Sapphire Beach questions?

[blue_water]

As Leslie said the taxi drops you right at the Sapphire Beach Resort & Marina lobby which is right on the beach, you are on flat ground and it's a short stroll to the ocean.

Just to give you a feel for the layout, the Sapphire Village is another condo resort adjacent to the SBR&M (to the immediate south) and is up a hill behind the marina. A third condo resort, Crystal Cove, is situated to the north of the other two.you will walk out to the beach and the swimming area will be straight ahead, the reef to your left, and the sea grass area to your left.

 

Have a great day!

 

The reef is to the right, sorry:p

[blue_water]

I would not be surprised if this were true. I have met and shared laughs and drinks with so many lovely people over the years. For some reason St. Thomas has the most instances of this. Something about that island just brings out the joy in people.

 

All Caribbean islands tend to have that effect...

We're actually partial to Tortola and the BVI but we do spend time on STT before flying out. The East End is a nice spot to get re-"Americanized" before actually going home...:D

[MDSue]

Any idea of taxi rate from the port to this beach??? Is it easy to get a taxi back to the port??? Where is this Paradise Point for the view and a great drink???

Thanks

 

I'm having trouble remembering the exact fare, but I think it was either $8 or $9 each way. We had no problem grabbing a taxi back (from Sapphire). I haven't been to Parradise Point yet.

[Luckyone2]

We grabbed a taxi for Sapphire Beach. While on the way, the driver did everything he could to get us to go to Coki. Well, what finally changed our minds was the statement that our ship was the only one there that day, and it would be hard for us to get a taxi back from Sapphire Beach. We did enjoy Coki Beach but I was not impressed by the snorkeling. It could be where we went in the water that day. I still don't know if it would have been hard to get a taxi back to the ship from Sapphire.

 

Coki Beach seemed to be very safe, and it was very beautiful. I would go there again, but I do want to go to Sapphire one day.

[MDSue]

We grabbed a taxi for Sapphire Beach. While on the way, the driver did everything he could to get us to go to Coki. Well, what finally changed our minds was the statement that our ship was the only one there that day, and it would be hard for us to get a taxi back from Sapphire Beach. We did enjoy Coki Beach but I was not impressed by the snorkeling. It could be where we went in the water that day. I still don't know if it would have been hard to get a taxi back to the ship from Sapphire.

 

Coki Beach seemed to be very safe, and it was very beautiful. I would go there again, but I do want to go to Sapphire one day.

 

My guess is the driver was just trying to go somewhere where he had connections for chair rentals and such. I'm sure they get kickbacks for bringing in paying customers. We had no problems grabbing a taxi to and from Sapphire recently. The one we took was a van type cab right at the port. Maybe, once you get outside the port, the drivers are more picky about where they go.

I had the same problem a few years ago and the cab driver told us the conditions weren't good at Magen's Bay and convinced us to go to Coki. I never did know whether he was making that up or not- but I'm guessing he was.

I did enjoy the snorkelling at Coki, if you swim a ways from the shore towards Coral World. The selection of fish is not comparable to other places I've been though.

[blue_water]

Yes many drivers do support relatives and friends renting in certain areas as anywhere else.

There are generally taxis parked at Sapphire, if not there is a taxi stand 3 min away in Red Hook and someone in the lobby will call for you, no worries.

[jennmaybe]

I had the same problem a few years ago and the cab driver told us the conditions weren't good at Magen's Bay and convinced us to go to Coki. I never did know whether he was making that up or not- but I'm guessing he was.

 

I actually believe him! We went to Magen's Bay and were totally disappointed! It was nothing like what we were expecting. The water was so cloudy that day and did not look blue at all. My group was very disappointed and on our return trip to St. Thomas, we will not go back to Magen's Bay. So, it sounds like there are times when the conditions are not good there.

[Luckyone2]

On snorkeling the different places while on the few cruises that I have made, I have found that I much prefer the Western Caribbean ports over the Eastern Caribbean ports. I love the mountainous islands of the Eastern Caribbean islands, but the snorkeling has been disappointing. Not terrible, but if you compare the quality of snorkeling that we have had at Roatan or Cozumel to what that we have experienced at any of the few Eastern ports (Coki, Grand Turk, Princess Cay) that we have visited, it is just not the same at all. I was expecting so much more.

[blue_water]

The snorkeling at Roatan and Cozumel (Palancar Reef) is very good, as is off the coast of Belize. But there are some excellent eastern sites that are no pushovers. Try a few more trips to make a better comparison. The sea and weather conditions have alot to do with the experience, and it's difficult to make meaningful comparisons based on one visit because of that. But if the site was clear then it was probably as good as it gets! You may just need to try other locations.

 

Where have you snorkeled in the eastern Carib? There are some fabulous snorkel and dive spots including the Norman Caves, Rhine wreck, and Indians in the BVI. Sapphire on STT offers decent off-the-beach snorkeling with turtles and rays, Smuggler's Cove in Tortola is good, and Green Island off Antigua was very good.

 

Good hunting!

[Luckyone2]

It is true as you said that conditions can change so quickly from site to site and day to day. I think that our trip last Thanksgiving was blessed because we had outstanding snorkeling and took lots of amazing pictures. I still prefer to cruise the Eastern Caribbean because of the beauty of the islands, and I will try it again. I appreciate your suggestions! Thank you!

[AntiHamstr]

But do take the taxi there and back and don't consider the $2 option. It's one taxi that makes one round of the island and it isn't that reliable when you're on budgeted time. When we stayed at Sapphire and drove into nearby Red Hook for drinks and groceries we saw people walking up the hill to the road in 98° heat, when we returned over 1 hr later they were still standing there. They may have finally saved $7pp but what an unbelievalbe way to spend your limited vacation time on an island...:rolleyes:

 

 

From one of my previous posts:

 

 

“Unreliable isn't the best word to use for the $2 bus. I would use “unpredictable”. My wait times over three trips have been 1,1,1,1,2, and 15 (!!!!!) minutes. On the other hand I've heard of people waiting 15 minutes or more for a taxi to fill up at the dock.

 

 

If you leave yourself plenty of time the bus is definitely an option.

 

 

It's your call whether it's worth the cost savings or not.”

 

 

 

 

I have no doubt that blue_water saw people standing there for an hour, but that's not common and most likely was caused by an accident on the bus route upstream on the island. The same thing can happen in the “lower 48 states” on bus or rail routes.

 

 

When I did have to wait 15 minutes at Sapphire there were a few taxis going by who waved to ask if we wanted to be picked up. Even a local at Sapphire asked if we wanted a ride to Red Hook... it's too bad SHE wasn't going the opposite direction or I would have taken her up on the offer. Worst case scenario is we would have to walk down the hill and hire one of the taxis there.

 

 

Dennis

[blue_water]

From one of my previous posts:

 

 

“Unreliable isn't the best word to use for the $2 bus. I would use “unpredictable”. My wait times over three trips have been 1,1,1,1,2, and 15 (!!!!!) minutes. On the other hand I've heard of people waiting 15 minutes or more for a taxi to fill up at the dock.

 

 

If you leave yourself plenty of time the bus is definitely an option.

 

 

It's your call whether it's worth the cost savings

 

 

I have no doubt that blue_water saw people standing there for an hour, but that's not common and most likely was caused by an accident on the bus route upstream on the island. The same thing can happen in the “lower 48 states” on bus or rail routes.

 

 

When I did have to wait 15 minutes at Sapphire there were a few taxis going by who waved to ask if we wanted to be picked up. Even a local at Sapphire asked if we wanted a ride to Red Hook... it's too bad SHE wasn't going the opposite direction or I would have taken her up on the offer. Worst case scenario is we would have to walk down the hill and hire one of the taxis there.

 

Dennis

 

Dennis I'm thrilled that you have no doubt that I saw people standing there for an hour, I do feel better, thank you! Unpredictable is the term I was looking for, thanks for that too. Many people make out well with the $2 bus but you win the prize, I've never seen or heard of someone waiting 2 minutes or less 5 times out of 6! Great job!

Two couples with 4vacations have had knee replacements and are looking for easy access to te beach. So the $2 bus mentioned earlier was not a good option for them no matter how lucky they got.

 

Your assumption is wrong, however, and you know what they say about someone who does ASSUME, right?

These people waited for over an hour in the heat. We were staying at the resort and there was very little traffic as usual, even on this 5-ship day. When we returned and saw them still there I wanted to drive them back to port, not because I felt sorry for the adults, but for their small children. As I was considering getting back in the Jeep and getting them they took a taxi leaving the resort, finally. What a way to end your day in the islands...

 

And just a note, the ride you wished was going the other way was actually going the way you should have gone.

[MDSue]

I actually believe him! We went to Magen's Bay and were totally disappointed! It was nothing like what we were expecting. The water was so cloudy that day and did not look blue at all. My group was very disappointed and on our return trip to St. Thomas, we will not go back to Magen's Bay. So, it sounds like there are times when the conditions are not good there.

 

Thanks for the tip! The taxi driver may have been right. My brother-in-law raved about Magen's Bay so i wanted to see it, but I thoroughly enjoyed my visits to Coki Beach as well.

[blue_water]

I was a little over the top above, but my only concern is that people new to STT read these posts that the $2 "bus" is typically there within a minute or 2 and that's obviously atypical because there's only one "bus". Many people are accustomed to using excellent public transportation in other destinations and think that's the case here, but the USVI and BVI actually don't have that infrastructure and folks need to be aware of the difference.

I think it's a great idea for someone with no problem walking and if it doesn't come within 15 min you can hail a taxi. But I would not plan my budget and day around the $2 bus because it is so unpredictable...

[AngelKappie]

Thank you for the link! Beautiful beach!!!! I think we will have to go there March!

 

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

[AntiHamstr]

Two couples with 4vacations have had knee replacements and are looking for easy access to te beach. So the $2 bus mentioned earlier was not a good option for them no matter how lucky they got.

 

 

I totally agree that it's probably not a good option for 4vacations because of that, but you repeatedly keep coming up with questionable information, in multiple threads, and phrase it an way that at least implies it's not a good option for ANYONE. Just because 4vacations started the thread, doesn't mean others aren't going to read it.

 

Many people make out well with the $2 bus but you win the prize, I've never seen or heard of someone waiting 2 minutes or less 5 times out of 6! Great job!

 

 

If you think that is good, my record on Barbados is even better. THREE out of SIX trips have had ZERO wait time. No joke. The buses (ZRs) saw us walking toward the stop, and waited for us. Maximum wait time was less than 5 minutes. Either I'm the luckiest cruiser ever, or the local bus systems really are that good.

 

Compare this to St. Croix where we had to pay $16pp to the greedy taxi drivers just to wait 15+ minutes at the dock, and then another 30-45 minutes waiting in Christiansted.

 

 

Your assumption is wrong, however, and you know what they say about someone who does ASSUME, right?

 

 

Nice... I give you the benefit of the doubt, and you flat out say my “assumption” is wrong. I'm sure you KNOW for a fact that there was no traffic ANYWHERE on the entire bus route on that particular day. There might have been little traffic between Sapphire and Redhook, but that doesn't mean there wasn't a huge jam somewhere upstream. The reason for my assumption is that the time I had to wait 15 minutes, we could clearly see ( a little later) that the traffic going in the other direction away from town was at a standstill, and quite a few buses (if not MOST of them) were stuck in the backlog.

 

 

Sure there could have been plenty of other reasons that the family waited an hour, such as all the bus drivers taking a siesta, but how likely is that? Two additional somewhat plausible options are that the family didn't know that they had to waive down the bus, or that they wanted to stick together in a group so that they had to pass up opportunities as buses with only 1,2, or 3 spots went by. Honestly we will never know the real reason.

 

And just a note, the ride you wished was going the other way was actually going the way you should have gone.

 

 

 

 

HUH????? Was that a joke? I know this nice lady was going the same direction the bus was eventually going to head, but Red Hook is actually about a mile in the wrong direction to get back into town, so it would have done us no good to take her up on the offer. Being one mile farther down the bus route buys us absolutely nothing.

 

 

 

 

I was a little over the top above, but my only concern is that people new to STT read these posts that the $2 "bus" is typically there within a minute or 2 and that's obviously atypical because there's only one "bus".

 

 

Your credibility is totally gone now. There is NOT just ONE bus that does the figure eight loop around the island. At any one time there are several, if not a dozen or more doing it. I know because I've seen OTHER buses both going in the same direction, and also on the opposite side on the road, while I was sitting on a bus. Q.E.D.

 

 

 

 

Many people are accustomed to using excellent public transportation in other destinations and think that's the case here, but the USVI and BVI actually don't have that infrastructure and folks need to be aware of the difference.

 

 

You are correct about St John and probably about St Croix. I haven't looked into the buses BVI. Perhaps we need a sticky posts on the “$1 bus” systems in use on many small islands throughout the world. The bus is basically just a taxi driver who decides instead of waiting around at one spot, that they will travel a circular route around the island picking up and dropping off people at designed bus stops. On St Thomas it's the same open air type vehicle they crowd the tourists in at the dock and charge 5 times as much. On other islands they tend to use little Toyota minivans which can hold up to 15 (!!!!) people. While there is a set route, and set bus stops, there is no set time schedule. How long you will have to wait is unpredictable and depends on how many buses are working at the time, where they are on the island, and on traffic conditions upstream. On some islands the buses don't leave the “station” until full. On others (like St Thomas) they drive around constantly, while others wait until they are about half full.

 

 

Almost all of the $1 bus systems are EXCELLENT when it comes to efficiency. I can almost always get somewhere much faster on a $1 bus system than on a bus system which has fixed time schedules. On somewhat rare occasions I can get places faster on the bus than by using (shared) taxi services.

 

HOWEVER, they usually are usually FAR below par in terms of customer “comfort”. The buses jam as many people in as possible and there is almost never any air conditioning. You will have to get on/off and change seats to allow others on and off. Sometimes if you are next to the door on the minibuses you are expected to be the doorman and open and close the door for others.

 

 

The $1 bus systems are predominantly used by locals, so that can either be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on your tastes. I almost always find it interesting to talk to them. It's usually MUCH more entertaining than talking to my fellow cruisers. ;-) FWIW on some islands the driver gets to pick the music AND the volume level, for better or worse.

 

 

 

 

 

I think it's a great idea for someone with no problem walking and if it doesn't come within 15 min you can hail a taxi. But I would not plan my budget and day around the $2 bus because it is so unpredictable...

 

That's more like it. I'll be the first to admit that the $1 bus systemS aren't a good match for a HUGE section of cruisers, but we should at least present the information to people and let them decide for themselves. Personally I would NOT advise it for anyone with walking issues, on a tight schedule, or someone who wants a whitewashed idealistic US style transfer.

 

 

Dennis

P.S. I wouldn't recommend people take it to Coki either since it involves a walk through a questionable neighborhood... the same one where a tourist was caught in a cross fire shootout (while riding in a a taxi).

[blue_water]

I totally agree that it's probably not a good option for 4vacations because of that, but you repeatedly keep coming up with questionable information, in multiple threads, and phrase it an way that at least implies it's not a good option for ANYONE. Just because 4vacations started the thread, doesn't mean others aren't going to read it.

 

 

 

 

If you think that is good, my record on Barbados is even better. THREE out of SIX trips have had ZERO wait time. No joke. The buses (ZRs) saw us walking toward the stop, and waited for us. Maximum wait time was less than 5 minutes. Either I'm the luckiest cruiser ever, or the local bus systems really are that good.

 

Compare this to St. Croix where we had to pay $16pp to the greedy taxi drivers just to wait 15+ minutes at the dock, and then another 30-45 minutes waiting in Christiansted.

 

 

 

 

 

Nice... I give you the benefit of the doubt, and you flat out say my “assumption” is wrong. I'm sure you KNOW for a fact that there was no traffic ANYWHERE on the entire bus route on that particular day. There might have been little traffic between Sapphire and Redhook, but that doesn't mean there wasn't a huge jam somewhere upstream. The reason for my assumption is that the time I had to wait 15 minutes, we could clearly see ( a little later) that the traffic going in the other direction away from town was at a standstill, and quite a few buses (if not MOST of them) were stuck in the backlog.

 

 

Sure there could have been plenty of other reasons that the family waited an hour, such as all the bus drivers taking a siesta, but how likely is that? Two additional somewhat plausible options are that the family didn't know that they had to waive down the bus, or that they wanted to stick together in a group so that they had to pass up opportunities as buses with only 1,2, or 3 spots went by. Honestly we will never know the real reason.

 

 

 

 

 

 

HUH????? Was that a joke? I know this nice lady was going the same direction the bus was eventually going to head, but Red Hook is actually about a mile in the wrong direction to get back into town, so it would have done us no good to take her up on the offer. Being one mile farther down the bus route buys us absolutely nothing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your credibility is totally gone now. There is NOT just ONE bus that does the figure eight loop around the island. At any one time there are several, if not a dozen or more doing it. I know because I've seen OTHER buses both going in the same direction, and also on the opposite side on the road, while I was sitting on a bus. Q.E.D.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You are correct about St John and probably about St Croix. I haven't looked into the buses BVI. Perhaps we need a sticky posts on the “$1 bus” systems in use on many small islands throughout the world. The bus is basically just a taxi driver who decides instead of waiting around at one spot, that they will travel a circular route around the island picking up and dropping off people at designed bus stops. On St Thomas it's the same open air type vehicle they crowd the tourists in at the dock and charge 5 times as much. On other islands they tend to use little Toyota minivans which can hold up to 15 (!!!!) people. While there is a set route, and set bus stops, there is no set time schedule. How long you will have to wait is unpredictable and depends on how many buses are working at the time, where they are on the island, and on traffic conditions upstream. On some islands the buses don't leave the “station” until full. On others (like St Thomas) they drive around constantly, while others wait until they are about half full.

 

 

Almost all of the $1 bus systems are EXCELLENT when it comes to efficiency. I can almost always get somewhere much faster on a $1 bus system than on a bus system which has fixed time schedules. On somewhat rare occasions I can get places faster on the bus than by using (shared) taxi services.

 

HOWEVER, they usually are usually FAR below par in terms of customer “comfort”. The buses jam as many people in as possible and there is almost never any air conditioning. You will have to get on/off and change seats to allow others on and off. Sometimes if you are next to the door on the minibuses you are expected to be the doorman and open and close the door for others.

 

 

The $1 bus systems are predominantly used by locals, so that can either be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on your tastes. I almost always find it interesting to talk to them. It's usually MUCH more entertaining than talking to my fellow cruisers. ;-) FWIW on some islands the driver gets to pick the music AND the volume level, for better or worse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's more like it. I'll be the first to admit that the $1 bus systemS aren't a good match for a HUGE section of cruisers, but we should at least present the information to people and let them decide for themselves. Personally I would NOT advise it for anyone with walking issues, on a tight schedule, or someone who wants a whitewashed idealistic US style transfer.

 

 

Dennis

P.S. I wouldn't recommend people take it to Coki either since it involves a walk through a questionable neighborhood... the same one where a tourist was caught in a cross fire shootout (while riding in a a taxi).

 

WOW! I guess you went through alot of work for nothing. Just use common sense Dennis and you'll be helpful to others here, that's really all I can tell you.

[blue_water]

I totally agree that it's probably not a good option for 4vacations because of that, but you repeatedly keep coming up with questionable information, in multiple threads, and phrase it an way that at least implies it's not a good option for ANYONE. Just because 4vacations started the thread, doesn't mean others aren't going to read it.

 

 

 

 

If you think that is good, my record on Barbados is even better. THREE out of SIX trips have had ZERO wait time. No joke. The buses (ZRs) saw us walking toward the stop, and waited for us. Maximum wait time was less than 5 minutes. Either I'm the luckiest cruiser ever, or the local bus systems really are that good.

 

Compare this to St. Croix where we had to pay $16pp to the greedy taxi drivers just to wait 15+ minutes at the dock, and then another 30-45 minutes waiting in Christiansted.

 

 

 

 

 

Nice... I give you the benefit of the doubt, and you flat out say my “assumption” is wrong. I'm sure you KNOW for a fact that there was no traffic ANYWHERE on the entire bus route on that particular day. There might have been little traffic between Sapphire and Redhook, but that doesn't mean there wasn't a huge jam somewhere upstream. The reason for my assumption is that the time I had to wait 15 minutes, we could clearly see ( a little later) that the traffic going in the other direction away from town was at a standstill, and quite a few buses (if not MOST of them) were stuck in the backlog.

 

 

Sure there could have been plenty of other reasons that the family waited an hour, such as all the bus drivers taking a siesta, but how likely is that? Two additional somewhat plausible options are that the family didn't know that they had to waive down the bus, or that they wanted to stick together in a group so that they had to pass up opportunities as buses with only 1,2, or 3 spots went by. Honestly we will never know the real reason.

 

 

 

 

 

 

HUH????? Was that a joke? I know this nice lady was going the same direction the bus was eventually going to head, but Red Hook is actually about a mile in the wrong direction to get back into town, so it would have done us no good to take her up on the offer. Being one mile farther down the bus route buys us absolutely nothing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your credibility is totally gone now. There is NOT just ONE bus that does the figure eight loop around the island. At any one time there are several, if not a dozen or more doing it. I know because I've seen OTHER buses both going in the same direction, and also on the opposite side on the road, while I was sitting on a bus. Q.E.D.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You are correct about St John and probably about St Croix. I haven't looked into the buses BVI. Perhaps we need a sticky posts on the “$1 bus” systems in use on many small islands throughout the world. The bus is basically just a taxi driver who decides instead of waiting around at one spot, that they will travel a circular route around the island picking up and dropping off people at designed bus stops. On St Thomas it's the same open air type vehicle they crowd the tourists in at the dock and charge 5 times as much. On other islands they tend to use little Toyota minivans which can hold up to 15 (!!!!) people. While there is a set route, and set bus stops, there is no set time schedule. How long you will have to wait is unpredictable and depends on how many buses are working at the time, where they are on the island, and on traffic conditions upstream. On some islands the buses don't leave the “station” until full. On others (like St Thomas) they drive around constantly, while others wait until they are about half full.

 

 

Almost all of the $1 bus systems are EXCELLENT when it comes to efficiency. I can almost always get somewhere much faster on a $1 bus system than on a bus system which has fixed time schedules. On somewhat rare occasions I can get places faster on the bus than by using (shared) taxi services.

 

HOWEVER, they usually are usually FAR below par in terms of customer “comfort”. The buses jam as many people in as possible and there is almost never any air conditioning. You will have to get on/off and change seats to allow others on and off. Sometimes if you are next to the door on the minibuses you are expected to be the doorman and open and close the door for others.

 

 

The $1 bus systems are predominantly used by locals, so that can either be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on your tastes. I almost always find it interesting to talk to them. It's usually MUCH more entertaining than talking to my fellow cruisers. ;-) FWIW on some islands the driver gets to pick the music AND the volume level, for better or worse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's more like it. I'll be the first to admit that the $1 bus systemS aren't a good match for a HUGE section of cruisers, but we should at least present the information to people and let them decide for themselves. Personally I would NOT advise it for anyone with walking issues, on a tight schedule, or someone who wants a whitewashed idealistic US style transfer.

 

 

Dennis

P.S. I wouldn't recommend people take it to Coki either since it involves a walk through a questionable neighborhood... the same one where a tourist was caught in a cross fire shootout (while riding in a a taxi).

 

WOW!

You have so much misinformation I don't know where to start. Not to mention the misquotes you felt you needed to fabricate or assign to me. Fortunately for you plagiarism doesn't count here...

 

But I would ask you to report information here that is helpful to people looking for USEFUL and ACCURATE information. Rather than try to dig (unsuccessfully) to support your lack of experience and knowledge, let people who do have the experience help folks here. I can't begin to respond to your statements, and I know that others who also have experiences as I do can ignore your rhetoric. I really can't understand why you spent so much time trying to make me look bad when you have no real experience.

 

Oh, and by the way - Barbados has excellent public transportation in comparison to the USVI and BVI, yes Red Hook is the direction you should have gone, and your traffic issue was just plain wrong - these people were waiting for a $2 "bus" that gets there when it gets there and people need to know that - get over it. Your lack of knowledge on the island is very obvious, sorry.

 

But you have a good day wherever you are, ok?

 

 

EDIT: Man...I just read most of your post, I am really disappointed in your lack of objectivity and the fact that you push so much misinformation. Not a biggie to me but certainly not helpful to the people looking for advice.

man...

[seeyakids]

WOW!

You have so much misinformation I don't know where to start. Not to mention the misquotes you felt you needed to fabricate or assign to me. Fortunately for you plagiarism doesn't count here...

 

But I would ask you to report information here that is helpful to people looking for USEFUL and ACCURATE information. Rather than try to dig (unsuccessfully) to support your lack of experience and knowledge, let people who do have the experience help folks here. I can't begin to respond to your statements, and I know that others who also have experiences as I do can ignore your rhetoric. I really can't understand why you spent so much time trying to make me look bad when you have no real experience.

 

Oh, and by the way - Barbados has excellent public transportation in comparison to the USVI and BVI, yes Red Hook is the direction you should have gone, and your traffic issue was just plain wrong - these people were waiting for a $2 "bus" that gets there when it gets there and people need to know that - get over it. Your lack of knowledge on the island is very obvious, sorry.

 

But you have a good day wherever you are, ok?

 

 

EDIT: Man...I just read most of your post, I am really disappointed in your lack of objectivity and the fact that you push so much misinformation. Not a biggie to me but certainly not helpful to the people looking for advice.

man...

 

Amen......you go Blue!!!

[blue_water]

There is a lot of great info to be found here from many sources and I don't want to take away from good input from anyone. We learned quite a bit early on here and especially on TA and TTOL from folks who gave the whole perspective and just want to do the same. We're not experts on STT, we just enjoy staying there when we return from the BVI.

[AntiHamstr]

Not to mention the misquotes you felt you needed to fabricate or assign to me. Fortunately for you plagiarism doesn't count here...

 

 

Ok. I'm TRYING my best to avoid making this even APPEAR like something it's something personal, but I do have to at least defend myself when I am FALSELY ACCUSED of plagiarism and misquoting.

 

 

For the record:

 

 

 

 

Any and all people can clearly see that EVERYTHING I attributed to blue_water in this post:

 

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=33640324&postcount=41

 

he clearly made in these two posts:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=33626567&postcount=37

 

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=33633579&postcount=39

 

 

There is absolutely no debate about that issue. I never misquoted him, and I have no idea why he thinks I plagiarized him. If I don't agree with his ideas and writings why would I claim them as my own. :-)

 

 

Please try to stick with the facts without making this personal or using diversionary tactics, which are common techniques people resort to when they can no longer use legitimate techniques...

 

 

 

 

WOW!

You have so much misinformation I don't know where to start.

 

 

 

 

How about starting anywhere??? I'm not going to claim everything I write is 100% correct, but it's sure much more accurate than the biased and at best half-true information you have been giving to people about the dollar bus system on STT. If I said something inaccurate, I'm man enough to post a retraction, and I'll even apologize to you. ;-) But the first step is you have to IDENTIFY what you THINK is inaccurate.

 

 

Please answer honestly: Have you EVER ridden on the dollar bus (aka $2 bus, safari bus) on STT? How about on any island? I've done so probably between one and two dozen times on a variety of islands both in the Caribbean and the South Pacific.

 

 

This is off topic, but yes Barbados has a very good Government run bus system. They also have a totally separate “dollar bus” type system run by the private ZR minivans.

 

 

Are you sure you aren't confusing the dollar bus on STT with the Government run VITRAN bus system?

 

To be honest even I keep forgetting it's there because IMHO it's almost completely useless. Please read this article (or many many others) which explains the difference:

 

 

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g147404-s303/St-Thomas:Caribbean:Public.Transportation.html

 

 

The information you have given to others seems somewhat plausible if you are referring to the VITRAN bus. I also wouldn't consider VITRAN reliable, and apparently wait times of over an hour are possible and/or expected, but I have no first hand knowledge. IMHO any cruiser waiting for the VITRAN bus is either ignorant (lacking of the crucial information), or just plain crazy when a $2 safari type bus passes by every few minutes ON AVERAGE.

 

 

Where you are falling extremely short is failing to tell people ACCURATE information about the dollar bus system, and instead encourage people to take the much more expensive taxis. For the majority of cruisers the taxis are better options, but for others the dollar bus can certainly be appropriate.

 

 

I'm NOT trying to make you look bad. I'm just trying to give people ACCURATE information after they haven't been told the whole truth.

 

Dennis

[blue_water]

Dennis I had so much to say about your continuing drama and coloration but I'm done, no one needs this.

You take care!

[Michthebeech]

So what do I take from this?? Is the bus safe and effective or not.....LOL

[AntiHamstr]

So what do I take from this?? Is the bus safe and effective or not.....LOL

 

That's the problem with these types of threads: it becomes impossible to find the good information when it's buried in all the squabbling.

 

 

Here are the cliff notes on why SOME/MOST people SHOULD take the taxi instead of the $2 bus to Sapphire.

Unable to walk 1.5-2 miles in a day.

Unable to walk down or up a steep hill that is roughly equivalent to 4-6 stories on a ship.

Have difficulties climbing into or out of an open air taxi multiple times.

Are on a tight schedule.

Want to maximize the time spent on the beach.

Can't handle a little unpredictability.

No sense of adventure.

Need or want “door to door delivery”.

Have a bad sense of direction.

Reluctant to ask directions.

Reluctant to interact with locals.

Unable to easily tell the difference between an open air taxi loaded with tourists and one loaded with locals.

Are part of a large group that isn't willing to split into smaller groups.

 

Dennis

 

[Michthebeech]

That's the problem with these types of threads: it becomes impossible to find the good information when it's buried in all the squabbling.

 

 

Here are the cliff notes on why SOME/MOST people SHOULD take the taxi instead of the $2 bus to Sapphire.

 

Unable to walk 1.5-2 miles in a day.

Unable to walk down or up a steep hill that is roughly equivalent to 4-6 stories on a ship.

Have difficulties climbing into or out of an open air taxi multiple times.

Are on a tight schedule.

Want to maximize the time spent on the beach.

Can't handle a little unpredictability.

No sense of adventure.

Need or want “door to door delivery”.

Have a bad sense of direction.

Reluctant to ask directions.

Reluctant to interact with locals.

Unable to easily tell the difference between an open air taxi loaded with tourists and one loaded with locals.

Are part of a large group that isn't willing to split into smaller groups.

 

Dennis

 

 

 

Thanks Dennis........I'm new to this but..........I was kinda joking. LOL I took a bus once in Miami filled with locals to save a $20 cab fare. Needless to say, it was quite an adventure. We don't speak Spanish but I could only imagine what was being said. We went through some scary parts of town, the music was full blast and the jammed the bus with working men who could have used some Right Guard. LOL. It was an adventure to say the least and we were relieved when we got back to the hotel. But an excursion booked through Royal Caribbean once in Jamaica was even scarier. In fact, I thought the van was going to be overturned by locals and that we were all about to be robbed.......and an excusion in Grand Cayman, also booked through the ship, barely got us back in time, the bus was not Air conditioned, and the archor was being lifted as a tender loaded us on to the boat. Not sure if they were really going to wait for us despite the claim that they wait for you if you book it through the ship. So either way, you never know what you are in for.