Hudson River Adventures

The cruise was a delightful way to spend two hours. It helps if the weather is warm and sunny so you can spend it on the outside deck. The narration was not too extensive and could have been more thorough about some other sites in view.

Our tour leader was passionately interested in Bannerman's Island and that interest and enthusiasm was very evident. He was not working from a canned tour spiel, but instead used a lifetime of his own experiences to present a very convincing presentation.

It was a wonderful experience. I recommend it for everyone who has any interest in local history of the New York Hudson River region. The walk on the Island was great. The guides were interesting and entusiastic and the length of time was perfect. The only suggestion that I have to improve the total experience involved the boat trip to the Island (and it is a relatively minor one). I would have liked some commentary about what we were seeing along the shoreline of the Hudson as we first got into the river. It would have made for an even better experience.

Interesting and fun trip. Don't let them scare you with the 72 steps - it's very sturdy wooden steps, with landings to break it up. Not as strenuous as you would think. There are, however, a couple of steep trails to traverse. As long as you don't have trouble getting around, you can do this. Knowledgeable guides make this an interesting and entertaining experience. Go and enjoy - and be sure to bring your camera - you'll get some great photos!

My trip with friends to Bannerman Island was an enjoyable afternoon. The short boat ride was scenic and the walk around the island and castle were a great way to spend a fall day. Although our guide was very knowledgeable about the history of the island, his talking portion of the tour could easily be shortened by 30 minutes. I'd have liked a brief history of the island and its inhabitants and more time to take photos. (He went into too much detail about military catalogs, "Webber grill" cannon balls, etc. and shared too many of his political beliefs.) I also would have liked to have seen more photos of the family and what the interiors were like.

We (all 19 of us) treated my Mom to an 80th birthday cruise last weekend. What a blast. Thanks so much for making her day special!

The crew was super freindly and accomidating the boat was clean and well maintained,the bar was fully stocked .and the sights were awsum !

Thank god we arrived about 45 minutes early. There aren't alot of seats outside on top. The cruise is accompanied by a pre-recorded tape describing the sights along the way. It was barely audible and they couldn't make it any louder after we complained. It's a very nice, large boat with drinks and soft drinks, pretzels, hot dogs etc. Had a very nice time but I wouldn't have enjoyed such a long ride being cooped up inside.

Enjoyed the tour.

Nice little get away from the city. Beautiful Hudson Americana with dedicated conservation staff who make the island and the castle come alive again. Not too long and not to short. Very nice. Also you can eat on the river after the tour at one of many local restaurants.

This was ag reat placeto visit and want to do it again. Ido however wish that they would allow some extra time to take in the sights! We felt a little rushed! Would be nice to be able to explore a lil on our own! I know this is a big leap but would be nice if they took the house and made it into a restaurant! It would deffiniitly be a BIG tourist spot! We are looing foward to going back for another visit!

This was a very classy tour. The boat ride was fun, and very comfortable. Our island guide was extremely knowledgeable, and very enthusiastic, providing a great deal of detail about the history of Bannerman and his island. I learned a lot. I very much appreciated the fact that the tour was exactly as described, and very professionally handled. Every part of the tour was exactly on time, as described. When they say the boat ride is 1/2 hour, the tour is 1.5 hours, and we'll be back by 4pm, they're not kidding. Two very minor criticisms: 1) As far as I could tell, there was no need for the helmets we were required to wear. I'm guessing the lawyers made them do that. Lawyers will be the death of us! 2) A video was shown on the boat ride. The sound portion of the video was easily intelligible and interesting, but the video portion was hard to see, partly because the monitors were small, and partly because the video was poor quality.

We enjoyed the trip but wish we had come sooner before the castle started falling apart. It would have been nicer to get closer to the ruins. I did not realize that we would have to stand at a distance to view the castle. Still we are glad we made the trip.

A little too much talking on the tour but other than that it was a great experience.

This was a wonderful excursion! The boat ride on the Poleipel was excellent. Seats were comfortable, ride was enjoyable and view of both Beacon and Newburgh sides of the river were outstanding! DVD presentationo on boat ride was an excellent overview of Bannerman's Island and the history of the Bannerman family along with folklore associated with the naming of the island.. The boatload of 48 was divided into two tour groups upon arrival. Our guide Steve and his wife Marge led the 24 of us and were nothing short of outstanding! You are lucky to have such engaging volunteers!. Each was clearly enthusiastic about the Bannerman family and its island; they were open to questions and made the overall trip the success it was! We will heartily recommend this trip to others! I can't think of a better way to spend a beautiful day on and in the Hudson! Congratulations to both the volunteers who give tours on the island and the professionalism and courtesy of the Poleipel crew! Thank you for a memorable trip! Joseph Czerwinski Exeter, RI