Crystal caves

Hi, what is the best way to get to the caves? Cruise line tour or on your own by ferry/ bus? Thank you.

You can do Either - Check the pricing on board to see what works best. One of the biggest factors would be the transportation and how you get there. The cruise line tours you will take you there directly (by way of the tour). If you go independently you will need to transfer in the City of Hamilton with the bus unless you do a taxi from the Dockyard to the Caves (but that will be pricey).

If you choose to visit the Caves independently (by public transport) you would need to take the bus or the ferry to the City of Hamilton and transfer to the 10/11/1 or 3 bus to the Caves.

Another option is to take the Dockyard to St. George ferry and take the bus from St. George to the Caves.

Either way is great and just depends on how much time you have and what sights you're interested in.

I hope this helps and if you need more help, let me know.

Enjoy Bermuda.

It's really easy to get there (or just about anywhere in Bermuda) by ferry or bus. We took the ferry to St. George and then the bus (I think it was 1 or 3) to the caves. There's a bus stop right outside the caves, but I highly recommend that you get off at the Swizzle Inn, stop there for a bit, and then walk to the caves, which are right around the corner. :)

The only reason I would consider going through the cruise line is if you're worried about time and potentially missing the boat. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother booking it as an excursion.

thank you for your help

Find out all about the crystal caves by going to the web site.

http://www.caves.bm/

If you are not planning to visit St-George during your stay, I would take the ferry to St-George, maybe a short 1 hour visit to get the feel of the town and then take the bus to the caves.

At least this way you could say you went to a UNESCO world heritage site.

It's about a 20 minute bus ride from St-George, and the ferry ride is 45 minutes.

After the caves hop on a bus to Hamilton ( 30 minutes ) and from there you can get a ferry back to the Dockyard, or bus, or taxi.

If you are on a time constraint, you could do only the Crystal cave and not the Fantasy cave...this would save about 30 minute.

Have fun !

I saw a post that the ferry to St. George has stopped for the season. Trying to confirm that, any help appreciated.

I saw a post that the ferry to St. George has stopped for the season. Trying to confirm that, any help appreciated.

The ferry to St. George's is scheduled to run through October 26 (in reality through October 24 because there is no service on Saturdays and Sundays).

I've read nothing here or in the Bermuda press indicating any change to that schedule.

I saw a post that the ferry to St. George has stopped for the season. Trying to confirm that, any help appreciated.

Hi,

As of this moment, September 15th at 6:30pm, I can assure you the ferry ( the Millennium ) is docked at the Dockyard and has done all of it's trip during the day today.

With most of the regular callers still visiting Bermuda until the end of the summer schedule, there is no reason to shorten the schedule by over a month...

Thanks for the responses about the Ferry to St. George. Really glad to hear this!

So once the ferry stops running, you can take a bus or cab?? We are on the Oct 24th sailing from Boston on the Dawn. You are saying there will be no ferry service to St Georges, is this correct?

So once the ferry stops running, you can take a bus or cab?? We are on the Oct 24th sailing from Boston on the Dawn. You are saying there will be no ferry service to St Georges, is this correct?

Unless they decide to extend St. George's ferry service beyond the expiration of the summer schedule, there won't be service when you're in Bermuda.

You can still get to St. George's...it will just take about twice as long. Rather than the 45 minute ferry ride from Dockyard, you'll have to take the Blue Route ferry from Dockyard to Hamilton (20 minutes), walk (10 minutes) from the Hamilton ferry terminal to the bus depot, and then take a #1, 3, 10 or 11 bus from Hamilton to St.George's ( about one hour).

There is no direct bus service from Dockyard. You would have to take two buses...about a two hour ride in total.

A taxi would be prohibitively expensive...about $75 (one way) plus tip for 1-4 passengers, Mon. - Sat.

Thanks, njhorsman, does this ferry to Hamilton and all the busses run on Sunday?

Thanks, njhorsman, does this ferry to Hamilton and all the busses run on Sunday?

Yes, although it's a reduced schedule on Sunday. There's not going to be very much open in either Hamilton or St. George's on Sunday, so you may want to reconsider going on that day.

So once the ferry stops running, you can take a bus or cab?? We are on the Oct 24th sailing from Boston on the Dawn. You are saying there will be no ferry service to St Georges, is this correct?

Hi,

We are on the same sailing :)

Come on and join our roll call :)

We have a pretty large group for the Meet&Greet...

We have plenty of experienced cruiser with great info to share !!

Hope to see you soon on our thread :)

Sent from my iPhone using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

Thanks again njhorseman, Should I assume that all tourist things like the caves and museums are open on Sunday? I guess I can look that up so sorry to keep bugging you, you have been a great help!

So once the ferry stops running, you can take a bus or cab?? We are on the Oct 24th sailing from Boston on the Dawn. You are saying there will be no ferry service to St Georges, is this correct?

My gf and I are thinking of going to St-George on Monday by taxi...IF you want to share a cab and split the 75$ each way, just let me know... You and I could split the cost...heck I'll even buy you a beer at the Tavern by the sea in St-George :)

Hope to meet you on board !!

Sent from my iPhone using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

Thanks again njhorseman, Should I assume that all tourist things like the caves and museums are open on Sunday? I guess I can look that up so sorry to keep bugging you, you have been a great help!

Yes, for example the caves http://www.caves.bm/ , BAMZ http://www.bamz.org/ and BUEI http://www.buei.org/ are all open on Sunday...I believe until 5 pm, although the last admission may be earlier.

BTW...the aquarium at BAMZ will be closed for repairs at the time you're in Bermuda, so if seeing it is important to you, don't waste a trip over there. The museum and zoo will still be open.

Since your ship isn't scheduled to dock in Bermuda until 11 am, it doesn't give you a lot of time to visit places requiring a lot of travel, particularly given the reduced bus and ferry service on Sunday.

Yes, for example the caves http://www.caves.bm/ , BAMZ http://www.bamz.org/ and BUEI http://www.buei.org/ are all open on Sunday...I believe until 5 pm, although the last admission may be earlier.

 

BTW...the aquarium at BAMZ will be closed for repairs at the time you're in Bermuda, so if seeing it is important to you, don't waste a trip over there. The museum and zoo will still be open.

 

Since your ship isn't scheduled to dock in Bermuda until 11 am, it doesn't give you a lot of time to visit places requiring a lot of travel, particularly given the reduced bus and ferry service on Sunday.

I failed to mention an excellent option for a Sunday museum visit...the National Museum of Bermuda, which is located in the Dockyard just steps from where your ship docks, so there are no Sunday travel issues to deal with:

http://www.bmm.bm/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/National-Museum-of-Bermuda/348951101877700?ref=hl

Wow, njhorseman, you are a wealth of knowledge. Cannot thank you enough for all the help. We had planned to do the museum there at dockyard so sounds like a good day would be Sunday. Any other interesting things to do right at dockyard?

Wow, njhorseman, you are a wealth of knowledge. Cannot thank you enough for all the help. We had planned to do the museum there at dockyard so sounds like a good day would be Sunday. Any other interesting things to do right at dockyard?

There's more than enough to do to fill your Sunday afternoon...from shopping to a terrific mini golf course. You can even watch the goings on at Dolphin Quest, which is within the museum grounds, at no charge beyond your museum admission. There's a man made beach...Snorkel Park (although it pales in comparison to Bermuda's natural beaches). I'd suggest you browse through the Dockyard's website to get an idea of what's there:

http://www.thewestend.bm/

Again njhorseman, my sincerest thanks for all your help. I really appreciate your expertise and your time.

sebas030, thanks for the Meet and Greet invite. I will email you soon with a few questions and a sign up. Anything else I should know about the process? Also, we may be interested in sharing a cab or in one of the group taxi tours.

Again njhorseman, my sincerest thanks for all your help. I really appreciate your expertise and your time.

You'll be getting my bill in the mail. ;)

Seriously, you're quite welcome. I enjoy helping other people enjoy their Bermuda vacations. We've been regular visitors for more than 25 years...which may say something about what we think of Bermuda. :)