To sum up Captain Thomas with one phrase: “he gets what it’s all about!”

Our experience started the day before we were supposed to go on our excursion, with large uncertainty, due to a potential high winds weather prediction, which is obviously something out of Capt. Thomas’ control.

He made sure to reach out and communicate the possibility of having to cancel the trip. There were two concerns: a) the coast guard would take the decision out of his hands, and b) even if we were cleared, he wanted to make sure the wavey sea wouldn’t make it a miserable experience, especially since we had relatively young kids with us. In the end, he checked out the conditions the morning of, and felt comfortable enough to recommend proceeding with the trip.

Capt. Thomas continued managing our expectations perfectly. He explained that the sea turtles have started migrating to Africa, so the sighting’s frequency has declined. Sure enough though, we got to see a turtle surface for air right at the beginning and it was amazing!

We continued on to see the site where the turtles lay their eggs (aka “Turtle Island”) and then going to visit the various caves. We made several stops where our family could swim in the gorgeous colored water and explore the caves.

His demeanor is very friendly and laid back. We never felt pressured to move from a location we were swimming in, just so we could get to the next stop. In the end, despite the wavey waters, we were able to visit all but one of the planned sites and our family couldn’t be happier with the experience.

When we were almost done with the trip, we stopped at a local harbor for some lunch at a place he recommended.

The cherry on top was that we got to see one more turtle surface a couple times without any other boats around us clammoring for the same experience, right before he dropped us off back where we started.

If there is a downside to this experience, it’s that it happened in the beginning of our vacation and unfortunately it will be extremely hard to top it with the rest of our plans.

Capt. Thomas, if you end up reading this, thanks again for one of the most wonderful and surreal experiences of our lives!