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Tortola... our new favorite caribbean island!

royandjenn

By royandjenn,
in Tortola

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royandjenn

royandjenn

Posted
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Just wanted to say that we visited Tortola a few weeks ago on our cruise, and fell in love with it! We are planning to spend 2 or 3 weeks there next year. We took the baths tour thru the ship. We learned that it was a waste of time and money to book thru the ship! The walk to speedy's ferry is maybe 5 minutes. The ferry would cost $30pp round trip to virgin gorda (the baths). We could have been there earlier, and stayed later if we didn't book with the ship. We ended up having probably 75 people on our tour (yuck). When we arrived at the top of the baths, we were given 2 choices... one path leaves to the baths, and will be busy, the other path leads to devil's bay, which is not busy. We chose Devil's Bay. It is absolutly amazing! Both paths are about a 15 hike. There are large boulders etc at devils bay, and fantastic snorkelling! Tortola there is a lot of souvinir shopping etc. My hubby tried the pussers rum (local rum)when we got home, and was disappointed he didn't buy a bigger bottle! Anyways, BVI are incredible!

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honeymooners11

honeymooners11

Posted
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Just wanted to say that we visited Tortola a few weeks ago on our cruise, and fell in love with it! We are planning to spend 2 or 3 weeks there next year. We took the baths tour thru the ship. We learned that it was a waste of time and money to book thru the ship! The walk to speedy's ferry is maybe 5 minutes. The ferry would cost $30pp round trip to virgin gorda (the baths). We could have been there earlier, and stayed later if we didn't book with the ship. We ended up having probably 75 people on our tour (yuck). When we arrived at the top of the baths, we were given 2 choices... one path leaves to the baths, and will be busy, the other path leads to devil's bay, which is not busy. We chose Devil's Bay. It is absolutly amazing! Both paths are about a 15 hike. There are large boulders etc at devils bay, and fantastic snorkelling! Tortola there is a lot of souvinir shopping etc. My hubby tried the pussers rum (local rum)when we got home, and was disappointed he didn't buy a bigger bottle! Anyways, BVI are incredible!

 

Hi royandjenn,

What ship were you travelling on and can you tell me alittle more about the time..such as what time did you arrive in Tortola, how did you get to Virgin Gorda?...how much time were you at the Baths? etc.

We will be in Tortola in April on the NCL Dawn. We are there from 8:00am - 4:00pm. We usually do independent tours, but were worried about the time here. We would probably catch the 9:00 ferry in the am but we are thinking that we would have to catch the 12:30pm ferry back. The next ferry after that isn't until 2:15pm....that is cutting it a little too close for me, especially if we miss that ferry :-l

We are also travling with a 2 year old so that makes us consider the boat excursion even more!

Thanks for your input,

KT

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royandjenn

royandjenn

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Hello. We were on the MSC Lirica. Our ship was there from 7 to 3. Our tour didn't start until 9:30am. We took Speedy's ferry service to Virgin Gorda. There are cabs etc when u get there. The ride to the top of the baths is maybe 7 minutes. There is quite the hike going down to the baths, the hike up is even more crazy! It was a fifteen minute hike down to the baths, and they gave us 1 and a half hours there. We then went back to the dock and waited until 12:30 to go back to tortola. We went shopping after, and then made our way back to the ship. You will have a few hours extra if you go on your own. If you check the times for ferries etc., remember that that is local time! I believe they are one hour ahead of ship time. You 2 year old will love to play in the water, its so warm! There were a lot of cacti down the trail, so if he is walking, be careful!

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  • 2 weeks later...
PamIam

PamIam

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Thanks for the advice. We're also sailing on NCL in April and will be visiting the Baths. You're post helped us to make a decision to do it on our own.

The trip through NCL is 4 hours and we would prefer to spend more time at the Baths, not to mention avoiding the the large group.

 

At this point we're trying to decide which ferry to to Smith's or Speedy's.

 

Thanks Again!

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Caribbean Sunsets

Caribbean Sunsets

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Cadcow - thanks for the info. The tour you took is less expensive than NCL's. Did you stop at different places along the way and get out to walk around?

 

They took us to the highest point on the island which also had a restaurant with an observation deck. We purchased a drink and enjoyed the tremendous views. Great photo op!

 

There was a quick road side stop or two for photos and then we went to the beach. The beach also has a bar with light snacks, $5 to rent a chair, and restrooms.

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Caribbean Sunsets

Caribbean Sunsets

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Cadcow - sorry for so many questions! Was the beach Cane Bay and how long did you spend there? After this cruise, I may be able to help other new cruisers !!

 

Hey, there are never too many questions...this is what CC is for!:)

 

Yes, it was Cane Garden Bay Beach. I think we had about an hour and half to two hours there.

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  • 5 weeks later...

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