Christmas Ornament Souveniers

[gbcruise]

When my parents traveled they always brought home a ornament for our tree. It's small to pack & brings back yearly memories of their travels. I have adapted this tradition myself. We will be on the Serenade next week, sailing ports San Juan, St Thomas, Barbados, Antigua, St. Maarten & St. Lucia. Can anyone tell me where stores specifically are that I can purchase ornaments at in these ports?

[Puffinater]

In Barbados we bought an ornament right in the terminal. It was during Christmas time so that might be why they had them there.

[karena1]

When my parents traveled they always brought home a ornament for our tree. It's small to pack & brings back yearly memories of their travels. I have adapted this tradition myself. We will be on the Serenade next week, sailing ports San Juan, St Thomas, Barbados, Antigua, St. Maarten & St. Lucia. Can anyone tell me where stores specifically are that I can purchase ornaments at in these ports?

 

 

In San Juan, there are a lot of little stores downtown, you should be able to find something fairly easy there.

 

St Thomas - any of the little shops at Havensight which is where you will dock. I have seen decorations in many of these little shops over the years.

 

St Maarten - in Philipsburg, by the pier, there are a ton of little stores, many with trinkets. Again, you should be able to find one in any of those.

 

Antigua - there is a little yellow shopping center that we always go into by the pier. they have probably 6 or 7 little stores with trinkets. I know I have seen xmas decorations in there.

 

St Lucia - not the straw market, but in some of the other little stores by the pier you should be able to find something.

[billscruiser]

I, too, collect Christmas ornaments from everywhere we go. The delight of recalling special memories as we put up the tree even has DH (alias Scrooge) wanting to help. I have not been to Antigua so am unable to answer on that island. All the others have shops in the shopping areas either downtown or by the malls where the cruise ship docks. St. Lucia has a mall area you have to go thru to get to the main streets with almost every shop having something. There is also a straw type market across the street with other unusual ones as well. St. Thomas and St. Martinn have stores where there are special racks with ornaments. Barbados has a large department store with many to choose from as well as shops along the way and outside the terminal itself were some vendors with handmade things. We were in San Juan last August as well and there are many stores right downtown. a few blocks from the fort with many ornaments and things. There is even a coach handbag outlet store there.

 

Hope this helps. Happy memories and good luck. (I also always get an ornament of the ship we're on as well.)

 

Kathryn

[Salt air hair]

I've always found something in the line of an ornament in the island's local Historical Society or at their Trust Society. Most island's have one and anything for sale in there is most often made locally.

[gbcruise]

This information is very helpful. I didn't realize that they would be so easy to find, I figured I would be looking for that one "tucked behind the scenes" shop where ornaments were hidden. I too get the ships ornament, they go on the tree during Christmas then back into the curio cabinet. I also have noticed the ships store have ornaments for each port of call but I guess its just me, I want it straight from the island, better memories that way :)

[NJGRANNY]

We started doing this, too. We used to collect plates, but that got a little too much. Our wall space was running out.

 

The ornaments are surprisingly easy to find no matter what time of year and fun.

 

Enjoy!

[Mickey527]

Don't forget, an "ornament" doesn't have to be an Ornament!

I have my tree decorated with things I have bought on vacations. Some of them are: a little Japanese doll made of wood, a pin cushion with 3 chinese children around it made of cloth that I sewed a string to for hanging. A small wooden train from Germany, a beautiful shell that I found on the beach on my first cruise to the Bahamas.

If you try and find a Christmas shop you might not be as lucky as if you open your mind to any small item that will bring back memories of your vacation.

[DrivesLikeMario]

I like the RCI ones on the ship! We have a Santa buried in the sand, a lobster with Christmas lights tangled up in his claws, a crab surfing and a few others. They're corny but cute. No one in the family except me remembers that cruise on the Liberty, but they remember the ornaments! :confused:

[lovethekeys]

I also collect ornaments and my favorite one was handpainted in St. Thomas. It is the first one I unwrap each year. As someone has already stated consider other options if you can't find an "ornament". I have purchased keychains and magnets to hang on my tree and no one knows. So happy I started doing this many years ago. It sure beats all the other trinkets that just collect dust once you get home or eventually get thrown out.;)

[thesmiths]

We do the same as well...but not always ornmaments...

 

We have more then a few key chains with the city, country & Pic on them and easy to hook a clip to them for the tree.....there always in any shop right near the dock or resort and real cost effective.

 

WE enjoy putting these on the tree every year....

[bluegirlum]

I don't know how much you want to spend, but the Delft store in Philipsburg has lovely stuff. I got beautiful ornaments for my family there in December. I got some little wooden shoes that we put on the tree--they weren't necessarily meant to be an ornament, but they reminded me of when I lived in Amsterdam. Otherwise, we always get an ornament of the ship we're on.

 

And we collect magnets of where we go too. Small, easy to carry, and fun to look at every day.

[MamaBirdie85]

I also collect ornaments and have close to 700. I am going to go to ornament rehab soon. I am to the point where every ornament has some significance as to why it is on the tree. My daughter worked on the Liberty and the Jewel in Europe and found that there were ornaments in some places, but not others. She got creative in Sweden by getting a bottle opener with a Swedish emblem. In Cork, she bought a wood shamrock. A friend of mine could not find an ornament in France, so she got me an Eiffel Tower keychain. Strange as they are, they are right there on the tree with the Swarovski snowflakes and Waterford ornaments. I have been looking for a Cleveland or Terminal Tower ornament, and I may have to resort to one of those old colllector mini spoons.

 

Be creative- when you see something that is unusual, it might be interesting, and you will remember the place. Be sure to see if the ship has a Serenade ornament. We have one of the Jewel. I didn't get the Liberty because it was the set up pre-inaugural cruise.

RCL does not have them listed on their web gift page.

[Joeyb708]

I am also a big Christmas person, and set out to do the same thing when we visited the international pavillions at Epcot in Disneyworld. A different ornament from each country. Well some of the countries represnted do not celebrate Christmas. So I have belly dancer finger symbols from Morroco, A small Pagoda from China, A Japanese character from Japan. Also some of the countries that do celebrate Christmas didnt have ornaments for sale like France, so I too have a little Eiffle tower on one of my trees.

[CruisinManiac]

We do this also. However, we have been to so many of the same ports, that I am getting tired of collecting. On our cruise last week, I just purchased the ornament from the ship. It is gold looking filigree and has the ship name - Voyager.

[cyndyt]

I purchase ornaments each year for each of my 5 children. Whenever I am on a cruise I pick up one either from port or as someone else has said from the ship itself. I have found that almost all of the souvenir type shops carry ornaments year round. There must be quite a few of us buying them.

[mariapd719]

In San Juan go the little park not too far from the pier. There are some locals selling different things. There is one table that has these beautiful hand made ornaments of some sort of clay material and they have either the nativity scene or Mary and child ( im not a religious person at all but I had to buy one for me and one for my mom cause they are very pretty and scream PR). They will write Puerto Rico on it or your family name. Some are already written on