Southern Carribean Must See/Do??

[Shelley9962]

We're doing the Southern Carribean cruise -- St. Marteen, Barbados and Martinique... what were the best things you did in those ports? Okay... what were the best things that you did in those ports that we could do with our teenaged daugthers?

 

Thanks in advance for responses!

[irishgirl]

One of the best shore trips I took in St. Martin was the Golden Eagle Catamaran trip. It was a great sail over to another island where we could snorkel or lay on the beach. If you aren't into snorkeling, I also liked going over to the French side and shopping at the flea market on the beach in downtown Marigot. There are lots of beaches if you just want to do that also.

 

In Barbadoes, I did the Jolly Roger, but I would not recommend it for teenagers. There is the Harrison Cave trip which is OK if you like caves. Or, you can just shop in Barbadoes.

 

In Martinique, they have great beaches, you just have to remember you will see nudity on pretty much all beaches in Martinique. There is also the volcano, Mt. Pele to see. Lots of shopping in Martinique also. Try to learn a little French, if you can. At least learn to say "I do not speak French".

[Cruisinforfun6]

:) We just returned from the Valor 11/6 southern cruise, one of the ports we visited was St. Martin. We took the Carnival excursion to Divi Beach Resort which was excellent! Our teenagers had so much fun.....the trip included transportation, buffet lunch which included bbq ribs and chicken along with an assortment of salads, two drinks per person, beach chairs along the beautiful clear waters....Calypso music was playing, you could rent wave runners.....shopping on site. A beautiful day we all had and we met another family on ship so they came along with their teenagers!! The only two things that bothered us were the vendors....some were great others we had to keep telling "NO". There was a really neat guy that made customized bracelets for $5 each....great way to get something for a good price, and the entertainment of watching him made it even more enjoyable. Also, the excursion in whole was great, but cut alittle short.....you could just take your own taxi, pay the taxi fee and stay longer too, we did not.

 

All in all, I think it was just a perfect day!!!

[elaineb]

We did the 4X4 safari and Paradise Beach tour. It was great!!!! You get a tour of the island and the famous Bathsheba and Cattle Wash, then on to a very nice beach for a swim before going back to the ship. Not to mention our driver had the best rum punch I've ever tasted!!! I still remember the soft smell of molasses when you get off the ship.......ah, Barbados... :)

[Shelley9962]

Thanks! Great suggestions, I'll definitely consider them. I really want to go to Marigot -- it's good to know you enjoyed it. I'm wondering though, since I'll be in port on New Years Day if much will be happening in Marigot. :( Et je parles francais...so I'm set to go!

 

We've spent a lot of time in Mexico, so my daughters are used to topless beaches... is the nudity more than that??

[big_duck]

Check out this thread: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=44544

 

Tons and tons and tons of info on this itinerary.

[irishgirl]

I have seen topless in Phillipsburg, but on the French side, totally nude.

[popcorngal]

We did this itinerary back in January. And like someone else did, we went to Divi Little Bay. It was a great, fun day. We also took part in the crab races there. It was hilarious! We wanted to get the crab named Jerry Springer, but since he wasn't available, we took the one named "Sandy Nipples". Poor Sandy never got out of the starting circle, but we had a ball cheering her on!:eek:

 

Probably the prettiest place we hit on that cruise (or any other one) was Martinique. I had heard less than favorable reports about there, but it ended up being my favorite port. We did the tour to St. Pierre and the Depaz distillery on the slope of Mt. Pelee. It was postcard perfect scenery!

 

I've got lots of pics from that trip in my webshots...just click on the link in my signature. Enjoy!