Just back from St. Barts

When you come back from your cruise, could you stop by and let us know how it worked out ... I'm always interested in ideas for the future - thanks, Jan

I will do but not cruising until early January 2016 - will be on Anthem of the Seas. Very excited about this little day trip now that I know it's possible.

I will do but not cruising until early January 2016 - will be on Anthem of the Seas. Very excited about this little day trip now that I know it's possible.

I hope that you don't mind interesting flights. Landing on St. Barths is hair raising to say the least. You come over a hill and drop straight down to a runway that ends in the ocean.

I'm hoping to read a report on the RCL excursion, "St Barths on your own"

I believe you might have done a different excursion - the one we are doing through Royal Caribbean is "St. Barth's on your own" .. It incudes a boat trip to St. Bart's from St. Martins, and then whatever we decide to do for approximately 4 hours. We don't plan on renting a car .. we will just walk around. Jan

Hi Jan,

Hope you had a wonderful cruise. We're all waiting with great anticipation on how you liked RCCL's excursion to St. Barth's. Do tell! :D

from the folks who went on a RC from St. Maarten?

thanks

Joe

I don't know how much help this will be, but here goes :)

We all met right by the ship at 8:45 in the morning. Everyone had to have a passport (they checked) ... A visa to enter St. Bart's is required for some countries. We had someone turned away as they had a passport, but not a visa.

It was slightly windy that day and the organizer had to check to make sure that the ferry would be running. We all had to walk to get the ferry ... It was quite a ways ... I made DH trail behind with a man who had hip surgery recently.

The crossing was a little rough, but wasn't too bad. It took about 30-45 minutes (I believe) When we got to St. Bart's our passports were actually stamped!

We had no plans for the day. It was suggested that we have a taxi give us a tour of the island (there were lots of taxi's by the ferry). A taxi tour would have been $100 --- don't know for how long though.

From the ferry to the left was a sidewalk that stopped after a few blocks ... I'm not sure where one walks to go to a beach.

We spent the time walking around the town ... there were a lot of small shops that were fun to look at ... some of the pricing was more than I would have spent. There was also a souvenir shop with the usual "stuff" - tee shirts, shot glasses, etc. We could use US $, but all the money back was in euro's.

We stopped toward the end of the street and had some lunch and beer - It wasn't fancy, but we sat outside and people watched. We were told it is the location where the song "cheeseburger in paradise" was written. (The cheeseburgers were very good) It was also close to an small courtyard ladies room.

We walked the other side of the street back toward the ferry .... stopped and got a few souvenirs (right before all the stores closed at 12:30). We then stopped at another restaurant and had drinks and again people watched until it was time to get the ferry. The ferry back was for the tour group only.

I'm glad I went it was a relaxing day, there wasn't a lot of time, I don't think (for us) it would have been worth going to a beach ... I'm one of those people that wants to stay at a beach for hours and hours.

If there are questions, perhaps I might be able to answer, but it was a very quiet tour. Jan

I don't know how much help this will be, but here goes :)

 

We stopped toward the end of the street and had some lunch and beer - It wasn't fancy, but we sat outside and people watched. We were told it is the location where the song "cheeseburger in paradise" was written. (The cheeseburgers were very good) It was also close to an small courtyard ladies room.

Jan

Le Select????

Glad to hear it is still there.

I don't know how much help this will be, but here goes :)

 

We all met right by the ship at 8:45 in the morning. Everyone had to have a passport (they checked) ... A visa to enter St. Bart's is required for some countries. We had someone turned away as they had a passport, but not a visa.

 

It was slightly windy that day and the organizer had to check to make sure that the ferry would be running. We all had to walk to get the ferry ... It was quite a ways ... I made DH trail behind with a man who had hip surgery recently.

 

The crossing was a little rough, but wasn't too bad. It took about 30-45 minutes (I believe) When we got to St. Bart's our passports were actually stamped!

 

We had no plans for the day. It was suggested that we have a taxi give us a tour of the island (there were lots of taxi's by the ferry). A taxi tour would have been $100 --- don't know for how long though.

 

From the ferry to the left was a sidewalk that stopped after a few blocks ... I'm not sure where one walks to go to a beach.

 

We spent the time walking around the town ... there were a lot of small shops that were fun to look at ... some of the pricing was more than I would have spent. There was also a souvenir shop with the usual "stuff" - tee shirts, shot glasses, etc. We could use US $, but all the money back was in euro's.

 

We stopped toward the end of the street and had some lunch and beer - It wasn't fancy, but we sat outside and people watched. We were told it is the location where the song "cheeseburger in paradise" was written. (The cheeseburgers were very good) It was also close to an small courtyard ladies room.

 

We walked the other side of the street back toward the ferry .... stopped and got a few souvenirs (right before all the stores closed at 12:30). We then stopped at another restaurant and had drinks and again people watched until it was time to get the ferry. The ferry back was for the tour group only.

 

I'm glad I went it was a relaxing day, there wasn't a lot of time, I don't think (for us) it would have been worth going to a beach ... I'm one of those people that wants to stay at a beach for hours and hours.

 

If there are questions, perhaps I might be able to answer, but it was a very quiet tour. Jan

Jan....Thanks so much for the great info!

I don't know how much help this will be, but here goes :)

 

We all met right by the ship at 8:45 in the morning. Everyone had to have a passport (they checked) ... A visa to enter St. Bart's is required for some countries. We had someone turned away as they had a passport, but not a visa.

 

It was slightly windy that day and the organizer had to check to make sure that the ferry would be running. We all had to walk to get the ferry ... It was quite a ways ... I made DH trail behind with a man who had hip surgery recently.

 

The crossing was a little rough, but wasn't too bad. It took about 30-45 minutes (I believe) When we got to St. Bart's our passports were actually stamped!

 

We had no plans for the day. It was suggested that we have a taxi give us a tour of the island (there were lots of taxi's by the ferry). A taxi tour would have been $100 --- don't know for how long though.

 

From the ferry to the left was a sidewalk that stopped after a few blocks ... I'm not sure where one walks to go to a beach.

 

We spent the time walking around the town ... there were a lot of small shops that were fun to look at ... some of the pricing was more than I would have spent. There was also a souvenir shop with the usual "stuff" - tee shirts, shot glasses, etc. We could use US $, but all the money back was in euro's.

 

We stopped toward the end of the street and had some lunch and beer - It wasn't fancy, but we sat outside and people watched. We were told it is the location where the song "cheeseburger in paradise" was written. (The cheeseburgers were very good) It was also close to an small courtyard ladies room.

 

We walked the other side of the street back toward the ferry .... stopped and got a few souvenirs (right before all the stores closed at 12:30). We then stopped at another restaurant and had drinks and again people watched until it was time to get the ferry. The ferry back was for the tour group only.

 

I'm glad I went it was a relaxing day, there wasn't a lot of time, I don't think (for us) it would have been worth going to a beach ... I'm one of those people that wants to stay at a beach for hours and hours.

 

If there are questions, perhaps I might be able to answer, but it was a very quiet tour. Jan

Thanks for the update Jan. Sounds like a nice place but with limited time on the excursion and I was hoping the ride over would be a little smoother. I guess it all depends on the weather. We head to St. Maarten in October and I think we'll just go to Palm Beach in St. Martin so we can spend more time at the beach.

I don't know how much help this will be, but here goes :)

 

 

 

We all met right by the ship at 8:45 in the morning. Everyone had to have a passport (they checked) ... A visa to enter St. Bart's is required for some countries. We had someone turned away as they had a passport, but not a visa.

 

 

 

It was slightly windy that day and the organizer had to check to make sure that the ferry would be running. We all had to walk to get the ferry ... It was quite a ways ... I made DH trail behind with a man who had hip surgery recently.

 

 

 

The crossing was a little rough, but wasn't too bad. It took about 30-45 minutes (I believe) When we got to St. Bart's our passports were actually stamped!

 

 

 

We had no plans for the day. It was suggested that we have a taxi give us a tour of the island (there were lots of taxi's by the ferry). A taxi tour would have been $100 --- don't know for how long though.

 

 

 

From the ferry to the left was a sidewalk that stopped after a few blocks ... I'm not sure where one walks to go to a beach.

 

 

 

We spent the time walking around the town ... there were a lot of small shops that were fun to look at ... some of the pricing was more than I would have spent. There was also a souvenir shop with the usual "stuff" - tee shirts, shot glasses, etc. We could use US $, but all the money back was in euro's.

 

 

 

We stopped toward the end of the street and had some lunch and beer - It wasn't fancy, but we sat outside and people watched. We were told it is the location where the song "cheeseburger in paradise" was written. (The cheeseburgers were very good) It was also close to an small courtyard ladies room.

 

 

 

We walked the other side of the street back toward the ferry .... stopped and got a few souvenirs (right before all the stores closed at 12:30). We then stopped at another restaurant and had drinks and again people watched until it was time to get the ferry. The ferry back was for the tour group only.

 

 

 

I'm glad I went it was a relaxing day, there wasn't a lot of time, I don't think (for us) it would have been worth going to a beach ... I'm one of those people that wants to stay at a beach for hours and hours.

 

 

 

If there are questions, perhaps I might be able to answer, but it was a very quiet tour. Jan

Thanks Jan. What time was the ferry back? Did you feel like you didn't have enough time? My ideal would be to catch ferry over in the morning and try and swing staying longer to catch the 2nd tour ferry back - did anyone try to do this with your group? I'm in 2 minds about flying over so I can spend longer on the island.

...

From the ferry to the left was a sidewalk that stopped after a few blocks ... I'm not sure where one walks to go to a beach.

....

We stopped toward the end of the street and had some lunch and beer - It wasn't fancy, but we sat outside and people watched. We were told it is the location where the song "cheeseburger in paradise" was written. (The cheeseburgers were very good) It was also close to an small courtyard ladies room.

...

Jan

You would have needed to keep walking along the harbor past the restaurant to get to Shell beach. About half mile further. Get to the end of the harbor, make a right, get to the other end and make a left towards the school / hills.

It is not the best beach, but it is nice and accessible on foot from the ferry dock, perhaps 3/4 of a mile away altogether. St Jean (glamour) and Salines / Gouverneur (unspoiled, nude beaches) are more interesting.

Gustavia, St. Barts / St. Barts / St. Barthelemy

 

10:00am - 7:00pm. All ports except St. Barts had piers. We anchored in Gustavia Bay and took tenders to Port de Pleasance in Gustavia (which is located directly across from Sunset Hotel on Rue De La Republique on the left side of the harbor. The tender procedure was slow, primarily due to regulations in St. Barts limiting the tender speeds to 3 MPH in the harbor. We were on a 10am tender and got to shore about 10:30am.

 

Upon arrival we set out on a 35 minute walk across the island to visit the airport and Saint Jean Beach (Baie de St. Jean). To get there, walk to your right (facing the island) until you get to the first cross street (Rue De La Suede) and turn left. Turn left again on the next street (Rue August Nyman). Keep right at each fork. The second intersection is a roundabout with an awesome bronze Indian statue of “Savaku” the Arawak spirit. Turn right here as well. This area is the highpoint of your walk and offers breathtaking views of the airport and west side of Saint Jean Beach. Commuter aircraft (puddle jumpers) begin their landing just 50 feet above your head and must land on a very short looking runway that ends in the ocean. It's lots of fun to watch planes land. They also come in off the ocean but those flights are more fun to watch from St. Jean Beach.

 

Continue down the road parallelling the airport. Just across from the airport terminal (which has free, clean, modern restrooms on the northern end of the terminal) are a couple of strip malls. The second strip mall has a grocery store where we purchased litres of cold water for 1.35 Euros (about $1.50 US) and a 16-inch sandwich made on an awesome local baguette for 4.75 Euros (about $5.50 US). These prices are 25% to 50% of what you would pay in town. You'll find the sandwiches near the small deli counter in the rear of the store. The sandwiches are very popular and may sell out at lunchtime. The store will take US currency and give you change in Euros.

 

At the end of the airstrip (about a block past the shops) is an entrance alley to St. Jean Beach. St. Jean Beach is actually 2 beaches separated by Eden Rock, upon which sits a hotel with restaurant and attached "Sand Bar". St Jean is a very pretty beach, with several shops, bars and restaurants, where you can watch planes flying over surfers while landing or taking off at an airport whose runway spills out into the ocean. Don't bother renting chairs and umbrellas here as these command $50 to $100 for a set!

 

Head back to the ship the same way you came, making a left at the Indian Statue and keeping left at the next intersection. (You'll still get to the port if you make a right at the second intersection --- it'll jut take you a little longer. This same intersection (which has a dialysis/medical center on the corner) is the entrance to the lighthouse and the smaller of two forts guarding the harbor. A very short uphill walk to the fort/lighthouse will reward you with picture-worthy views of the ship, harbor and surrounding area.

 

Continue down the road, make a right at Rue De La Suede, and you'll find yourself back in Gustavia. From here we meandered through the shops and worked our way to Shell Beach (aka Anse de Grand Galet), the closest beach to the ship and a very easy 10 minute walk --- longer if you linger in the stores. Shell Beach is so named because the beach is covered in small and medium-sized shells. It's a good idea to wear water shoes. The further from the entrance you get, the less crowded you'll find the beach and the more large rocks you'll find where you can leave your towels and "claim your territory". Other than the bar and grill, there is very little shade here.

 

Notes: 1. The walk to the airport is along a fairly narrow road and can be uneven at times. There are sidewalks from the airport to Saint Jean Beach. Although we never felt in danger you should definitely stay alert to traffic and road conditions. 2. Taxi service from the port to Saint Jean Beach runs $30 to $50 each way. 3. Some passengers rented a car and enjoyed a beautiful day exploring the island and her 14 beaches. 4. Most of the shops, bars and restaurants in town are outrageously expensive and close from 1pm to 3pm. 5. While we enjoyed our visit to this beautiful island, I heard from Celebrity personnel that they may not return due to the logistics and passenger complaints about tendering and absurdly high prices for almost everything from beer to t-shirts.

 

For pictures of all of the ports please see:

http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/constellation2.html

Thank you for the thorough directions! We followed them to get to and from St. Jean's Beach, including a stop at the super market.

:):):)

I was just wondering how long a walk it is to get to this beach. I see the directions that are given to get there, but not sure how long a walk it is. We love to walk!!

I was just wondering how long a walk it is to get to this beach. I see the directions that are given to get there, but not sure how long a walk it is. We love to walk!!

Hi, it takes about 35 minutes. Nice views along the way. There is another beach (Shell Beach) that is much closer to the ferry dock, but we did not go to that one.

Le Select???? Glad to hear it is still there.

mets07: Hi' date=' it takes about 35 minutes. Nice views along the way. There is another beach ([b']Shell Beach[/b]) that is much closer to the ferry dock, but we did not go to that one.

Yes, Le Select is still there and seemingly doing good business. Active and lively. Below is some of my photo "evidence" as proof!!

Agree that St. Barts' Shell Beach is both handy and worth checking out. We saw it both at night and then during the day, giving us a double opportunity to sample its style and beauty. It was fun to experience the perfect conditions of nice sun, refreshing breezes, soft waves, etc. Great, wonderful location and setting. Do my pictures below prove and verify these claims/statements?

For many more pictures, details, tips and ideas, check out "St. Barts: Our Experience, Pix's!!" at:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2253803

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

From our Jan. 25-Feb. 20, 2015, Amazon River-Caribbean combo sailing over 26 days that started in Barbados, here is the link below to that live/blog. Lots of great visuals from this amazing Brazil river and these various Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, etc.) that we experienced. Check it out at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157696

Now at 32,937 views for these postings.

Here is my picture/memory/proof in February 2015 from standing on the outdoor patio at this location celebrated as the place where Jimmy Buffet came up with his famed "Cheeseburger in Paradise" ballad. Cool signage?:

Here are a few of my samples from our visit to Shell Beach. Its location is so close and handy from the main port area of St. Barts. Yes, they have real shells there on this beach!! Plus, a scenic option/location to have lunch, dinner and/or drinks there overlooking this beach, the beautiful waters, etc.:

Hi!

We stopped at St. Barts on a Windstar cruise last month. I'd screen-shot the directions from the OP and we used them to navigate. Here was our experience:

Our tender ride took about 6 minutes, at the most. We did it twice, actually, once on a Zodiac raft and once on a traditional tender. We definitely raised a wake, further out, but closer in to the port we went very slowly. Still - nowhere near 30 minutes.

We landed at the dock at about 8 am and set out on foot to St. Jean beach using the directions from the OP. I concur that the walk takes about 35 minutes. But fair warning for the next users who try this - about 27 minutes of the walk are UP HILL! I wasn't expecting that.

The walk is lovely and affords you beautiful views of Gustavia. There is a statue of Christ just above the harbor. This is a good place to pause, rest, and take some pictures of the harbor. The bronze statue mentioned by the OP is a bit further on.

After climbing for what feels like a long time, the route descends parallel to the airport runway. Have your camera ready! The landing descent for planes is crazy and after witnessing it, the reason I would never go there via plane! The tails of the planes seem to miss the hill by a matter of feet, and they have to slam on their breaks - or drive into the surf.

We stopped at the grocery store and got drinks. Gave US $ and received change in Euros, as expected. We also used the public restrooms at the airport. Very nice.

So - here is what happened to me, just for humor:

After walking in the bright sun and tropical heat, first uphill then along side an airport runway, for about 40 minutes, I was sweaty, dusty and disgruntled. I was wearing my bikini, a cover-up and flip-flops (not really good walking shoes, I know.) I was carrying a beach bag containing towels, water, beach shoes, sunscreen, and I believe, at least one anvil. It seemed to magically grow heavier with each step.

We reached the beach at around 9:15 am. I was hot, sweaty, dusty and grumpy. All I wanted in the world, at that point, was to run down, drop my stuff and dive into the water. We walked down the stairs just past the Eden Rock complex - - - and literally right into the middle of the Victoria's Secret Angels doing a bikini photo shoot. Behati and Candice were about 6 feet from me.

That's right. My 45 year-old, sweaty, dusty bod was on display on the same beach as a bunch of world famous bikini models! They moved around the beach, followed by the whole entourage and a bunch of paparazzi. It was pretty cool to watch, actually. Once I recovered from the mortification.

The beach and Eden Rock were beautiful. The restaurant wasn't open yet for the day, but we climbed the stairs up and took some pictures from there.

We walked back into town after a few hours. Much easier the opposite way as its mainly downhill. We walked through town, and stopped at Le Select for burgers and beers. (Heck w/ you skinny bikini models!) Le Select also has bathrooms, and lunch was very reasonable. We then walked the other way, to Shell Beach. We found our way there by following signs. It took about 15 minutes. Its a nice beach, but the posters who recommend water shoes aren't lying. I was glad that we had some.

We then worked our way back to the ship, stopping at several stores in town. There are some high-end shops in Gustavia, but none that one wouldn't see in Las Vegas, or LA. We did buy several items from a shop called "La Ligne St. Barths," which sells locally made bath products. We spent about $125 there, and the clerk gave us a few sample-sized bottles (which retailed for 7 Euros each) as gifts.

We wound up cleaning up on the boat, then coming back out into town to wander the portside area and have a cocktail before dinner. I feel that we saw a lot of Gustavia in our wandering, and its a really pretty little port town. None of the locals we encountered were at all rude or unwelcoming. I would definitely go back. Just not by plane.

Hi!

We stopped at St. Barts on a Windstar cruise last month. I'd screen-shot the directions from the OP and we used them to navigate. Here was our experience:

Our tender ride took about 6 minutes, at the most. We did it twice, actually, once on a Zodiac raft and once on a traditional tender. We definitely raised a wake, further out, but closer in to the port we went very slowly. Still - nowhere near 30 minutes.

We landed at the dock at about 8 am and set out on foot to St. Jean beach using the directions from the OP. I concur that the walk takes about 35 minutes. But fair warning for the next users who try this - about 27 minutes of the walk are UP HILL! I wasn't expecting that.

The walk is lovely and affords you beautiful views of Gustavia. There is a statue of Christ just above the harbor. This is a good place to pause, rest, and take some pictures of the harbor. The bronze statue mentioned by the OP is a bit further on.

After climbing for what feels like a long time, the route descends parallel to the airport runway. Have your camera ready! The landing descent for planes is crazy and after witnessing it, the reason I would never go there via plane! The tails of the planes seem to miss the hill by a matter of feet, and they have to slam on their breaks - or drive into the surf.

We stopped at the grocery store and got drinks. Gave US $ and received change in Euros, as expected. We also used the public restrooms at the airport. Very nice.

So - here is what happened to me, just for humor:

After walking in the bright sun and tropical heat, first uphill then along side an airport runway, for about 40 minutes, I was sweaty, dusty and disgruntled. I was wearing my bikini, a cover-up and flip-flops (not really good walking shoes, I know.) I was carrying a beach bag containing towels, water, beach shoes, sunscreen, and I believe, at least one anvil. It seemed to magically grow heavier with each step.

We reached the beach at around 9:15 am. I was hot, sweaty, dusty and grumpy. All I wanted in the world, at that point, was to run down, drop my stuff and dive into the water. We walked down the stairs just past the Eden Rock complex - - - and literally right into the middle of the Victoria's Secret Angels doing a bikini photo shoot. Behati and Candice were about 6 feet from me.

That's right. My 45 year-old, sweaty, dusty bod was on display on the same beach as a bunch of world famous bikini models! They moved around the beach, followed by the whole entourage and a bunch of paparazzi. It was pretty cool to watch, actually. Once I recovered from the mortification.

The beach and Eden Rock were beautiful. The restaurant wasn't open yet for the day, but we climbed the stairs up and took some pictures from there.

We walked back into town after a few hours. Much easier the opposite way as its mainly downhill. We walked through town, and stopped at Le Select for burgers and beers. (Heck w/ you skinny bikini models!) Le Select also has bathrooms, and lunch was very reasonable. We then walked the other way, to Shell Beach. We found our way there by following signs. It took about 15 minutes. Its a nice beach, but the posters who recommend water shoes aren't lying. I was glad that we had some.

We then worked our way back to the ship, stopping at several stores in town. There are some high-end shops in Gustavia, but none that one wouldn't see in Las Vegas, or LA. We did buy several items from a shop called "La Ligne St. Barths," which sells locally made bath products. We spent about $125 there, and the clerk gave us a few sample-sized bottles (which retailed for 7 Euros each) as gifts.

We wound up cleaning up on the boat, then coming back out into town to wander the portside area and have a cocktail before dinner. I feel that we saw a lot of Gustavia in our wandering, and its a really pretty little port town. None of the locals we encountered were at all rude or unwelcoming. I would definitely go back. Just not by plane.

Borrillje, thanks so much for this detailed report on the walk to St. Jean beach and Eden Rock. What a unique experience to stumble on the Victoria's Secret shoot. At any time during the walk were you frightened by the traffic being so close with no sidewalks for part of the walk? Would you do this walk if you were a female on your own? I am going to be back there in March and would love to get some good photos, but the walk would be too physically demanding for my DH, so I would go it alone.

Last year I did the walk to Shell Beach on my own, but I imagine there is a huge difference in the amount of traffic encountered.

Thanks for any help that you can give.

Borrillje, thanks so much for this detailed report on the walk to St. Jean beach and Eden Rock. What a unique experience to stumble on the Victoria's Secret shoot. At any time during the walk were you frightened by the traffic being so close with no sidewalks for part of the walk? Would you do this walk if you were a female on your own? I am going to be back there in March and would love to get some good photos, but the walk would be too physically demanding for my DH, so I would go it alone.

 

Last year I did the walk to Shell Beach on my own, but I imagine there is a huge difference in the amount of traffic encountered.

 

Thanks for any help that you can give.

Hi Dennich - You and I are on the same exact page with the questions for Borrillje, who made me laugh with her description of her trek to St Jean Beach. My husband also would not be making this walk, but I am considering an attempt - also in March! Will you be on a cruise and, if so, what ship? We are on the Azamara Journey and will be visiting St Barts on Tuesday, March 22. Hope that Borrillje is still looking at these forums and comes back with an answer.

Therese from Maine

This was my favorite island on our Windstar cruise. We rented our own jeep from Turbe for about $100 total including gas. They picked us up at the port in Gustavia and then took us to the airport to register the car. Super nice people and then we went to the supermarche near the airport and bought supplies for our picnic lunch. Cheese, fruit etc. cost 31 Euros for supplies that lasted for two days. We then drove to Colombier but took the wrong path to the beach. We took the high, steep path (ouch) but it helped me work off all the calories I was eating on the cruise. I suggest trying to park near Flamands beach and take the lower path instead of what we did. Anyway you reach the lovely beach tucked in a cove out at the tip of the island after a 20 to 30 minute walk. Another good snorkeling spot. Wear walking shoes and bring water and food. We ate our picnic lunch on the beach. Next we drove through Saint Jean and did a little shopping, drove around the island to my now favorite beach: Anse du Grand Saline. Parked and walked 5 minutes over the sand dunes to a wide, undeveloped, beach with turquoise water. Loved spending the afternoon there. We did stop by Gouverneur Beach for a little while which is also beautiful. Ended the day walking at the marina and seeing the mega yachts.

Hi Dennich - You and I are on the same exact page with the questions for Borrillje, who made me laugh with her description of her trek to St Jean Beach. My husband also would not be making this walk, but I am considering an attempt - also in March! Will you be on a cruise and, if so, what ship? We are on the Azamara Journey and will be visiting St Barts on Tuesday, March 22. Hope that Borrillje is still looking at these forums and comes back with an answer.

Therese from Maine

Hi Therese,

I will be in St. Barts on March 6, so unfortunately we will miss each other by a couple of weeks. Too bad as it would have been nice to have a walking companion. :) I was in St. Barts in November 2014 and walked to Shell Beach on my own and to the overlook of Shell Beach. Some great views from up there. My DH walked part of the way and then cooled off and refreshed at a bar with a couple of glasses of wine. It was nice to explore the shops of Gustavia too.

I do not meant to high jack this thread, but what do you think of Azamara? I am considering one of their cruises in November. They seem to do some different things that look kind of fun.

Denise

Hi Therese,

 

I will be in St. Barts on March 6, so unfortunately we will miss each other by a couple of weeks. Too bad as it would have been nice to have a walking companion. :) I was in St. Barts in November 2014 and walked to Shell Beach on my own and to the overlook of Shell Beach. Some great views from up there. My DH walked part of the way and then cooled off and refreshed at a bar with a couple of glasses of wine. It was nice to explore the shops of Gustavia too.

 

I do not meant to high jack this thread, but what do you think of Azamara? I am considering one of their cruises in November. They seem to do some different things that look kind of fun.

 

Denise

Hi Denise,

I would probably be the turtle and you the hare on a long walk, so maybe you dodged a bullet! I hope you have a great visit on March 6. Your DH sounds very similar to mine with the liquid refreshment stop :D. I'll come back and let you know about Azamara. We've only cruised the main lines and I'm looking forward to trying a smaller ship with more inclusive amenities. For this one, we booked it during a buy one, get second person half-off sale and have since had one price drop which Azamara gave to us automatically. I'm really not even clear as to why that happened - it may have been the result of moving us after the just-completed renovation of the Journey. They converted our original stateroom to an accessible stateroom and asked us to select another. We chose one just across the hall so it was no hardship whatsoever and then we received a $400 credit. I am sure it was not from the on-line agency we used to reserve the cruise as the refund on our credit card statement clearly stated Azamara issued it. I am very happy with them so far! Again - have a great trip!

Therese

Hi Denise,

 

I would probably be the turtle and you the hare on a long walk, so maybe you dodged a bullet! I hope you have a great visit on March 6. Your DH sounds very similar to mine with the liquid refreshment stop :D. I'll come back and let you know about Azamara. We've only cruised the main lines and I'm looking forward to trying a smaller ship with more inclusive amenities. For this one, we booked it during a buy one, get second person half-off sale and have since had one price drop which Azamara gave to us automatically. I'm really not even clear as to why that happened - it may have been the result of moving us after the just-completed renovation of the Journey. They converted our original stateroom to an accessible stateroom and asked us to select another. We chose one just across the hall so it was no hardship whatsoever and then we received a $400 credit. I am sure it was not from the on-line agency we used to reserve the cruise as the refund on our credit card statement clearly stated Azamara issued it. I am very happy with them so far! Again - have a great trip!

Therese

Therese,

Sounds like you got a great Azamara deal. :) I will try to report back on this thread about my day in St. Barths. Not too long for my day there now.

Denise

We just returned from a Wind Star cruise that stopped in St Barth's. We had a glorious day! We met a great couple on the ship and since they had been to the island once before we decided to rent a car and spend the day together. Once we tendered to the port we realized the close rental car places had no availability. So we did a little shopping and asked at the shops if anyone knew where we might find a car. We were told to continue down the street and turn left and there were more car rental places. (Think across from Cheeseburger in Paradise.) There was a Budget in a perfume store that had cars available. We rented a convertible BMW and a van came to fetch us and take us to the airport to pick up the car. It probably took about 30 minutes from walking into the perfumery to driving off in the rental from the airport. We were told to have the car back to the airport by 6 pm and we would get a ride back to the pier.

We had so much fun driving on our beer/beach hunt. The roads were very narrow! But we managed to find several beautiful beaches, a fabulous place for lunch, and we stumbled upon a photo shoot as well at our last stop at Governors Beach! They were Americans and we had fun watching and chatting with them.

We got back to the airport at 5:59 pm and they took as back as promised. Spent the next hour or so shopping (not near enough time!) and then headed back to our yacht for our final nights dinner.

We loved St Barth's and I can't stop thinking about what an amazing time we had!

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We will be there in just over 2 weeks on Wind Surf. Wasn't sure about St Bart's but now I am really looking forward! :) Thanks for all the info

You're welcome lesliew! I fell in love with St Barth's and seriously would love to go back! I only wish we had had more time to shop!

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