TTEllis

The seaweed problem has been written about in major newspapers hear in the US. Wish I could remember where I read it so I could cite it for the doubting and snarky. It was in the last week or two that I read about it.

Glad you can't remember what "major newspaper "hear" in the US. you read it in(in the last week or two!!). So you don't have to "cite it for the doubting and snarky". We certainly don't need that. Thanks Todd!!

Now that was uncalled for! I think the question about seaweed is very valid when you're gonna spend some hard earned money on going to a place to have a relaxing beach day only to arrive and find the whole beach covered in seaweed. Yes, as a matter of fact, there has been a "seaweed" problem all over the Caribbean islands, especially on the Atlantic Sea side of the islands (like where the St. Kitts Marriott is located). That seaweed is Sargasso and it arrives en mass clogging access to the water and stinking up the place real bad when it starts to decompose if not collected and disposed of by the resort or local authorities. I know of very popular beaches here in Puerto Rico that have shut down for weeks or months due to this. I'm guessing that if you reacted in this unsympathetic way is because you've never had to dealt with this type of inconvenience.

Easy homes!! So let me get this right your going to tell the vacationers at the St. Kitts Marriott a resort that on a yearly basis is either at capacity or "sold out" altogether. Many of which are swimming in the ocean, your going to tell them that's there's a seaweed problem, they should stay out of the water or shouldn't be in the water or something like that??

Hmmmm sounds to me like somebody's been out on the island a bit too long. Good luck on that, hopefully see you there in Dec., I'll be there, if we run into one another I'll buy you one, and we'll debate seaweed, looking forward to it. Take care Todd

Are they still having seaweed problems at the Marriott? We plan to go there in 2 weeks.

I don't have the foggiest idea, and could care less.

The beach is awesome, they're maybe seaweed it's the ocean, as far as "a problem with seaweed" I've never heard of such nonsense. If anyone has "a problem with seaweed" I would recommend them staying on the ship and staying in they're cabin. Really, if you have "a problem with seaweed" I would stay on the ship and never leave my cabin. Take care Todd

I sent an email regarding our Christmas Freedom cruise. Was told since hotel was full, there would be no availability for day passes. Would you suggest going inperson anyway?

Sorry about the late reply I just found this post, if you want to go to the Marriott on your Christmas cruise, the hotel will definitely be sold out, that doesnt mean they wont sell you a day pass. If you want to go I would just show up and hand them my credit card, works every time, contrary to what you may be reading on this board. I'll be there in December as well, no problems. Go and have fun Todd

Sorry, should have stated can only recommend these three, but have another two suggestions, but they are further away from the port. By default, the three are closer to the port.

 

Unable to recommend any others as they are "beds/umberella" places, thereby a destination for T'erds

AWESOME post, Love it!!!

Yes, you can still bring your own food and drink when the snack bar reopens.

 

You may want to buy a collapsible cooler before your cruise so you can travel with it. It will come in handy. Easy to find them online. Great for road trips, too.

 

 

.

Could never tell you how many times I've paid $3.95 for a can of Hieneken at the old snack bar at Trunk Bay. I like walking down the beach a bit and away from everything, walking back to buy a beer every 10 minutes:D:rolleyes: gets tiring.

Cooler only way to go, plus I have a friend going with me she doesn't know it but she's helping me carry the cooler!!:p Thanks for your help Todd

https://st-john-gourmet-market.myshopify.com./search?q=Ice&submit=

 

https://st-john-gourmet-market.myshopify.com./collections/beers

 

And they sell bags of ice

 

Order everything and collect on arrival

This is great info, they have everything, $6.95 for a styrofoam cooler on St. John that's a deal!! I hope nobody else reads it;p:D and everybody decides to do the same thing.

So let me get this right I can do taxi, ferry, taxi to and from Trunk Bay for around $50, beer and styrofoam cooler another $50. Whole day $100-ish?? Thats tough to beat especially with 5-6 ships in port and STT will be a zoo, I cant stay there.

I wonder if when the snack bar and restaurant open at Trunk if we can still bring our own beer?? This is the only way to go from now on!! Thanks Todd

https://st-john-gourmet-market.myshopify.com./search?q=Ice&submit=

 

https://st-john-gourmet-market.myshopify.com./collections/beers

 

And they sell bags of ice

 

Order everything and collect on arrival

That's HUGE!!, Thanks!!

Boy wouldn't you like to own your own little market on St. John selling beer and wine and ice and munchie's, I would end up being my own best customer!!!:D:D:DThanks Todd

Make sure you buy cans. Bottles not allowed at Trunk.

Great idea, thank you!! Now I'm making progress.

Contact the Dolphin Supermarket on St John, not far from pier, as they may be able to make up your order for collection.

Hey Thanks!! That's great I can do that. Have any other idea's on what's the best way to get a case of beer to Trunk Bay and keep it cold for the day please let me know I certainly do appreciate it. I'm almost positive I've seen that place before, thank you very much for your help Todd

Here's the deal, on Nov. 28th we are going to be porting in STT along with 6 other ship or at least 5 monster-ships.:o

I'm getting off the ship grabbing a taxi, heading straight to Redhook, and catching the ferry over to St. John.

I e-mailed the US Parks Service at Trunk Bay they told me everything was open except for the snack bar and restaurant, if I came to Trunk Bay they "highly recommend" bringing my own food and drink.

Is there some type of a store in or around Cruz Bay where I can buy a couple bags of ice, a case of beer, pick up a sandwich or two, and maybe a styrofoam cooler??

Between passengers and crew there will be 50,000 people in or around Charlotte Amalie(nightmare), St. John and Trunk Bay will be very quiet, except for me!!:cool: Thanks for any help Todd

There are only a few stores selling liquor and they're fairly close to each other: Milano, Caribana, AH Rouse which may have a new name, and Dynasty Dazzlers. There probably isn't a huge price difference between stores.

 

Hennessey White is a very popular liquor item because not sold in US. Botany Bay rum is another but is not as well known.

Hey Ms411,

Are there any other hard to find or out of the ordinary rum/liquors that I should be looking for while we're in St. Thomas?? That Hennessey White sounds great and so does the rum. Thanks Todd:cool:

Hey Diann,

I've always used ah riise in downtown Charlotte Amalie. It's not in the Havensight Mall but I've been buying bottle's of something from them for over 20 years their selection and prices cant be beat. Planning on picking up a bottle or two of bubbly this time around, I used to buy bottle's of White Star from them back in the late 90's $26(US) best ticket in the Caribbean.

When we're on our way back to the ship we'll stop in ah riise and pick something up, they'll let us bring on 1 bottle of liquor, 2 bottle's of bubbly!!:D

Yes, I'm thinking Magen's or Sapphire for St. Thomas and I've already been looking at Spencer Ambrose for St. Lucia. I'm pretty sure that is who DH and I used when we were there 8ish years ago. We did the speed boat around and then got into a van to go up to the Pitons, mud bath, volcano, etc. followed by a beach break. We don't really care to do the land part again but the Jalousi Beach Break sound fabulous and from Mitsugirly's photos from a few years ago, it looks like that beach is fabulous for snorkeling.

Good grief don't do the land tour of St. Lucia to get to the Pitons or Sugar(Jalousie)Beach, you don't have to do that anymore. Spencer takes you right up to the dock, you cut all that out, snorkeling is awesome, swimming between the Pitons with sunfish the size of my Jeep priceless. We did the speedboat to and from no van's, no volcano's(been there done that), no mud baths:o all beach break.:cool: Have fun!!

That's the feeling I was starting to get. As much as we'd love to see St. John, I just think the logistics would be way too hurried/frazzled and my anxiety doesn't do well in that type of situation for any of it to be actually enjoyable.

 

So my next question is, what is the best beach on St. Thomas for snorkeling/beach day? Coki is out, for sure, for us. DH and I enjoyed Magen's Bay when we were there 20 years ago but wasn't sure if there was another beach possibly closer to port. We will likely save our dollars for a nicer beach/snorkel trip in St. Lucia so the cheaper the better :)

Coki is a Fake beach, I'm not even sure what Coki is anymore, just FORGET about Coki, especially with children.

Here's the deal, if it were me I would keep it simple and go to Magen's Bay, it's not only safe, it's simple to get a taxi either back to Crown Bay or Havensight. They have amenities bathroom's, showers, lockers, a nice restaurant and bar that are all OPEN. Yes there is a small fee to get in but everything is there, you dont have to worry about anything and the beach is GREAT!! YES it gets packed when there are 3-4 ships in port but it's a lot of fun. Magen's Bay.

St. Lucia probably my favorite island, you and your folks need to try this...Spencer Ambrose Jalousie beach break.

He takes you directly to Sugar Beach between the Pitons in a speed boat for the day, great snorkeling I dont do that but everybody else was.:D Beach is awesome scenery is a World Heritage Site. There's really not much like it, look it up Spencer Ambrose Jalousie Beach break, only way to go. Hope it works for you and have a nice vacation. Later Todd

The Beer garden at the port in St. Lucia, we were there in 2013 on the Emerald Princess there were 2 other super-ships in port, that was hands down the biggest party maybe 5000 people, that's being conservative, that I've ever been to in the Caribbean altogether. They were trying to drag us on the ship and we didnt want to leave, we were still partying I had to throw my drink away,:( Princess security told me I could party on the ship, we had to leave. What a bummer!! The Emerald Princess is magnificent.

We've been to St. Thomas multiple times and will be docked there on our next cruise (Carnival - from 7AM to 5PM) about a month from now with our four children (age 9-15). We'd love to have a relaxing beach/snorkel day but are debating whether or not the hassle/cost/time is worth it to go to St. John (Trunk or Cinnamon) versus Magen's Bay. We've done Coki a few times now and aren't overly impressed with it even though it's pretty convenient.

 

If we decide to go to St. John, would this be our plan?

1. Get off ship as early as possible and take taxi from cruise port to the Red Hook Ferry hoping to catch a ferry by 8:00AM. Is the ferry running on the half hour now or just the hour? Cost per person for taxi and for ferry?

2. Take taxi from Cruz Bay to Cinnamon or Trunk. Which is best for beach and snorkeling?

3. Stay at beach from 9ish to 1:00-1:30ish. Is lunch available at either of these locations now?

4. Catch a 2:00 or 2:30 (3:00 at the latest) ferry back to St. Thomas, depending on ferry scheduling, for a 4:30 All Aboard.

 

Doable or too much running to and fro? Thanks!

Absolutely not worth it. I do Trunk basically every time we port on St. Thomas. You want to haul 4 kids to Trunk Bay and back, spend maybe 3 hours on the beach knock yourself out. To catch the 3pm ferry back to Redhook you have to leave Trunk around 2pm. The math doesn't add up, can your 4 children and yourself head over to St. John and back and make it back to the ship by 5pm certainly, your going to be in a hurry the entire time, if you think it's worth it go.

There is NO FOOD OR DRINK at Trunk Bay and there wont be this year I have a letter from the US Parks Service they recommend if you come to Trunk BRING YOUR OWN FOOD AND DRINK. Way too much everything for me. I would stay on STT and spend the day on Magen's. Later Todd

This isn't completely correct. There are several resorts that are all inclusive and don't allow outsiders to buy drinks or food. There are not vendors at every access point. The best places to go are across the street from Chalet Suisse Restaurant, and across from MVC Resort.

This is a bunch of nonsense!! Hatteras51 I have no idea where you are getting your information in reference to Eagle Beach and Amsterdam Manor, I've been reading your posts with tongue in cheek.:rolleyes:

I'm heading back to my same spot on Eagle Beach in Dec. for the 5th or 6th time, right beside the Amsterdam Manor, having lunch at the beach bar, renting chairs and palapas FROM AMSTERDAM MANOR and I'm staying on the Caribbean Princess not in the hotel. There never has been a problem and there never will be. I'll send you pictures!! Have a good one bro!!:o:rolleyes::o Later Todd

I booked Santa Barbara Beach Resort, through Resorts for a Day. Yes it was $119, $25 deposit but everything is included, including transportation to and from the port all gratuities, food and drinks. That's cheap, last 2 times I was on Curacao we went downtown and spent a small fortune bar hopping, $119 for all day at the only 5-star resort on the island everything included, count me in!!

We'll be there in December looking forward to something other than walking over the bridge hitting 5 bars and spending $400.:o $119 all day at The Resort!! Hey, I'm learning better late than never! Later Todd:cool:

Here's the deal on Trunk Bay. For those of us who are planning our day there.

The snack bar will NOT be open this year, for those of us planning our day there we have to bring our own food and beverages, being on a cruise most of us will not have our own cooler, Trunk Bay is a VERY hot place to be without something to drink. Mostly Hieneken though.:p

I'll be there in November as well, only thing I can think of, if you plan on going to Trunk get a styrofoam cooler put your ice and drinks in it and take it with you(that's what the park service told me) or plan something else.

The rentals on Trunk are all open, you can rent kayaks, and snorkel gear the bathrooms are open until 4pm, after 4pm everything closes.

NO food or beverages, you have to bring your own, Trunk Bay is a LONG way to go to find out after about 15-20 minutes on the beach that your real thirsty starting to get hungry and there's nothing there. Just keep that in mind.

Hope that helps Todd

Cough up the $119 and forget about it:rolleyes::cool: go have some fun and do it up right you deserve it!!:D Later Todd

Any recent visitors to Trunk Bay?? As of this past weekend the snack bar was still closed, any hope in sight or any idea when it might open?? Do you think:confused: it will be open this year?? Thanks for any help Todd

I prefer Coki. Clear water with good view of different sea life. You also have Coral World next to it, if you want other things to do like Sea Lions etc. Meagan's Bay is a little overrated IMO.

Your not comparing Coki, to Meagan's are you??? If you consider Meagan's Bay overrated what do you call Coki!!!

Coki Beach I thought they were kidding, the first and last time I was there lasted hmmmmm maybe 10 minutes, grabbed the first taxi to Redhook hopped on the ferry and went over to Trunk for the day, to a REAL beach!!! Hope that helps Todd.......Coki Beach I obviously missed something, any comparison to Meagans I'm not real sure I would buy that.

I just booked this place on Resorts for a Day for $119, $25 deposit on my CC, $94 due upon arrival. This tour provides basically everything. Thanks for the recommendations. Todd:cool:

I must be different than "everyone else" because we prefer calm water so in that respect Palm Beach would suit us better. Fortunately we've never had to wave sums of money at the servers and bartenders either to get good service and we're not beautiful people, just average looking, so perhaps Eagle Beach is no longer for us. No worries, we'll have a good time wherever :rolleyes:

Certainly do hate it you got the short end of the stick:') if I were you I would go to Palm beach and stay there. :rolleyes:

Never a problem renting chairs or a straw hut for the day on Eagle Beach whether it's through Amsterdam Manor or someone else. Get off the bus, go down the sidewalk to Amsterdam Manor waving a $20 bill and your good to go, wave a $50 and you have your own private waiter for the day along with everything else.

Palm Beach the water is not just calm, there's NO WAVES, I thought I was going to the beach and so did everyone else, The Radisson Aruba, on Palm Beach is a JOKE!!! It's a fake resort. If they're dredging Palm Beach that's great they need to, I thought it was just me.

Eagle Beach the vibe and atmosphere it's just nice, the Amsterdam Manor beach bar is AWESOME, it's expensive but the food is outstanding, last 2 times I was there I had the grilled chicken panini sandwich with goat cheese, it was great, on the beach, with waves and beautiful people, only way to go. Hope that helps Todd