Tendering in Saint Thomas

[RnD]

We are on the January 3 Caribbean sailing of the QM. I spoke to Cunard and they conformed that we tender in Saint Thomas. I am concerned that 3000 passengers will take hours to get on and off the ship. Does anyone have experience with this? Also, does the tender drop you in the center of the shopping(my wife's big concern!)? If it does the wait might offset the taxi you would need if we docked.

[*Mach*]

We are on the January 3 Caribbean sailing of the QM. I spoke to Cunard and they conformed that we tender in Saint Thomas. I am concerned that 3000 passengers will take hours to get on and off the ship. Does anyone have experience with this? Also, does the tender drop you in the center of the shopping(my wife's big concern!)? If it does the wait might offset the taxi you would need if we docked.

 

I found this thread in the St Thomas forum:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=400763&highlight=tendering+thomas

 

According to the posts you will tender into downtown.

 

Hope this helps.

[Winchester]

Yes, you go right downtown. Stores or taxis are right there for you. And the ride is nice. If they let you sit on top, you can get a good shot of the ship. You go to a pre-designated lounge and get a tender ticket when you are ready yo go ashore. Tours are sent off from a separate place.

 

TAKE ME WITH YOU !!!

[RnD]

The tendering doesn't sound too bad. Now if we don't wear ourselves out walking the length of the ship we will be Ok.

 

I saw those sneakers with the built in roller skate wheels the kids wear. I am considering getting a black pair to wear on formal nights so I can get around easier.

[travel-to-go]

Recently, the ship has not been tendering, but has docked at the new Crown Point docks. Some posters have said it depends on who is docking there that day as to whether you will dock or tender. (First come, first served?)

Bear in mind that every Caribbean trip generally includes St Thomas (due to an obscure part of the Jones Act, or rather of the act pertaining to Passenger Ships which is related to it- I forget, but we have had the discussions here before) Anyway, that being the case, many people choose not to get off the ship at St Thomas. Many others go at their own pace and do not leave first thing as soon as the ship docks, preferring a leisurely breakfast. When the ship must tender, they lower several of the tender boats (lifeboats) Off the top of my head, I don't remember the capacity- for some reason 96 springs into my head, but I am sure that is as a lifeboat, it is less for tendering. But say it is 50, just for the sake of argument.

There are generally two tender platforms lowered. If 100 people can be put on two tenders that take, say, ten minutes to load, then the next tender sweeps in to pick up its load, five minutes fiddling around time, then put in the next batch and take off- So that is 400 people in an hour, no? You're there for 8 hours, usually. I think it is safe to say that while there may be a bit of waiting if you want to get off first thing, and are competing with the ship sponsored shore excursions, it is not really that much of an issue. Certainly, I have NEVER had much of a wait tendering in St Thomas, from ANY ship, and I have done quite a few.

 

I really don't know why people hate tendering so much. I LOVE it! I enjoy being on the water (one reason I take a CRUISE, duh!) One can get FABULOUS shots of the ship from the tender. To me, the tender is part of the fun, not a necessary evil! Of course, if your only interest in the port is to shop til you drop or to get the maximum beach time in or something like that, then the tender portion is, indeed, a necessary evil. But otherwise, sit back, enjoy the ride, experience the beautiful scenery. There are plenty of smaller islands in Charlotte Amalie's harbor, along with some old hulks lying up on the edge of those small islands that were beached during previous hurricanes and abandoned. Grab a book about St Thomas and learn about those islands and some of those wrecks. It'll pass the time!

 

And IF you must tender, the tender drops you off down town,. (Approximately opposite Captain's Corner, which I highly recommend for a quick shopping stop, fair, decent prices, and good selection- I HATE to shop. I don't mind it there- and the AH Riise shopping mall- they have good booze prices, and will deliver to the ship, their jewelry prices seem as good as anyone's cigs, cigars, perfume, etc-)

Easy access to shopping. Also it is very near the ferry over to St John, a marvelous way to spend the day on your own, IMHO. Head for St John grab a jitney, sit back , relax, and let the driver show your the beautiful sites, lookout points to see Salt and Peter Islands and Tortola, (Yes, you are that close) and other British Virgins. See the plantation ruins, learn about the gorgeous flora of the island, maybe stop and get off at one of the many beaches for some swimming or snorkeling in some of the clearest, most turquoise waters you will ever experience.

 

Life is what you make of it.

 

Karie,

30 DEGREES AND CLOUDY in Connecticut

[Namvet4]

Life is what you make of it.

 

Karie,

30 DEGREES AND CLOUDY in Connecticut

What Karie said!:D

I love the tender rides!

 

 

Cold and Cloudy at the Jersey Shore . . . 32 degrees!

:rolleyes:

[TxGal]

QM2 now docks at the new Crown Bay pier in St. Thomas so no more tendering. She is in St. Thomas today and you can see from her bridge cam that she is definitely docked. Taxi is $4 and only took a few minutes to get to the Charlotte Amalie shopping area. This should make your wife very happy:)

[godfreyb]

On our documents for the 12/20 Caribbean departure it states quite clearly that we will be tendering in St. Thomas and that is exactly what I anticipate will happen.

[travel-to-go]

On our documents for the 12/20 Caribbean departure it states quite clearly that we will be tendering in St. Thomas and that is exactly what I anticipate will happen.

 

Don't anticipate too hard.

The documents and shoreside have been notoriously wrong.

I have documents which say two different things in two different places!

 

It's an adventure!

Karie

[The Real PM]

It's snowing quite moderately in Connecticut. Karie, to what part of the ship do they deliver the alcoholic beverages? They don't allow room delivery do they?

[champagne lover]

The last time we were in St Thomas we docked at a place about 1 mile to the north of Charlotte Amalie - is that Crown Point? If it is, it has great shopping at the terminal.

[travel-to-go]

It's snowing quite moderately in Connecticut. Karie, to what part of the ship do they deliver the alcoholic beverages? They don't allow room delivery do they?

 

 

Delivery is to the ship's hold. If you want to use it in your cabin, carry it on board.

Karie

[TxGal]

Don't anticipate too hard.

The documents and shoreside have been notoriously wrong.

I have documents which say two different things in two different places!

 

It's an adventure!

Karie

 

I agree with Karie. She and I were on the October 31st sailing and our documents said tender in St. Thomas, website said tender, everywhere it said tender. As we were leaving St. Lucia, Commodore Warner announced that we would dock at Crown Bay when we arrived in St. Thomas the following day. The sailing after ours (November 10th) docked, and the current sailing (November 20th) is/was in St. Thomas today, docked.

[TxGal]

The last time we were in St Thomas we docked at a place about 1 mile to the north of Charlotte Amalie - is that Crown Point? If it is, it has great shopping at the terminal.

 

Yes, that's it!! I think it's called Crown Bay, though, not Crown Point, but I could be wrong. And the shopping was very, very nice!:D

[TxGal]

I agree with Karie. She and I were on the October 31st sailing and our documents said tender in St. Thomas, website said tender, everywhere it said tender. As we were leaving St. Lucia, Commodore Warner announced that we would dock at Crown Bay when we arrived in St. Thomas the following day. The sailing after ours (November 10th) docked, and the current sailing (November 20th) is/was in St. Thomas today, docked.

 

I need a new calendar---current sailing is November 30th and they were docked in St. Thomas today, as was the prior sailing on November 20th.

[southwestie]

QM2 now docks at the new Crown Bay pier in St. Thomas so no more tendering. She is in St. Thomas today and you can see from her bridge cam that she is definitely docked. Taxi is $4 and only took a few minutes to get to the Charlotte Amalie shopping area. This should make your wife very happy:)

 

this is right, if you book a private tour with anyone like godfrey, they send a taxi free of charge, if not just walk off the ship and go right up to one, the town centre was great, took a few minuites to take in, a market and steel band, people, stalls goods.

 

tendering is great, everyone gets off so easy, no problems, just go with cunard tour at the time or if on your own go early, we had no problems at all. tendering is like a free trip lol.

[emileg]

Our documents for the January 3rd cruise on the QM2 also say tendering in St. Thomas. However, other posters are correct in that there can be last minute changes in any port, including docking to tendering.

 

If in fact we do tender, and this holds true in all tender ports: if you don't rush to be the first ones off the ship, you won't find much of a line for the tenders. Obviously, if your tour meets on the ship, you go with them. The QM2 uses several of its lifeboats as tenders and the line moves along quite quickly once the ship has been cleared.

 

Stores don't open in St. Thomas until around 9:00 a.m. I agree with a previous poster that the A.H. Riise Mall is a great place to shop, including for Lladro. Another fine, but often overlooked, store in Charlotte Amalie is Magnum Jewelers at 13 Main Street. Never be afraid to bargain. Jonna White Galleries has very unique works of art using handmade paper.

[imacruizer]

We were on the November 10th cruise. Our documents said we would tender in St. Thomas. BUT we docked at Crown Bay. Unfortunately, the documents and Cunard are often incorrect. Unless there are a lot of ships scheduled to dock in Crown Bay that day, I believe you will dock.

 

This cruise is wonderful and enjoy every minute.

 

Beth