Godfrey Tour a good bet for first timers in St. Thomas?

[Lady_K]

Add me to the list of very happy Godfrey customers. We just got home from the Glory. Our tour with Godfrey was one of the highlights of the entire trip. It's absolutely wonderful and what an incredible bargain. Godfrey is very gracious, polite, and very knowledgeable about St. Thomas. I highly recommend this tour, and if we have a stop in St. Thomas on a future cruise, we'd probably do his tour again.

[pejay]

Are you able to choose the order of the tour especially if you want to skip the beach? Does he offer a tour and a couple hours of shopping that would allow you to get back to the ship early afternoon?

Golden Princess~2/04
Caribbean Princess~10/04
Star Princess~1/05

[Lady_K]

Pejay,

He drops you off to shop downtown first, then at noon takes you on the tour of the island. If you want to go to the beach, that's when you get off. If you want to skip the beach, he will then take you back to the ship. By that time it will be about 2:00.

Hope that helps.


Carnival Glory - 5/15/04
Imagination - 4/00

[IMCruisin04]

My husband and I really wanted to go on the Paradise Point Tramway while at St. Thomas (we'll be there ONE week from today!). Godfrey looks like a really good choice, though, since neither of us have been to St. Thomas before. We'll be there from 7 AM - 5 PM on the Carnival Destiny. Do you think we'd have enough time to do the Godfrey Tour and Check out the Paradise Point Tramway?

[Lady_K]

IMCruisin-

Hmm... I checked the [url="http://www.vinow.com"]www.vinow.com[/url] website (excellent) and apparently the Tramway is open 9-5. It's $15 per person round trip. So I guess you probably could get there right at 9:00, go up and come back down, then meet Godfrey around 11:00. Or, if you wanted to skip the beach, Godfrey could bring you back into town at 2:00, and that would give you time to ride the tramway afterwards.

On his tour, Godfrey does take you to Mountaintop, which is the highest point on St. Thomas (I believe)... I think he said the elevation is 1,500 feet or so. Great views from here, and he does pull off the road for pictures of the harbor and other scenic views as well.

So I guess it's up to you. Personally, I think Godfrey is a much better deal, but I didn't ride the tramway so I'm not too knowledgable about that.

I'm sure you'll have fun whatever you decide. St. Thomas is a beautiful island!


Carnival Glory - 5/15/04
Imagination - 4/00

[gardener]

You can add me to the list [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] Godfrey's tour was great, he is so personable and knowledgeable. What a great driver too, I sure would not want to be the one driving that bus, or anything else for that matter, they drive on the other side of the street and the hills are something else!! Also the bus is open on the sides so it is very enjoyable.

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Celebrity Infinity, Hawaii 09/26/04

[IMCruisin04]

Wahoo!! We're booked for the Godfrey tour next Monday. We've decided that if it looks like we'll be pressed for time, we'll just take our own cab back to the boat at 4:00. I have no idea if he STARTS picking people up at the beaches at 4:00, or if the last group is picked up at 4:00. Regardless, I think Godfrey will be cheaper even if we have to pay for a cab. Plus, he sounds very trustworthy and nice!

[Lady_K]

IMCruisin, he picks you up from the beaches a little earlier, since his goal is to have you back at the ship by around 4:00. For instance, we all chose to go to Sapphire Beach, so he picked us up at 3:45. I assume the other beaches would get picked up before then, since Sapphire is the last stop. Even with a lot of traffic near the port, we were back at Havensight Mall (at the pier) no later than 4:15.

Enjoy!


Carnival Glory - 5/15/04
Imagination - 4/00

[IMCruisin04]

Lady_K: Thanks for the info! That makes me feel a little better. I don't want to watch the Destiny sailing off into the sunset from St. Thomas! Sounds like he should have us back to the boat in time.

How did you like Sapphire Beach? From what I've read on the message boards, it sounds wondeful!

[Lady_K]

Sapphire Beach was terrific. The water was a beautiful turquoise color, and the beach itself was clean with soft sand. It wasn't too crowded the day we were there. Godfrey takes you into the resort to show you where everything is (bathrooms, snack bar, gift shop, etc). You can rent snorkeling equipment and chairs. I was happy that there was some shade at this beach. When I got tired of the sun, I pulled my chair into the shade a few feet away.

You'll have a great time!


Carnival Glory - 5/15/04
Imagination - 4/00

[mnsawyer]

Are you allowed to use the pool at Sapphire Beach? Or is it just the beach? Also, what about cost of food and drinks there? I assume it would be pretty pricey...can you give me an idea of menu and cost? I certainly don't want to be paying $40 for two burgers.

I think posters have already asked about lunch...I didn't think you could take food off the ship.? Isn't there a couple of fast food restaurants (Wendy's, KFC) right at Havensight or near there now?

[bob&karen]

MNSawyer, the food 'n drinks at Sapphire are, well, more expensive than McDonalds, but not unreasonable. A recent poster on these boards reported feeding 4 adults and 2 kids for 30 bucks and having enough left over for a doggy bag.

We opted to pick up deli sandwiches at a place Godfrey recommended to us in Charlotte Amalie, just up the street from where he parks the jitney and has everyone meet him when they're done shopping. If you're going to grab food before you leave, this is the place to do it -- great stuff and very reasonably priced. We opted to eat during the tour, which worked great except for the jealous comments from a few of our obviously hungry tour mates.

B.

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[Nice Boat]

For those who have gone on Godfrey's tour, besides the $20 per person charge, did you or anyone else give a small tip as well? Or can I assume the $20 is sufficient?

[Nice Boat]

For those who have gone on Godfrey's tour, did you or anyone else give a small tip beyond the $20 per person charge? Just wondering. Thanks!

[MandyGirl]

We definitely tipped for the good service. Tips were not asked for, but we definitely felt Godfrey deserved a tip! [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

~ Mandy

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[Freddie's Mama]

We have reservations with Godfrey on June 22nd, NEXT WEEK!!! WOOO HOOOO! Can't wait! I'll let everyone know about it when we return.

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[daweber02]

Here's my dilemma: the Godfrey tour sounds great and we'd like to see St. Thomas this way, but we also want to go to St. John to do the snorkeling at Trunk Bay. Will we have time for all of this? We're docked at St. Thomas from 9-5.