Bus to Ardastra Gardens,

[BusyBlond]

If I wanted to catch a local bus to the Ardastra Gardens, where is ther bus stop in relation to the cruise ship dock? Do I need to buy a ticket at the bus station? or can I just hop on and pay at the bus stop?

Thanks in advance for any help

[scubagirrl]

Originally Posted by BusyBlond

If I wanted to catch a local bus to the Ardastra Gardens, where is ther bus stop in relation to the cruise ship dock? Do I need to buy a ticket at the bus station? or can I just hop on and pay at the bus stop?

Thanks in advance for any help

there is no direct bus to the Ardastra Gardens.
You can take the #10 bus /Jitney from George Street and get off at the Arawak Cay entrance (west).. then walk 2 blocks up the road to the Gardens entrance. The road has a slight incline, but not bad.

No need to buy a ticket.. just hop on the #10 and pay as you get off.
Make sure you tell the driver where you want to go.. tell them ardastra gardens/zoo and he'll drop you at the right spot.

Jitneys are lined up on George Street @Bay Street. Just across the street from the Straw Market's main entrance.

[BusyBlond]

scubagirl, thank you so much for your prompt reply. How much does it cost to ride the bus?

[scubagirrl]

Originally Posted by BusyBlond

scubagirl, thank you so much for your prompt reply. How much does it cost to ride the bus?

$1.25pp. Pay as you get off the bus. Driver does not give change.

[BusyBlond]

Thats great! When we are ready to go back to the ship, will the bus pick us up at the same place that we were dropped off?

[CruisinCrow]

Originally Posted by BusyBlond

Thats great! When we are ready to go back to the ship, will the bus pick us up at the same place that we were dropped off?

Yes, it will but on the other side of the street. There is a bus stop at the Fish Fry and the buses come by every few minutes.

[scubagirrl]

Originally Posted by BusyBlond

Thats great! When we are ready to go back to the ship, will the bus pick us up at the same place that we were dropped off?

Yes, just stay on until they stop downtown. Pay as you get off.

[drf23]

Our ship docks at 8am and leaves at 5pm. I'd like to walk to Ardastra Gardens, explore it and then catch the #10 Jitney for its full ride out past Cable Beach and then back into town. Is it feasible to walk to Ardastra Gardens, mid-morning with at least one other female? On the map, it looks doable, just concerned about safety. Thanks in advance.

[CruisinCrow]

It would be about a 2-mile walk. Definitely doable. We've walked back from the Fish Fry before and felt safe. I think Scubagirrl recommends waiting until the shops open up, after 9 or so.

You may already know this but, if you take the bus to the end and back, you will have to pay twice. Still a pretty good bargain.

[texnewbie]

Hey
I was just on some of my older post and noticed that you had mentioned that your sailing on the same cruise that we are... and I reply to you but I never noticed if you responded back.
Are you getting excited because I am about to die with excitement.

My daughter is now sailing with us, we decided to bring her along about a month ago. It will be fun to have her along, she's 19.

I sure hope the weather will be fabulous. I want to sit by the pool and the beach and get my tan on.
We sail Sunday!!!!
Carolyn

[kc320]

Originally Posted by drf23

Our ship docks at 8am and leaves at 5pm. I'd like to walk to Ardastra Gardens, explore it and then catch the #10 Jitney for its full ride out past Cable Beach and then back into town. Is it feasible to walk to Ardastra Gardens, mid-morning with at least one other female? On the map, it looks doable, just concerned about safety. Thanks in advance.

I did this a couple years ago...other than getting lost & ending up at the Fort to begin with the walk wasn't bad at all...this was late April & I am a female in my late 50's (then ) the walk back was much nicer since I knew where I was going...and very scenic walking along the water...

[BusyBlond]

Originally Posted by texnewbie

Hey
I was just on some of my older post and noticed that you had mentioned that your sailing on the same cruise that we are... and I reply to you but I never noticed if you responded back.
Are you getting excited because I am about to die with excitement.

My daughter is now sailing with us, we decided to bring her along about a month ago. It will be fun to have her along, she's 19.

I sure hope the weather will be fabulous. I want to sit by the pool and the beach and get my tan on.
We sail Sunday!!!!
Carolyn

I'm really excited. My bags are all packed and ready. We have never been to the Bahamas before so really looking forward to that.

[RedbirdFL]

Originally Posted by CruisinCrow

It would be about a 2-mile walk. Definitely doable. We've walked back from the Fish Fry before and felt safe. I think Scubagirrl recommends waiting until the shops open up, after 9 or so.

DD and I walked back to port from the zoo just a couple of days ago and it wasn't too bad. I think it took about 40 minutes and we were just strolling and even stopped for a moment at Junkanoo Beach for some photos.

We had planned to take the Jitney back, but couldn't quite figure out where to catch it. So we walked around the fish fry area for a couple of minutes, saw all the ships in port and decided to walk back.

I agree that it's doable. I'm not in great shape, not terrible shape, but not great either, and it was fine. And our ship was parked at the farthest part of the pier from the terminal. It was good for me to walk off some of the food that I'd been eating all weekend on the Ecstasy.

P.S. I have to add that I was a little scared walking up the street from the jitney to the zoo in the morning. I had wrongly assumed that there would be other tourists on the jitney, but we were the only ones. So when we got off at the fish fry and walked into this neighborhood, I was hoping and praying for our safety since we were alone. Then, I started thinking, "What if the zoo isn't open this early?" (It was a little after 10.) But it was open and we were fine. We practically had the zoo to ourselves. Walking back up the road after leaving the zoo, there were others on the road so I felt safer.

[Sandpiper10]

In 2010, we grabbed a taxi at the end of the pier. They dropped us off and picked us up later that day as we prearranged a time we wanted picked up. Total for taxi roundtrip and admission to the zoo was for a family of 4 was $60. So much cheaper than thru the boat excursion.

[scubagirrl]

Originally Posted by RedbirdFL

P.S. I have to add that I was a little scared walking up the street from the jitney to the zoo in the morning. I had wrongly assumed that there would be other tourists on the jitney, but we were the only ones. So when we got off at the fish fry and walked into this neighborhood, I was hoping and praying for our safety since we were alone. Then, I started thinking, "What if the zoo isn't open this early?" (It was a little after 10.) But it was open and we were fine. We practically had the zoo to ourselves. Walking back up the road after leaving the zoo, there were others on the road so I felt safer.

Just to clarify for others.. this is not a secluded or derelict area.. it's a 2 block walk along a strip of condos on the right.. with the cricket club, fort charlotte and the botanical gardens on the left.

I know being in a strange country can be offputting, but there is no safety issue along this road or in the area.

[RedbirdFL]

Originally Posted by scubagirrl

Just to clarify for others.. this is not a secluded or derelict area.. it's a 2 block walk along a strip of condos on the right.. with the cricket club, fort charlotte and the botanical gardens on the left.

I know being in a strange country can be offputting, but there is no safety issue along this road or in the area.

Yes, sorry, I didn't mean to imply that it was an unsafe area, but since I'd never been there and there wasn't anyone else around, it seemed secluded, which made me a little scared.

[scubagirrl]

Originally Posted by RedbirdFL

Yes, sorry, I didn't mean to imply that it was an unsafe area, but since I'd never been there and there wasn't anyone else around, it seemed secluded, which made me a little scared.

No need to apologize. If you felt a little skittish, that's ok. I just didn't want others to feel it was unsafe.