ONCRUISEMODE

45 plus TX for 1 adult

That is a great price. Thank you.

Has anyone used the luggage valet on celebrity summit? If so how does it work? It seems like a great deal because our flight is not until 630pm and we didn't want to deal with keeping up with it. Thanks in advance for your replies!

Hi,

Did you go on your cruise? I was wondering if you found our answer as we are leaving on the Summit in December. Thank you.

I have use Alamo they were OK. The only problem that I had with them was their E-z pass they told me that I own them $50 for the E-Z pass I do not know if I use that much in tolls. I know I went to the other side of Puerto Rico. I ask them to send me the receipt of the tolls that I made and they told me that they do not do that. So next time I go I will not use E-Z pass. When I went it cost $20 to get to the cruise port from the airport and $1 a bag.

Hi JCool...we are thinking of also renting a car to go away from San Juan. We are going to be there 2 nights before the cruise. Do you think it is worth taking a day trip or just staying in the area? Thank you.

We plan to be in San Juan for 3 days prior to our cruise.

 

We will be flying in from Toronto.

 

Would we be able to rent a car at the airport and drop off at the Cruise terminal?

 

Which terminal will Carnival use when we embark?

 

Thanks!

Your question is exactly what I am wondering about. We are cruising from Pam Am Terminal in December. Have you gone on your trip yet? What did you find out? Thanks.

On our last PR cruise disembarkation, we shared a taxi to the airport

with a great couple we met on the ship. The four of us all had late flights.

We simply checked in our baggage at the airport, then took another taxi

into Old Town for the day. Had a great time touring, a nice lunch, some

Margaritas, and then back to the airport in time for our flight that we

were already checked in for.

 

BTW: Don't be surprised if this thread gets moved to the ports

section.

Dear Island Lady,

I think your idea is grand. However will the airline let you check in your baggage 10 hours before your flight? We have a 6:30 PM flight.

Thanks...

Found this on trip advisor and looks like a nice place to go:

 

We were in San Juan on a cruise and booked an excursion here for the day. The package came with chairs, umbrellas, 6 drinks per person and lunch. First, the setting is perfect. You are right on a beautiful section of beach that is not crowded. Our waiter, Ronnie, was 5 star. He couldn't do enough to take care of us. He was always there asking if we needed anything. At one point my wife got up to take something to the trash. Ronnie literally ran over to intercept her so he could take it to the trash and she could sit back down. And the lunch! It was fantastic! The restaurant, Pamelas, obviously knows how to prepare great meals. My wife had the red snapper which was fantastic. My son and I had a beef wrap with Argentinian beef that was delicious. And the Pina Coladas may be the best we have ever had. Of course, we had access to a nice restroom. And the kids and I did a little swimming in the ocean. All in all it was a perfect day at a perfect place. We highly recommend it if you are in San Juan. And if you go, seek out Ronnie. He will definitely take care of you.

Thank you for the recommendation. Do you remember what you paid?

Lydia

 

Feel free to e mail me at marymcgol1 at gmail dot com with any questions. We were on Infinity last March - great cruise, with lots of wonderful experiences. We were apprehensive re: Callao/Lima and thus decided to go with private tour rather than doing it ourselves. In fact, the only ports that we didn't do it on our own were Ushuaia, Puerto Montt, Valparaiso and Lima. It was a great trip!!

 

Mary

You will get mail....within 15 minutes. Thank you.

Lydia

Lydia, We were on Celebrity in March, 2014. We took the shuttle to the port gate and then met our driver and guide at the gate. We went into Lima, went to the Franciscan monastery, walked through the main square and had a Pisco Sour at the Grand Hotel Bolivar. We then went to Barranco for a view of the coast line and Miraflores for a quick stop at the Love sculpture. There is a lot of traffic in the area and we were ultra cautious about getting back to the ship in time, so we didn't stay longer in Miraflores. It turned out to be a fairly quick ride back to the ship and we were back almost 2 hours earlier than we needed to be! I think it would be inefficient to shuttle to and from Miraflore and then go from Miraflores into the city, a circle route would be a better use of your time. We normally like to tour independently, but this was one port where we felt the private tour made more sense.

Mary,

So you went a year after we are going. I do appreciate your information. I was very delayed in researching the ports. Like you, we normally do our own thing or get a taxi driver with a bunch of others at the port. However, Lima was overwhelming especially since taxis are not all honest, the fact that Callao is considered not safe, how difficult it can be to get to the gate from the ship, no real info on whether there is a free shuttle to town, etc.

So I am looking at a driver/guide. I actually have 3 that I am seriously considering. My favorite is very expensive unless we have 8 people. I posted on CC the option to come with us and no one responded...I did noticed that most people booked their tours a year ago.

So we will probably go with a guide with just my husband and me. I will keep in mind what you said about doing a circle and the traffic.

Do you think it is worth going to Miraflores? We were thinking of just doing the City tour and the Franciscan Monastery and Catacombs and the Larco Museum that has a real popular cafe and gift shop. Any advice on what to do. Thank you so much for your assistance.

Lydia from North Florida

Lydia, We were on Celebrity in March, 2014. We took the shuttle to the port gate and then met our driver and guide at the gate. We went into Lima, went to the Franciscan monastery, walked through the main square and had a Pisco Sour at the Grand Hotel Bolivar. We then went to Barranco for a view of the coast line and Miraflores for a quick stop at the Love sculpture. There is a lot of traffic in the area and we were ultra cautious about getting back to the ship in time, so we didn't stay longer in Miraflores. It turned out to be a fairly quick ride back to the ship and we were back almost 2 hours earlier than we needed to be! I think it would be inefficient to shuttle to and from Miraflore and then go from Miraflores into the city, a circle route would be a better use of your time. We normally like to tour independently, but this was one port where we felt the private tour made more sense.

Mary,

I noticed that you are on CC so I am sending you an email ...in 2 or 3 minutes in reply to your appreciated assistance.

just remember you will have to somehow make your way from the ship to the port gate. There are shuttles thru the port but our experience both times we were there was they are small and not many of them.

 

Some taxi companies are allowed to come into the port but not sure which. I am sure the ship will have more details when you get on about it.

 

Great place to end your voyage. I would love to spend more time here.

 

Vickie

This is a question for Vicki and anyone else who may have first hand information.

We are going to be on the Celebrity Infinity on March 20th for a one day stop in Lime for nine hours.

Vicki,

Thank you for the wonderful information you provided and blog. However, I am still a wee bit confused since the port doesn't seem to have the same procedures.

I noticed that you mentioned that Princess has an independent transport to Miraflores for $35. However, it was also mentioned that sometimes the cruise lines offer transport to Miraflores for free. Additionally, Sterns offers free transportation to Miraflores.

So here is the question: Should I just try to get the free shuttle to Miraflores. Spend some time there on our own and then meet a driver somewhere in Miraflores for a tour to the historical center. Then go back to Miraflores for the free transport back?

Thank you in advance for any assistance.

Lydia

I second the vote for kayaks! We just did this last week and had an amazing time.

 

I prearranged a cab driver (I did a google search, but if you PM me I will give you his contact info)and we paid him when he returned to pick us up (his idea). Oz, the owner of Caribbean Paddling, even called the cab driver to make sure he was coming.

 

It was a simply wonderful day in paradise.

Hi I would love the name and number for the cab driver. However, I do not know how I can PM you. In fact, is it really possible?

If you have an opportunity, could you send the info via email me > my address is with my signature. Thank you.

Thank you! I took a lot of pictures snorkeling but didn't add them all. This was one of my favorites. :)

It would definitely win an award....

I don't think they were expecting to see me...

 

.

I was showing my DH your blog and he and I just love this picture. You could enter it in a photo contest and win....

You're questions are good questions and I am understanding them. That's what I like about CC, there is usually help from other members and believe me, I needed plenty of it. :) I also had to ask for help in getting pictures posted and it took me a while to get the hang of it.

 

Yes, when I did my review I just started a new thread. Since we were on a Carnival cruise, I started the thread in the Carnival section of CC. There is a also a section for "reviews", but that's for basic reviews. The picture reviews that are like blogs or stories of vacations are usually posted in the specific cruise line boards (there is a section for each cruise line). I had the text part typed up in a Word document then cut and pasted into CC to make it easier. For inserting pictures, just add the link to them from Photobucket, or other hosting site, into CC where you want to place them within the text portion. When I wrote about a specific thing we did, like our day in Pinel Island, I added the pictures from Photobucket right below the text that talked about a specific thing. For an example, when I wrote about our snorkeling in Pinel Island, I'd have the specific paragraph describing what we saw then added the link to those specific pictures from Photobucket right below that paragraph. Each post will allow up to six pictures and the smiley faces count as pictures. I found that out when I had six photo pictures added but may have also used a "smiley face" and when I went to submit the post, I received the message that only six pictures were allowed per post. I'd either have to remove a picture and use it in my next post or delete the smiley face. I think there is also help on CC, when you first get in on how to post, add comments, answer multiple comments, etc. Before I attempted my first review (the one from our Valor cruise), I had read so many different reviews, so I was able to figure out how to do it. It is time consuming but it's also fun and a great way to relive your trip.

 

The reviews shouldn't be deleted by CC but if they are inactive, you may have to do a "search" for it after a while. I did my Valor review in September 2013 and it still pops up now and then when someone reading has a question or just leaves a comment. There are reviews from several years ago that will still pop up to the first few pages and I've also done searches on a few that I really enjoyed just to read them again, and they are still there.

 

If you have more questions or need more help when you go to write yours when you get back, just let me know (post here) and I can provide my home email to help you out in a more detailed way if you'd like. I don't mind. I hope you have a wonderful trip and enjoy it to the fullest. :)

Boy pghsteelerfan, did I truly appreciate your comment. I am going to cut and paste your notes so I have them readily when we get back. It took a lot of your time to be so very through and words can't explain how much I value your expertise. I hope we get to travel together one day. My husband and I do want to extend our snorkel hobby. Hopefully we can take a cruise together in the future. He doesn't get sick on a ferry. Only when we took a boat to go snorkeling and the boat stops and then bobs back and forth. However, it didn't happen in Bora Bora because it was a lagoon and we were on a catamaran. We also have some pills that an Australian couple gave him that we will try in the future if we take a boat to go snorkeling again.

My email address is in my signature if you want to send it to me. If you want, you can let me know if you have other cruises planned.

Have a lovely day and know that someone in Florida really appreciates you. I also noticed that because of your post, someone else will be going to Pinel Island....

I'm sure you will have a wonderful time and Pinel Island is one of my favorite spots in St. Maarten/St. Martin. We were there on our honeymoon in 1992 on a cruise line sponsored snorkeling/beach break excursion and there was nothing there, not even a lounger, and we put our towels in the sand. They now have plenty of loungers, two restaurants (I believe), hiking trails to the top with great views all around and the thing we liked is that it was not crowded at all. My husband wanted to see something "new" this time but I talked him into it and he was so happy we went. There is a ferry ride (it's actually a regular boat) to get to Pinel Island but it's only a 10 minute ride, so I don't know if that would be long enough to bring on motion sickness or not.

 

The blog I have is a cruise review to share with others on CC since I've read & enjoyed so many reviews by others. I wanted to "pay it forward" because reviews have really helped us plan our past two cruises and have given us some wonderful ideas for things to see and do that we probably wouldn't have known about otherwise and hope that mine has helped others or at least given them some ideas. The reviews will stay in CC and most reviews are posted in the "Cruiseline" boards here in CC. I have noticed it's nice to have it so I can look back to it to either relive our cruise or to jog my memory if there is something I've forgotten. I still spend time reading reviews by others and really enjoy them.

 

To upload the pictures you'll need a "hosting site". Some use Shutterfly and I normally do, but for some reason I have been unable to get pictures to post from Shutterfly onto CC. I have been using Photobucket but use it specifically for pictures that I'll share here on CC. You'll get a limited amount of storage for free but once you reach that limit, there is a charge. It isn't too expensive. That's the only downside for me since Shutterfly does not charge to store photos, no matter how many you have. It may be our computer and may work for you since it does work for others. I'd try it before Photobucket since it is free. With Photobucket, uploaded into Photobucket, they can easily be uploaded to CC. When you bring an individual picture up, usually by clicking on it, you'll have options for sharing in a box that appears on the right side of your picture. It will say "Share Links" and there are four options in the box. They are: EMail & IM; Direct; HTML; and IMG. IMG is what you need and all you need to do is click in the box (it will have the URL) and once you click on that, the box will appear "yellow" and inside will say "copied" and then just copy into CC where you'd like to put your picture. The easiest way to do it is to have the CC window and the Photobucket window open on your computer and it will go much quicker.

 

For some great details and instructions for posting pictures, there is another CC section titled "Digital Photography & Cruise Technology" and in that board is a section titled "Photo and Camera Discussions". There was a thread started by another CC member asking how to post pictures, so there are several pages of responses and others new to posting pictures can "practice" or "test" post there. I'll attach the link directly to that thread for your convenience since there are some that included very easy and specific details. Here's that link: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1714741

 

You don't have long at all to wait for your cruise. I hope you have a wonderful time and great weather. I'd love to go on the Allure or her sister ship, the Oasis, one of these days. A friend of mine was on Oasis earlier this year and he and his family loved it.

Thank you for the link on Digital Photograpy and Cruise Technology. I will spend some time on that when we return. Right now I have been busy with our upcoming trip. However, I am not sure about how I can post a review like you did on cruise critic. The ones I saw were like a format and you answered some questions but I didn't see a place to insert pictures.

Did you just start a new thread? How do you know that your notes and pictures will be kept by CC? I would hate to have them removed in 5 years.

I hope you understand my questions and once again, thanks for all the support you have offered.

la

I guess I should clarify decent a little better. The day before we arrived in St. Maarten/St. Martin, they had heavy rains. It was all day rain, not the typical "passing shower". We had beautiful weather the whole day we were in St. Maarten/St. Martin but because of the previous day's rains, the clarity in the water wasn't the best so visibility wasn't as good as it normally is and the gal who runs the snorkel hut let us know that in advance. The water was calm in the protected area that's between Pinel Island and Cul de Sac/Orient Bay. That area has some coral but mostly grasses. Once around the side of Pinel Island is where there are more rocks and a variety of corals and fish but that is where the current picked up (nothing we couldn't handle), the water was choppy and we were bobbing around a lot, making it difficult to stay in one spot to really get a good look and since we weren't seeing much do to the bobbing around and low visibility, we just headed back for some beach time. Normally, snorkeling is supposed to be very good especially around that other side. It is also roped off for protection for snorkelers. There are also areas right along the beach on both sides of the sand bar that are also calm and you can snorkel there as well. If you were interested in seeing the pictures I got while snorkeling in Pinel Island, I did a review of that trip and it's in my signature (Carnival Valor - Southern Caribbean - May 2013) and those pictures are on Page 16 of the review. Even though I took pictures from the area around the side of the island, none of those came out (water clarity/too much movement from currents and bobbing around), so I didn't include them. The pictures I have are from the calmer area that had some coral and mostly grasses but again, with the clarity wasn't the best. But I would definitely recommend the snorkeling there.

 

We only get the opportunity to snorkel while on cruises and I'd say from other areas we've snorkeled, Pinel Island was above average. It's much better than the Underwater Snorkeling trail in Trunk Bay, St. John (2010 cruise). We did a lot of snorkeling in Sapphire Beach in St. Thomas and really enjoyed it, but Pinel Island was probably better (better variety of fish and corals). Our favorite spot was in St. Lucia at Jalousie Beach (beach between the Pitons) and we were kind of spoiled by that. We did our snorkeling early, before a lot of the other groups started showing up and it was the most interesting we've seen with a lot of different kinds of fish and coral, very colorful coral. I have heard that the water clarity gets poor at Jalousie Beach later in the day when a lot of the larger tour groups arrive since the water gets stirred up but it was very clear when we snorkeled earlier. I hope this helps and if you decide to go to Pinel Island, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. It is very pretty there.

Thank you so very much for the pictures and the information. I would go snorkeling at Pinal Island if I saw 1/2 of what you showed in the pictures. They are fantastic. So that is what we plan to do on the 11th of December when we are there.

Snorkeling is amazing. I never thought I could participate because I wear glasses now. Well I learned about RX. snorkel mask (mine were a bit expensive since I have astigmatism) but I went for it. The first time I snorkeled, I was hooked. The only problem is that hubby get sea sick real easy like he did when we were in Maui (on a cruise). We booked a snorkeling tour. About 10% of folks were vomiting and DH was the worst. I was a little green so I couldn't eat the lunch or drink at all and it was included. So now I try to avoid snorkeling from a boat. On that same cruise we took a catamaran. It was in a lagoon, and DH didn't have a bit of trouble with it at all.

We were going to take a boat snorkel tour in Nassau when we go on the Allure next week, but decided against it. Someone gave DH some pills to take but we still decided not to go.

Like you, snorkeling is something we can only do when cruising. We live in North Florida.

Now, I have even more questions because of your blog on CC. I loved your blog but never considered keeping notes and pictures on CC because I thought that after a while they would no longer be there. Also, no matter how many times I have tried, I have yet learned how to download a picture to a post. If you have time to explain this, I would be most grateful.

Thank you for sharing your knowledge. la

Yes, there is snorkeling on Pinel Island. We thought it was decent. If you have your own gear, you could probably snorkel right from the beach. There is also a snorkel hut where snorkeling in that specific area is provided on your own or a guided tour where the gear is provided. I don't know what the exact charges would be for that since it was included in our private tour when in St. Maarten/St. Martin on our cruise in May 2013. We took the private tour for "peace of mind" to make sure that we'd have arranged transportation back to our ship.

Thank you for your information. You are right...it would provide peace of mind if one books a private tour.

If you don't mind, I have another question: what do you mean by the snorkeling was decent? Is it worth going to Pinel Island to go snorkeling? Thank you. la

Now mind you I have not been to that many beaches in St. Martin but I really like Divi and dislike Orient. I detest sitting in traffic. Most will tell you there are better beaches and that is probably true but Divi works for me. Nice beach, loungers, food and drink available and quiet.

Ruth

Is Divi good for snorkeling??? I am looking for a beach where we can snorkel. So far we are thinking of going to Pinel Island but the negative side of that is the distance and we want to do it on our own just in case the day is not suitable for snorkeling.

Things have changed in 10 years. We went to Pinel island for the day, this past Saturday. The taxis group those going to Pinel with those going to orient beach @ $8pp. The ferry leaves @ 9:30am and every half hour after that. Return ferry is every hour after 1pm. Ask your cab driver to pick you up at a certain time & someone will be waiting there for you. It has become a popular location. Our ship left at 5pm so we asked the cabbie to pick us up at 3pm. We took the 3pm ferry back -it's less than 10 minute ferry ride. Got back to the ship in plenty of time. Ferry is $10pp round trip. We had a FABULOUS day in paradise. Hope you enjoy it as well! :)

Did you snorkel there? We are interested in snorkeling and don't know if Pinel Island is noted for that...

Thank you.

QUOTE=gtaylor;44781779]For me, the absolute BEST thing in Marigot is the view from Fort Louis.

(click)

If you take a bus, it will be quite a climb up there, but if you're in a taxi, just have them drop you up the hill at the bottom of the final steps.

It should be an easy walk back down into the heart of Marigot to enjoy the rest of whatever you're looking for.

gary

Has anyone tried to get a driver for 4 hours ? I was wondering what they would charge.

La, these are just my personal opinions, I am not an expert on snorkeling STT and STJ, and everyone will offer different opinions.

 

I agree with posters in other threads that Trunk Bay (and even more so Cinnamon Bay) is very nice, but I don't agree that that's the best snorkeling STJ has to offer or that it's as good as it once was. It does have the underwater trail but it's also one of the busier beaches because it's touted so much. On a big ship day like yours you can find great snorkeling if you want to go further away from the crowds as noted in another thread.

 

You can also find very good snorkeling on the East End of STT. Our favorite spot is Sapphire with the reef and seagrass areas, and we'd recommend Secret Harbor as an alternative. Others consider Coki the best for off the beach snorkeling. So it's hard to choose one as the best. But yes, Coki and SH will be crowded that day, and although Sapphire has more room to spread out it could be busy as well.

 

I think you would be happy at any of these, and as long as your husband is ok on the 20 minute ferry from Red Hook to Cruz Bay, STJ, I'm sure you would enjoy your day at Trunk as it is beautiful. And the taxi and ferry transportation is part of the adventure. You will spend another 1.5 - 2 hours in travel time versus going to an East End beach, so for someone with just 8 hrs in port that's a consideration. I can say that we've rented at Sapphire and on days with 20k passengers in port we never felt crowded there. But we also spent some time on our balcony, and ya just never know from day to day.

 

If you want good snorkeling and also want to enjoy a nice, quiet beach while everyone else is on the other beaches consider Cowpet Bay (Elysian Beach). There are food & drink and restrooms, I'm just not sure about snorkel gear rental. If you need that perhaps someone else can help, or folks on the St Thomas forum on tripadvisor can.

 

Have you seen a map showing the beach locations? Doesn't help in choosing a beach but...

http://www.virginislandsthisweek.com/st-thomas/maps/st-thomas-island-road-map.html

 

Good luck!

La, here are a couple helpful reviews (out of hundreds here and on TA) that may help you decide. Keep in mind conditions vary from one day to another, and one person may not be able to enjoy one beach on a certain day. These are also personal opinions. But thanks to Mitsugirly and Slabeaume for taking the time to post these!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1280889

 

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g147404-i172-k6984499-A_snorkelers_review_of_St_Thomas-St_Thomas_U_S_Virgin_Islands.html

Blue Water....thank you for your opinion and for the two websites you provided. We were going to Sapphire Beach until we read in the last blog that the reef in Sapphire is further out....

Also, we loved the pictures the blogger took in Cowpet Beach.

So....we are going to Cowpet Beach and then maybe Sapphire Beach if we can easily get a cab there. We have our own snorkel gear...

I believe that a taxi is $10/pp to Cowpet from the cruise port. We will be docking in the new port. Do you think it would be difficult to get a taxi from Cowpet to Sapphire. Thank you for assisting us. As a result of our search, we decided not to take the $2.00 Shuttle. I notice that lots of CC members are so compassionate and assist one in seeing both sides of a discussion.

We decided that St. John was not worth the time being that we were only going to be there for a day. Again, thanks for helping us see that. My husband is ok on a ferry ...its when we take a snorkeling boat and then it bounces on the water.

However, Blue Water, I truly appreciate your assistance with giving information on all the beaches (that is how you came under my radar), including a link with a great map of STT and then taking the time to explain all the different beaches from a snorkeling point of view. Your last comment with the two references was awesome.

So Cowpet it is.... and a HUGE THANK YOU.

No, the Dec. 7 Eurodam.

Thanks....

I tend to get sea sick on snorkel boats too. Bonine works great - no seasickness or sleepiness. Actually I take it for a few days after cruises too, to get rid of that "still feel like I'm on the ship" feeling.

You are lucky that bonine works for you. However, maybe I don't give it to give soon enough. How far ahead do you take it. Its too late once he gets sick. Thanks for the advice. I also heard that melatonin works great with jet lag. I am aware that I changed the subject but one never knows when it may be needed. I have a document that states "cruise Notes". I add all these tips to it. Do you live in South Florida? I belong to a forum for FLL and Miami cruises. Please email me if you want to join. Its by invite only.

Lydia

You are so right to ask Scubagirrl!

Her advice is always totally accurate and to be to be trusted.

We are so lucky she takes her time to post here. :)

While not Scubagirrl, just a warning that the water temperatures in December can be on the chilly side in December.

LuLu

HI LuLu,

Scubagirrl was kind enough to email me directly. She is AWESOME. We are so lucky. I am going to do a snorkel boat tour with one of the companies she recommended. They have a real great rating on Trip Adviser. However, advice from Scubagirrl rates higher in my book than any website.

Yes, it will be cold. I read it averages 72 degrees water temp. However, I am so determine to snorkel. Poor hubby, he may get sick on the boat but we have an RX that may help....we decided its only 2 hours so its worth the try.

When we got off the ship, we walked outside the gate area. Taxis there were $10.00 pp and we were being cheap.

 

We walked to the left towards the KMart, about 15 minutes. On the left side, right before getting to the KMArt plaza, there was a small diagonal street. No markings, no bus stop, nothing. But a nice lady was there and we asked her where to catch the bus to Red Hook. She told us right there. Seconds later, along came an open-air bus/taxi. We asked the driver to make sure he was going to Red Hook. He was. $2.00 pp later and we were on our way.

 

15 minutes or so and we arrived at Red Hook. Tickets to St. John cost $14 pp round trip, CASH only. The ferry left every hour on the hour, exactly. A couple came at 10:01 and, though the ferry was still docked and the gangway still down, were not allowed to board.

 

I would love for Blue Waters or any one with experience provide info comparing Coki with Sapphire beach for snorkeling..... Thank you in Advance.

 

20 minutes or so and we arrived at Cruz Bay. We asked for a taxi to Trunk Bay and were directed right to one. $6.00 pp and we were on our way.

 

A few minutes or so and we arrived at Trunk Bay. We were there last October when the US Govt was shut down so there was no admittance fee. Usually the cost is $4.00 pp.

 

Trunk Bay was stunning. There was a lot of shade from trees avaiable as well as a lot of sunny sand. Though the govt was closed (2/3 of St. John is a national park) lifeguards were there, working for free because they were concerned about swimmers (the water was calm as can be!) and the washroom attendant was also there, also working for free, to keep the washrooms spotless. Though there was food and drink, and lounge chairs, none were available either due to the closing.

 

Five hours or so and we were ready to head back. We just reversed everything but after the taxi dropped us off at Cruz Bay we walked around some quaint shops. I bought some delicious spices at The Spice Shop right at the pier. Soon we were on the ferry and back at the ship about two hours before last embarkation time.

 

(About two hours into our sunbathing and water frolicking, the Carnival people were called to return to the street. We were shocked at the short amount of time they got to spend there, especially for the price paid.)

 

Total cost going on our own: $30.00 pp (add $4.00 pp now)

Total cost going with Carnival: $69.95 pp

 

Part of our adventures included running into people from the ship who were on their way to KMart because the woman forgot all her bras at home :o, sharing a bus seat on the way back to the ship with an odoriferous (think marijuana) local man :D as well as many high school kids. It was pretty cool to see that the kids on St. Thomas were no different than those on mainland US. Some texted on their phones, some worked on homework, some listened to mp3 music, some talked and laughed in groups, some yelled out to friends who were walking.

 

If/when we go back to St. Thomas, we are going back to St. John, using our adventurous method again.

 

Hope this helps. Have a great time.

Thanks for the specifics. I did not see your post before I asked for them. However, my dilemma is that we are arriving at the new port. Not Havensight. So how do we get to Red Hook on a $2. Safari from there.