NorthCarolinaBelle

A quick report back on what we did in St. Martin. If people are interested I can post a more detailed review. Our scheduled port time was 7am-6pm. We got off shortly after 7am and walked into town in warm heavy rain. We walked around a very empty and quiet front street. We had heard negative things about the local buses, but we kept seeing them go by. After we had dried off, we jumped on one and went to Marigot. We then spent several hours walking around Marigot before hopping on a bus back. We hit up the now-packed Guavaberry Emporium and then walked back to the ship.

arctickitty, thanks for the feedback! Was the local bus okay? What did you find to do in Marigot? And how was Guavaberry Emporium? thank you!!

If you are looking to save money, take the bus to Maho and watch the planes land and take off. Total cost is $4 round trip per person, plus the bus ride can be interesting as well. Also, if you are Star Wars (or movie in general) fans, stop by the Yoda Guy museum. No charge to look around, but you can see the coolest stuff for a $10 charge or something like that. Still pretty cheap. DIY is really easy in St Maarten - no need for a tour or ship excursion.

Both of these sound like things we want to do. How do we "take the bus" to Maho? Is it marked as such? Thank you!

Yes, the forts are great! Another fun thing is the sidewalk vendors sell a treat similar to a snow cone, but oh, so much better!

If you like cats, there are lots of them strolling around in Old San Juan. They are feral, but harmless. The city has an organization that traps and neuters them and then releases them.

There's also a big common area where old men play dominoes that is neat.

Enjoy!

Hi Amnorto :)

 

What my wife & I have to do/pack on every sailing for the past 33 years now might be considered a little outside of the box.

 

We must always bring a cruise journal along & prior to going to sleep each evening we discuss the days events of everything we did, people & names that we met & so on, and log it all down in the journal.

 

We have been doing this for over three decades now and have many journals.

 

When reading through the journals, the strolls down memory lane are so wonderful. In some ways more entertaining than the photo's or video we have collected over the years.

 

Even picking out/purchasing the journal prior to the cruise has become a fun task in itself.

 

To us, it is another way, an interesting way, to save & also relive the voyage...

 

Have a terrific day! Happy sailing!

 

 

:)

I really love this idea!!

Thank you all for the great feedback! We are booked for a sailing excursion with Captain Max in St. Thomas, and are going to take the water taxi to Phillipsburg in St. Martin!

I’m intrigued by Villa Herencia. It looks lovely and very authentic. But I sure expect the pics were pre hurricane. If you were booking now, would you choose this hotel?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk[/quote

I don't know for sure, but you can go to tripadvisor and read reviews of those who have stayed there since the hurricane. The buildings in Old San Juan are hundreds of years old, so they've been through many storms!

So tell me the big difference. We are considering a cruise on Explorer and are Elite / Diamond. Laundry?? Drinks??

Nothing to do with being Elite or Diamond, but if you are a non-smoker, Celebrity is completely smoke-free indoors... even the casino!

I have not sailed on X for six years so maybe I do not understand what Select Dining is. I am sailing solo and prefer a set time with the same guests each night. I only want to explain one time why my spouse is not sailing with me. ;)

"Select dining" means you won't be at a certain table each night, unless you are traveling with a group and your reservations are linked. If you want the same table and same people and same time each night, you need to call and ask if they have a table for you at 6 pm seating, now that it's closer to your cruise. Our friends cruising with us were waitlisted for our October cruise, but they called this week and now they're assigned to the same time as we have. Best of luck!

We love Celebrity. They have no inside smoking and no smoking on balconies. They have a winter itinerary from San Juan, Puerto Rico that we have taken several times. Not sure if the islands are considered Eastern or Southern.

we call thongs flip flops......

Haha!!!:')

We have gone to Chakanaab Park several times. It has wonderful snorkeling right off the beach, and chairs and a restaurant. You can google it for more info. It's about 10 minutes from the cruise port and taxi costs about $12 each way.

Sounds great! Thanks again!

 

--hyacinth bucket, grand ( elite ++) patron of celebrity concierge class and other high class stuff.

:d:d:d:d:d

Cyber Kat, thank you so much! Was this a ship's excursion? I've been looking at one on our celebrity Summit cruise coming up in October. Someone else had posted that it was disorganized and they ended up with only a half hour on the beach. Sorry to ask so many questions!

My boys have are 10,10,9. We visited one of the forts last year. Trying to decide if it would be repetitive to visit the other forts there or try something else? Any ideas besides beaches for active 10 year boys?

What about a hike somewhere outside of the port area? There are excursions for this if you're worried about returning to your ship on time.

Agree on staying in Old San Juan. They have lots of old boutique hotels that are really historic and unique. We've stayed in Villa Herencia and Casablanca and loved them both.

We have stayed at Villa Herencia and Casablanca in Old San Juan, and would recommend both. It is really fun to be able to walk to everything and not have to get a taxi.

We also stayed outside of OSJ at Tres Palmas, and it was lovely! But we prefer Old San Juan for the charm and character.

If you book online, they may have a two-night minimum, but if you call, they'll let your reserve one night, in my experience. Good luck!

I recently read about the Yoda Store or something like that. If you are a Star Wars fan, it might be something interesting to do! My husband and our friends cruising with us have already decided we'll be going there. Just google "Yoda Store St Martin."

I think Celebrity's ships, with fewer children, are very romantic! As ABLISS said, definitely get a balcony. We love to have room service coffee on the balcony in the morning, and also love to sit out and look at the stars late at night.

Seems like when we did a longer cruise, they ran a special with a reduced price for a bag of laundry (they supplied the bag.) Also, if you are Elite on Celebrity, you'll get a few items laundered for free, along with a free pressing and a free dry cleaning.

We did a cruise in March that left from San Juan. We went to St Croix, St Kitts, St Lucia, Guadeloupe, Antigua, Barbados, St Martin, and St Thomas.

 

Old San Juan was recovering. Not a lot of damage evident. They have electricity and water. The rest of Puerto Rico, not so much.

 

Lots of tarps.

 

 

Our taxi driver said that he still didn’t have electricity. The pier we left from in Old San Juan was partly restored but still showed damage. We mostly walked around OSJ and we visited the Forts

 

We stayed at El Convento and it was fine. The shops and restaurants were open and also seemed fine

 

The port area of St Croix had some damage... some of it from prior hurricanes. We didn’t go far from the pier.

 

St Kitts, St Lucia, Guadeloupe, and Barbados were fine. They hadn’t been affected by either hurricane. Antigua was fine but Barbuda - also part of that country - had been badly damaged. We had not been scheduled to go there.

 

St Maarten - the Dutch side had signs of damage, but they are making good progress. St Martin - the French side - had parts that looked like they hadn’t been touched, lots of reconstruction, and parts where people were living in tents set up in their yards.

 

I have photos but they are not on my iPad. I can post them later.

 

The parts of St Thomas we saw - mostly around the Havensight port area - were mostly fine. Senor Frogs was still damaged and closed. We took a catamaran tour to St John (Honeymoon Beach). We saw some damage, some rebuilding. We had a really great day!

 

Everywhere the people were so glad we had come. They were upbeat and in good spirits despite everything. It was amazing. We spent more than we might have and tipped well. Everyone was grateful. We were very glad we decided not to cancel.

 

So go. Spend money. Bring smiles and hope that the recovery continues. They are doing their best to make sure you enjoy your visit. We were asked everywhere to tell our friends that they were open for business. And hope that Mother Nature gives them a break this year!

What a great attitude you have! We'll be in St Thomas in October. Do you remember who took you to Honeymoon Beach in the catamaran? We're trying to decide what to do there.Thanks!

Rather than ask strangers on a cruise forum, don't you think you would get better advice talking to your physician or pharmacist?:)

Yes and No.

Your doctor or pharmacist might never have been on a cruise... While they have medical knowledge, that doesn't mean practical knowledge from fellow cruisers isn't helpful, as well.

I use ginger capsules I get from CVS or Walmart. I take one with breakfast and one at night, starting a couple of days before we fly to our cruise. Works for me, might not for everyone. Just a suggestion. Good luck, OP!

I get eczema on my hands, too. I take my unscented Dove soap with me on all trips, along with my Aveeno or Cerave lotion and sunscreen. If you have a special diet, you can call ahead of time and they will follow your requirements. Best wishes!

We were in 7202, which was the corner...if you can somehow get onto a corner, I'd recommend it x100000 - it was absolutely massive and had a nice blend of covered and open area...along with vast views in multiple directions.

Sounds heavenly!! Thanks for the reply!

Yes, most of us didn't get our electric back until around Christmas. However, now it is June and most of the island is fully OPEN for business and happy to see us cruisers!

So glad to hear that your lives are getting back to "normal." We will be visiting your beautiful island in October!