Celticsun32 Posted January 22, 2016 #1 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Has anyone taken a taxi to Magan Beach in St.Thomas instead of doing the excursion? is it safe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarea Posted January 22, 2016 #2 Share Posted January 22, 2016 We've done it before and not had any issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
138east Posted January 22, 2016 #3 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Tons of folks do this. I have done it several times. The taxis are large safari cabs that hold many people on benches on the back of a truck. Google "St Thomas safari cab picture" to see them. These cabs charge per person. A ship's excursion would likely have similar transportation. On St Marten you go to the taxi stand and tell the dispatcher where you want to go. They quote you a per person price and put you in a cab or van, which might be a shared ride. You will pay more per person for a private cab. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Celticsun32 Posted January 22, 2016 Author #4 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Thanks, for the input just trying to see if it would be cheaper to take a taxi to the beach than an excursion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisinfanatic Posted January 22, 2016 #5 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Has anyone taken a taxi to Magan Beach in St.Thomas instead of doing the excursion? is it safe? No reason you can't but I would think it costs more. You can get on any bus that goes there right outside the ship. They fall over themselves trying to get you to go. No excursion necessary. There is an entrance fee to get on Magans Bay You may want to consider bypassing that biggest tourist trap beach on the island though. How about a nice (usually quiet) stretch of beach with facilities, chairs for rent, food and bar? Emerald! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bouhunter Posted January 22, 2016 #6 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Thanks, for the input just trying to see if it would be cheaper to take a taxi to the beach than an excursion It's almost ALWAYS cheaper to get somewhere on your own vs a ship excursion:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisinfanatic Posted January 22, 2016 #7 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Thanks, for the input just trying to see if it would be cheaper to take a taxi to the beach than an excursion Very rare for an excursion to be cheaper anytime, anywhere Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Celticsun32 Posted January 22, 2016 Author #8 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Is Emerald a private beach or a resort? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisinfanatic Posted January 22, 2016 #9 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Is Emerald a private beach or a resort? Public with hotel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Celticsun32 Posted January 22, 2016 Author #10 Share Posted January 22, 2016 How far is it from the port? Can you rent chairs, etc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTO-Girl Posted January 22, 2016 #11 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Public with hotel That's beautiful! How far is it from the pier at Havemsight? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russ Lomas Posted January 22, 2016 #12 Share Posted January 22, 2016 How far is it from the port? Can you rent chairs, etc? Emerald is the closest beach to the Crown Bay terminal. We went there on our last cruise and really enjoyed it. It was a lot busier than in the photo posted above, but still not crowded. Much less busy than Meagan's Bay and so much closer. Think the cab ride is $3 per person and it takes no more than 5 minutes to get there (just up and over the ridge to the left when you dock). You will see airplanes coming and going all day, but nothing like at St. Maarten. Glad we did Emerald and will likely do it again in the future. Sorry I do not know the answer to your question about chairs. We just toss our towels in the sand. We used the facilities including the shower over at the Best Western hotel right on the beach as in the photo above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minn0315 Posted January 23, 2016 #13 Share Posted January 23, 2016 The last time we were in St Maarten we wished we could have spent more time in Marigot. Can we hire a car or taxi to take us there and stay with us for about two or three hours and then take us back to the ship? It seems that the ship's excursions don't give us enough time to just chill in Marigot. Thanks for any info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moopetguy Posted January 23, 2016 #14 Share Posted January 23, 2016 The last time we were in St Maarten we wished we could have spent more time in Marigot. Can we hire a car or taxi to take us there and stay with us for about two or three hours and then take us back to the ship? It seems that the ship's excursions don't give us enough time to just chill in Marigot. Thanks for any info. My family ran into the same problem the first time we were in St. Maarten -- the RCI shore excursion only gave us about 45 minutes in Marigot. A taxi should be $8 USD per person from the pier to Marigot (one way). If you're budget-conscious then you can walk into downtown from the ship (about 15-20 minutes) and take a mini-bus (that the locals use) for $2 per person (one way). The mini-buses have sign cards in the front dash window showing where they go to. It's about a 30 minute ride by car or bus from Philipsburg to Marigot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cb at sea Posted January 23, 2016 #15 Share Posted January 23, 2016 It's as "safe" as anywhere....it's US territory...you'll local mall parking lot is probably more dangerous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tunisbridal Posted January 23, 2016 #16 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Have taken taxi to Megan's many times. Cheep and eady Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdsxgrl28 Posted January 23, 2016 #17 Share Posted January 23, 2016 How far is it from the port? Can you rent chairs, etc? It is really a quick ride. We did it in 2014, with 5 ships in port. It was much less crowded than Magans. Yes you can rent chairs & umbrellas, I think it was 7 or 10 dollars. The hotel if I remember right was a Best Western. It had a nice restaurant which was not too expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjnj40 Posted January 23, 2016 #18 Share Posted January 23, 2016 In St Thomas, I did Sapphire Beach twice. I love it there. They do provided chairs there. Taxis will take you there. They also have taxis waiting on side when you ready to leave. They don't like to leave us tourist stranded. On my last visit i heard megan bay is 4 dollars to get on. This remind me back home on jersey shore. Anyway, last year there was 19000 people visiting for the day and sapphire was so quiet that like 300 spread out around. No feeling to be cramp in. very spacious with calm water. St Marteen I did mayo beach. I would avoid this beach because it got destroyed in hurricane last year. I was there last year and there was plenty of room for everyone to walk around, now it just a small path with tons of jagged rock. Too bad they don't do beach replenishment program like ny and nj do. Since you want to go to marigot, just go to taxi stand and they bunk you up with other cruisers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Lionesss Posted January 23, 2016 #19 Share Posted January 23, 2016 The last time we were in St Maarten we wished we could have spent more time in Marigot. Can we hire a car or taxi to take us there and stay with us for about two or three hours and then take us back to the ship? It seems that the ship's excursions don't give us enough time to just chill in Marigot. Thanks for any info. Still looking for something to do on this Island. At this site is it just a beach or are rentals available, like snorkel gear? Thanks Safe travels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matj2000 Posted January 23, 2016 #20 Share Posted January 23, 2016 St.Maarten is the easiest place to rent a car. We do it every visit. The cars are right at the port and the island is an easy place to drive. I think the total price for the day was around $65 for the day. Highly recommended.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
womack214 Posted January 23, 2016 #21 Share Posted January 23, 2016 We took a local taxi. It wasn't through RCI. There was prob 16 of us. Our driver even stayed there and waited on us until we were ready to go back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
womack214 Posted January 23, 2016 #22 Share Posted January 23, 2016 And the $4 to get in per person I believe plus tips for the driver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSUfan4444 Posted January 23, 2016 #23 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Soualiga Destinations Boat Tours in St Maarten is by far the best excursion we have taken on any cruise in any port. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g147347-d2083816-Reviews-Soualiga_Destinations_Boat_Tours-Philipsburg_Sint_Maarten_St_Maarten_St_Martin.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSUfan4444 Posted January 23, 2016 #24 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Here was my actual review on Trip Advisor with pics http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g147347-d2083816-r283953147-Soualiga_Destinations_Boat_Tours-Philipsburg_Sint_Maarten_St_Maarten_St_Martin.html#REVIEWS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisinfanatic Posted January 23, 2016 #25 Share Posted January 23, 2016 And the $4 to get in per person I believe plus tips for the driver. the $4 to get in is a separate charge that everyone pays unless it's the ship excursion. Has nothing to do with the driver Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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