Thinking about St. John and how to go

[Hurry&Wait]

I have tried to weed through the 100s of posts and didnt find any mention of it.

 

Has anyone taken the Ferry from Charlotte Amalie to St John? My wife and I are renewing our wedding vows there Aug 3rd (coming in on Carnival Valor). Our ship docks at 9am and I was told by our wedding coordinator that we should get on the 10am ferry in Charlotte Amalie as opposed to taking a long cab ride to Red Hook. Any comments on taking this ferry instead of the ferry out of red hook? We have to be at Cinnamon Beach at 11am for our wedding ceremony is at 1130am.

 

I agree with another poster whom suggested Red Hook. The other problem with the Charlotte Amalie ferry is timeliness. Sometimes its on time and other times its on "island time." ;)

[Fourseventeen]

cruiseoholic...the red hook ferry is half the price (6 bucks pp) of the ferry from C.A. but there is a 30-40 min cab ride involved to get to red hook which isnt cheap if I recall correctly from the last time we took the cab to red hook.

I think we will take the C.A. ferry at 10am as our wedding coordinator has suggested us to do. She says as long as we get on that ferry we will be fine. She says we wont be late and if we are it will only be a few mins and she will wait for us. She mentioned its less then a 5 min cab ride to get to the C.A. ferry dock too so thats MUCH cheaper then the cab to Red Hook. I am prone to sea sickness too and I know the Pillsbury sound's waters are rough! Been there done that! Lost my hat and my lunch on a journey across the sound last time we were there. Granted we were on a 36' sail boat under wind power.

[augie]

I am prone to sea sickness too and I know the Pillsbury sound's waters are rough! Been there done that! Lost my hat and my lunch on a journey across the sound last time we were there. Granted we were on a 36' sail boat under wind power.

 

You do realize that you'll be on the water much longer if you take the C.A. ferry, right?

[Fourseventeen]

yes Augie the ferry from C.A. to Cruz Bay is twice the amount of time on the water.

[cdnrn26]

Hi,

I just wanted to run my schedule for St John by this forum and make sure it sounds okay. We arrive on the Emerald Princess on October 16th (Sunday) at 7am and are scheduled to leave at 5pm. We dock at Crown Bay.

8am taxi to Red Hook

9am ferry to Cruz Bay

930 - 1230 Island Tour (from local taxi)

1230 - 145 shopping in Cruz Bay

2pm - ferry back to Red Hook

3pm - back at cruise ship

 

Does this sound about right?

Thanks

Cam

[augie]

That should work Cam - have fun.

[adventuregrrl]

We just came back from a land trip to St John which was fabulous. We took the public ferry back from St John to Red Hook which only takes about 15 minutes. About 20-30 minute into our cab ride, we passed the cruise terminal.

 

Trunk Bay has the most amenities of the snorkeling beaches and has a place to rent equipment, showers, bathrooms, and a pretty decent burger shack. At the burger shack, make sure to say the customary St Johnian "good morning/good afternoon" and say "please" and you'll get a warm welcome, if not, you may get a service worthy of a Seinfeld episode. Also, the Painkiller is a local favorite rum drink and you'll get a generous pour with a friendly attitude. :)

 

We really enjoyed our lunch at High Tides Bar & Seafood Grill which is just next door to the public ferry in Cruz Bay. I am wishing I had that jerk chicken wrap right now. There are some really cute shops and we're loving our jewelry purchases from ViBE with the local petroglyph symbol.

 

We've posted some of the highlights of our trip on You Tube at:

Edited July 4, 2011 by adventuregrrl
broken link

[Ms411]

Many of the shops may not be open on a Sunday in Oct especially since Caneel will still be closed.

[Host Anne]

Hi everyone ~ been gone for extended business trips so haven't checked in here recently. Glad to see this thread is still so active.

 

Fourseventeen ~ if I read your post correctly that you are prone to seasickness, I'd advise against the CA ferry as the seas are far rougher on a regular basis than the the Red Hook ferry. I've done both over the years. We always go for the Red Hook ferry now. Total time and cost isn't much difference. We'd rather be in a taxi longer than on the ferry on open seas longer.

 

Cam ~ your plan sounds great....wish we were going.

 

Cruiseoholic000 ~ earlier in this thread there was a breakdown of total costs for the day to go to St. John on your own. I think it's around $50 per person including ferry, taxis, etc. I'll try to go back and find it.

[Host Anne]

Here's info on the cost of going to St. John for the day from a ship docked at Havensight that was posted about a year ago:

 

Cab from Havensight to red hook -$10

Ferrry to Cruz bay r/t 12

taxi -Cruz bay to Trunk Bay -r/t 12

trunk bay entry fee 4

cab from red hook back to ship 10

--

$48

 

I think the taxi from Cruz Bay to Trunk has gone up to $14 roundtrip so it's now $50. But still worth it.

[CruiserRose]

Thinking we are going to do the trek to St. Johns this time. We love to snorkel and want a short tour of the island with some scenic stops. So we thought take the ferry to st johns, then a little tour, then to a beach for some snorkel/beach time.

 

Can someone tell me,

 

is there a specific driver/company we should use? how do we contact them? emial ? website?

 

What should we expect to pay for the short tour and drop at beach?

 

Can someone tell me the DON'T miss stop for the short tour?

 

Where(what beach) should we be dropped for snorkeling?

 

thanks all

Alex

[Host Anne]

Hi Alex ~ you do not need to arrange for a specific guide before you arrive on St. John. When you get off the ferry, there will be bunches of taxi drivers waiting to take folks on an island tour, to the beaches, or a combo.

 

Island tours with a drop off at the beach are usually about $20 - $25 per person. For a nice short island tour I'd ask the driver the following:

 

Can you go to the Chateau Bordeaux overlook (it is my favorite view on the island....I like it even better than the Trunk Bay overlook seen in my avatar);

 

Can you stop at the Annaberg Sugar Plantation & Ruins (spend the ten minutes to walk up to the top and see the beautiful views of the British Virgin Islands)

 

Then head to the beaches - Stop for a few minutes at Maho (my favorite beach) to take some photos. They are in the process of putting in restrooms and facilities here but I don't know when they'll be done (island time makes things go slow).

 

Then go to Cinnamon or Trunk to spend some time at a beach. Both have facilities, a snack bar and beach chair/snorkeling rental. Trunk charges $4 per person for admission. Both are great. You can snorkel at any of St. John's north shore beaches. Trunk has the underwater trail. I'd decide on the beach dependent upon what other ships are in port with you. If Oasis or Allure or six other ships are with you, I'd avoid Trunk.

 

You can get a taxi back from either beach easily. Taxis will be in the parking lot and it costs $6 per person to go back to the ferry dock. In fact whoever gives you the tour will probably ask if they can come back to the beach for you.

 

Hope this helps! ENJOY....I want to go back now!

[CruiserRose]

thanks so much for the info, great stuff here. exactly what i was looking for. thanks again...

 

Hi Alex ~ you do not need to arrange for a specific guide before you arrive on St. John. When you get off the ferry, there will be bunches of taxi drivers waiting to take folks on an island tour, to the beaches, or a combo.

 

Island tours with a drop off at the beach are usually about $20 - $25 per person. For a nice short island tour I'd ask the driver the following:

 

Can you go to the Chateau Bordeaux overlook (it is my favorite view on the island....I like it even better than the Trunk Bay overlook seen in my avatar);

 

Can you stop at the Annaberg Sugar Plantation & Ruins (spend the ten minutes to walk up to the top and see the beautiful views of the British Virgin Islands)

 

Then head to the beaches - Stop for a few minutes at Maho (my favorite beach) to take some photos. They are in the process of putting in restrooms and facilities here but I don't know when they'll be done (island time makes things go slow).

 

Then go to Cinnamon or Trunk to spend some time at a beach. Both have facilities, a snack bar and beach chair/snorkeling rental. Trunk charges $4 per person for admission. Both are great. You can snorkel at any of St. John's north shore beaches. Trunk has the underwater trail. I'd decide on the beach dependent upon what other ships are in port with you. If Oasis or Allure or six other ships are with you, I'd avoid Trunk.

 

You can get a taxi back from either beach easily. Taxis will be in the parking lot and it costs $6 per person to go back to the ferry dock. In fact whoever gives you the tour will probably ask if they can come back to the beach for you.

 

Hope this helps! ENJOY....I want to go back now!

[aczi16]

You should take a 20-30 min taxi ride($20 rt) to Red Hook and catch a ferry(about $15) (15 mins) which runs every hour to St. John. Say your boat docks at 9am. to 5pm. Either try and get off the boat immeditaly, catch a taxi quickly and be on your way to Red Hook and wait for about 10mins for a ferry. It all depends on your timing. From exiting your boat to Red Hook will take about 40-50 mins, depending on traffic, ease with getting a taxi, and getting off the boat smoothly. The ferry will not wait for you, so make sure your early or miss it by 5 minutes and be waiting for another hour for the next ferry. REMEMBER: Cell phones work in St. Thomas since it is a United States Territory. Make sure you have the local taxi service numbers, cruise ship number (in case you are running late) and any other emergency numbers you may need to call while on STJ/STT. Also, if you want, you can take a Daily Activites in the morning which has the ships contact information on them. Again, say your boat leaves at 5pm, try and get a the ferry at 2 or 3, depending on which beach you decide to go to.

 

Depending on what you are looking for in a beach...

Snorkeling- Maho/Francis (northern part of island=farther away, quiet)

People watching, activities, crowds?, facilities- Trunk Bay (i don't reccommend since I rather go to a quiet beach all to ourselves)

Cinnamon Bay- all rounded good. Some facilites, good snorkeling, nice beach, walk through camp site. This is the beach I went to my first time in St. John and liked it a lot. When we visit again in Nov. We will be heading to Francis for a new experience.

Salomon Bay/Honeymoon Bay (separated by small rocky point of land) are very similar but Salomon has better snorkeling. Both only have garbage cans and porta potties(maybe). Also has calm shallow water with sand/grass bottom in the middle with snorkeling on both sides. Farther away and more quiet than many beaches. Quite hard to get to though. Taxi- hike half mile to beach or hike 1 mile.

[Host Anne]

You are welcome, Alex! Have a wonderful time!

[pinemountaingirl]

Aczi16-you said since St John is a US ...do we get charged for international rates on the cell phone? OR is it like calling from Hawaii?

[aczi16]

Aczi16-you said since St John is a US ...do we get charged for international rates on the cell phone? OR is it like calling from Hawaii?

 

 

All the major US carriers except Verizon do not charge roaming on USVI and Puerto Rico since they are US territories. I am not sure why verizon does not consider them part of the US. I have T-Mobile so if I were you, I would call Verizon directly - its really the only way to know for sure.

Be careful because your phone may pick up a signal from a tower from another island such as the BVI's. If this happens, you can easily call up your phone company and straighten things out.

[lindalo5032]

I think I read on this thread that the taxi fare from Crown Bay to Red Hook is $12.00 one way for each person? Does that sound right?

 

We will be on the Allure in Sept. and that will be the only ship in port. RCI has a tour to Trunk Bay for $67.00 per person, which includes all transportation and fees. It is from 10:30 to 2:30, and they only spend 1 1/2 hours at Trunk Bay.

 

I think the cost of going on our own would be about $40-$50 per person. Does that sound right? The ship arrives at 9:00 and leaves at 5:00. If we are able to leave the ship close to 9:00, hopefully we could make the 10:00 ferry at Red Hook? Getting off the ship might be slow due to the crowd onboard. So we could get to Trunk Bay by 10:30-10:45? If so, we would probably beat the ship tour there. We would like to stay there awhile and then head back and see Meagan Bay before we have to get back onboard.

 

Is this a doable plan? Or would you guys recommend just going with the ship tour and less hassle?

Edited July 26, 2011 by lindalo5032

[Host Anne]

Linda ~ your plan is very doable. I've read that the disembarkation of Oasis and Allure at Crown Bay goes pretty smooth. They have lots of gangways. While it seems a bit of a hassle to take taxis, ferrier and taxis, it really isn't. I did a quick search and it appears that the Crown Bay - Red Hook cost is still $12 per person.

 

The only thing I think may not be doable is getting to Magan's Bay. By the time you get back from St. John, traffic will be pretty heavy and I'm not sure you'll have sufficient time to make it there and back to your ship. Quite honestly (and this is just my opinion) but Magen's Bay doesn't compare to the north shore beaches on St. John. She's lovely, but I wouldn't rush to try and get there if you are going to st. John for the day.

 

Have a great time!!!!

[lindalo5032]

Anne,

 

Thanks so much for the information! I do have a few more questions, if you don't mind.

 

1) I think I read there are no chairs for rent at Trunk Bay?

2) Are there restrooms there?

3) Is there snorkel gear (including vests) for rent there?

4) Is that a good area for beginning snorkelers/non-swimmers? We would

need to use a vest.

5) Is there an area on St. John that would be better for the above needs

than Trunk Bay?

 

Thanks again for your help! Anyone else who would like to offer opinions would also be appreciated! :)

[Host Anne]

Linda ~ the answer to each of your questions is yes.

 

You can rent beach chairs at Trunk Bay. They were $5 for the day the last time we rented them.

 

There are plenty of restrooms.

 

You can rent both snorkel gear and vests.

 

The only two beaches that meet your requirements for all of the above items are Trunk and Cinnamon Bay. I think for beginners that Trunk is better than Cinnamon. Trunk has the underwater snorkel trail and it's an easy walk/swim to get to the trail.

 

The truth is that you can walk in the shallow waters of these beaches and see lots of sea life. Click on the photo attached to view the star fish that was in shallow water on St. John. I took the photo just walking along the shore.

 

Have a great time!

[BlackJack2]

The truth is that you can walk in the shallow waters of these beaches and see lots of sea life.

 

Question regarding snorkeling - Do we need fins or water shoes or just bare feet?

[augie]

Question regarding snorkeling - Do we need fins or water shoes or just bare feet?

 

For Trunk and Cinnamon (as well as Maho, Francis, and others) most of the beach is sandy, so water shoes aren't as necessary as they would be for water entry at a rocky beach.

 

If you plan on snorkeling in calm and shallow water, you can get by without fins. I like to wear them, but I often go on long swims, and out in deep water.

[BlackJack2]

Thanks Augie - We are good swimmers and our fins weigh a lot. Wondered if we needed need fins to snorkel at St. John and in other ports.

[Host Anne]

Hi Steve and Blackjack ~ I'm with Augie in that I usually wear my fins but that's because I'm used to them and it's my preference. If you are comfortable in shallow waters, you'd be fine without them as Augie mentioned. Have a great time.

 

Steve ~ when's your next trip?