Bermuda at night and transportation questions

[spunkyhungry]

Hi,
I'm going on a cruise to Bermuda in 2 days. It stays docked at King's Wharf the whole time. We scheduled 3 shore excursions, and during the remaining chunks of time I'd like to see Bermuda, specifically a good beach (probably Horseshoe Beach) and a cute town. Are the towns open/interesting at night? I'm talking about Hamilton or St. George. Which would be better at night? We're not so interested in partying/nightclubs, we'd just be interested in walking around a cute town and maybe getting a good snack or drink.

And what's the best way to get there from King's Wharf, taxi or bus? Is all this safe at night? I'm thinking we would have an early dinner on the ship and then head out. Also, should we use this same method of transportation to get to Horseshoe Beach?

Thanks!!

[js]

Originally Posted by spunkyhungry

Hi,
I'm going on a cruise to Bermuda in 2 days. It stays docked at King's Wharf the whole time. We scheduled 3 shore excursions, and during the remaining chunks of time I'd like to see Bermuda, specifically a good beach (probably Horseshoe Beach) and a cute town. Are the towns open/interesting at night? I'm talking about Hamilton or St. George. Which would be better at night? We're not so interested in partying/nightclubs, we'd just be interested in walking around a cute town and maybe getting a good snack or drink.

And what's the best way to get there from King's Wharf, taxi or bus? Is all this safe at night? I'm thinking we would have an early dinner on the ship and then head out. Also, should we use this same method of transportation to get to Horseshoe Beach?

Thanks!!

oohhh, this is a very good question.
I'm just bumping since I am interested too.
I look forward to getting some answers. Thank you.

[sept10dsm]

I am interested as well! Does anyone have any information? Thanks

[buffi001]

I'll tell you what I know.....from reading reviews mostly, since I haven't
been to Bermuda in quite a while. From what I can gather, public transportation (ferries and buses) shut down pretty early in the evening, so
Taxi is probably your only option. Taxis are pretty expensive, so negotiate
a price before getting in. Hamilton is a very nice little town, and it does
have plenty of restaurants/ bars/ Irish pubs that are open late. There
are also many comments about how safe Bermuda is, so I don't think that
will be a problem.

If it were me, I would take a ferry to Hamilton early one day and check it out. You can then easily get a bus to Horseshoe Bay, or Elbow Beach, or
Gibbs lighthouse......all of which shouldn't be missed. You can then determine whether you think it's worth a trip back to Hamilton after dinner.

I have been to Bermuda, just not recently. Hope this helps a little. Buy
a transportation pass, get on the bus/ferry and GO all around the island.

[Trend]

I sent away for the tourism info and the ferries stop running most nights except for Harbour nights on Wed. but buses run longer it changes at different times of year. I just looked at the booklet and it says times are available from visitor centers and hotels (one is at Kings Wharf were you buy your tickets).

[SailBadtheSinner]

Originally Posted by buffi001

............public transportation (ferries and buses) shut down pretty early in the evening, so Taxi is probably your only option. Taxis are pretty expensive, so negotiate a price before getting in. Hamilton is a very nice little town, and it does have plenty of restaurants/ bars/ Irish pubs that are open late. .............

The last weekday ferry from Hamilton to the Dockyard is at 8:30pm except for Wednesday night's Harbour Nights festival when the last ferry is at 10:00pm.

The last weekday bus (route #8) from Hamilton to the Dockyard is at 10:45pm.

Since taxi rates are set by the Bermuda government, I don't believe there is room for negotiation. For taxi service after midnight, there is a 25% surcharge on the fare. I would estimate the fare from Hamilton to the Dockyard would be about $40.00 before surcharge.

BTW, Hamilton is a city.

I would say Hamilton is as safe as any US city; just use your common sense.


SBtS

[buffi001]

Town vs city is a matter of symantics. Hamilton has a population of 13,000,
which, to me, makes it seem more like a town than a US city.

[bunnyman]

Been to Bermuda four times, with two by cruise. As to safety, we’ve never had a problem, but like everything else just be prudent. One cruise we were at King’s Wharf, while the other several years before we were docked in Hamilton and St. George (Celebrity Zenith cruise). I remember from a prior hotel stay there that the buses don’t run at night, as we were warned by front desk that if we took bus into Hamilton, we’d have to come back via taxi. Taxi’s can be expensive.
During the day buses are great, and suggest buying unlimited daily or multi-day pass. We’ve been known to hop off at certain beaches, and then catch later bus to move on to someplace else. Regarding night, I’ll just say good luck! When we were docked in Hamilton we got off ship after dinner to stroll Front Street to basically find it a ghost town but for a very few restaurants or bars. All of the stores close early. Between Hamilton and St. George at night, I’d say Hamilton has more to do (St. George has been hit pretty hard with less cruise ships being able to dock there and the distance from King’s Wharf).
Spent beach time at Horseshoe Bay, Church Bay, Snorkel Park, and Fort St. Catherine’s. Loved Church Bay for the quietness and pink sand, but it can be rough it the wind and surf is in a certain state. Horseshoe Bay can get very crowded. Fort St. Catherine’s we did when docked in St. George, and it wasn’t bad. Snorkel Park I’d just stay is a standby beach if you don’t have time or energy to venture too far from King’s Wharf.

[phillygirl63]

We stayed in Hamilton this past May for a long weekend and had no problems finding restaurants and bars that stayed open till very late at night. A lot of them had live music that didn't start until 10:00 p.m. This was contrary to everything I had heard about Bermuda's nightlife. We walked back to our hotel each night and never felt unsafe.

Harbour Nights on Wednesdays is a lot of fun with live music on the stage on Front Street, which is closed off to all motor vehicles. There were people dancing, vendors set up to sell crafts and such and people dancing and having a good time. The last ferry back to the dockyard is at 10:00 p.m., but taxis are readily available if you want to stay later. The taxi fare before midnight should be about $50 with a 25% surcharge after midnight. No negotiation on fares as they are government regulated.

We loved Hamilton. St. George was much quieter, but a great town to have lunch and walk around and explore during the day to enjoy all the history. We visited there with one of the taxi tour guides and had a wonderful day before catching our flight home.

Horseshoe Bay is a must-see beach. I would suggest walking from HSB to the next cove beach, which was a real treat. And, if you are really adventurous, you can walk further up the beach path to Warwick Long Bay, but there are some rocky areas to navigate.

[spunkyhungry]

So we didn't end up going to Hamilton. We tried to go Sunday evening at 6:50 pm. Most of the public transportation shut down. Our only options were 1) take 7:30 pm ferry to Hamilton and 10:45 pm return bus (too late for us) or 2) taxi $41 each way. So we just walked around the dockyard, where we discovered almost all of the stores were closed anyway. So going to Hamilton probably would have been a waste of all our time and money, since it was Sunday.

[blue_water]

Yes, Sunday stores are closed in Hamilton by law even when a ship is docked there. Great restaurant options there as well as shopping, we just returned from a week stay on the south shores and the bus/ferry system is the best we've seen anywhere.

And yes to an earlier poster, Hamilton is a Bermudian city. St George could be described as a quaint little town.

[Langoustine]

Originally Posted by buffi001

Taxis are pretty expensive, so negotiate
a price before getting in.

Good luck with that. Fares are set by the government, and this is not the Caribbean; I've seen drivers laugh at people who wanted to haggle, and drive off.

[blue_water]

That's right, there is no negotiating taxi fares in Bermuda, the bus is an excellent mode of transport and very convenient. The only time a taxi would be considered by anyone is later at night from Hamilton to Dockyard or on Sunday.

[smeyer418]

except on harbor nights during the week when stores stay open for special events all shops close at 5 or 6 pm except for a convenience store. This is island wide.
Sundays all stores close except for the Dockyard Mall when a ship is at the pier there.
On Sunday there is a 25% surcharge for taxis all day.