Paraveina

In Saint John there's Good Fibrations at 90 Germain Street (used to be 91 Germain, but they just moved across the street this week to a larger place. They posted on Facebook that after moving their looms, everything else seemed easy).

You could also try Cricket Cove, which is in Brunswick Square on Level 2, in the walkway with Starbucks and Tim Horton's.

It might also be worth looking in the Saint John City Market.

Do you remember the bus number you took? Did you get the bus where the ship docked or at the market?

 

We saw the rapids years ago while on a ship tour and would just like to go back on our own this time.

Here's the list of routes and schedules:

http://www.saintjohn.ca/en/home/cityhall/transportation/transit/routesschedules/default.aspx

Routes 1 and 7 will get you there, Routes 2 and 8 will bring you back. The adult cash fare is 2.75 per person, per direction.

This website shows you where the bus is in real time: http://www.nextbus.com/predictor/stopSelector.jsp?a=stjohn

The stop you where you would board is "City Hall" and the stop where you would get off is "Bridge & Mill Road". There's a Google Maps link on the right side of the page that will show you the route with stops marked. Also, there's construction on that bridge (Reversing Falls), so expect delays until November 2015.

If your ship docks at the Diamond Jubilee, you'll be along Water Street approximately at where St. James Street would intersect, if it continued down all the way. If instead you dock at the Marco Polo, you'll be along Water Street between Duke Street and Queen Street, if Queen also went all the way down. If you're here on a three ship day or when the QM2 is in, you might end up at Long Wharf, which is in the northernmost part of the harbour and I'm having trouble figuring out how to tell you where it is. It's to the left of the Hilton, across some water.

That being said, I think a taxi would run you about 10$ each way. Taxis here are based on zones so delays don't run the price up. Extra passengers are 1$ a head. And the stop at Bridge & Mill Road is going to deposit you on the opposite side of the road you likely want to be on, so you'll have to cross four lanes of traffic. With the bridge repairs ongoing, it's actually quite easy to do now as there's a traffic light that only permits traffic in one direction at a time. At a normal time with no construction, very few will stop to let you cross as there is no crosswalk (it's not an area where you would expect much pedestrian traffic) and the only people I've seen do it jog across if they're lucky to find a gap in traffic.

 

I understand how the reversal works, it's the timing that I can't figure out. At low tide, the river flows out, pretty much like any river. As the tide comes in, it pushes back until the water appears calm and then it pushes enough to overcome the downstream flow and flow upstream. It's the change from calm to flowing "backwards" that we want to watch.

 

The table said slack is 11:16 to 11:36. So if we get there a bit before 11:30, we should see the change, yes? Various tourist descriptions I've found on the web say the change starts earlier than 4 hours after low tide.

 

 

Thanks!

OK so basically, at low tide the river is fully flowing out to the bay. As time goes on, the bay water level starts rising and forcing the river to slow down. During this time, there's a fight between the water going out from the river and the water coming in from the bay, and in addition to that there's a bunch of rocks under the water's surface to help create turbulence. Then, slack tide happens when they're matched, there aren't any whirlpools and it's safe for boats to go through. After that, the water level continues to rise and actually forces the river to run backwards. I'm almost positive there are some whirlpools then as well, but just not as many because the water level is higher over the rocks. So it really depends on which part of the reversing you want to see - the whirlpools or the river running backwards.

For Hopewell Rocks, you want low tide (tide schedule for Alma, not Saint John)

For St. Martin's caves, you want low tide

I've heard for both of these the best time range is about four hours, two before low tide and two after.

As for the Reversing Falls, this link explains it best: http://www.tourismnewbrunswick.ca/Products/R/Reversing-Rapids.aspx

And the second comment to this question from Trip Advisor: http://www.tripadvisor.ca/ShowTopic-g154960-i1508-k1331106-Best_time_to_view_Reversing_Falls-Saint_John_New_Brunswick.html

Well, if my thread title said "New Brunswick", you know where I'm going ;)

 

Thanks for all of your help, I'll relay this to Jacqui, my travel buddy, and we'll pick what we're going to do. Thanks!

You do, but you'd be surprised how many don't.

I'm well aware, I had my mind elsewhere. But does it change the fact that I need information? To all of you out there that care more about my spelling, please, if you aren't going to respond with information, please don't respond at all. I stated what I needed very clearly, and while I understand spelling is very important, you knew enough of what I meant to correct it, which means you know enough about the city to answer my question. Thank you.

I'm sorry, it's impossible for me know know whether you're well aware, or whether you're going to get off the ship in Saint John planning to go get screeched in on George Street (although I know how to spell both, this is the only tourist thing I know about St. John's)

I didn't bother answering your questions because Jolie Cruise had already linked you to a very helpful post.

You mention your concern for reviews that mention bad neighbourhoods. There are neighbourhoods in Saint John that are poor, which is sometimes exacerbated by the fact that many of our houses can be over a hundred years old and require different upkeep than newer construction. That can make a neighbourhood look shabbier than it is. I personally would never hesitate to drive through any area of Saint John, and I'm a paranoid person.

Yes, you can check the tide schedule by googling "reversing falls tide schedule". I think the best time to be there is about 2 hours after low tide, but there are other times that work well. You don't want to be there at slack tide. There was a restaurant called The Falls that had a lookout on the roof that has closed in the last few months. They've moved down the street a bit and are sharing a space with another restaurant called Boaz. I've never been there, but I assume they have a viewing spot as well. Alternatively, you could go to the lookout on Fallsview Avenue off Douglas Avenue, but the paper mill is right across the river. This is actually my favourite spot to go watch the falls, because there are a few tiny islands that birds roost on and kayakers sometimes show up (and occasionally have to be rescued, because that's not an easy feat).

Like someone said up thread, it's a minimum of 4 hours round trip on the highway to the Hopewell Rocks. I've never been there personally.

I don't know about tour operators near the terminal - when a ship is in town, I avoid driving on Water Street because of the number of pedestrians. I also have no idea on independent operators, having never had to pay for a tour here ;)

If you can't find information on the port, it may be because of spelling. The city in New Brunswick is Saint John, with Saint always fully spelled out, and no 's. St. John's on the other hand is in Newfoundland, and the St. is always abbreviated, and there's an 's.

This is a common problem for visitors (believe me, I used to book hotel rooms and people's bookings end up in the wrong state or province all the time. Did you know there's a Denver Pennsylvania? lol)

Canada uses chip and pin technology for credit cards now, but as far as I know the functionality is still available to swipe and sign. It might be worth inquiring with your bank to set up a pin if your card has the capability (silver/gold chip in the card - google "chip credit card" and you'll see images of what I'm talking about).

United States law requires Rye Whisky to include at least 51 percent rye in the mash. Canadian law does not require Rye Whisky to include any rye in the mash (as in zero, yes ZERO, percent rye).

 

There is a reason why very few Canadian Rye Whiskys are sold in the US as Rye Whiskys - they contain very little if any rye. It is unclear if Crown Royal contains any rye, but it sure isn't being sold as such in the US. But if you like it, that is all that counts.

True, you have to look very carefully at a Canadian "Rye" Whisky to determine if there's actually rye in it. Canadian Club just started selling one made with rye though - I believe it's a green label on the bottle identifying it.

Wondering what will be open on Thanksgiving - which is when our ship ports here. Do they still do the city transit buses? Are tourist sites shut down for the day? What can we expect?

Transit runs on the Sunday schedule for most holidays, including Thanksgiving.

http://www.saintjohn.ca/en/home/cityhall/transportation/transit/routesschedules/default.aspx

Some things will be open and some won't, and it's hard to tell until closer to the date. For example, the Market is normally closed on holidays, but when a cruise ship is in, it will usually open and most of the vendors will come in.

Hey!

 

I found a quick 4 day cruise on Carnival and I think I want to book it. The only port it calls at is Saint John, NB. I've been before but my mother hasn't, and she wants to hop on this cruise with me.

 

On my last visit, we got an excursion to St.Martin's and were suppose to tour St.John city, but they gave us 10 minutes to get onboard, eat, and come back. Well it was a huge ship at noon, so we missed it and walked around ourselves later.

 

I want to see the reversing tides. Do you think we can walk it take a taxi to a place where we can see them?

 

Also, what are some good tour companies? Mom wants to kayak in the Hopewell Rocks (This used to be a Carnival excursion) but it isn't on the excursion list anymore. Or we would like to tour the falls. Any good local tour companies?

 

Thanks!

You technically *could* walk to a vantage point for the reversing falls, but I wouldn't really want to - it's 3.5 km (Marco Polo terminal) / 4 km (Diamond Jubilee) if you take Chesley Drive, which is very industrial and the walk would include a steep hill.

The two places I've gone to view the falls are Fallsview Park and The Falls Restaurant (both should be relatively easy to find on Google maps). I've only ever been at the Falls Restaurant while actually eating, so I don't know if you can get in for free. You also need to time your visit based on the tides.

If you want to kayak by the Hopewell Rocks, I don't think you'd have time to do both. It's at least 4.5 hours just to drive there and back, and that's assuming no delays waiting for excursions to start, or getting a rental car.

She already had a drydock session 2 years ago.

Cheers

I believe that was a very short drydock compared to a typical one.

Oh, I wonder if this means the resorts will finally be able to stock Heinz Ketchup?

I'm just sad that the airport in Saint John isn't an option. I have a feeling our runway isn't long enough, but it would have been so convenient.

As a plus size lady, I would LOVE self serve laundry facilities. I wouldn't ever dream of sending clothes to wash in machines that use hot water and hot air - what if they shrink my clothes? I would have a very stressful time if I had to look for clothes while on vacation, as plus sizes stores are definitely NOT ubiquitous. Couple that with the fact my clothes are larger and my luggage space is used up with fewer articles of clothing than a much smaller person.

So people can tell me they don't want the headache of self serve laundry, and can't imagine why I would, but I'd much rather run to do a load than deal with not being able to find replacement clothing in my size. The latter would be far more of a headache.

And they don't even have to put a launderette on the cabin decks. I'd be fine with them on the medical deck if it was close to the elevator.

In order: USD is most useful by far, and then AUD and NZD has some local use, but not much.

Thank you, I'll make sure to bring some USD along.

Also when you book by Phone, you get to ask for the two complimentary Captain's Club items (you have to ask to get them... They are not necessarily automatic)... The 50% Reduced Deposit, and the one Sub-category Upgrade.

I'm fine without getting the one sub-category upgrade as I wanted to be near the front of the ship to watch the activity in the wings when we're pulling in to port (C3), however I'm concerned about the 50% reduced deposit. As a preview level member, I thought I wasn't entitled to any benefits like that. I'm going to have to call them back this morning.

Hopefully someone who knows will post the number best for Canadians to call Celebrity. :)

After the fourth person told me "please hold while I transfer you" I yelled "WAIT! Can you please give me the number and I'll call it myself?"

She gave me 1-800-280-3423 and I reached George and he was able to finish my booking. Perhaps George is the only one who feels like working tonight?

The first number I called was the number that was on the page generated after I booked (1-800-647-2251). The contact phone number given in my confirmation email is 1-800-437-3111. Why so many numbers?

I'm beginning to understand why everyone thinks Celebrity's system is terrible. My booking confirmation tells me my deposit is twice what George asked me to pay. I wonder if I'll have to call back tomorrow? I was surprised when he said I could do 50% deposit, since I'm only preview level for Captain's Club, but he's the one who works there.

The fifth person I spoke to FINALLY helped me. I wonder it's because I'm Canadian? Do Canadians have to call a certain line?

Anyways, looking at the invoice it's showing a charge for the gratuities since I opted for Select Dining, but I booked an "all inclusive" C3 (Solstice, 2017-02-17, definitely has the little "offers" flag). Since I get free gratuities, will they fix this before final payment, or will I have to pay and then it be credited to my account? If the latter, is it safe to assume it's in the form of refundable OBC?

I know I could call back to get my answer, but I don't want to play phone tag again and searching the threads with such popular terms has gotten me no where.

I ask because I put a hold on a cruise this morning and I sat down to finish the booking. I called the 1-800 number on the screen, and the first person I got transferred me to Royal Caribbean. That person transferred me back to Celebrity, where yet another agent transferred me again. I ended up speaking to four people and the last one wanted to transfer me again.

I'm currently on an 8 minute hold, I assume to be transferred again. Should I even bother with this? Is there a benefit to talking to a person that I wouldn't get with the website?

Plugs at both night tables for charging and CPAP usage.

A T-pool.

Clothesline in the bathroom.

Deep enough balcony (don't pull a Breakaway)

One dining room that is always formal wear and one that isn't, instead of formal night, so people can be less stressed about those who don't dress up.

I wouldn't mind a screen, but only to show movies at NIGHT. Don't have it blasting through the day.

EDGE makes me think of weapons. Maybe Celebrity Cutlass and Celebrity Trident?

I'm considering the Sydney - Singapore cruise on the Solstice in October 2016. Can someone please help me with info about the 123 promo on that cruise? Is the promo available there? The fine print says its not available on Asian repositioning cruises. Don't know if that one is considered one of those.

 

Thanks.

I don't think so, it doesn't have the green "offers" tag above the price for concierge and above.

I don't plan on tipping in Australia and New Zealand, but I do plan on tipping the workers on the ship since I know they aren't paid much in the first place.

Does anyone know what currency would be most useful to them? I'm coming from Canada, and I don't know whether to bring US dollars (what I did when I went to the Bahamas and the Caribbean), Australian dollars, or New Zealand dollars...

If I'm right how would you create a policy that addresses the problem without throwing the booking process into utter chaos for the carriers?

By making trip insurance mandatory.