swimmer_steph

We continued onto St. Thomas. We had an extra few hours there as well as extra time in Grand Turk.

Gotcha. Thanks!

Our stop at HMC was cancelled due to weather --and about 1 in 5 port calls there ARE cancelled -- but I had chosen #9 as my target cabana on our October cruise, based on reports from the most-excellent folks here on CC. :)

 

It is far enough away from the tender/dock area to avoid most of the crowds, yet not too far to walk back for the 'free' barbecue. It's also just far enough away from the pirate ship bar to avoid the noise.

There's the second set of restrooms right behind it, and there's a walkway between it and #8, making for slightly easier access.

 

I had pre-selected #9 by email to Carnival before our cruise, but was told I'd been given #8 when I got to Shore Excursions onboard. They said they'd correct it, but the master list still showed me with #8 late that night. We'll never know how things would have shaken out, but I would have been okay with #8 or anything above it.

What did they do instead? Another port?

It was a Sea Day. Carnival printed up new Fun Times that went out around 1 p.m. We just made our way on into St. Thomas earlier, two hours. We also received an extra two hours in Grand Turk (later departure).

Thanks. I've never been in that situation but it seems to have worked out okay for you.

Just got back from Liberty's 9/29 sailing and we missed the port due to bad weather. So I can't report on Cabana #9 because we never tendered over. Although I had requested and received #9 via email back in July, they had already given it to someone else when I boarded and went to Shore Excursions, and had me down for #8. I showed them the email, they said it had been taken care of, then later when I re-checked they said 'no, you have #8 and this is the final list." Now we'll never know which cabana I'd have ended up with. :eek:

What did you do instead? Was it just another Day at Sea or were you able to stop somewhere else?

No problems what so ever. The call was not expensive at all maybe $2. I am from Wisconsin and called on our land line.

 

It is a great experience. Have fun!

I just tried phoning Nathan and was informed it would be $11.00 for the first minute and $3.00 for each after. :eek:

Has anyone given Nathan their credit card info via email and if so, were there any problems? I'm not willing to spend $13.00 for a two minute call.

No, the loungers on the beach are for anyone, but I'm sure the cabana renters would prefer the entrance stairs to their cabanas not be blocked or overcrowded.

 

 

 

No, anyone can use them. They tend to be near the cabanas and there aen't many of them....at HMC, anyway.

 

 

 

There are numerous pictures and videos around, but basically they are blue half-domes wide enough to accomodate two beach loungers. Many reports say they tend to get pretty stuffy, so keep that in mind. If you want one, they can be rented at the rental station on the beach -- as far as I know, they cannot be reserved aboard ships of any cruise line. Cost is approximately $20.

 

Thank you so very much for answering my questions. I've seen lots of photos and certainly didn't want to impose on the cabana renters by using the beach loungers and hammocks by their rentals if they were reserved exclusively for them.

I'm sure we'll find a spot that's perfect for us. :)

Like any Caribbean Island we do have stray dogs, knows as "Potcakes" here on Grand Turk.

The Grand Turk Chapter of TCSPCA actively works at keeping the numbers down with spay and neuter clinics and overseas and on-island adoption programs. We are always grateful for donations to assist us with these programs. We know it is not easy to carry cases of pet food on board your cruise ship so if you would like to make a financial donation we can send you the details of where/how to find us when you're here!

We also have stray cats, not as many as you will see on some Caribbean Islands (or Greek Islands!) and we also work at finding homes and keeping their numbers down.

Thank you for asking about our 4 legged friends, we have arranged several puppy adoptions this year, if anyone is interested in doing the same. Texas, NY, Washington DC, Boston, California to name just a few of the places our affectionate pooches have flown to. ("Caicos" in NY was adopted by a cruise ship passenger who fell in love with her while diving here and we arranged to have her couriered to Long Island a couple of weeks later!)

http://www.facebook.com/GrandTurkSPCA

I can't tell you how thrilled I am that you're working to assist the homeless dogs and cats on the island. My husband and I work w/our local shelters and rescues and we know how difficult, frustrating, and emotionally draining the work can be.

We will definitely make a donation because we believe that animals everywhere deserve a chance. Do you have a physical facility on GT that we could visit while there? We make it a point to visit as many groups helping animals as possible and have done so in numerous ports including San Juan and Magen's Bay among others.

This makes me feel so much better about visiting GT. Thank you again for the link and for everything that you do.

no entry charge. Loungers were $10 pp for the day, snorke gear $20 and kayaks $20 for 2 hours. There is a snorkle the wall tour for $40. Taxi is $8 pp. Drinks and food extra, of course.

Thank you! We're looking forward to our day there. I hope the pool is also available just in case it's warm enough. :)

Hey everyone,

I am back from my fantastic cruise (Crown Princess) and a great day at the Bohio Dive Resort!

 

First let me say that there were only 14 other people on the beach, it was awesome! The snorkeling was good, we went pretty far out and I didn't feel that it was too scary or anything like that, there is barely any surf. The sand was like flour, so soft, and we walked along the beach and saw some cool shells and stuff. Like above posters have mentioned, there really isn't much there at all, but it was a nice get away from the hustle and bustle of the ship.

 

We took a taxi and I believe it was $7pp each way, it wasn't bad, and he took us through Cockburn Town and by the salt pits and told us all about them. Winemistress, I would not recommend getting scooters only because there really isn't much on Grand Turk and imo, you would be wasting your money. Plus, I personally did not see any scooter rentals near the port. I think the taxi drive to Bohio through Cockburn Town is plenty enough sightseeing.

 

The taxi dropped us off and we went into the main lobby and she forwarded us to the dive shop which is adjacent to the beach. The woman who helped us said it was free to go on the beach (the pool was empty and there was a guy doing work/powerwashing around it) and if we wanted, we could pay $10pp for a beach chair. We paid just because we felt bad coming to use their beach for free. I only saw a breakfast menu at the time, so I can't comment on a lunch/dinner menu. There was a sign at the pavillion at the beach that said that burgers were $12.

 

The chairs were nice, and the beach really was great. We left with enough time to do some shopping at the port which wasn't that great, just save your $$ for St. Thomas if that is on your itinerary. Overall I would definitely recommend the Bohio resort and I think that for relaxation, beautiful water/beach, it is the best option for Grand Turk.

 

Froufie, have a blast, I can't wait to hear how your cruise goes!!!

 

Here is my photo album, and Grand Turk is the first stop so if you want to speed through the photos just to see the pics of Bohio, please be my guest:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/christybredahl/CrownPrincess

Thanks so much for the pictures. Bohio appears more primitive than I anticipated but I like it. We'll be there soon.

Quick question - did you see any of the stray dogs others have mentioned on GT?

Has anyone been there recently?

We're looking for a place to spend the day - no snorkeling or diving - and were wondering what it is like now? Also, any idea on the fees the resort charges?

Thank you.

In reading the hundreds of posts here, I've come across several people mentioning the stray & starving dogs on GT and I'm wondering what it's really like? Are they everywhere? How about cats? Were there lots of those as well?

I'm wondering if anyone took food from the ship to feed the dogs and/or if there are grocery stores where we can stop and purchase dog/cat food for them? We're planning on renting a Jeep so we'll be seeing most of the island and I can't imagine not helping starving animals.

Thanks so much!

Aside from stray donkeys, there are many stray dogs -- that look hungry. Did not feel too protected in a golf cart! lol:)

Oh no. Were you able to buy dog food for them? I do animal rescue and can't imagine seeing starving dogs and not feeding them. Were there grocery stores around?

I've emailed Nathan about renting a Jeep for our day there and he has one. Now he needs a credit card either by phone or email to reserve the Jeep.

Has anyone had any problems/issues sending him their CC info via email? I'm terrified of the price to call him since I'm in Alabama and he's there.

Can anyone use those beach chairs (the loungers physically ON the beach) in front of the cabanas or are they all reserved for cabana renters? I also saw hammocks in the videos posted. Are those exclusively for cabana renters?

Finally, does anyone have a picture of the clamshell I've been reading about? Anyone ever use one? Should it be reserved in advance?

Thanks so much.

Can someone who has actually used someone/some company tell me how much they paid for a trip to and from Paris? Many websites are in French (obviously) plus I'd like first hand knowledge. Thank you so much.

What star level did you use?

Oh, I'm so sorry. I knew I would forget something...

Based on everything I read here, I used 3.5*, 4* & resort.

First THANK YOU for this thread. You guys have just saved us at least $200.00!

Second, here's my winning bid:

Priceline: $98.00 for Sunday, May 3, 2009 (accepted first time) & was given Sheraton Old San Juan Hotel

I wanted the Intercontinental but knowing this was the other hotel that had been frequently chosen made me feel comfortable in bidding.

:D

Wow - we posted almost the same question w/in a couple of minutes of each other. :p Great minds. I hope it's okay if I jump in on your thread; you chose a much catchier title! ;)

No plane questions as we're driving; however --- we're just wondering if we could get maybe two bottles and a 12-pack of soda on board the SOS leaving Post Canaveral? We wanted to carry on our bags but we could check one if the odds of success are better.

Any thoughts kind people??? :)

I just want to also thank you --- this took a lot of time and it is appreciated! :)