How to get to St Johns and what's a good beach to go to?

[james'mommy]

This year I'm thinking we try and go to St Johns instead of just staying on St Thomas when we are in port. I know I need to take a ferry but what is the schedule? How do I get there and how much does it cost? What beach would you recommend on St Johns? How much should a taxi cost? I'm not looking to spend a ton of money. TIA

[Elusive_Cruiser]

This year I'm thinking we try and go to St Johns instead of just staying on St Thomas when we are in port. I know I need to take a ferry but what is the schedule? How do I get there and how much does it cost? What beach would you recommend on St Johns? How much should a taxi cost? I'm not looking to spend a ton of money. TIA

 

I cannot answer some of your questions, but will mention that while we usually never book excursions with the cruise ship, we did for this one. We booked the ferry trip across to St. Johns. Once on St. Johns we're on our own. Reason for doing this is that I've heard that the ferry schedules can get messed up due to water conditions, or that the ferry you plan to take back is full and you can't get on. This guaranteed the ship would wait for us, as long as we're physically on the ferry! Plus, the ferry picks you up close to the cruise port. The regular ferries, you will have to take a cab to get to.

Edited January 12, 2016 by Elusive_Cruiser

[Ms411]

I don't think all ships offer a St John On Your Own type excursion.

[gartam]

Elusive Cruiser--were you on a Royal cruise? Where on St John did their ferry drop you off? Did you use a taxi on St John? Our ship will be in port till 7 p.m.--do you know what time their ferry left? We don't want to have to come back at 3 if we could stay till 4:30-5:00.

[MsTee]

This year I'm thinking we try and go to St Johns instead of just staying on St Thomas when we are in port. I know I need to take a ferry but what is the schedule? How do I get there and how much does it cost? What beach would you recommend on St Johns? How much should a taxi cost? I'm not looking to spend a ton of money. TIA

 

A group of us did this in November and it was the perfect beach day.

 

To ensure the most time in St. John and beat the crowds try to get off the ship as soon as it's docked in St. Thomas. Grab a cab to Red Hook ($10pp)' date=' catch the ferry to St. John - Cruz Bay ($14pp round trip), then hop in a taxi to Trunk Bay ($6pp). Trunk Bay charges a $4pp admission, but we were there before they opened and just walked right onto the beach. It's BEAUTIFUL there!!! I'd recommend leaving Trunk Bay about 3 hours before your ship leaves to ensure you have ample time to get back to the port. [/color']

[zqvol]

This year I'm thinking we try and go to St Johns instead of just staying on St Thomas when we are in port. I know I need to take a ferry but what is the schedule? How do I get there and how much does it cost? What beach would you recommend on St Johns? How much should a taxi cost? I'm not looking to spend a ton of money. TIA

 

 

Very easy to do. Take a taxi to the ferry dock at Red Hook. Take the ferry to Cruz Bay on St. John. (Ferries operate both ways on the hour schedules can be verified on vinow .com)

 

Grab a cab to the beach of your choice. Trunk Bay is where most cruise passengers go.

 

To return reverse the process.

 

Expect the cost to be about $45 per person round trip including tips.

[SeaWatcher65]

Never done this before -- either going to Sapphire Beach at St. Thomas or taking the ferry to St. John. Still not sure.... The photos of St. John beaches look beautiful and we would like to try some beginner snorkeling (only snorkeled once before but have our own gear). But Sapphire Beach looks very beautiful too.

 

Based on advice on cruise critic, we are thinking about taking a taxi from Charlotte Amalie (ship port) to Red Hook (St. Thomas) and taking the ferry from there to St. John, then same in reverse. That ferry schedule seems to run every hour on the hour. Our ship docks 8am so we hope to will catch the 9am ferry to St. John, and when ready to come back, take the 2pm or 3pm ferry at St. John to come back to St. Thomas. Our back on board the ship time is 5:30pm for a 6pm sailaway. If we take the 3pm ferry, I'd expect to be back to ship at 4pm... so that allows 1 1/2 hours extra for any traffic back up on St. Thomas. If we take the 2pm ferry, that allows 2 1/2 hours extra.

[greatwhitenorth1]

We did Sapphire the first 2 times in St Thomas. Last year we did exactly what you want to do to St Johns. Off ship at 8:15am. In Red Hook at 8:45 for 9:00am ferry. We took 3:00pm ferry back, cabbed to Havensight and were back on the ship just before 4:00pm.

 

Well worth the $50p/p for the day. Enjoy your visit!

[abatl]

Great directions!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[sunrise&set]

Never done this before -- either going to Sapphire Beach at St. Thomas or taking the ferry to St. John. Still not sure.... The photos of St. John beaches look beautiful and we would like to try some beginner snorkeling (only snorkeled once before but have our own gear). But Sapphire Beach looks very beautiful too.

 

Based on advice on cruise critic, we are thinking about taking a taxi from Charlotte Amalie (ship port) to Red Hook (St. Thomas) and taking the ferry from there to St. John, then same in reverse. That ferry schedule seems to run every hour on the hour. Our ship docks 8am so we hope to will catch the 9am ferry to St. John, and when ready to come back, take the 2pm or 3pm ferry at St. John to come back to St. Thomas. Our back on board the ship time is 5:30pm for a 6pm sailaway. If we take the 3pm ferry, I'd expect to be back to ship at 4pm... so that allows 1 1/2 hours extra for any traffic back up on St. Thomas. If we take the 2pm ferry, that allows 2 1/2 hours extra.

 

This is exactly what I'm thinking about doing, also on the Escape. When in Feb are you going? If you're going before me, I'd love to hear how it worked out.

Edited January 22, 2016 by sunrise&set

[legaljen1969]

I think most of the posters are correct in their assessment of allowing at least 2-2.5 hours to get back and get on the ship. The ferry could be not running on schedule OR the cab could take a while with traffic. I would allow 2.5-3 hours to make it with time to spare.

 

The first time we went to St. John, there was a cute restaurant right by the ferry stop. The girl recommended we go to Cinnamon Bay if we wanted a quiet beach experience. It was definitely quiet. There were plenty of other people there- so it's not like it's totally private. It's just not as crowded as Trunk Bay or some of the other super touristy areas.

 

There is a little grill there, and a convenience store type place. They sold some snorkel gear, rented some beach gear, sold drinks (alcohol and non-alcohol), snacks, t-shirts, etc. They also had some lockers there to put your things in while you are on the beach. Pretty typical beach.

 

I will say though, our first trip there was in 2008 so things may have changed since then.

 

We found it very nice though. It's not a really long cab ride from the ferry stop.

 

If you are looking for something a little quieter, this may be your place.

[SeaWatcher65]

Went to St. John last week -- very easy. We docked 8am with all aboard at 7:30pm. Was supposed to be 5:30pm but ship extended the time. Got a late start in the morning, within minutes got a taxi to the Red Hook area of St. Thomas, dropped off right at the Ferry. Bought round trip tickets, nice ferry ride to St. John (about 25 minutes?) with great views. Taxi (10-20 minutes?) to Trunk Bay. Beautiful, absolutely beautiful beach with snorkeling. Trunk Bay closes 4:30pm so we left before then, back to Cruz Bay (where the ferry is), bought some t-shirts and souvenirs. Ferries were running every 30 minutes (the ferry staff explained they do this instead of every hour on the hour when it is busy). Took the 4:30pm ferry to St. Thomas, then a taxi, and back to the ship about 5:30pm.

 

Never done this before -- either going to Sapphire Beach at St. Thomas or taking the ferry to St. John. Still not sure.... The photos of St. John beaches look beautiful and we would like to try some beginner snorkeling (only snorkeled once before but have our own gear). But Sapphire Beach looks very beautiful too.

 

Based on advice on cruise critic, we are thinking about taking a taxi from Charlotte Amalie (ship port) to Red Hook (St. Thomas) and taking the ferry from there to St. John, then same in reverse. That ferry schedule seems to run every hour on the hour. Our ship docks 8am so we hope to will catch the 9am ferry to St. John, and when ready to come back, take the 2pm or 3pm ferry at St. John to come back to St. Thomas. Our back on board the ship time is 5:30pm for a 6pm sailaway. If we take the 3pm ferry, I'd expect to be back to ship at 4pm... so that allows 1 1/2 hours extra for any traffic back up on St. Thomas. If we take the 2pm ferry, that allows 2 1/2 hours extra.

Edited January 25, 2016 by SeaWatcher65

[Kelsey D]

Went to St. John last week -- very easy. We docked 8am with all aboard at 7:30pm. Was supposed to be 5:30pm but ship extended the time. Got a late start in the morning, within minutes got a taxi to the Red Hook area of St. Thomas, dropped off right at the Ferry. Bought round trip tickets, nice ferry ride to St. John (about 25 minutes?) with great views. Taxi (10-20 minutes?) to Trunk Bay. Beautiful, absolutely beautiful beach with snorkeling. Trunk Bay closes 4:30pm so we left before then, back to Cruz Bay (where the ferry is), bought some t-shirts and souvenirs. Ferries were running every 30 minutes (the ferry staff explained they do this instead of every hour on the hour when it is busy). Took the 4:30pm ferry to St. Thomas, then a taxi, and back to the ship about 5:30pm.

 

 

I didn't realize Trunk Bay closed at 4:30. Do you think we could head over to Maho or Cinnamon for another hour or so of beach time?

[SeaWatcher65]

I didn't realize Trunk Bay closed at 4:30. Do you think we could head over to Maho or Cinnamon for another hour or so of beach time?

 

No idea. http://www.nps.gov/viis/planyourvisit/hours.htm

 

The one lady renting chairs wanted chairs back by 3:15pm. Be prepared to bring cash... the chair rental was $9 but she wanted a $25 security deposit for EACH chair.

 

Our time in St. Thomas was 8am-6pm but it was changed to 8pm with all abord at 7:30pm. Given it would be dark at 6pm, we left Trunk Bay about 3:30pm, took a taxi to Cruz Bay (where the ferries are) and shopped a bit before taking a ferry back to St. Thomas.

Edited January 29, 2016 by SeaWatcher65

[MAGNUM PI]

I posted another response about StJohn. Highly recommend visiting Cinnamon Bay. The ship snorkeling excursions go to Trunk Bay, adjacent to Cinnamon Bay. Great facilities at Cinnamon: changing room, shower to rinse off sand, restaurant, rental shop, etc. A moderase walk from this entry area, down to the beach itself, but shaded! Taxi driver will drop you off, and will be waiting for you, when you give the time of your return.

Cinnamon Bay is very peaceful, relaxing.

Well worth the trip, rather than a crowded St Thomas beach, with ship excursions, etc.

[cruizeblues]

I posted another response about StJohn. Highly recommend visiting Cinnamon Bay. The ship snorkeling excursions go to Trunk Bay, adjacent to Cinnamon Bay. Great facilities at Cinnamon: changing room, shower to rinse off sand, restaurant, rental shop, etc. A moderase walk from this entry area, down to the beach itself, but shaded! Taxi driver will drop you off, and will be waiting for you, when you give the time of your return.

Cinnamon Bay is very peaceful, relaxing.

Well worth the trip, rather than a crowded St Thomas beach, with ship excursions, etc.

 

Hi Magnum, can you tell me if there were kayak or Paddleboard rentals at Cinammon beach. Also, did they have chair/umbrella rentals available? Have already been to Trunk, looking for something different. :)

[O2B@Cagain]

Cinnamon has stand-up paddleboards, kayaks, Hobie Cats, windsurfing stuff, etc. There are beach chairs (not loungers) but no umbrellas. The showers are cold, but refreshing. ;)