Are you really telling me no Anguilla on a port day? I don't believe it.

[MattInFLL]

I'm set for Anguilla. It will be quick, but I will at least see the place.

 

Reserved GB ferry from Juliana airport with an 11:15 departure and 3:15 return, with a taxi tour set for Anguilla. Our ship is in from 10-7, so if no complications, I should still have an hour or so to do any shopping or looking around near the port.

 

if there is a complication, I guess I will need a flight to St Kitts to catch up to the ship :eek:

[gtaylor]

Should be able to pull that off without any problems. :)

 

I believe that the Simpson Bay bridge openings are currently at 3, 4 and 5 PM.

 

gary

[MattInFLL]

Ahh. So I need to catch a cab as soon as we get back to the dock.

[Karysa]

I'm set for Anguilla. It will be quick, but I will at least see the place.

 

Reserved GB ferry from Juliana airport with an 11:15 departure and 3:15 return, with a taxi tour set for Anguilla. Our ship is in from 10-7, so if no complications, I should still have an hour or so to do any shopping or looking around near the port.

 

if there is a complication, I guess I will need a flight to St Kitts to catch up to the ship :eek:

 

You will be fine. :) Anguilla is a small island so you have time for a quick tour. With your port time a little boat ride and tour of Anguilla should make for a good day since you don't seem to have high expectations and just want to "tick" off another island. Enjoy and please let us know the cost of the ferry and tour and when you arrive back in town and if you would recommend this trip to others who have late port times as this seems to be more popular now.

[MattInFLL]

I will definitely check back in with my thoughts and experience. Vacation starts in a few hours :)

[Karysa]

I will definitely check back in with my thoughts and experience. Vacation starts in a few hours :)

 

Lucky you. Enjoy!!!:)

[MattInFLL]

I'm baaaack. :)

 

Have to say I'm very happy to have seen Anguilla. But as everyone warned me, it's not really a relaxing day given ferry timing and taxis to and from the port. Late in the day that road from Juliana/Marigot is just bumper to bumper and we only had 2 ships in port.

 

Anyway, Anguilla is flat and the beaches are beautiful. But the island is all about the beaches, the resorts, and the restaurants. It's a serene place to spend a few days to a week. It's not at all a typical cruise stop with shopping and a "day tour" vibe. The Valley - the "downtown" for lack of a better word - is very much geared to the locals to take care of their needs.

 

I used Maurice Hodge's Exquisite tours for a 2 hour taxi tour and they were great. My driver Donovan was waiting for me outside the ferry terminal and once he figured out I had no intention of sitting on a beach, he tailored the tour for me to see some of the island and the best resorts in case I ever come back for a longer stay. I toured the CuisinArt, the Viceroy, and the Cap Jaluca. CuisinArt is breathtaking and the Viceroy is a jewel. We stopped for a drink at DaVida's restaurant which is an amazing setting right on the beach with good food and interesting drinks. The two hour tour is $60, plus a gratuity of your choosing.

 

If you have a full day in St Maarten and want to experience an amazing beach and some wonderful food for part of a day, there are definitely some options for you.

 

The ferry I used was GB Express. It was $90 round trip (cash only!), and the ferry has free wifi. It sometimes feels a little disorganized, but that's the islands. To their credit, they came through when it counted. The islands take immigration very seriously! You must have your passport. You get an exit stamp and entry stamps. You buy your ticket, they put you on the manifest, and you sit and wait to be called to your ferry (there are a couple of companies running regular and charter service). I used GB because it goes to and from the Simpson Bay ferry terminal outside of Juliana airport. I figured that would be closer to the ship. The terminal is tucked away behind a rental car company return lot. Basically, you tell your driver to take you to Juliana, and the car rental company just before Sixt Car rental has the terminal at the back of their lot (which is only 60 or so feet off the road, but not well marked at all). I can't remember the name of the particular rental company, but it's not one of the chains. That's why it's easier to remember Sixt, since they are big and well marked.

 

The ride over is pretty bouncy, but it didn't bother me. They have sea sickness medicine available if you want. When you get to Blowing Point, you go through immigration again. Taxis are right outside. Now the key to the trip is that you must check back in with your ferry company when you come back. It's not obvious, and no one told me. I went right into the terminal, gave them my passport, paid the $13 departure tax and sat and waited. I even asked if I had to do anything else, and the terminal workers said no. And I waited some more. At my ferry departure time, I figured something was wrong. I went out to the front and found out about the check in thing. The person from GB was very happy to see me. They had been looking for me since they knew I was booked, and on the ship and it was their last ferry back. Anyway, we straightened it out and off we went. Luckily my fellow passenger had run a little late, so I didn't really hold anyone up. Like I said, they were looking for me, so they weren't just going to leave without me, which I really appreciated.

 

If I had missed it, there would have been the regular ferry to Marigot, but glad I didn't have to deal with that.

 

Once back, they were going to call me a taxi, but since it was the last ferry of the day, and the Captain had to drop off some of his crew off, he offered to drive me back to the ship in their van. Once I saw the infamous traffic, I was happy he did. It was great getting to know them, and they didn't want to charge me anything but I insisted on tipping him. It was at least double the time to get back to the ship than it was to get to the ferry in the morning.

 

Oh, and the taxi from the port - be warned, getting a taxi with anything less than a group going to the same or a nearby destination seems almost impossible. Maybe once the rush is done, it's easier. But I had a tight time schedule and I offered to pay a multiple person rate and I could not get them to budge. Luckily, where I was going was on the way to the Sunset Beach Bar and Maho Beach, so a group quickly formed. It was $8 per person and it was about 25 minutes to the ferry terminal.

 

There's plenty of shopping at the port and some very interesting boutiques that don't feel like every other Caribbean port store.

 

So there you have it. My friends did the Sunset Beach Bar and had a great time. I'm glad I saw a new island and got to know a number of the locals and hear about "real" island life.

 

Maybe next time I can figure out St Barths.

Edited November 2, 2015 by MattInFLL

[Karysa]

Great review Matt. Sounds like you had the adventure that you were looking for. With the new late port times and overnighters Anguilla will become a popular day trip from St. Maarten and your review will help others on here.

 

I do hope that you make it over to St . Bart's one day as well.:)

[Sky616]

I'm baaaack. :)

 

Have to say I'm very happy to have seen Anguilla. But as everyone warned me, it's not really a relaxing day given ferry timing and taxis to and from the port. Late in the day that road from Juliana/Marigot is just bumper to bumper and we only had 2 ships in port.

 

Anyway, Anguilla is flat and the beaches are beautiful. But the island is all about the beaches, the resorts, and the restaurants. It's a serene place to spend a few days to a week. It's not at all a typical cruise stop with shopping and a "day tour" vibe. The Valley - the "downtown" for lack of a better word - is very much geared to the locals to take care of their needs.

 

I used Maurice Hodge's Exquisite tours for a 2 hour taxi tour and they were great. My driver Donovan was waiting for me outside the ferry terminal and once he figured out I had no intention of sitting on a beach, he tailored the tour for me to see some of the island and the best resorts in case I ever come back for a longer stay. I toured the CuisinArt, the Viceroy, and the Cap Jaluca. CuisinArt is breathtaking and the Viceroy is a jewel. We stopped for a drink at DaVida's restaurant which is an amazing setting right on the beach with good food and interesting drinks. The two hour tour is $60, plus a gratuity of your choosing.

 

If you have a full day in St Maarten and want to experience an amazing beach and some wonderful food for part of a day, there are definitely some options for you.

 

The ferry I used was GB Express. It was $90 round trip (cash only!), and the ferry has free wifi. It sometimes feels a little disorganized, but that's the islands. To their credit, they came through when it counted. The islands take immigration very seriously! You must have your passport. You get an exit stamp and entry stamps. You buy your ticket, they put you on the manifest, and you sit and wait to be called to your ferry (there are a couple of companies running regular and charter service). I used GB because it goes to and from the Simpson Bay ferry terminal outside of Juliana airport. I figured that would be closer to the ship. The terminal is tucked away behind a rental car company return lot. Basically, you tell your driver to take you to Juliana, and the car rental company just before Sixt Car rental has the terminal at the back of their lot (which is only 60 or so feet off the road, but not well marked at all). I can't remember the name of the particular rental company, but it's not one of the chains. That's why it's easier to remember Sixt, since they are big and well marked.

 

The ride over is pretty bouncy, but it didn't bother me. They have sea sickness medicine available if you want. When you get to Blowing Point, you go through immigration again. Taxis are right outside. Now the key to the trip is that you must check back in with your ferry company when you come back. It's not obvious, and no one told me. I went right into the terminal, gave them my passport, paid the $13 departure tax and sat and waited. I even asked if I had to do anything else, and the terminal workers said no. And I waited some more. At my ferry departure time, I figured something was wrong. I went out to the front and found out about the check in thing. The person from GB was very happy to see me. They had been looking for me since they knew I was booked, and on the ship and it was their last ferry back. Anyway, we straightened it out and off we went. Luckily my fellow passenger had run a little late, so I didn't really hold anyone up. Like I said, they were looking for me, so they weren't just going to leave without me, which I really appreciated.

 

If I had missed it, there would have been the regular ferry to Marigot, but glad I didn't have to deal with that.

 

Once back, they were going to call me a taxi, but since it was the last ferry of the day, and the Captain had to drop off some of his crew off, he offered to drive me back to the ship in their van. Once I saw the infamous traffic, I was happy he did. It was great getting to know them, and they didn't want to charge me anything but I insisted on tipping him. It was at least double the time to get back to the ship than it was to get to the ferry in the morning.

 

Oh, and the taxi from the port - be warned, getting a taxi with anything less than a group going to the same or a nearby destination seems almost impossible. Maybe once the rush is done, it's easier. But I had a tight time schedule and I offered to pay a multiple person rate and I could not get them to budge. Luckily, where I was going was on the way to the Sunset Beach Bar and Maho Beach, so a group quickly formed. It was $8 per person and it was about 25 minutes to the ferry terminal.

 

There's plenty of shopping at the port and some very interesting boutiques that don't feel like every other Caribbean port store.

 

So there you have it. My friends did the Sunset Beach Bar and had a great time. I'm glad I saw a new island and got to know a number of the locals and hear about "real" island life.

 

Maybe next time I can figure out St Barths.

 

Hey Matt, my wife and I are planning to go to Anguilla in April. My wife really wanted to do something special for out 20th anniversary. Did you happen to go by Shoal Bay Beach? If so what did you think? We are definitely just doing a beach when we ferry over. Glad you had a good day there.

[Viv0828]

We went to Anguilla round trip from Margot. It was an expensive day but we got our geocache in our 81st country. It cost us $61 each for the ferry including fees. You need a passport. The ferries from Maribor leave every 45 minutes and take about half an hour. The taxi cost us an additional $100. The wifi at the Anguilla ferry dock was excellent.

 

We hired a cab driven by Magic and he was a wonderful guide and even went geocaching with us. Next time we hope to see more of the island. We had a short port day in st Maarten- only 8 to 3 but visiting Anguilla was doable.

Edited November 6, 2015 by Viv0828

[MattInFLL]

Sky616 - I did see shoal and it was beautiful. But frankly so was every other beach I saw. The beaches on Anguilla are simply great. I would have been happy at Da Vidas for a few hours which sits on a great beach, has great drinks and great food. They have beach loungers, umbrellas etc.