twingles3

Will be heading to a hotel post cruise. Want to relax before we fly home the next day. Will have spent time in Barcelona pre cruise. No flight home will work after we depart the ship. So we want an inexpensive hotel clean, nothing fancy, to relax overnight and be transferred free to the airport from the hotel early the next day. 

Any suggestions? Thanks.

We were in port from 8 to 5, so we got to Trunk Bay with our feet in the water at 10. We left at 12, but we could have stayed longer. We just wanted to look around and do a little shopping in Saint Thomas. Our taxi driver to Red Hooke told us the last ferry she would recommend would be 3:00 PM, so we could have stayed for another 2 hours really. We didn't risk it as we had a scare in Grand Cayman with missing the tender by just a couple of minutes, but it's up to you!

I booked the RCCL on your own tour so we are sure we'll make it. They told us what ferry to take back so we'll be covered. Even got a discount so it really was probably the same as if we did our own. Only thing is the ferry is from the port not Red Hook:/ Hear it could be choppy!

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Thanks for all the help on getting to Saint John. We docked in Havensight on the Eurodam last week. I thought it was crazy Holland was charging $50 to go for just 4 hours, but here's how I got there.

 

 

 

We were the only ship docked with the Oasis OTS further West in Crown Bay. Havensight was a ghost town. Hardly any shops were open and there was no traffic at all. Taxi to Red Hooke was $10 a person. Ferry over was $14 a person roundtrip ($7 one way if you want to ditch the ship ;)). Ferry is cash only. We had enough to cover the ferry in cash, but there was an ATM if you needed it. I don't know how much they were charging, but we did get cash in Saint John. Use Scotiabank as the atm fee was $5 compared to $6 at Banco Populare. They are right next to each other, but a dollar's a dollar.

 

 

 

We planned to rent snorkels at "Low-Key Watersports", but ditched the idea last minute and just decided to use our swim goggles. Since really there was only two cruise ships in port, Saint John was not busy. We met some that were on the Oasis, but it was not crowded at all. We went to Trunk Bay and they charged a $5 admission fee if you are over 16. Coincidentally, the taxi to Trunk Bay was $5 a person (sorry, no discount on the kiddos). If you have a national park pass, the admission fee was half. They made sure that we were aware that the snorkel trail was closed due to strong waves and no refunds would be given. laughed when I went out there to see the waves. Yes, there was an occasional colossal wave that kids would all scream and run out to the wave to be smashed into the sand, but it was fine once you were just out of the shore. Beach was terrific. There's chair rentals which a basic one was $10 with a $25 deposit. Snack bar and a bar was also available at high prices. Everything on Saint John is significantly more than on Saint Thomas. Taxi back was $5 a person. We didn't eat lunch and planned for it by eating a big breakfast. We had a smoothie at a shop across the street before we got on the ferry back. Taxi from Red Hooke was again $10 a person.

 

 

 

$10 Taxi to Red Hooke

 

$14 Ferry Ticket

 

$5 Taxi to Trunk Bay

 

$5 Admission to Trunk Bay (Unless under 16)

 

$5 Taxi to Cruz Bay

 

$10 Taxi back to Havensight

 

Total: $49 a person (excluding gratuities at your discretion).

 

 

 

So we didn't save any money at all, but we gained the freedom of time in Saint John. :) I don't know what Saint Thomas is like to say is it worth the money to Saint John, but we truly loved Trunk Bay and even the taxi ride was beautiful!

 

 

 

Happy Cruising!

So how much actual time did you have at Trunk Bay?

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Then you will be arriving at the terminal at 11:15am -11:30am. On a bad day, you may hit traffic near the terminal and be delayed say 20 minutes. Then you have to clear security downstairs and go upstairs to check in. Boarding will be after that.

 

If it was me, I would depart Universal no later than 9:45am to arrive at about 11am when the traffic flows easier just in case.

Thanks great help! I've booked Alamo as my departure rental and I've got a private car for arrival so we can get dropped off directly in front. Leaving Universal at 10. 🤞 all goes smoothly. I'm going on April 30th. Hopefully no other ships leaving then Return on May 7th. I'll need to check the port schedule.

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My paperwork says I can board at 11:30. I'll be at Universal Studios hotel my driver says it's only an hour hour 15 to get there so should I have a 1030 pick up at my hotel? If it says I can board 1130 I'm assuming I can get right on the ship. Anyone have experience with this I'm going in little less than four weeks.

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Awe yes for sure!! Can't wait to meet you and your hubby!!! Congrats to you both as well.

 

 

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Yes you all as well! We shall PARTY[emoji322] 4 WEEKS[emoji568]

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Really??? I wonder how they do that....that sounds perfect!

 

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That's what they told me but who knows when you get on the ship reconfirm, if the taxis extra it's not much more. I like the idea that they will wait for you because it's an excursion so the ship can't leave without you,that's what I'm nervous about plus the ships excursions get off first before everyone else.

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Just found it, that's awesome! How far is trunk bay from where ferry let's off? What's it cost via taxi (is uber out there???)

 

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15/20 minutes I hear. Supposedly the taxi ride to the beach is included in the excursion price that's what RCCL told me:)

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is that a tour operated through RCCL?

 

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Yes! That way the ship won't leave without us because we're on their excursions.

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Any recommendations for trunk bay excursions? We are on Oasis

 

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We are doing the "St. John's on your own" to Trunk Bay,going the end of April we got 20% off the excursion so winds up being cheaper than going on our own.

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Yes us too. Will seem so strange for me to not have our girls with us. Our true first vacation since before we were married and celebrating our 29th wedding anniversary

 

 

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Congrats[emoji322] This Sunday is 24yrs for us:) We are so overdue for couple time. Lots of celebrating for both of us[emoji106]

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Hi there my friend from our 4/30 thread...just keep in mind the specialty restaurants can be long too. They take their time in between courses and for us that never really bothered us. But hopefully for you it won't be an issue and they will have you in and out in a nice time frame. We never eat in a specialty restaurant the 1st night mainly due to the long day and the fact we can't count on our luggage being there in time for dinner- but it is a great draw for alot of people. :)

First vacation in a long time without kids! Looking to make it special and change up our "family" routine so it's all good! No problem[emoji6]

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Twingles3 I should have added that the ship excursion from Crown is not a bad idea and is an easier option for you being in port just 8 hrs. It can indeed be a rougher ride but shouldn't be that bad. We and others just prefer the Red Hook option for the independent travel and that's just our opinion. You would probably be at the beach at 12:30 and would need to leave the beach no later than 4:30 (4 hrs beach time) and take the 5PM return through Red Hook. So that sounds similar to what others are saying from Crown...

Thanks I booked the St John on your own with the ship as I was given a pre cruise discount so 29pp is a deal!

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We had the First Night Done Right $15 offer on both legs of our Oasis back to back last month. We had been in our cabin 30 mins and got a call asking which venue we wanted to dine in but we wanted to check the menus at the desk in the Royal Promenade. So after checking the menus and making our choice we booked Chops at that desk. When we re-boarded on the 2nd leg we went to Chops and booked again. It's a very good deal.

 

 

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Thank you I wondered how it worked:) Definitely want to miss the very long first night in the MDR[emoji106]

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In Allure we had the choices between Samba Grill and Giovanni's, no change.

No change??

They gave you the choice between the two after they assigned you a restaurant?

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This is available on my cruise . $15.00/person for specialty dining the first night of the cruise. You select a time and they choose the restaurant, which may be modified once on board. Anyone do this? I'm a vegetarian so eating in the steak restaurant isn't a great option. Can you change it to a different restaurant if you're not happy? Is that what they mean by modified? What are the restaurant options on this package? Thanks:)

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We usually spend about 2 hours at the beach. Have about another 2 hours eating, shopping & walking around.

If the seas are rough on the ferry near the cruise ship would they substitute the Red Hook ferry instead? Also is the cost of the transportation to the beach, after the ferry, included in the excursion fee?

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Sorry, my girlfriend has corrected me that we *did* book an excursion, the St John's On Your Own one. It is essentially just a ferry over to St. John's but it picks you up right at the boat, where the regular ferry is quite a ways away. Anyway, once you're on St. John's you're free to do whatever you want, and we just took the taxi to the beaches.

Hope this helps!

 

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Heard that ferry gets real rocky and people have gotten seasick, is that true?

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We have been to St Johns 3 times from both Crown Bay And Havenight. We have taken both the cab to Red hook and the ferry to St John's and the cruise offered self explore St John's.

 

My opinion is take your ships self explore St John's if you are in Crown Bay. Usually $38pp. Boats picks you up bear the dock and takes you to St John's. When you get to St Johns there will be Open air cabs to take you to the beaches. Just get back to the dock at the time needed and the boat will take you back to Crown. It is about a 45 min boat ride each way. No worry about traffic and the ship won't leave you.

 

 

 

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How much actual beach time do you get? I've heard the ferry on the tour is very bumpy and people have gotten sick:/

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Keep it on a lanyard in my beach bag purse whatever so it is easier to find as opposed to just the card which we've misplaced many times:) Think about your keys at home on a keychain or just the key?? Just more practical:)

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Yes, on ships with a licensed Starbucks venue (like Oasis) the coffee you get with the package is not normally Starbucks.

So the speciality coffee is what brand on the Oasis?

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It varies and is unpredictable. I've seen Starbucks, Seattle's Best, and Illy.

I'll be on the Oasis, does that matter?

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What brand of coffee is served in the package that includes premium coffees?

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I misspoke above, sorry. Going to STJ just adds another 30 - 40 min each way with no queues. That's the beauty of going on your own. Travel time to Trunk should be just 1 hr or so with no delays...20 - 25 min taxi to Red Hook and the 15 - 20 min ferry and ~10 min taxi to Trunk. Just allow a bit more time for the return taxi to port...

We are definitely beach people have been all over the Caribbean many times so we just want the beach. Whatever sights we see along the way is great.

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Yes definitely not worth it to us. Trunk is a very popular beach and gets crowded like Magens. We will spend a day visiting STJ when staying at Sapphire, but on a cruise stop unless you have 10 hrs in port it can be a rushed day going there.

But the travel is part of the adventure too! :)

 

 

We love Sapphire Beach on the East End of St Thomas, and Lindqvist is even more gorgeous. And that shaves 1.5 - 2 hrs off the travel time and $28 - $32pp off the fare! :cool:

I've been to both Magen's and Sapphire beach on 2 previous trips to St. Thomas. One reason for this trip is ST. John just didn't realize how far it was:/

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