Sugar cane train ride - second thoughts?

My wife and I are booked on this trip in December, but we are now having second thoughts after reading various reviews. Some reviewers have said that after a while, there is only so much sugar cane you can look at, and that you are really crammed into the carriages. I know the rum flows freely, but there is a limit, even for me at 10am! Given that the trip is not cheap (£68/$95 each) we are considering cancelling, and doing an ad hoc taxi tour from the port.

Any advice as to our best choice of action would be most welcome. Thanks.

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We just did this trip on 10/29/17 and really enjoyed it. I didn't think we were crammed in at all. There is a person on the train who narrates throughout the entire ride giving the history and points of interest. I thought there was a lot more to see than sugar cane. The first and last part of the trip are done by bus and our driver (Winston) was also very informative as to what we were seeing and the history of the island. Both my husband and I thought it was money well spent.

We just did this trip on 10/29/17 and really enjoyed it. I didn't think we were crammed in at all. There is a person on the train who narrates throughout the entire ride giving the history and points of interest. I thought there was a lot more to see than sugar cane. The first and last part of the trip are done by bus and our driver (Winston) was also very informative as to what we were seeing and the history of the island. Both my husband and I thought it was money well spent.

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Our ship's excursion scheduled for 8 December is quite expensive (€132 a person) but at the end of the train ride they'll take us on a catamaran back to the ship instead of a bus. Don't know how much of a "deal" we'll be getting.

My wife and I are booked on this trip in December, but we are now having second thoughts after reading various reviews. Some reviewers have said that after a while, there is only so much sugar cane you can look at, and that you are really crammed into the carriages. I know the rum flows freely, but there is a limit, even for me at 10am! Given that the trip is not cheap (£68/$95 each) we are considering cancelling, and doing an ad hoc taxi tour from the port.

Any advice as to our best choice of action would be most welcome. Thanks.

 

 

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If you do decide to go ahead and book this tour I would be grateful if you could report back as we are considering doing this in march

If you do decide to go ahead and book this tour I would be grateful if you could report back as we are considering doing this in march

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My wife and I are booked on this trip in December, but we are now having second thoughts after reading various reviews. Some reviewers have said that after a while, there is only so much sugar cane you can look at, and that you are really crammed into the carriages. I know the rum flows freely, but there is a limit, even for me at 10am! Given that the trip is not cheap (£68/$95 each) we are considering cancelling, and doing an ad hoc taxi tour from the port.

Any advice as to our best choice of action would be most welcome. Thanks.

 

 

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Friends of ours did this tour last year .They felt it was over priced ,however,a lot of people on their cruise loved it.

An option is sugar cane train with bus to complete the circuit, instead of the catamaran; the price is lower that way.

I read that when a cruise ship is in port, the only people able to book the train are those ship passengers. In other words, one cannot book through a website, nor at the port.

We've decided to go for it, but not do the boat trip at the end. I'll try and remember to write a quick review when we get back in mid December.

 

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Thanks hope you enjoy it:)

I took this train ride before, I thought it was very informative. As far as seeing to much sugar cane, most of it is growing wild, there was more than cane to see on this trip. My trip had the bus ride back to the ship.

We did this tour this week and enjoyed it. We had a great time bumping throught the country side. Lots of good information from the guide. Unlimited cold drinks (with or without alcohol) and a wee snack. They had a girls group visit each car and sing a local tune. Once we reach the opposite side of the island we were driven back to our ship. It was well worth time and price

Thank you. Looking forward to the trip now.

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Our ship's excursion scheduled for 8 December is quite expensive (€132 a person) but at the end of the train ride they'll take us on a catamaran back to the ship instead of a bus. Don't know how much of a "deal" we'll be getting.

We did that same excursion just last month. My husband and I enjoyed it. Our traveling companions thought it was too long. And then the wife got ill on the boat too. So make sure you are not easily upset on a possible rough boat ride. We were not crammed in either.

Dear wowzz,

The sugar train train is a great way to see the interior of this fine island. Taking the Catarmaran does provide a water view.. Choices ..choices.

In today's A.D. 11/16/2017 it is a rather small cost for what you recieve , IMHO.

It is understandable the vendor does have a lock on proving the services for only booking through Cruise Ship lines.

Would n't you?

We have taken the train for years. It goes about 10 mph . You do see so very much and it helps the peoples of St. Kitts/Nevis.

We shall be there on a December first Sunday so your benefit of another weekday is well.

What ever youall choose is great as being there and seeing more is an extreme benfit as we all onlky have a coin for the fountain of life each day..

Our ship's excursion scheduled for 8 December is quite expensive (€132 a person) but at the end of the train ride they'll take us on a catamaran back to the ship instead of a bus. Don't know how much of a "deal" we'll be getting.

Best part of this excursion was the catamaran back to the ship....it was fantastic.

The train is worth it! Takes you to parts of the island that are seldom seen otherwise. ;)

We are in St. Kitts on Oceania Riviera in January. Unfortunately, our cruise line is not offering an excursion on the sugar cane train. My wife called the company on St. Kitts and they said the only way to do it is through your cruise line. So we have a catch-22. Does anyone know of any other options...like do they have someone from the company selling excursions when you get off the ship in port, if they are not sold out?

We spent a week on St. Kitts a few years ago, so we pretty much exhausted all the high points of the island and the sugar cane train sounded interesting.

We are in St. Kitts on Oceania Riviera in January. Unfortunately, our cruise line is not offering an excursion on the sugar cane train. My wife called the company on St. Kitts and they said the only way to do it is through your cruise line. So we have a catch-22. Does anyone know of any other options...like do they have someone from the company selling excursions when you get off the ship in port, if they are not sold out?.

I have seen people post that they got tickets on the train via the Marriott hotel. I think they were guests there, so I don't know if they can/will do it for cruise ship passengers. It might be worth a call to them to see, however. I don't think they sell the excursions at the port - I think it is only available through a cruise ship or hotel.

There is no place to walk up and buy tickets for the train. It is sold by the cruise ship or if you are staying on the island you probably will be able to purchase tickets.

We did this excursion last week. It was about 90 degrees that day. The seats in the air conditioned car are limited so unless you are in the front of the line, you will not get a seat. You will then have to climb up narrow stairs to the top of the open air train for a seat. Do not sit on the left side of the train unless you like the sun. Since we were the last couple to board, we got the sun seats. Two hours of sitting in the sun was way too much for me. Also be aware that the train has no suspension so it is rickety and if you are prone to motion sickness, take some Dramanine or Bonine before you go. I sure which I had! Who would have thought a person would get motion sickness on a train? At the halfway point in the trip, I was more than ready to get off, but that is not possible. You are stuck for the whole ride and it is is LONG and slow. I agree with others that there is only so much scenery to see. It gets boring. Our excursion was the full train ride with a bus ride back.

If doing it again, I would take the shorter train ride version and take the catamaran back to the ship, but I would definitely bring Dramanine with me. For the record, I do not get motion sickness and have been on catamaran trips with no problem so that shows you how much swaying this old train had. One more thing...I was the last to leave the train and the lady serving the drinks was very upset with our group at the end. She complained to our bus driver that she only made "a lousy $14 in tips" and that "wasn't worth her time".

I believe that each passenger has a seat in the lower air-conditioned portion of the rail car plus a seat in the open air upper portion of that same car. The cars were purposely built for this excursion in the US. The swaying is caused by the poor condition of the rail bed on the right of way.

I believe that each passenger has a seat in the lower air-conditioned portion of the rail car plus a seat in the open air upper portion of that same car. .......................................................

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You're right! There is a seat for each passenger in both the lower and upper.

You can switch back and forth anytime you wish. Both seats are yours. :)

When I rode the train most people sat on the top, yes it was sunny, this is the Caribbean. I enjoyed the views from the top, sure there is movement with this ride, it is on a train. I really liked this excursion, I guess it is not for everyone.

You're right! There is a seat for each passenger in both the lower and upper.

You can switch back and forth anytime you wish. Both seats are yours. :)

That was not the case in our experience. We were told the lower car was filled and everyone had to sit down. There are tables in the lower car with 4 seats and all were filled. We were not allowed to stand and there was no switching back and forth.

My guess is that it was oversold. More ships in port than that were on the schedule?