Isla Margarita

[goldens4ever]

We will be visiting on April 1oth...and we can't wait! Thanks for all the information that has been shared on this thread...I have learned sooo much!

 

Kristina, I know we will probably miss you but we will look for your mom. What types of stones do you use in your jewelry?

 

Also...people have spoken about eating on the island....any suggestions for local dishes?

 

Thanks again....counting the days...

 

sybil

[sunflower1972]

Curlyd,

We saw at least 3 areas set up for massages.....2 were right on the beach were the white sun lounges and yellow shade covers are. Did not have a massage but looked like there was alot of takers:)

Isla Margarita was a refreshing break from the hussle and bussle of the bigger ports we stopped at!

ENJOY!!

SF

[klouised]

With Princess changing from La Guaira to IM, how much time will the Golden be in port (Princess still has La Guara on it's site). Is there time to tour the island, or just take one of the short excursions?

 

The Golden Princess gets in at 7am and leaves at 1pm. I suggest you stay at the port and shop because there's not time to do anything else. The shopping at the port is excellent, the beach is excellent and the venders are all very friendly.

[klouised]

Hi, This isn't Kristina but her mom. She's been in FL now for a week and a half and I was told that this is my job now! lol We have a little sign posted by our booth that says "Welcome cruisecritic.com friends". We sell the nicest handmade jewelry sold at the port and our prices are a little higher than most. Don't feel like you have to buy anything from us but please stop and say "Hi". There are places at the port you can buy local dishes or you could go into town. Good choices are empanadas, arepas, pabellon, and fresh fruit drinks. Hope you enjoy your day!

[curlyd]

Hi, This isn't Kristina but her mom. She's been in FL now for a week and a half and I was told that this is my job now! lol We have a little sign posted by our booth that says "Welcome cruisecritic.com friends". We sell the nicest handmade jewelry sold at the port and our prices are a little higher than most. Don't feel like you have to buy anything from us but please stop and say "Hi". There are places at the port you can buy local dishes or you could go into town. Good choices are empanadas, arepas, pabellon, and fresh fruit drinks. Hope you enjoy your day!

 

Thanks for posting. I hope Kristina is having a good time. I will definately be stopping by on Mar20th and will look for the sign. I also will recognize the name of your assistant as our daughter's name is also Jennele. (different spelling but still a nice and not so common name.)

 

See you on the 20th.

[ED49404]

We will be in IM the first week of Apr. (Golden Princess). Since we have a short time there. I was hoping we could use the beaches at the port. My question is - How are they for swimming and snorkeling??? I love to do some snorkeling - it doesn't look like I'll be able to do any at the other ports we going to. Thanks...

 

ED

[klouised]

The beach at the port is very nice but the water is only about knee deep quite a ways out. Unfortunately their aren't nice reefs or real pretty fish to see. My opinion is that it wouldn't be worth your trouble. Sorry.

[ED49404]

Thanks for the info. I'll leave my snorkeling gear home. It'll leave more room for my wife and her shopping;).

 

Thanks again...

 

Ed

[Northender]

Ed, if you don't have anything planned for St. Thomas, head over to St. John and go to Trunk Bay - great beach and some good snorkeling. Also, you can leave the beach area and head back to town, walk around, have a snack and libation before heading back to the ship. It is very easy to do on your own.

 

Have you joined your rollcall? You can also get some great info there.

 

Enjoy your cruise:)

[ED49404]

Northender

 

Thanks for the suggestion. St. Thomas is one of my wife's BIG shopping ports. We'll be there on sunday so the stores are open 9am to 1pm. We are going with another couple, which this will be their first cruise. We're hoping if the weather is good to relax and explore a little more of St. Thomas.

 

I've joined our Roll Call. It sounds like a great group.

 

Thanks again.

 

Ed

[klouised]

This is Louise, Kristina's mom talking here. (grin) I guess this is my job now. I was at the port today selling, and once again, I was asked for my opinion concerning the "black pearls" that a few venders are selling out there. I've seen these "black pearls" and they are hematite beads. You can buy a strand of hematite beads in town for under a dollar. I don't know what the "pearls" are selling for because I never asked but I imagine people are being taken advantage of. True black pearls are VERY EXPENSIVE and something that I cannot afford to buy. There is a store in town that sells them but I have decided to not use them in my jewelry because I don't think I could ask the price that I'd have to ask to sell them for any kind of a profit. On the contrary I can buy hematite beads very cheaply and so can others selling at the port. I don't really think the venders at the port are lieing to you, I just don't think they know better. I think that someone is telling them that they are black pearls so they tell the customers that. I just did a google search for black pearls and got all kinds of info. I would suggest that you do the same before purchasing any "black pearls" here. I hope I haven't opened up a "can of worms". I just don't like seeing anyone being taken advantage of in this manner. I constantly have people stopping at my booth to buy matching earrings and what they have is hematite. Sorry if you bought these beads thinking they were black pearls.

[RNay]

Louise, thank you for bringing that up. We were in Tahiti last year and have become educated about black pearls. I figured there was some mistake, that black pearls were not being cultivated in the Caribbean, but not everyone would know this. I think if you saw the real thing next to hematite, you could tell. Are the other "colored pearls" I've heard about painted or dyed? I am not necessarily looking for really expensive jewelry, but I would like it to be genuine.

 

Renee

[bulldogmom]

Hello everyone!

Thanks to Kristina (and her mom) for giving out such great advice. I wasn't sure what to expect at this port hoenstly, the ship doesn't offer any shore excursions that interest me so I was nervous about what to do. Now I'm totally excited about shopping!

When is Kristina coming back to Margarita Island?? I (unfortunately) won't be visiting until February of next year (2007). I wish it were sooner than that. I will definately stop by your booth and shop and say hi.

We are lucky I guess because we will be in port from 10:00 am till 6:00 pm so that will give us 8 hours in port. Seems like the other ships/cruise lines don't stay that long. The next day for us will be at sea so I'm sure we are in no big hurry.

I do have a question about the jewelry though, as far as the crystal jewelry you (Kristina's mom) sell, is it made with sterling silver or gold or what?? I'm only asking because unless something is sterling silver or gold I break out after wearing it (at least with other "metal" type substances). I'm allergic to other materials LOL. Other than your stand are there other stands that have sterling silver or gold jewelry available or is most everything something else? I know that may seem like a silly question but I don't want to get my hopes up if I'm not going to be able to buy anything. Other "non-metal" materials like twine or string or plastic are okay, just nothing "metallic" If you could answer that I'd appreciate it.

I look forward to my visit to Margarita Island now.

[klouised]

The colored pearls have been dyed. We buy them that way. It's very popular now and quite available in the states as well as here. You will find them in orange, yellow, turquoise, shades of green, shades of purple, gray, as well as the common white, off white and pale pink. They are really quite lovely. Perhaps you could educate some of us on the black pearls also while you're here. :-)

 

To answer the question about sterling silver and gold: Most venders are using what is called "base metal". I imagine you'd be allergic to it. This is what I use on most of my jewelry also. Sterling silver is VERY expensive here because it has to be imported in but just ask around. I sell earrings with the silver plated hooks but I have sterling silver ones available for $2 that I'm happy to change out for you. Perhaps other venders are doing the same. We have one vender that I know of that is a metalsmith and he uses silver in his jewelry. His name is Jesus and he has a little push cart type of stand near where you get off of the ship. He speaks perfect english and he has some very nice items and some that are a little "rough". He sells a lot of rings, bracelets and pendants on chains. I sell mostly dramatic jewelry that you'd wear in the evening and I use a mixture of beads, macrame and wire. Some of my wire is sterling silver and some of it is gold, and some of it is plated. All of my metal findings are silver plated. If I only used sterling silver I'm afraid I'd be out of business in no time because I have to keep my prices very low compared to what I'd sell them for in the states. You'll find a lot of semi-precious stones, pearls and shells for sale here. There seems to be a mixture of the quality but I imagine you can just look a piece over carefully and determine it's quality vs the price you're paying. Most prices seem to be very cheap compared to what you'd pay in the states. I think you'd enjoy your day of shopping here and you'll find the venders to be very pleasant and gracious. We are trying to improve our port and it is very lovely. It's a very beautiful place to spend your day whether shopping or lounging in the shade or sunning on the beach. Please look for our "welcome cruisecritic.com friends" sign that we have posted on the pole by our booth and stop and say "Hi". My daughter loves to hear how many people from cruisecritic stop by each day. I'll be looking forward to meeting you all. My daughter won't be back for awhile but she loves to hear all the comments from the people. Thanks and have a wonderful cruise!!

Kristina's mom,

Louise

[kely53]

We were in Margarita Island the first week of March. We did inquire about the black pearls and were told that they were naturally that color because they were found deeper in the ocean. I dont remember the exact booth number but it was in to 50's and a sister/brother were running the booth. All they carried were pearl jewelry (mostly necklaces) and they were displayed nicely on a dark material. There were many vendors selling pearls and I guess I gravitated towards the vendor whose display looked the most like a jewelry store!!! Could be my mistake!! Oh well, it was fun!!

 

There was a booth there that had carved fruit displayed on carved trays. Nice and different.

 

We opted for spending the day at the beach near the pier. We had an enjoyable day.......lots of people taking advantage of the massages and lots of chairs/shade. The drinks were very reasonable (frozen marg. etc $3). Nice restaurant on beach and restrooms. The shopping was alot of fun and nice selection. There were 2 ships in port that day but one ship left a few hours eariler than ours. At times, the booth area was very cr owded. We shopped on our back to the ship in the afternoon and no crowds.

 

Klousid.....I wasnt sure what booth was yours. But thanks so much for all of the valuable information!!

[Taiger]

I found this on Margarita Island. It is a wealth of info for all of us cruisers.

 

http://www.margaritaislandvacation.info/El_Guamache_Port.htm

[klouised]

I knew I'd open up a "can of worms" with what I said about the black pearls. I could be wrong about it all but they look just like the hematite that I'm selling. Something that most of you don't know is we have depleted our pearls long ago and we now import our pearls from China. :) So, you might hear stories about the pearls coming from deep in the ocean or whatever but for the most part it's just a sales pitch. If you bought pearls and don't know if they're truly black pearls then I suggest you take them to a reputable jeweler and find out. My assistant heard a story one day about how this one venders relatives go out diving for the pearls that they're selling. We just have to laugh when we hear these stories because we know they don't mean any harm they just think it'll help them sell more. Sorry!! Just try to keep in mind that you are getting a very good deal on all the pearls sold at the port and just remember to not believe every story that you hear!

 

Louise

[busymom_kids]

We just got off of the Golden Princess with a stop at Isla Margarita. I had read that we needed to stay at the ship at shop on the pier. My husband and another couple wanted to take an excursion that included a little shopping in town and a beach.

 

So here is how our adventure went. We got off the ship very early and took a tour for $18.00 pp (kids free). We were guided to an old car that looked like it would possibly not make the full trip (This should have been a sign). We get in and the guide does not speak English. We head to town for shopping. We had heard that it was a 45 minute drive, but the guy who talked us into the tour assured us that it was about 30 minutes. It did take about 30 minutes. The car's speedometer was not working, but I can comfortable assure you that we averaged about 70-75 mph.:eek: (Scarey!) He drops us off in the middle of a town square. We walk in one store, turn around and walk back to the cab. We say "Beach" and he takes us there. We are obviously the first ones there that day. The beach had a "fishy" smell. There were two small boats that were completely filled with seagull looking birds with long pelican like beaks. We got back in the car and said "Ship". And he took us back to the ship (again at about 75mph.) I only saw one street light and one speed limit sign of 40 mph on this trip. The steering wheel in the car was made of wood, the doors rattled like they were going to open, the doors faded on our clothes, and my son was scratched on the arm by the plastic that was broken on the door rest. We were really just wanting to make it back to the ship safely at this point. One good thing is that the air conditioning in the car worked very well.

 

I'm not discouraging people from taking excursions on this island, I'm just suggesting that you stay at the port. Enjoy the beach and the shopping at the pier. Some in our group found some very nice items here. Save the money from the excursion and buy some of the beautiful jewelry, chimes, seashell flowers, etc. Our sons enjoyed looking for seashells in the sand. They found some really nice ones, but they had to sit in the water and dig down about 10 inches. They had a blast here!

 

Hope this helps!:)

[klouised]

Your story is so typical of the way cabs are here!!! I'm sorry you had such a bad experience. I've had many similar ones myself and I've learned to never get in a cab that is older. We have many white newer cabs that are very reputable but they ALL drive way too fast. I was sitting in the back seat one time and saw the speedometer reach almost 100 kilometers! (not positive how fast that is but we were flying ) hee hee I could barely hang on to my seat! I don't think these older cabs should be allowed at the port but sadly they are. Your experience with the shopping and the beach is probably largely in part to your cab driver not speaking english. I'm not sure if the cab drivers are going to be made to learn english or not but it's now mandatory for anyone working with tourists to take an english course and a course on tourism. This has just started at the port so most haven't taken it yet. I have to agree though that if you want to shop the port is where you should do it at. You can save all that money you spent on the cab and enjoy your shopping and then go relax on the beach and it doesn't cost you anything to get there!

 

Louise

[Smooth Sailing]

Your story is so typical of the way cabs are here!!! I'm sorry you had such a bad experience. I've had many similar ones myself and I've learned to never get in a cab that is older. We have many white newer cabs that are very reputable but they ALL drive way too fast. I was sitting in the back seat one time and saw the speedometer reach almost 100 kilometers! (not positive how fast that is but we were flying ) hee hee I could barely hang on to my seat! I don't think these older cabs should be allowed at the port but sadly they are. Your experience with the shopping and the beach is probably largely in part to your cab driver not speaking english. I'm not sure if the cab drivers are going to be made to learn english or not but it's now mandatory for anyone working with tourists to take an english course and a course on tourism. This has just started at the port so most haven't taken it yet. I have to agree though that if you want to shop the port is where you should do it at. You can save all that money you spent on the cab and enjoy your shopping and then go relax on the beach and it doesn't cost you anything to get there!

 

Louise

This port was great - the 2nd bar down from the pier was great - the Margaritas were 3/4 Teguila - several of us could barely stand after 3 or so - they also came around with free rum shots - we were wasted - one of our good friends hit the sack after returning to the ship at 3pm and did not move until 8am the next morning:eek::D:D. This was great fun - remember the second bar - do not waste your time at the first bar.

[Julie of the North]

If Dave/Smooth Sailing says this port is great then you can BET it is! My husband and I will be there April 17th on the Empress. We really look forward to meeting you, Louise. I have been reading your posts and your daughters posts for months now and I am anxious to do some (more like ALOT) of shopping and of course sample those Margaritas. Dave is a Margarita Expert and it looks like he is giving the ones at the second bar, 5 stars!

 

BTW, Dave, that place is Mexico looks waaaaay nice. If we don't go to Rome this fall, I might just have to concider checking it out further.

 

I bet when we get to Margarita Isle, they are still talking about that "Dave dude" and his crazy friends on the Empress.

 

See you soon Louise!:)

 

Julie

[klouised]

Today is March 20 and we had three ships at the port. A very nice lady came by and said she'd been reading the posts on cruisecritic and wanted to say "Hi". She bought some earrings from me and asked to have the silver plated ear hooks replaced with sterling silver. I did so and she left. She returned a while later and bought another pair and asked for them to be replaced also. Well, here's where I goofed up! I accidently replaced the second pair with the hooks I'd taken off of the first pair!! Stupid me!! I realized this almost immediatelyl after she'd left and asked my assistant Janelle to run and try to find her. She looked and looked but came back with no luck, so I went looking for her. I walked WAY out on the beach and even looked in the restrooms but I couldn't find her either. So, when I returned Janelle wanted to go look again (we were determined to find her and replace the hooks) but still no luck!!! We feel horrible and I want to humbly apologize. I would like to mail them to her if she'd contact me. I'm sorry but I'm not sure if she told us her name or not but I'm hoping she'll see this post and contact me. Sorry!!

Louise

[Smooth Sailing]

Today is March 20 and we had three ships at the port. A very nice lady came by and said she'd been reading the posts on cruisecritic and wanted to say "Hi". She bought some earrings from me and asked to have the silver plated ear hooks replaced with sterling silver. I did so and she left. She returned a while later and bought another pair and asked for them to be replaced also. Well, here's where I goofed up! I accidently replaced the second pair with the hooks I'd taken off of the first pair!! Stupid me!! I realized this almost immediatelyl after she'd left and asked my assistant Janelle to run and try to find her. She looked and looked but came back with no luck, so I went looking for her. I walked WAY out on the beach and even looked in the restrooms but I couldn't find her either. So, when I returned Janelle wanted to go look again (we were determined to find her and replace the hooks) but still no luck!!! We feel horrible and I want to humbly apologize. I would like to mail them to her if she'd contact me. I'm sorry but I'm not sure if she told us her name or not but I'm hoping she'll see this post and contact me. Sorry!!

Louise

Hi Kristina/Louise

I think I may know who it was - did she have curly hair??

[klouised]

Hummmmmm.....I don't think so. It seems like she was probably in her 50's and her hair was grayish and short. It seems like it was straight. She bought one pair of bone earrings that were dyed blue and I can't remember the other pair. I hope that she sees this posting or someone else does that can tell her to contact me. Thanks all the same.

Louise

[Smooth Sailing]

Hummmmmm.....I don't think so. It seems like she was probably in her 50's and her hair was grayish and short. It seems like it was straight. She bought one pair of bone earrings that were dyed blue and I can't remember the other pair. I hope that she sees this posting or someone else does that can tell her to contact me. Thanks all the same.

Louise

Hi Kristina - I know several ladies that were at Isla Margarita on Monday - this could be Dawn - the age is right and she was there and she is on Cruise Critic - I will let her know - she will be back home this weekend.