Hurry&Wait

I have tried to weed through the 100s of posts and didnt find any mention of it.

 

Has anyone taken the Ferry from Charlotte Amalie to St John? My wife and I are renewing our wedding vows there Aug 3rd (coming in on Carnival Valor). Our ship docks at 9am and I was told by our wedding coordinator that we should get on the 10am ferry in Charlotte Amalie as opposed to taking a long cab ride to Red Hook. Any comments on taking this ferry instead of the ferry out of red hook? We have to be at Cinnamon Beach at 11am for our wedding ceremony is at 1130am.

I agree with another poster whom suggested Red Hook. The other problem with the Charlotte Amalie ferry is timeliness. Sometimes its on time and other times its on "island time." ;)

Do you know what time you'll be at port on St. Thomas yet? H&W is correct - without a rental car it would be tough to hit Salt Pond Bay on a cruise stop - it's probably the beach with the second longest driving distance from Cruz Bay. There are a number of north shore beach options that will much easier to work in.

 

As far as lunch, depending on what you like to eat, if you want to grab a bite and run or would prefer to sit down, if lunch will be an important part of your day or just an afterthought on a day primarily all about the beach, you have a ton of options in and around Cruz Bay.

 

If you know what you'll be looking for as far as your lunch experience, I can probably help you narrow down your options.

Augie - great pics and your son seems like he had fun.

Did you rent a car in St Thomas or St. John? Which company did you use and what kind of luck did you have? Was the car barge difficult?

Kenny.

Wow - amazing pics - may I ask where is Salt Pond Bay and how did you get there? :D

South side of the island. You can get there by bus, but usually you get there by car/jeep. Would be difficult to do on a cruise day

Great, Augie, thanks for the info! Really looking forward to our trip. St. John looks absolutely gorgeous!

Sun Chick - We were on the same cruise this past July. Even though we were tied up on the dock at 7:00 the ship didn't clear until about 7:20. We could not make it to Red Hook for the 8:00 a.m. ferrry. Just shoot for the 9:00 a.m. ferry and you will be fine.

I am hoping to get a room on Hotwire for the Sheraton Old San Juan for later this year 2 nights pre-cruise. I had it down, that it was 3 star, with the non-beach amenities and tennis nearby, but now I don't see that unless I am putting in 2 adults and 2 kids (only will be 2 adults). Has anyone had this as well? I def want to stay in Old San Juan. Would there be a problem when I got there and asked for a king bed, when the reservation says there are 4 people?

I just got this on Hotwire for $89 per night for a July 3 pre-cruise stay. We are getting in late and didn't have the time to enjoy a full resort. This is just across the street from our ship. Earlier in the day when I first looked it was $98. but dropped a few hours later so I grabbed it. It was the 3 star etc. Don't know why you are having problems with just two adults. Could be a Hotwire system error.:confused:

I preface this by saying I first cruised when I was 7 years old:

AHH the Good old days:

• P&O Arcadia 1972 ships used to throw trash overboard into the sea, without incinerating it first (as a kid I would watch them do it and thought it was cool – now I know a little better).;)
  
• Raw sewerage dumped into the ocean because the ships did have wastewater treatment:p
  
• Bathrooms and showers down the hall from the staterooms(yes I sailed 2 class ships).
  
• No balcony staterooms
  
• Fire doors when during drills would mysteriously shut and smash hands (saw that happen 2 times and glad it wasn’t me).
  
• The wait and cooking staff that used to catch their ‘dinner’ off the side of the ship and cook it in their rooms. You could smell the curry throughout the ship:eek: :eek: :eek:
  
• But really I miss those Tugboats.:D