Better Port to Buy Gold Necklace

We are looking to drop a little cash and buy a nice gold necklace on an upcoming cruise. We will be in St Maarten next week and in St. Thomas next year. I have read that both ports can be good places to buy jewelry but which port will I get a better deal and get more for my money?

We are looking to drop a little cash and buy a nice gold necklace on an upcoming cruise. We will be in St Maarten next week and in St. Thomas next year. I have read that both ports can be good places to buy jewelry but which port will I get a better deal and get more for my money?

St Thomas, you can even haggle the prices. DH bought me a nice hunk of silver that was $320.00 and paid $69.

Or even the ship. They have nice gold jewelry selections.

Have a great cruise! :)

They are the two best places to jewelry shop in the Caribbean - either is a good choice with many reputable stores.

At either island don't pay anywhere near the starting price:D

Be aware that the "gold by the inch" on the ship is simply "gold plated"...

St Maarten is usually a little cheaper than St Thomas as there actually is some duty paid by the retailer on goods in St Thomas. It used to be about 7% which reflected the slight savings in St. Maarten.

In St. Maarten, you get the best prices.

Support your local jewelers. The Islands get most of their jewelry from NY. :) Sorry, I had to be different. :D

Most of the island stores now have websites, so just google jewelry stores on what ever island you are visiting. You will also find out all the negatives

We have purchased gold/stones at Diamonds international. They will "bargain" with you and we once purchased fake tanzanite in Mexico. Avoid the small shops. We did get our money back from our credit card vendor- but a hassle. IMO actually the gold can be gotten as cheap, if not cheaper at home! We live in NY and the Diamond Exchange has the best rates. Macy's actually good also on sale!

If you are looking for a bargain forget it- if you want to buy something as a special memory of your cruise- I agree St Thomas and St Maarten the best. Enjoy your cruise

I have bought jewelry from both ports. In St Maarten I picked up a yellow emerald ring for a very good price. When I brought it home and had it appraised, it was worth double the price of what I paid. It was the first time I had ever seen or heard of yellow emeralds.My daughter has bought all of her watches in St Thomas and has gotten some pretty good deals over the years. In St Maarten I believe we bought from Kay Jewelry, and in St Thomas I think she always goes to Diamond International for her watches. And yes, do not except their first price that they give you, they will always go down lower. Have fun shopping!!!!

Having been to St. Thomas and St. Maarten we thought the better deals were in St. Maarten although there were some good prices in both. For me I was able to get a better haggle down price in St. Thomas but I found the starting prices were lower in St. Maarten! :cool:

I have bought jewelry from both ports. In St Maarten I picked up a yellow emerald ring for a very good price. When I brought it home and had it appraised, it was worth double the price of what I paid. It was the first time I had ever seen or heard of yellow emeralds.My daughter has bought all of her watches in St Thomas and has gotten some pretty good deals over the years. In St Maarten I believe we bought from Kay Jewelry, and in St Thomas I think she always goes to Diamond International for her watches. And yes, do not except their first price that they give you, they will always go down lower. Have fun shopping!!!!

We have bought quite a few pieces of jewelry in St Maarten's at kay's Jewelry. Many others who we have met and sailed with also recommended kay's.

And we have bought gold in St. Thomas - as said by someone else, make sure you go to a larger, named store. Enjoy shopping:)

Thanks everyone. We'll actually be in New York City the day before we leave the cruise (Newark). We're from CT originally but haven't really done any jewelry shopping in the city before.

I'll do some research online this weekend too for St Maarten too since we'll be there first.

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The duty free allowance is greater for goods purchased in St.Thomas.

I have bought many nice pieces on both islands. I tend to get better deals in St Thomas, especially at Milano. DH likes it when we go to a Western Carib cause I don't shop [emoji849]

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For us when we are cruising the eastern route i.e. St Thomas then St Maarten the best deal would be in St Thomas by reason that the jewelers know that we will be going to St Maarten next and they don't want to loose the deal; every shop we have been in have asked what ship we are on so they know the route; there have been occasions we lost out by reason that St Thomas had the product but wouldn't budge to the figure we wanted to pay and we decided to walk and try St Maarten, but they didn't have the product we wanted, oh there's always the next cruise!

St Maarten is usually a little cheaper than St Thomas as there actually is some duty paid by the retailer on goods in St Thomas. It used to be about 7% which reflected the slight savings in St. Maarten.

In St. Maarten, you get the best prices.

Having been to St. Thomas and St. Maarten we thought the better deals were in St. Maarten although there were some good prices in both. For me I was able to get a better haggle down price in St. Thomas but I found the starting prices were lower in St. Maarten! :cool:

Having been to both places and bought jewelry, we agree St. Maarten gets you the better prices/deals.

It's important not to be hesitant to "negotiate" a price...the jewelers on these islands routine operate with the assumption that the "stating price" will not be the "purchase price".

I think best idea is to think of the jewelry as a memory of the trip. A few years later when someone complements you on the necklace, you'll say we got this is in St Martin (or St Thomas), but you'll forget about the exact price.

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After multiple stays and multiple cruises to these two islands, I'd give my vote to St Maarten. We've done a lot of jewelry shopping on both islands, and hands down I'd say St Maarten.

ABSOLUTELY stay away from the bombardment by the cruise ship "sales counselors" about what stores to hit. The supposed "jewelry guarantee" is a SHAM. Buyer beware here. Please read the last sentence again. Only other advice is to do your homework and know your prices beforehand.

We've done business for many years with a little shop in St Maarten, #10 Front St called Dazzling Gems. It's up near the Guavaberry Emporium. Danny is the owner. Her will bend over backwards to see that you get what you want. He has a designer in California he works closely with (ask me how I know....err..ask my wife) and a service center in New York. He can be reached at any time by cell phone from the states. You will make a friend for life. :D

Unfortunately, deals on jewelry in both St. Thomas & St. Maarten and other Caribbean ports aren't what they use to be.

Check prices at home which might even be better. ;)

The islands are fine for jewelry but I would suggest a reputable jeweler at home. There is more risk and limited savings in the Caribbean

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Sometimes it's just about a special memento from the cruise.

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Sometimes it's just about a special memento from the cruise.

 

 

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Understand

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Don't be fooled by an appraised value versus your purchase price. No insurance company will pay you the appraised value rather they can replace it with "like kind and quality" for a fraction of your purchase price

If you like something and will enjoy it then buy it but never think your getting a bargain