Our Visit to Martinique

[teacherman]

We visited Martinique on Wednesday, December 9, aboard Serenade of the Seas. It was the first visit by that ship to this port. The Seabourn Odyssey was also there. We had heard many stories on these boards, and on the ship, about how people felt unwelcome in this port. Not so.

 

There were many young "ambassadors" on the docks to welcome us, distribute maps, answer questions, etc. They all spoke good English, although many people in the town did not. Hey, it is a French country. Learn a few simple phrases and try to use them.

 

We chose to wander the town. We visited the Cathedral and library. We did some window shopping and stopped at a sidewalk cafe for a leisurely drink and people watching. Many stores had signs saying they would accept US dollars.

 

We found the best prices for souveniers at the kiosks along the docks.

 

Martinique seems to be a very large island. Some people said they met taxi drivers on the docks and bargained for island tours which they enjoyed. Other people caught the ferry that went to the beaches. Most people seemed to enjoy the port.

[Sky616]

We visited Martinique on Wednesday, December 9, aboard Serenade of the Seas. It was the first visit by that ship to this port. The Seabourn Odyssey was also there. We had heard many stories on these boards, and on the ship, about how people felt unwelcome in this port. Not so.

 

There were many young "ambassadors" on the docks to welcome us, distribute maps, answer questions, etc. They all spoke good English, although many people in the town did not. Hey, it is a French country. Learn a few simple phrases and try to use them.

 

We chose to wander the town. We visited the Cathedral and library. We did some window shopping and stopped at a sidewalk cafe for a leisurely drink and people watching. Many stores had signs saying they would accept US dollars.

 

We found the best prices for souveniers at the kiosks along the docks.

 

Martinique seems to be a very large island. Some people said they met taxi drivers on the docks and bargained for island tours which they enjoyed. Other people caught the ferry that went to the beaches. Most people seemed to enjoy the port.

 

Thanks for the info we will be there in April. Would you still recommend getting Euros? We only plan to buy a souveniers, definitely a magnet to add to our island collection. We have a tour scheduled already.

[teacherman]

We got 300 Euros at a bank ATM after we got there. My Credit Union does not charge me to use an affiliated ATM, and the ATM only charged me about $3. We only got the Euros because we will need them for our first stop on a trans-Atlantic we are taking in April. I saw many signs saying they would accept US dollars, and we paid for our beers and souveniers with US dollars. (8 Euros=10 USD) Unless you are sure you will need Euros for something, I would not get them ahead of time. I think the water ferries also take USD.

[princesspie]

We visited Martinique on Wednesday, December 9, aboard Serenade of the Seas. It was the first visit by that ship to this port. The Seabourn Odyssey was also there. We had heard many stories on these boards, and on the ship, about how people felt unwelcome in this port. Not so.

 

There were many young "ambassadors" on the docks to welcome us, distribute maps, answer questions, etc. They all spoke good English, although many people in the town did not. Hey, it is a French country. Learn a few simple phrases and try to use them.

 

We chose to wander the town. We visited the Cathedral and library. We did some window shopping and stopped at a sidewalk cafe for a leisurely drink and people watching. Many stores had signs saying they would accept US dollars.

 

We found the best prices for souveniers at the kiosks along the docks.

 

Martinique seems to be a very large island. Some people said they met taxi drivers on the docks and bargained for island tours which they enjoyed. Other people caught the ferry that went to the beaches. Most people seemed to enjoy the port.

 

Thanks for the great information. We'll be there next week and most likely will wander the town too.

[cruiseapril]

Interesting review. We took a bus tour in Martinique, so didn't walk the town- but glad to know others have enjoyed it.