Best Bermuda Excursion for Family with Tweens

[LuCruise]

We have a cruise booked for end of August 2021 (hopefully cruises are running by then).  Our kids will be 16 and 12 years old.  Would like a good excursion, maybe 3-4 hours or so (i.e. not super long) that goes to some interesting places and interesting for teens/tweens.  We're not super adventurous so things like Snorkel Tour or Kayak Tour isn't us.  We will be at King's Wharf.  Any suggestions?  Can be ship run or locally run.

 

Or if going somewhere by ourselves is recommended, then let me know (e.g. it seems like there is a tour at the caves - crystal or fantasy?  not sure if this is kid friendly?)

 

Thanks.

Edited July 14, 2020 by LuCruise

[princeton123211]

2 hours ago, LuCruise said:

Or if going somewhere by ourselves is recommended, then let me know (e.g. it seems like there is a tour at the caves - crystal or fantasy?  not sure if this is kid friendly?)

You beat me to answering your own question-- if you wanted something unique and organized, I was going to say that the caves might be a good option. Frankly you can't go wrong just picking a nice beach for the day but if you want to make sure to see something else while on the island I'm sure they will enjoy the adventure of going underground for a bit. 

[Charles4515]

You don’t say how long your ship will be in port but since your cruise is over a year away you have a long time to research your options. I recommend the Bermuda tourism website as a start to get some ideas. They will also mail you brochures and maps.

If you decide to do the caves they are an easy DIY option. Other possibilities are a taxi tour or independent tours of the island.

 

https://www.gotobermuda.com

 

 

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[LuCruise]

10 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

You don’t say how long your ship will be in port but since your cruise is over a year away you have a long time to research your options. I recommend the Bermuda tourism website as a start to get some ideas. They will also mail you brochures and maps.

If you decide to do the caves they are an easy DIY option. Other possibilities are a taxi tour or independent tours of the island.

 

https://www.gotobermuda.com

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

 

We do have an overnight stay in Bermuda so not really on a time constraint.  Having said that, it is only a 5 day cruise and we cruise just as much for the ship as we do for the ports, so that's why I commented on an excursion around 4hrs or so (On the other day, we would probably go to Horseshoe Bay Beach).  But we've never been to Bermuda and it looks beautiful .

 

Question...Is Crystal Cave or Fantasy Cave more interesting?  Or are they the same?  Would it keep a kid's interest?  I get claustrophobic so may be a factor as well.  That's another reason I'm thinking maybe a tour would be nice so we can see a bunch of different things.

[Charles4515]

We do have an overnight stay in Bermuda so not really on a time constraint.  Having said that, it is only a 5 day cruise and we cruise just as much for the ship as we do for the ports, so that's why I commented on an excursion around 4hrs or so (On the other day, we would probably go to Horseshoe Bay Beach).  But we've never been to Bermuda and it looks beautiful .

 

Question...Is Crystal Cave or Fantasy Cave more interesting?  Or are they the same?  Would it keep a kid's interest?  I get claustrophobic so may be a factor as well.  That's another reason I'm thinking maybe a tour would be nice so we can see a bunch of different things.

 

Both caves are very small. Crystal is the smaller of the two but the most interesting of the two in my opinion because of the clear lake and stalagmites in that cave. If you get claustrophobic they might not be the best activity for you. Going down and up the 88 or so steps is tight too. One activity I like is starting at Warwick Long Bay and hiking down the beach to Horseshoe Bay. About a mile and a half. Beautiful. It will be hot and humid though in August. I would order the brochures and have your kids look through them. See if anything in particular interests them.

 

 

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[LuCruise]

23 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

 

Both caves are very small. Crystal is the smaller of the two but the most interesting of the two in my opinion because of the clear lake and stalagmites in that cave. If you get claustrophobic they might not be the best activity for you. Going down and up the 88 or so steps is tight too. One activity I like is starting at Warwick Long Bay and hiking down the beach to Horseshoe Bay. About a mile and a half. Beautiful. It will be hot and humid though in August. I would order the brochures and have your kids look through them. See if anything in particular interests them.

 

 

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Thanks.  Maybe not the caves then.  Also, can see our kids complaining of all the steps...lol.

 

Still looking for a general excursion to give us an overview that is 3-4 hrs and not very pricey.  I found Shore Excursions Group as an option...but hard to tell.  Not sure if there are various options as well when we get there waiting at the port?

 

[Charles4515]

Thanks.  Maybe not the caves then.  Also, can see our kids complaining of all the steps...lol.   Still looking for a general excursion to give us an overview that is 3-4 hrs and not very pricey.  I found Shore Excursions Group as an option...but hard to tell.  Not sure if there are various options as well when we get there waiting at the port?    

 

 

 

  There is a thread Bermuda private guide which has information on many guides that have been used. Best to scroll from the last backward. A taxi tour for one to four people has a regulated rate of $50 an hour with a three hour minimum. I suggest four hours. Quinton Bean and Lewis Foggo do taxi tours and have been recommended by many CC posters for years. Another recommended tour operator is Heidi Cowan of Byways. She gets great reviews, you would have to contact her for her rates. There are also options waiting at the port. Blue Flag taxi operators have passed a test to give tours. They charge the above mentioned hourly rate. Also there are minibus island tours which charge a per person rate. As you have four I think the private taxi tour is your best option. If you arrange in advance you get to pick. If you wing it you will have to take whoever is available. I winged it myself when I did a taxi tour and had good luck but I would have pre arranged if we had not decided on the tour at the last minute because we could not all agree on what to do.....  

Bermuda private guide thread link.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1143028-bermuda-private-guide/

 

 

 

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[LuCruise]

37 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

  There is a thread Bermuda private guide which has information on many guides that have been used. Best to scroll from the last backward. A taxi tour for one to four people has a regulated rate of $50 an hour with a three hour minimum. I suggest four hours. Quinton Bean and Lewis Foggo do taxi tours and have been recommended by many CC posters for years. Another recommended tour operator is Heidi Cowan of Byways. She gets great reviews, you would have to contact her for her rates. There are also options waiting at the port. Blue Flag taxi operators have passed a test to give tours. They charge the above mentioned hourly rate. Also there are minibus island tours which charge a per person rate. As you have four I think the private taxi tour is your best option. If you arrange in advance you get to pick. If you wing it you will have to take whoever is available. I winged it myself when I did a taxi tour and had good luck but I would have pre arranged if we had not decided on the tour at the last minute because we could not all agree on what to do.....  

Bermuda private guide thread link.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1143028-bermuda-private-guide/

 

 

 

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This is very helpful!  Thank you so much.  I will look into each of these and also the other thread.

[brzymom]

King's Wharf is not close to the caves at all--it is other end of the island. If you want to do the caves, I would recommend you take the Ferry to St. George's, walk around the old town a bit, then take bus to Crystal Caves. More to see at Crystal Caves. Also, the little food place, Cafe Ole has the BEST fish sandwich on the island. This sandwich seriously feeds two people, and is amazing. From there, just a short walk to Blue Hole, where you and yours kids can take a dip in a lagoon. Very cool. Then you could stop at Bailey's Ice Cream for a great treat before taking the bus back to St. George's for the ferry back to King's Wharf. 

[mets123]

On 8/7/2020 at 5:51 PM, brzymom said:

King's Wharf is not close to the caves at all--it is other end of the island. If you want to do the caves, I would recommend you take the Ferry to St. George's, walk around the old town a bit, then take bus to Crystal Caves. More to see at Crystal Caves. Also, the little food place, Cafe Ole has the BEST fish sandwich on the island. This sandwich seriously feeds two people, and is amazing. From there, just a short walk to Blue Hole, where you and yours kids can take a dip in a lagoon. Very cool. Then you could stop at Bailey's Ice Cream for a great treat before taking the bus back to St. George's for the ferry back to King's Wharf. 

If you decide to do the cavern and Baileys, instead of taking the bus back to St. George, take it towards Hamilton. About twenty minutes away, get off at the aquarium and spend some time there. When finished, get back on the bus to Hamilton. At Hamilton, take the ferry back to Kings Whar f.  Just make sure you buy the transportation pass on the ship, or at the ferry. I think it's about twelve dollars per day. It's a long day  but the pass makes the price very reasonable.

[njhorseman]

7 hours ago, mets123 said:

I think it's about twelve dollars per day.

$19 for a one day unlimited adult transportation pass, $9.50 for children age 5 to 15. Two day passes are $31.50 and $16, respectively.