What pier does the Caribbean Princess dock at in St Thomas and San Juan?

[DonnaK]

Where does the CB dock in St. Thomas?

How about in San Juan when it's a port-of-call (not an embarkation port)?

 

Can anyone suggest any low-budget things to do near the port? I've checked the ports-of-call boards, but thought I'd ask here too.

 

Thanks!

[NJRonbo]

Good questions.

 

CB generally docks at the Pan Am Pier due to its size.

 

What to do in San Juan? Visit Old San Juan, particularly Morro Fort.

 

I realize you are in a cruise ship and food is included, but if you are

in San Juan late, do yourself a favor and visit RAICES for dinner. Get there early

on weekends as it gets busy. Best food we ever ate. Must try the chicken

or pork mofongos.

 

As for St. Thomas....

 

The ship will either dock at Havensight or Crown Bay. They never know

until the last minute which it will be. We were scheduled for Havensight

and docked at Crown Bay.

 

You want Havensight. There is government-controlled shopping right off

of the ship. If you dare to go downtown for shopping you will be harassed

by the natives. It's pretty damn scary.

[Colo Cruiser]

Where does the CB dock in St. Thomas?

How about in San Juan when it's a port-of-call (not an embarkation port)?

 

Can anyone suggest any low-budget things to do near the port? I've checked the ports-of-call boards, but thought I'd ask here too.

 

Thanks!

 

Crown Bay in St Thomas

 

San Juan would be the downtown Old San Juan pier on a non embarkation port.

[DonnaK]

Thanks for the info.

 

I've never docked at Crown Bay....always at Havensight. I've also never docked at Old San Juan...always at the Pan American. So, I guess this upcoming cruise will be "new" to us.

[davekathy]

Good questions.

 

CB generally docks at the Pan Am Pier due to its size.

 

What to do in San Juan? Visit Old San Juan, particularly Morro Fort.

 

I realize you are in a cruise ship and food is included, but if you are

in San Juan late, do yourself a favor and visit RAICES for dinner. Get there early

on weekends as it gets busy. Best food we ever ate. Must try the chicken

or pork mofongos.

 

As for St. Thomas....

 

The ship will either dock at Havensight or Crown Bay. They never know

until the last minute which it will be. We were scheduled for Havensight

and docked at Crown Bay.

 

You want Havensight. There is government-controlled shopping right off

of the ship. If you dare to go downtown for shopping you will be harassed

by the natives. It's pretty damn scary.

 

WHAT!! You've got to be kidding? We've been to St. Thomas several times and have never been "harassed". Nothing scary about Charlotte Amalie (downtown) at all. From either Crowns Bay or Havensight take a taxi into town. The "natives" are not restless!!! To the OP, enjoy your visit to the island.

[Colo Cruiser]

And by Natives too!! :eek:

[NJRonbo]

davekathy,

 

Please -- next time you are in St. Thomas, make an effort to stop

by the downtown shops, midway between Crown Bay and Havensight.

 

GUARANTEED you won't walk past a single shop without someone

hanging out the door harassing you to come inside for "special sale"

 

Then you have to check out the guy dressed as a p*mp who follows

you around complaining that you are walking around so much that

"it's making me crazy."

 

We got out of the taxis and were so startled by the behavior of the

people there that we were back in our taxis within 10 minutes and on

our way to the government controlled shops at Havensight.

[Caribbean Sunsets]

You may have seen this when you checked out the San Juan board but here is a link to a nice walking tour of Old San Juan that includes the fort. Another poster also mentions the free trolly. We didn't use the trolly and went at our own pace and modified the walking tour to what we wanted to see.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=960534&highlight=walking+tour

 

Enjoy your cruise!:)

[rcacace]

davekathy,

 

Please -- next time you are in St. Thomas, make an effort to stop

by the downtown shops, midway between Crown Bay and Havensight.

 

GUARANTEED you won't walk past a single shop without someone

hanging out the door harassing you to come inside for "special sale"

 

Then you have to check out the guy dressed as a p*mp who follows

you around complaining that you are walking around so much that

"it's making me crazy."

 

We got out of the taxis and were so startled by the behavior of the

people there that we were back in our taxis within 10 minutes and on

our way to the government controlled shops at Havensight.

 

If you think they were pushy in St Thomas, don't ever stop in Jamaica & go to Dunn's River Falls by yourself.:D You're in for one big shock.

St Thomas has the least aggressive hawkers of any of the islands.

[davekathy]

davekathy,

 

Please -- next time you are in St. Thomas, make an effort to stop

by the downtown shops, midway between Crown Bay and Havensight.

 

GUARANTEED you won't walk past a single shop without someone

hanging out the door harassing you to come inside for "special sale"

 

Then you have to check out the guy dressed as a p*mp who follows

you around complaining that you are walking around so much that

"it's making me crazy."

 

We got out of the taxis and were so startled by the behavior of the

people there that we were back in our taxis within 10 minutes and on

our way to the government controlled shops at Havensight.

 

We’ve been to St Thomas 4 times (5th coming in 2010) and have never encountered anything you have described. I just wanted the OP to hear another Cruisers experience other than yours. Just my opinion. Giving the amount of people we’ve seen in St. Thomas (Charlotte Amalie) it’s hard to believe they all have had “pimp daddies” and store sales people harassing them. Sorry your visit was such a bummer. I guess it was a bad day in paradise for you.

[chamima]

We've probably been in St. Thomas about 10 times and we've NEVER experienced anything like that! Are you sure you haven't mixed it up with somewhere else ? :confused::confused::confused:

[NJRonbo]

don't ever stop in Jamaica & go to Dunn's River Falls by yourself.

 

Yeah, that experience, I'll readily admit, was worse than St. Thomas. You have

to go through their little village just to exit the area.

[NJRonbo]

We've probably been in St. Thomas about 10 times and we've NEVER experienced anything like that! Are you sure you haven't mixed it up with somewhere else ?

 

Uhm....no. Quite sure where I was less than a week ago.

[Clutterlady]

In San Juan they have a free trolley that takes you from the dock and all around old town. The two old forts are worth seeing, and downtown San Juan is interesting!!

 

As far as St. Thomas, also been there many times and although we have never been bothered by anyone, some of the shop keepers can be a little aggressive when things get slow but believe me have seen a lot worse on other islands.

 

Enjoy your cruise:)

[DonnaK]

In San Juan they have a free trolley that takes you from the dock and all around old town. The two old forts are worth seeing, and downtown San Juan is interesting!!

 

As far as St. Thomas, also been there many times and although we have never been bothered by anyone, some of the shop keepers can be a little aggressive when things get slow but believe me have seen a lot worse on other islands.

 

Enjoy your cruise:)

 

Thanks - I think we'll do the free trolly to Old San Juan.

 

As far as St Thomas, we've been there about 10 times, including our honeymoon 26 years ago, and never found the locals to be pushy, so I'm not concerned about that. We're just looking for something inexpensive and "different" to do near the new-to-us port. We're thinking of the ferry over to Water Island.

[Coolmama_1]

If you think they were pushy in St Thomas, don't ever stop in Jamaica & go to Dunn's River Falls by yourself.:D You're in for one big shock.

St Thomas has the least aggressive hawkers of any of the islands.

 

You are so right!

[Nukesailor]

We were in Old San Juan a couple years ago and loved it. The old city is beautiful, especially at twilight when the lights start to come on.

I highly recommend the walking tour. They start by taking you by bus to visit El Morro, then started walking through the city. They start at El Morro because it is at the top of the hill and the rest of the walk is downhill. Stops are made to go into some of the interesting places.

If you do your own tour, you will also want to start with El Morro - this is a National Park and closes at 5PM, so you want to see it first.

We spent hours just wandering around Old San Juan and got some great photos.

My understanding is that Princess has signed a contract for docking at Crown Bay. When we were last in St. Thomas (January this year), we were the only ship in port that day and we docked at Crown Bay. There are a few stores there, but only a few. You can either take a taxi downtown (I think it was $4/person) or you can get a ticket for the "Pirate's Tour", which is really a water taxi that stops at both Havensite and downtown. If you buy the tour on the ship, it will be around $19; if you buy it at Crown Bay when you arrive, $10. During the "tout" They also tell about pirates that used to be in the area. They have to sell it as a tour as otherwise the taxi drivers would try to shut them down.

By the way: sad news - Mountain Top burned down last week. Total loss. Hope they rebuild.

Have an excellent cruise.

 

Art

[jackdiamond]

If you dock at Crown Bay, you might consider visiting Emerald beach. It is very nice; and, just a short taxi ride from the pier. They also rent chairs and umbrellas. As a matter of fact, if you are vigorous, you can walk to this beach. Probably, not more than a 1/2 hour walk.

[rcacace]

If you dock at Crown Bay, you might consider visiting Emerald beach. It is very nice; and, just a short taxi ride from the pier. They also rent chairs and umbrellas. As a matter of fact, if you are vigorous, you can walk to this beach. Probably, not more than a 1/2 hour walk.

 

It took me 20 minutes & I was in no hurry. The shuttle price is $4 p/p each way.

[peedee3400]

We were in Old San Juan a couple years ago and loved it. The old city is beautiful, especially at twilight when the lights start to come on.

I highly recommend the walking tour. They start by taking you by bus to visit El Morro, then started walking through the city. They start at El Morro because it is at the top of the hill and the rest of the walk is downhill. Stops are made to go into some of the interesting places.

If you do your own tour, you will also want to start with El Morro - this is a National Park and closes at 5PM, so you want to see it first.

We spent hours just wandering around Old San Juan and got some great photos.

My understanding is that Princess has signed a contract for docking at Crown Bay. When we were last in St. Thomas (January this year), we were the only ship in port that day and we docked at Crown Bay. There are a few stores there, but only a few. You can either take a taxi downtown (I think it was $4/person) or you can get a ticket for the "Pirate's Tour", which is really a water taxi that stops at both Havensite and downtown. If you buy the tour on the ship, it will be around $19; if you buy it at Crown Bay when you arrive, $10. During the "tout" They also tell about pirates that used to be in the area. They have to sell it as a tour as otherwise the taxi drivers would try to shut them down.

By the way: sad news - Mountain Top burned down last week. Total loss. Hope they rebuild.

Have an excellent cruise.

 

Art

 

Hi Nukesailor - I believe the 'Pirate's Tour' went out of business in March. Sorry.

 

Greg

[RickEk]

By the way: sad news - Mountain Top burned down last week. Total loss. Hope they rebuild.

Have an excellent cruise.

 

Art

 

 

I heard about this! :( Sigh... I wonder if the skyway is still operating? Where am I going to go for my Bushwacker now??!! :p

[Maraprince]

Good questions.

 

CB generally docks at the Pan Am Pier due to its size.

 

What to do in San Juan? Visit Old San Juan, particularly Morro Fort.

 

I realize you are in a cruise ship and food is included, but if you are

in San Juan late, do yourself a favor and visit RAICES for dinner. Get there early

on weekends as it gets busy. Best food we ever ate. Must try the chicken

or pork mofongos.

 

As for St. Thomas....

 

The ship will either dock at Havensight or Crown Bay. They never know

until the last minute which it will be. We were scheduled for Havensight

and docked at Crown Bay.

 

You want Havensight. There is government-controlled shopping right off

of the ship. If you dare to go downtown for shopping you will be harassed

by the natives. It's pretty damn scary.

 

 

Downtown St. Thomas has never been scary! You must be confusing St. Thomas with some other island. I have been to downtown St. Thomas over 20 times and never had a bad experience with any shop or vendor.

 

If you want to experience scary go to Jamaica! Now that is a scary place and the vendors are more than intimidating. How about taking a ship's sponsored (not Princess) river raft excursion with a guide and his machete. He carved a gourd and asked for $20 for it. It had a misspelling in it and as long as we were off the beaten path and wanted to be safely returned to the ship, we "gladly" handed over the $20! Once on board we headed to the tour desk manager's office only to learn that other passengers had the same experience. Needlessto say, we all got our money back.

 

MARAPRINCE

[wrp96]

I heard about this! :( Sigh... I wonder if the skyway is still operating? Where am I going to go for my Bushwacker now??!! :p

 

 

The Skyway was to Paradise Point, not Mountaintop - two different places.

[gerig]

If you dock at Crown Bay, you might consider visiting Emerald beach. It is very nice; and, just a short taxi ride from the pier. They also rent chairs and umbrellas. As a matter of fact, if you are vigorous, you can walk to this beach. Probably, not more than a 1/2 hour walk.

 

 

I was there in February and plan on going back in August. Very nice beach with facilities, restaurant. We rented the chairs and the hut umbrella ($20). This suppose to be real close to Crown bay

[NJRonbo]

Downtown St. Thomas has never been scary! You must be confusing St. Thomas with some other island.

 

Some of you are making me laugh aloud.

 

It's if you think I purposely made up some story about some

fictional place I visited.

 

Our ship went to St. Thomas, Antigua and Bermuda. We only got off

on ONE island and that was St. Thomas, our first stop. We docked at

Crown Bay and took a taxi to a shopping strip located on the water

front between Crown Bay and Havensight. In fact, it was less than a

mile away from Havensight as we could clearly see it in the distance

(the Carnival Victory was docked there).

 

Now if that's not the "downtown" you are thinking of and I have it

wrong, then that mistake is on me and you have my apologies.

 

However, the situation was very real. The taxi driver, under the

instructions to take us to downtown shopping, let us off at this strip

shopping area that had a couple diamond shops, t-shirts and one

small convenience store.

 

We were there 10 minutes and the entire time we were harassed

by shop cliental who hung out of the doorways beckoning us to come

inside. One guy, dressed like a p*mp (this forum will not let me spell it)

was particularly bothersome, following us around and muttering under

his breath about the fact we would not stop in one of the shops.

 

I could care less if you some of you don't believe me. As I posted in

my review (in the Caribbean Princess member review area), it's not

always a wise idea to go shopping in areas that are not government

controlled. Cozumel Mexico is another bad area to shop and be

harassed. As some have suggested, so is Jamaica -- probably the

worst I have experienced.

 

Bravo to all who feel St. Thomas is a great place to shop. For the

most part I agree. Been there twice before and I love Havensight.

However, where this Taxi driver dropped our group off has got to

be the wormhole of the entire island. The people were just obnoxious.