Docking in St Martin..........

[Willbcruisin]

Question..........

 

Will be sailing CCL Liberty to St Martin.........Have been there twice but can't remember..........

 

Does Liberty dock bow forward or aft in port??

 

Thanks:D

[mferris77]

Well I think the general rule is there's no telling whether they are going to come straight in or back in. Not only that but there's no telling what side of the dock you'll pull in on.

 

I think pulling straight in (front of ship towards the island) is probably more likely. From what I recall, it's a pretty straight shot from the ocean right up to the dock, which sticks straight out from the island, so I don't see much reason for them to back in... although I'm not a ship captain either so maybe there's more things at play as to why they would do such a thing.

[Willbcruisin]

Well I think the general rule is there's no telling whether they are going to come straight in or back in. Not only that but there's no telling what side of the dock you'll pull in on.

 

I think pulling straight in (front of ship towards the island) is probably more likely. From what I recall, it's a pretty straight shot from the ocean right up to the dock, which sticks straight out from the island, so I don't see much reason for them to back in... although I'm not a ship captain either so maybe there's more things at play as to why they would do such a thing.

 

Thanks for your reply. We have docked both ways at different ports. With the new dock at St Martin I was unsure.

I did think to check with a local after I posted:oand was told both ways.

[gtaylor]

I have a hypothesis.

 

A ship is going to have to turn around at some point, either when arriving and docking or upon departure.

 

If a ship arrives early, the captain may decide to spend the extra time of turning around and backing in, knowing that his passengers will still get their full scheduled time ashore.

 

If they're running on schedule or a little late, just head right in and deal with it upon departure.

 

If they're on time, but their next port of call is a long run, then they might choose to do the maneuvering upon arrival, so that at departure they can just clear the port and head on out.

 

That said, I'm fairly sure that weather/wave conditions have something to do with it, as well.

 

The Villas on Great Bay have a webcam (usually) aimed at the Cruise Facility, so you can watch the ships arrive and depart. Watch your ship in the weeks before your cruise and you may get an idea of what to expect.

 

Mentioned above was a remark about which side of the pier you may be assigned. Now it's also a question of which pier, if you're not a mega-ship like the Oasis.

 

If you check the Port of St. Maarten cruise ship schedule you will see that even if a ship calls every week it doesn't always end up in the same spot.

 

This visual will help you with the docking designations on the schedule. CPN-NW, CPS-SW, etc.

 

Bottom line, I don't think that you can plan in advance.

 

gary

[rxmurphy]

Why would it matter either way:confused:

[triphopcooper]

Why would it matter either way:confused:

 

I think it would help in choosing which side of the ship to stay on when selecting a cabin.