Trunk Bay with 5 ships in St Thomas?

[Mom.to.2]

Will Trunk Bay be enjoyable with 5 ships in port in St Thomas?

 

We plan to take Royal Caribbean's excursion that is basically a ferry to St John and then you're on your own. I'm concerned because the excursion start time is 10 AM, and with 5 ships in port, will Trunk Bay be packed by the time we get there? Are we better off NOT taking Royal Caribbean's excursion/ferry, and instead cabbing it to Red Hook as soon as we dock (8 AM)?

 

TIA

 

 

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[Keith1010]

I would do the latter. It might be crowded by the time you get over there.

 

Keith

[blue_water]

Definitely agree with the latter, grab the first taxi you can to red Hook and high tail it to the beach! You should arrive before the ship excursion, and the rest of the day is up to you. Good idea to take the 3PM return ferry if your ship leaves at 5, the 2PM ferry if you want to be extra safe or have time to shop at the port.

Trunk will be one of the busiest beaches that day so consider Cinnamon :)

[Mom.to.2]

Ugh, I was afraid that would be the answer. The ship's excursion seems so much easier (ferry right from where we dock) than a cab to Red Hook.

 

We're arriving on Anthem of the seas. Any problems/delays getting to red hook from where Anthem docks? If we arrive at 8, would it be reasonable to think we can catch the 9 AM Ferry? Is there any guarantee the ferry will have enough room for all who shows up?

 

Thanks for advice on return trip. We'd def want to play it safe, so 2 pm sounds like the way to go. What time should we start looking for a cab back to the ferry?

 

 

 

 

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[Mom.to.2]

One more thing, is the snorkeling at Cinnamon as good as at Trunk? Snorkeling is more important to us than the time spent on land.

 

Thank you!!!!

 

 

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[blue_water]

The ship's excursion ferry is a 45 min ride through rougher waters while the Red Hook ferry is a 10 - 15 min ride through calmer waters. Both options are about the same 45 minutes, and yes you should easily make the 9AM ferry out of Red Hook. So we'd do the self-excursion with the expectation of arriving before the excursion but your choice.

Can't help with the snorkeling Cinnamon question but others should be able to. Trunk has a trail but reports have not been great, Waterlemon is more recommended but not as convenient.

 

An alternative is a beach on the East End of STT (Sapphire for example), saves 1.5 - 2 hrs of travel time and $28pp. With 5 ships in port the swimming area at Sapphire can be a little crowded but there is room to find a shaded spot on the beach and coral and seagrass areas to snorkel. Just a thought if Cinnamon doesn't work out.

Good luck!

Edited March 17, 2016 by blue_water

[Mom.to.2]

Thank you blue_water, your advice is very appreciated. It truly sounds like Red Hook is the best option if we have our hearts set on STJ.

 

Is Sapphire as beautiful/peaceful/tranquil as Trunk?

 

 

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[Ms411]

No two beaches are the same. Both are beautiful.