A ‘unique amphibious tour’ of Saipan
The new DUKW vehicle of Island Turtle Tours is shown parked at the Fiesta Resort & Spa Saipan. The vessel is the only original DUKW remaining for commercial operations and should be expected to receive customers as early as Jan. 2. (Michael T. Santos)
Saipan’s tourism industry has a new player named Island Turtle Tours, an amphibious vehicle that transports its passengers around Saipan and Managaha while giving historical information of landmarks along their path.
Island Turtle Tours operates under an exclusive sales agreement with Century Tours/Saipan Adventures. Their vessel, called Woody, is one of the very few original DUKW vehicles that are used for commercial operations. ITT chief operating officer Michael Dilley bought the vehicle from a vendor in Chicago that specializes in them. The DUKW vehicles were used during World War II to transport soldiers and cargo to and from the frontlines.
“There are no others of these original DUKWs in the region and only a very few left operating commercially or in the world for that matter,” said Ed Arriola Jr., Century Tours marketing manager. “It’s a great addition to the image of the CNMI as well as for the new products that Century Tours currently has such as Let’s Go Tours and the soon to be re-opened Seatouch at the Fiesta Resort and Spa.”
Turtle Tours was founded by Oliver “Pete” Shilling, Ivan Ilmov, and Michael Dilley.
Inspiration came from riding a DUKW during a simple family trip to Guam by the Dilley family.
“We’re very proud. We still have a lot of work to do and we’ve come a long way with our vessel, Woody. It’s like we have a new baby and he/she is finally coming of age to the world and it gives us a lot of pride,” said Dilley.
ITT operates the only authentic 1945 un-modified military DUKW in the whole of the Pacific region.
“You don’t only get to see the history but physically feel and experience it the way the military did back in 1943 and 1945 here on the island,” said Dilley.
Life jackets and fire extinguishers are always available within the entire duration of the trip, along with pumps to release 300 gallons of water per minute in case of any leakage.
Turtle Tours expects to start operating by Jan. 2. A year was spent refurbishing the vehicle as well as training its staff.
“We just want to do everything right,” Dilley said. “From the facility environment to the equipment, we spared no expense in the making of our business.”
There is another company that operates a similar type of amphibious land/water product, but Dilley wishea to remind the public they are nothing alike.
“The two vehicles are completely different in their construction and operation. The competitors’ operation is based on “Ride the Duck’s style of operations. We are just two different types of operations completely,” he said.
Steven Connor, office manager, said, “This is just one additional thing tourists can do on island that offers a very unique experience they can’t find anywhere else.”
Tickets start at $45 per person. Duration of the tour is about one hour and children under 2 years old are free, 2-11 costs $30, and all those over the age of 11 go for $35. One can call 235-3716 or email moi.cnmi@gmail.com to make a reservation. To inquire about the product, visit the Saipan Adventures office at either Kanoa Resort in Chalan Kanoa or Fiesta Resort & Spa in the heart of Garapan.
JFYI, there are very numerous tours using these across the US, From Boston, Mass. Branson Missouri, Atlanta, Kentucky, Chicago, Phoenix, Nevada and more. Even Singapore. Even in Oahu, Hawaii. ALL surplus WWII. ALL of them have to comply with US Coast Guard regulations and also have to have USCG Licensed operators (Captains)
There are also some of these vehicles available sitting in Sand Island that need a lot of work to restore. I was looking into this a few years ago but did not seem plausible for investment recovery, also neither did Guam as most of the Japanese are into diving and charter fishing plus the water is not feasible most of the time. Only Cocos Island when the Japanese had the lease.
You are so correct, their are a lot of these types of tours all around the world. They are fun and all are unique in their own way based on what the tour operators put into them for their customers to enjoy. To our knowledge their is only one place which still runs the original DUKW unmodified vessels which is in the United States, on the Dell’s River, they were the 1st almost 60 years ago and still operating them till today. Most others from around the world utilize similar vessels which were made to look nearly the same but were re manufactured by either “Ride the Ducks” which build their own for the franchise from the ground up or their are several other people who take the original chassis and then build everything else on top of it from scratch, this often allows for automatic transmissions, power steering, and in some case’s even Air-Conditioning, which all make the driving of these much – much easier and more relaxing for the captains and passengers. On the back side of that same coin though, you get a lot of overheating due to the use of Diesel engines with more power, the change of the original drive shaft configuration into the hull, the taking out of the original 2 types of mechanical bilge pump’s which have the ability to drain the incoming water faster then a broken seal can let it in. The other things we find in these clone or aftermarket units are no front brakes and often the drive shaft on the center axle has been removed and they operate in 4 wheel drive instead of six wheel drive like the original ones. Both types have their good and bad, but as we wanted to focus on history we chose to use the unmodified original type, which turned out to be cheaper & more reliable to purchase then one of the after market types or going with the franchise price. These are wonderful machines, although built to only last 6 months during war time, being able to drive one 70 years later is truly awesome and a testament to their original production, as these original & aftermarket types are now disappearing into history and most companies are now using special built larc v types of amphibious vessels or the enclosed buss type’s of which are being built in Europe and more specifically France have gained great notoriety with these types of tour operations. Offering no canopy and fully enclosed amphibious fun for all for the next generations.