Baths on your own vs. with ship

[pipedreams62]

Hi- We will bebin Tortola in January. Holland America wants $69 for a trip to the baths. I've read it's only $25 roundtrip doing it yourself. Is there more costs or is there an actual $34 difference in price.

 

Thanks

[PaddleAddict]

We just did this on our own last week. I was a little nervous taking the ferry so far away (worried we wouldn't get back), but it worked out great.

 

We took one of the ferries (round trip $25). These are about a 10-minute walk (brisk walk) from the ship. They are located to your left as you exit the ship. We chose the one that left Tortola at 8:50 and returned at 2:00 (we had to be back on our ship at 3:00).

 

When you get to Virgin Gorda, it's a $6 taxi ride to the Baths ($3 per person each way, we were asked to pay round trip up front). It's about a 10- to 15-minute ride. It's $3 to get into the Baths. So, it was $34 for the day. We also bought lunch at the Top of the Baths restuarant, which is totally overpriced ($12 for a chicken salad sandwich), but the food was actually pretty tasty (or maybe we were just hungry!). The view at the Top of the Baths is worth the price of the food--it was beautiful. Drinks there were average ($2 for an iced tea, $2 for bottled water, $4 for a Red Stripe).

 

When he dropped us all off, the taxi guy told us to meet him at 1:30 to go back to the ferry, and we were all back in time. We were at the ferry by 1:45, waited a bit, then got back to Tortola around 2:45.

 

It was a very nice day, and we saved even more money because Carnival's tour was $80 per person!

[Sandi149]

You are going to get both opinions. We took Carnival's excursion and even though it was more money I felt it was worth it. There was a couple on our sailing who did the Baths on their own and the ferry broke down. Good thing another one came because if it didn't, they would have missed the ship. :eek:

 

It's all up to what you feel comfortable with.

 

Either way you are going to love the Baths. It's a really beautiful place.

[JerseyGem]

Base your decision on how long your ship will be in port. Going back and forth to the Baths takes time (it's on another island). If you need to be back on board by 2 PM (as an example), you may want to seriously consider the ship's tour. But if you'll be there until 5 PM, go on your own.

 

The previous posters have outlined the procedure- and read older threads too. Someone posted a link to Speedy's (one of the ferries), so you can get an idea, before you leave home, about the schedules for the day you will be there. The ferries do not run as often as many people expect (especially those from metropolitan areas with efficient mass-transit systems).

 

Even if you have to take the ship's excursion, this is a fantastic shore excursion!

[Sandi149]

The ferry ride is approx. 45 mins each way, then it's a 10 min taxi ride from the slip to the Baths. You are going to need at least 2 hours to spend at the Baths so you have to also base your decision if you are going to take the ships tour or on your own on the time that your ship will be in port.

[PaddleAddict]

You are going to get both opinions. We took Carnival's excursion and even though it was more money I felt it was worth it. There was a couple on our sailing who did the Baths on their own and the ferry broke down. Good thing another one came because if it didn't, they would have missed the ship. :eek:

 

It's all up to what you feel comfortable with.

 

Either way you are going to love the Baths. It's a really beautiful place.

 

I have to admit, I was a little nervous that the ferry would break down and we wouldn't make it back to the ship! We took the risk and made it, and I think it's more likely than not that you WILL make it back to the ship with no problems, but if you're nervous, you might want to take the ship's tour.

[Sandi149]

I have to admit, I was a little nervous that the ferry would break down and we wouldn't make it back to the ship! We took the risk and made it, and I think it's more likely than not that you WILL make it back to the ship with no problems, but if you're nervous, you might want to take the ship's tour.

 

That's why I took the ships tour. Our ship was leaving at 2 and we had to be back at 1:30 so I wasn't going to take any chances since we didn't have a whole lot of time in Tortola.

[Sandyrella]

I the baths are on another island, how can NCL offer and excursion there over land? It is the NCL highlights tour that brings you thru Spanish Town to the Baths.

 

I'm confused :confused: Can anyone shed some light?

 

Thanks,

Sandy

[Sandi149]

I the baths are on another island, how can NCL offer and excursion there over land? It is the NCL highlights tour that brings you thru Spanish Town to the Baths.

 

I'm confused :confused: Can anyone shed some light?

 

Thanks,

Sandy

 

You have to take a ferry over from Tortola over to Virgin Gorda.

[Sandyrella]

I get it now. A ferry to Virgin Gorda and then a cruise or bus to the Baths. I don't know why I thought it was on the same island.

 

 

Sandy

[Sandi149]

I get it now. A ferry to Virgin Gorda and then a cruise or bus to the Baths. I don't know why I thought it was on the same island.

 

 

Sandy

 

Once you get to Virgin Gorda there is no more ferry. You just take one of those open air taxis to the Baths. About a 5-10 min ride. There is only one ferry and it's from Tortola to Virgin Gorda.

[Sandyrella]

I understand that this is the procedure when doing the baths on your own but NCL offers an excursion by boat and another one by land which is the one that confuses me....how do they get the passengers to Virgin Gorda to get on the bus for a tour. The other excursion is by boat, which I assume leaves Tortola and brings us directly to the Baths.

[Sandi149]

I understand that this is the procedure when doing the baths on your own but NCL offers an excursion by boat and another one by land which is the one that confuses me....how do they get the passengers to Virgin Gorda to get on the bus for a tour. The other excursion is by boat, which I assume leaves Tortola and brings us directly to the Baths.

 

I'm sorry but I don't know about NCL's excursions. I never sailed with them. I'm sure someone else will come on this thread who has sailed NCL and will answer your question. :)

[Sandyrella]

Not a problem Sandi. You've been a great help in answering my other questions! We are getting very excited about our trip...still 4 months off but the planning part keeps us going! I see that you're answering questions on the St. Thomas board as well...I may talk to you over there too :)

[Sandi149]

Not a problem Sandi. You've been a great help in answering my other questions! We are getting very excited about our trip...still 4 months off but the planning part keeps us going! I see that you're answering questions on the St. Thomas board as well...I may talk to you over there too :)

 

You are going to have such a great time. :D

[zqvol]

I understand that this is the procedure when doing the baths on your own but NCL offers an excursion by boat and another one by land which is the one that confuses me....how do they get the passengers to Virgin Gorda to get on the bus for a tour. The other excursion is by boat, which I assume leaves Tortola and brings us directly to the Baths.

What will happen on this excursion is that in addition to time at the Baths, you will ride around Virgin Gorda on one of the open air buses. The views of the other islands are nice and there is some scenery, but do not expect to get to shop. The bus will then return you to the dock in Spanish Town and you will go back to Tortola. (I'm not sure if you will go to the Baths before the island tour or after but it works the same either way.) (When I did this we went to the Baths, then did the tour but our ship picked us up on tenders near the Bitter End Yacht Club.)

[JerseyGem]

Sandyrella: I think we've really managed to confuse you-sorry! Sometimes we know what we mean, so we leave at critical details (which we think are common knowledge- as if you've been there before!)

 

NCL's land excursion- this is a bus (probably open air tram style) tour of Virgin Gorda (which includes a visit to the Baths area on VG) which should really be called a "ferry and land" excursion. You do need to first take a ferry (in NCL's case- a large boat hired by NCL to ferry your tour from Tortola to a dock on VG- about 40 minutes?). Then your tour will get onto the tram for the land tour of the island. At the end, you'll return to a dock to board a boat to ferry you across to Tortola.

 

Which to take? If you mainly want to swim and snorkel (and spend the most time at the Baths), skip the land tour. If you're not that much into swimming, take the land tour.

[CaribbeanBound]

Tortola, British Virgin Islands

There is no need to prearrange any excursions here. Taxis line up at the pier to take you anywhere you want to go. Several passengers hopped into taxis and got the exact same tour that other passengers paid double for through the ship. Our sights were set on visiting Virgin Gorda. We got off the ship just after 8:00 am and walked 15 minutes to the red-roofed ferry terminal off to the left of the pier. Speedy's and Smith's both offer service to Virgin Gorda. However, only Speedy's could get us back before our 3:00pm departure. So we caught the 9:00 am Speedy's Ferry over and the 12:30 pm ferry back. Cost was $25 per person roundtrip, including roundtrip Speedy's Taxi service from the Virgin Gorda docks to The Baths. (You will not want to attempt to walk to The Baths from the dock). We brought our mask and snorkel with us. Rentals are available at The Baths for $10 plus a $30 deposit. We sat upstairs in the open air seating atop the ferry. Cool winds and great views. 30-35 minute ride each way followed by a 10-minute taxi to The Baths.

 

There is a $3.00 (adults) and $2.00 (children) entrance fee to The Baths which are part of the BVU National Parks Trust. A restaurant appropriately named “Top of the Baths” is nearby and offers incredible views of the surrounding islands. A 5-minute walk (350 yards in length) down to The Baths was rocky and uneven. At the bottom, single-use-only lockers can be rented for $2.50 each, via a token that can be purchased at the shop nearby. They are large enough to hold a beach bag or backpack. Tokens are also required if you wish to take a shower. The Baths are an incredibly fun experience. Here is a detailed map of The Baths at Virgin Gorda. The Baths were really fun to explore. Highly recommend water shoes, a water camera, and a swimsuit. A beautiful beach with crystal clear waters awaits visitors on the other side of the rock maze. While not the greatest snorkeling site for fish, the coral formations were interesting. A beautiful beach with crystal clear waters awaits visitors on the other side of the rock maze. The water was nice and clear. Visibility was easily more than 50 feet! We would have liked to stay another couple of hours, and look forward to another visit. Highly recommended!

 

On our second trip to The Baths, we opted to pay an additional $10 ($35 total) for Speedy's “Sun and Fun” package which also included lunch and rum punch at The Bath & Turtle. After visiting The Baths for four hours, our taxi driver returned for us at 1:30pm, as agreed, to take us into town to eat. The Bath and Turtle Bar and Grill, located in a small strip mall with a dive shop, bank, and a few other shops, has little atmosphere but they make it up with good food and friendly service. Our coupon indicated that we could spend up to $10/pp, but our waitress allowed $12/pp which covers most items on the menu. We enjoyed our rum punch with a lunch platter consisting of a Caribbean Jerk Chicken sandwich, coleslaw and potato salad. We shopped a little after our leisurely lunch, then headed for the pier. The pier is a short 5-minute walk across a parking lot, past a small grocery store, and beyond an old partially-fenced park. Our ferry was already at the dock when we arrived at 3:00pm. We promptly boarded and departed on time at 3:30pm, arriving back in Road Town at 4:05pm. We had no problem getting back to the ship before the 4:45pm cutoff. Highly recommended!

 

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[trish1c]

It seems that both Speedy's & Smith's don't leave Virgin Gorda until 1 p.m. Our ship sails at 1 so I guess that means if we want to do the baths we must take the ship's excursion or we can't get back in time.

Why would the cruise line do that to us?

[Cruisin' In to His Arms]

Thanks for the great insiders info - I think my family and I will give this a try when we are in Tortola in December. Will we need cash for all these transactions??

[cruizinmimi]

CaribbeanBound

 

I have a couple of questions for you. We are coming to Tortola via rcl's Jewel of the Seas. We will be in port from 7am - 3p.m.

 

1. Will we have enough time to ferry over to the Baths. We have to be back on the ship at 2:30pm.

 

2. Would you recommend the Baths for nonswimmers. It looks beautiful and I really want to do this.

 

Thank you for your info

[monkeyfish]

Last week,we took Speedy's ferry to Virgin Gorda for 30.00pp round trip incl taxi to the baths. The baths were beautiful. Make sure you bring your camera. You'll want to take several pics. When you see the sign that says Devils Bay, follow it. Its about a 15min walk through some really cool nooks and crannies. It opens up to a secluded beach with fantastic views and snorkelling. Bring water shoes or sandals with straps. I had flip flops and had to remove them. Try a drink called The Bushwacker at 'The Top of the Baths' restaurant. Have fun!