Thinking about St. John and how to go

[Host Anne]

plus521 - what ship are you on?

[blue_water]

Thanks. We've been to Sapphire, very beautiful. Because the Oasis is in port with us, we want to escape to St. John. We're looking for a quieter place to snorkel. We'll probably start at Trunk Bay and then move on once the hoards arrive. I imagine there are taxis available at Trunk Bay and that we could arrange a drop off/pick up for another beach. What do you think?

 

Oasis is in port the asme time you are (9 - 6) so you will be part of the hoard, that's the unfortunate part.but yes, you can check it and go from there. My point is that on heavy ship days we would pick a nice beach on STT and have time to enjoy another spot like Iggie's or Paradise Point after. We stay at the Sapphire Resort and even on big ship days it's usually much less crowded there. But you'll enjoy seeing STJ and I'm sure you'll have a good day. The beaches are beautiful from a distance.

[boleynkid]

boleynkid ~ Yes, you definitely have enough time to enjoy St. John during your stop in St. Thomas. You didn't say what ship you are on and that can make a difference. If you port at Havensight, you are much closer to the Red Hook Ferry (which I recommend regardless of where you dock). Crown Bay is twice as far to get to the ferry, more traffic to get through (hence longer travel time) and more difficult to get a taxi to Red Hook.

 

If you are at Havensight (if you post your ship, I can check) and you are permitted to disembark shortly after you arrive, you will be able to make the 9:00 AM ferry to St. John. That's ideal because you'll be on St. John by 9:20 and ahead of most of the crowds. If Allure or Oasis is in port with you (along with the other ships), I'd recommend going to Cinnamon over Trunk Bay. It's a bigger beach and will likely be less crowded. They have a snack bar and you can rent beach chairs, snorkel gear, floats, etc here as well.

 

On the way back, I'd recommend the 2:00 PM ferry back to Red Hook. Gives you plenty of time to get back and not have to worry about getting to the ship on time.

 

Let me know your ship and I'll check where you are docking!

 

Hi Anne we are on the Norwegian Sun. Trunk Bay looks idyllic and I figured it might get us away from the crowds with 6 ships in port (3rd April) but reading reviews etc I am not so sure but if we get a head start on some of the ships then it might not be so bad. Thanks for your advice re Cinnamon so I will start looking into that as an option. Is Cinnamon near Trunk ? (you can tell I'm a first timer). Sapphire looks beautiful too but I guess the same thing applies re the crowds. Would I be correct in thinking that Sapphire is easier to get to than Trunk and basically people just get taxi's from the dock ? Thanks very much for your help which is sincerely appreciated.

[Host Anne]

boleynkid ~ yes, Cinnamon is the next beach after Trunk. It's about five minutes further in the taxi. Cinnamon is a longer beach making it easier to get away from the crowds. Even on the busiest ship days, we've always been able to get away from the crowds but going to the far side of the beach when you go to the right. Let me check your dock. I'll be right back.

[Host Anne]

boleynkid ~ you are at Havensight. But Norwegian Epic and Allure of the Seas are both in port with you so it will be a busy day. I'd be ready to get off the ship 15 - 20 minutes prior to arrival so when they announce that you can disembark you can head off. If it were me, I'd head right to Cinnamon. If you can make the 9:00 AM ferry you'd be among the first to St. John.

 

Sapphire is easier to get to because it's on St. Thomas and you'd avoid having to take the ferry to St. John. Yes, it will likely be very crowded as well but would save you a bit of time.

 

For us, it's always St. John but we are used to the routine of getting there.

 

You may want to wait and see how quickly you can disembark and go from there.

[plus521]

plus521 - what ship are you on?

 

We are on the Epic

[plus521]

plus521 - what ship are you on?

 

8-4:00 :)

[boleynkid]

boleynkid ~ you are at Havensight. But Norwegian Epic and Allure of the Seas are both in port with you so it will be a busy day. I'd be ready to get off the ship 15 - 20 minutes prior to arrival so when they announce that you can disembark you can head off. If it were me, I'd head right to Cinnamon. If you can make the 9:00 AM ferry you'd be among the first to St. John.

 

Sapphire is easier to get to because it's on St. Thomas and you'd avoid having to take the ferry to St. John. Yes, it will likely be very crowded as well but would save you a bit of time.

 

For us, it's always St. John but we are used to the routine of getting there.

 

You may want to wait and see how quickly you can disembark and go from there.

 

That's great thanks again Anne, I really appreciate the advice and at least now we have options. We have booked a mini-suite on the Sun and I think I read somewhere that may mean we get priority dis-embarkation but we shall see.

[blue_water]

Sapphire is easier to get to because it's on St. Thomas and you'd avoid having to take the ferry to St. John. Yes, it will likely be very crowded as well but would save you a bit of time. .

 

 

Anne, Actually that is an assumption that many folks make and unfortunately newcomers base decisions on. We stay at the Sapphire resort and Sapphire doesn't usually get that crowded, even on heavy ship days. We visited STJ on a heavy ship day and we stayed at Sapphire on another even heavier ship day and Sapphire was much more comfortable than Trunk or Cinnamon and is much nicer than the other STJ options (in our opinion). The beaches of STJ are beautiful but so are those on the East End of STT. As you well know, STT and STJ are very vulnerable to heavy crowds because of the number of ships that dock in STT, and crowd conditions do differ widely everyday depending on the folks in port and their experience.

 

Since Trunk is one of the most-touted excursions it - like Magens - is one of the busiest destinations, and so on busy days more-experienced cruisers like yourself will head to Cinnamon and if bad there continue on to Maho. When we ferry to STJ the ferries are packed full of cruisers going on their own (which we would definitely recommend over the ship-sponsored excursion). The majority of those visitors have been before and return because they liked it there and are savvy enough to know where to go and what to expect. However many of them have not been to many of the East End beaches of STT and assume they are more crowded than Cinnamon, etc because they read that somewhere.

 

First-timers can get very helpful information from you on the beaches of STJ because you like it there and are very familiar with the beaches there, and you've made that trip often. So they can avoid a disappointing day with your excellent information at hand. But the other option is to enjoy an East End beach like Sapphire, and enjoy another 2 hours or so at another spot like Iggie's or Havensight that would have been spent getting to a STJ beach.

 

I just want to clarify for those new to this port and those who are not new but have never explored STT that there are gorgeous beaches with superb snorkeling options right on STT. Lindquist would be an excellent choice for an even quieter beach, a very naturally beautiful bay. But STJ is also beautiful, and on a 1 ship day would be a great destination.

[Hogladyrider]

After taking the open taxi tour of STJ last Oct when we stop in STT this year we are only in port 7-3 ship time.

 

I think visiting STJ is still doable in that time frame since we have done the trip on our own twice before.

 

This trip I am considering a taxi to MAHO, it will be just two of us.

 

My question is how reliable is the taxi driving going to be to come back and pick us up, what would the appropriate "tip" be to insure this happens?

 

Not that I would mid being left on STJ, but I will only have a bathing suit and towel with me :p

 

Susan

[Host Anne]

Good news, Plus521 ~ you are docking at Havensight! And there is only one other ship in St. Thomas with you. It is Allure of the Seas but docking early and being at Havensight gives you an advantage. You'll be able to get to St. John long before Allure even arrives. They are scheduled to dock at Crown Bay at 10:00 AM so being two hours ahead of them is a big "plus" for you (no pun intended). The earliest folks from Allure are going to make it to St. John is likely the noon ferry.

 

Again, if you can get off Epic quickly (my guess is you may dock a little earlier than 8:00 AM) and make the 9:00 AM ferry, that will give you plenty of time to enjoy St. John without crowds.

 

The best snorkeling around St. John really isn't from the beaches but since you are there on a cruise ship you really won't have time to head out to the "best" snorkeling spots like Waterlemon. To give you a best beach to snorkel from is tough. It can often depend on the day.

 

I don't think Trunk has the best beach snorkeling any longer. The underwater trail is neat because it's unique but Trunk gets so many visitors that I've read that you don't see nearly the amount of different fish you used to. I'd probably recommend Cinnamon or Maho for snorkeling instead. Keep in mind, however, that Maho has limited facilities (restroom only) and you do need to make arrangements with your taxi driver to pick you up from Maho as taxis do not wait there!

 

Have a GREAT day on St. John!

[Host Anne]

Hogladyrider ~ Taxi drivers on St. John are very reliable. In the all the years we've visited on a cruise ship and made arrangements for a driver to return to pick us up, they have always been there. I recommend asking the driver for a cell phone number. Our cells normally work on St. John and it's a nice back up. If you are at all uncomfortable with that, I'd recommend Cinnamon or Trunk where you know taxis will be waiting. You don't want to spend your time worrying whether the taxi will return for you. But our experience has always been positive when making arrangements for a pick up.

[Dunmore2]

Thank you for your help.

[Host Anne]

Have a wonderful time, Dunmore! I love Eclipse as well. You should be in for a wonderful cruise!

[plus521]

Thank you soooooo much Anne! How much time do u recommend leaving for ourselves to get back to the ship?

[Hogladyrider]

Thanks Anne, great advice as ALWAYS!

 

We REALLY enjoyed our island tour of St. John that we took last Oct.

 

Such an AMAZING slice of heaven on earth!

 

Susan

 

PS - it sure is chilly here in Central Florida this weekend.

[Host Anne]

Plus ~ I hate to say this but I'd probably take the 1:00 pm ferry back to Red Hook. That will get you back to Red Hook by 1:20 - 1:25 and then back to Havensight between 2:00 - 2:15 (allow ten minutes or so once you get off the ferry for a taxi to load). You could take the 2:00 pm ferry and be OK but it only takes one traffic tie up to cause you to stress. I don't like to stress on vacation.

 

Susan ~ you are most welcome! Completely agree about the "slice of heaven on earth." Can't wait to be back. It's rather chilly over here on the west coast of Florida, today as well. The good thing is it's going to warm up quickly!!! :)

[plus521]

Thanks Anne! Yes! Would hate to stress. So will take your advice.

[Host Anne]

Enjoy each moment, Plus! They go by way too quickly!

[plus521]

Yes, and would hate to ruin it all by missing the boat...lol

[TMW67]

Thank you Blue Water & Anne! Your expertise is greatly appreciated! :D

[Host Anne]

TMW ~ you are most welcome!

 

Plus ~ if I have to pick one place to miss the ship, this would be it!!!! ;)

[mlbcruiser]

For the record, we did do the Oasis' ferry from Crown Bay to Cruz Bay for $40 the wk. before last. Ride over was great - we sat on top. Loading the ferry boat at Crown went very quickly. We chose the option to continue on the ferry for the St. John shore ride after letting other tours off in Cruz Bay. The shore cruise took about 20 min. and we did end up with 3 1/2 hrs. on our own in St. John. We took an open air taxi to Hawksnest to snorkel (partly to save the entrance fee since we knew we were heading back to Cruz Bay in a while. We also have our own snorkeling equip. The snorkeling was decent, despite it being overcast). It was cloudy, and after we snorkeled for about a half hr. or so, we sat on the beach and within a couple of min. it started to rain fairly heavily. We ran up to the dressing stalls to stay dry and it eased up after about 20 min., then stopped. Took another cab into Cruz Bay, walked around a bit, looking in stores, etc. Then had lunch at the popular outdoor beach bar that overlooks the water and St. Thos. (Can't recall the name at the moment - I think maybe just Beach Bar? - but it's right in the thick of, and at the end of, the line of a couple of other shoreline restaurants, under some trees at the beach's edge.) Only issue there was service was slow, it was very busy, only one man handling the whole bar, and food took way too long to come, though the fish tacos were excellent! Still, we had plenty of time afterwards to head on over to Woody's to get my dh a new t-shirt and then amble back for our ship's ferry trip back to Crown Bay. I'm not knocking doing a trip to St. John via cab and ferry from Red Hook. We've done that many times. It's just that for what we wanted to do, we had enough time and all went smoothly. It cost $40 for each of us, plus $5 total each way for the cab to Hawksnest. (It's $6 to Trunk.) I had been concerned we'd end up wasting a lot of time waiting for our ferry to load at Crown Bay, but that wasn't the case at all. Found the weather had cleared up sooner on STT than on STJ that day. Sunshine makes things much more beautiful on land and under the water. Therefore I was a bit sorry some of the first timers who went to St. John and got hung up in the downpour that day didn't see it at it's best. :( I can honestly say we were glad we used the ship's ferry this time around. It's good for those who just want to keep things REALLY EASY, who like to sleep in a while, or who like to view the shoreline from the water just for the experience. (BTW, we had excellent narration on the way over, too!) Hopes this helps someone else in their decision.

Edited March 11, 2013 by mlbcruiser

[Host Anne]

mlb ~ thanks for the great info. I think the next time we port at Crown Bay, I'd definitely consider the ship's ferry over trying to get a taxi to Red Hook, waiting for them to fill a taxi and then not making the ferry and having to wait another hour. What time does the ship's ferry depart Crown Bay?

[blue_water]

That is great information mlb, and it sounds like a great day even with the ferry from Crown. I'm sure your report will be very helpful to folks docking at Crown and undecided whether to go to STJ because of the distance. There have been several posts recently, and they can see this as a viable option. And the cruise along the beautiful coast of STJ is a bonus!

 

And yes the Beach Bar is a great spot to lime, many folks who stay on STJ will stop there for the fish tacos and a Red Spripe or cocktail and sit on the beach, it's their "I've arrived" moment.

 

Thanks again. We rarely cruise anymore because we prefer staying in the islands. But we will cruise again I'm sure, and will certainly hit STT again, and if we cruise into Crown we'll follow your advice! :)