up. All in all, we enjoyed the trip and felt it was one of the better activities we've done in Aruba. For a five year old, I'd probably opt for a Jeep tour instead.