Most Scenic or Most "Unique" South Caribbean Island?

[cheleh]

We're on the AOS South Caribbean & trying to decide which islands to tour - on a limited budget, we can't afford to tour all of them...

 

So, which would you choose as the most scenic (OR "unique"- we'd love to hear about excursions/tours that you thought were worthwhile because you just can't do "that" any where else!):

 

Barbados

Antigua

St. Lucia

St. Maarten

St. Thomas

 

Thanks for your suggestions!!

[RichardK]

Of the Islands you mention, St. Lucia is definitely the most unique. People will tell you it's "out-of-place". It is so lush it reminds many of a South Pacific Island that wound up in the Caribbean for some reason?? I remember being at the botanical garden and seeing poinsettia leaves as large as elephant ears!

[OHCruisin]

For unique, I'd do St. Lucia. Was just there in November. We did an island drive to the "drive through" volcano. Stopped along the way for great pictures of the Pitons, stopped for an authentic St. Lucian lunch, then did a catamaran sail back to the ship. It was wonderful.

[kingsgirl]

I haven't been yet, but the rave is St. Lucia by far.

 

I've heart St. Kitts is the Pitts? Apparently it was a huge joke when my friend was on a southern cruise?

[okbowler]

I agree on St. Lucia. It is a beautiful ,green,mountainous island with many beaches. We used cosol966@hotmail.com as our tour guide. Great tour, lasted 6 hrs+ and he will let you choose some of your stops. Provides Beer rum punch water & cold drinks as part of price. When we were there it was $45.00 per person. That was in Feb. of this year. Bill

[It'sRC4ME]

To save on the cost of a tour, take a cab into town from the dock and then find a "local" cabbie, not one with the expensive license to pick you up at the dock, let him know where you want to go and negociate a price. We did this and it worked out really well. Our only problem was that we needed to have small bills for a lot of the things he suggested (hot springs, etc.) and we didn't, so we missed out on some cool-sounding things.

[LisaClark]

I've done this route three times now and am booked for next March on the Serenade. I love this route! There's a lot of different activities on each of the islands, so I'd say you need to decide what you like to do before you choose. Here's a rundown:

 

St Thomas: Shopping, shopping and more shopping. Some historical tours. You can take a cab to the downtown shopping area. The skyride to Paradise Point is about $15 pp and is a good walk from the pier.

 

St Martin: Shopping and beaches. Water taxis are about $5 pp for all day use. On a budget, go to the beaches near the pier (busy but close and free), and find the open air market where the locals sell souvenirs at great prices (be sure to bargain with them).

 

Antigua: Do a search for Eli's Eco Tour on CC, and read the reviews (or go to http://www.adventureantigua.com). We've not done this one yet, but plan to in March. Otherwise, Antigua is known for its beaches (many of them rocky), and Stingray City where you can swim with stingrays. Skip the shopping here.

 

St Lucia: By far the most scenic. Do a search for Frank on CC. He gives a great tour for a lot less than the cruise ships and has an impeccable reputation. We had a lot of fun with Frank. He'll take you all over the island, and to a beach as well if you want. Not much shopping here.

 

Barbados: Another scenic island. We've done the Natural Wonders tour through RCI and it was nice. Andromeda Gardens is our favorite place on Barbados (we're avid photographers and nature lovers). Another unique, but expensive side trip is the Atlantis sub. This is a fascinating experience well worth the money.

 

When's your trip? If it's after Christmas or your birthdays, I recommend you ask your relatives for RCI gift certificates instead of gifts. These can be used for onboard credit, and you might be able to book more side trips once you get on the ship.

 

Hope this helped!

[Minoushka]

We're on the AOS South Caribbean & trying to decide which islands to tour - on a limited budget, we can't afford to tour all of them...

 

So, which would you choose as the most scenic (OR "unique"- we'd love to hear about excursions/tours that you thought were worthwhile because you just can't do "that" any where else!):

 

Barbados

Antigua

St. Lucia

St. Maarten

St. Thomas

 

Thanks for your suggestions!!

 

in st lucia grab a cab ask to be dropped off at a fancy hotel -sonesta????

i do not remember which one we went to cause we did this in every port

walk right in look like you belong

sit back and enjoy

we are beach people and we did that everywhere

also some cruise lines have deals with major hotels and you can stay on their grounds without problem and with their (cruise line )logoed towels

only in aruba were they nasty at the marriot

ask the purser where to go

[Desert Cruizers]

For unique, I'd do St. Lucia. Was just there in November. We did an island drive to the "drive through" volcano. Stopped along the way for great pictures of the Pitons, stopped for an authentic St. Lucian lunch, then did a catamaran sail back to the ship. It was wonderful.

Cruisin we did the 11 Night E Caribbean on the Brilliance 4 yrs ago and St Lucia was my favorite. We also did the Cataman with a 1 hr private beach and went into the beautiful cove, can't recall its name but enjoyed the whole tour.

[Janiekins]

Hi OHCruisin, Everything that you did in St. Lucia sounds wonderful. Do you mind supplying me with the details of who you used for the "Drive Through" Volcano Trip" and how you booked the catamaran trip back to the ship. I will be doing this cruise in February, 2008. Thank you so much!

[Fitnessmaniac]

For sure..St. Lucia! Loved it! It's beautiful!!

[OHCruisin]

Janiekins - We booked the tour through RCI. I'll get the details of which one. GWoodman is correct. There was also a stop at a beach for about an hour and a little detour into a private cove.

 

I'll check out the excursions that RCI offeres and tell you exactly which one it was. You may or may not be able to find something similar on your own, but I can vouch for this one. It was excellent. We booked it directly on-line with RCI. I'll get back to you soon!

 

To clarify, this was all one excursion through RCI.

[cheleh]

Thank you, thank you!!

 

You guys are great- I've copied & pasted your recommendations right into my itinerary. I love the details you provide - and yes, I do want to hear about the tour groups you decided to use... And, we will definitely look into doing the "taxi tours".

 

Please feel free to give us more itinerary recommendations!! It's our first cruise & there's so much to decide on! :)

[Stella Darling]

St. Kitts was absolutely beautiful! It rained in St. Lucia for us, but we adored Cosol's private tour none the less. Barbados has an incredible 4x4 Green Monkey Encounter that's an animal lovers dream! Monkeys everywhere. See my review for the Empress of the Seas and my excursions.

 

Some people like flat islands like Aruba.......we like lush, mountainous islands like St. Kitts and St. Lucia. To each their own!

[OHCruisin]

Of course, I've deleted my confirmations from my excursion. I think it was the Land & Sea excursion that RCI offers. I was actually booked on something else, but it got canceled and I was able to join this one. Never did get charged:) In any case, it was about 7 hours. I'll check my cruise documents from November when I get home. Can you tell I'm working:rolleyes:?

 

We did get rain in St. Lucia (they get over 100 inches per year in the rain forest). But we lucked out. It was while we were driving. Seemed every time we stopped for pictures or at the volcano, etc., it stopped raining. By the time we got to our first stop the weather was perfect.

[randyfipps]

Dominica is a cool little island, not with white sand beaches but with its

botanical gardens and agriculture. It has 365 rivers on a small island.

Our driver would stop and get cocoa beans, bread fruit etc...

The Cicero & Jerico parrots are also on the island.

[SimplyAddicted]

My favorite islands for scenary were St. Lucia and Dominica. Both are incredibly beautiful. In St. Lucia, I did a Rainforest Mountain Bike Adventure. It was a great time and got the best pictures! In Dominica, I did a Rainforest Rivertubing. It was the most beautiful and relaxing excursion I have ever been on!

[Janice M]

St. Thomas has a tram which is walking distance from the ship. It takes you to the top of a hill and from there it is a beautiful view. They also have a bird show and a place for eating.

 

Jan

[OHCruisin]

Well, sorry to say, I can't find any paperwork on my St. Lucia excursion. I'm almost 100% positive it was the Land & Sea. Check the descriptions of the tours offered by RCCL. Look for the drive through volcano, lunch, catamaran back. It was a great tour. It was pretty much all day so we were not really able to do any shopping, but that didn't interest me anyway. I did that in St. Thomas & St. Maarten:) If I happen to come across the info, I'll pop back on. It really is a beautiful island.

[ndsumfun]

Cheleh,

 

We are going on the Destiny in 3 weeks and I did ALOT of research for the best & cost effective tours. I had typed up our excursions & links & prices for someone else going on our cruise. If you will forward me your e-mail address I will just forward that e-mail to you! We have a tour on every island except Antigua and it is only costing us roughly $300 for 2 people! my e-mail addy is keller2@bellsouth.net

 

happy cruisin'

 

Ann :)

[sea-cruise]

Of the islands you've listed, St. Lucia was our favorite. There is a restaurant up in one of the Pitons. You can see colorful birds flying in and out of the little caves. The drive-through volcano was unique.

Try to see the floral gardens and huge waterfall where orchids grow out of the cliff. The old stone "baths" at the hot springs are also very interesting.

[cheleh]

I saw your posting & would love to see your itinerary. I sent you an email so please let me know what your itinerary looks like.

 

Thanks again & Happy cruising!

[ndsumfun]

I saw your posting & would love to see your itinerary. I sent you an email so please let me know what your itinerary looks like.

 

Thanks again & Happy cruising!

 

 

got it sent for ya!!! :cool:

[Janiekins]

OHCruisin, Thank you very much. Yes, it is the Land and Sea tour in St. Lucia. It sounds like fun. Do you think that 2 teenage boys (17 & 18) would like it?

[Ruggermags06]

My favorite islands for scenary were St. Lucia and Dominica. Both are incredibly beautiful. In St. Lucia, I did a Rainforest Mountain Bike Adventure. It was a great time and got the best pictures! In Dominica, I did a Rainforest Rivertubing. It was the most beautiful and relaxing excursion I have ever been on!

 

Megan, so glad to here you liked the Mountain Bike Adventure in St. Lucia. We were going to do the hike up Gros Piton when we are there in June but it got cancelled :( so I was beginning to look at the Mountain Biking and that sounded like a good time. Glad to hear it is. Thanks!