Saint John -- Order of Best Things To Do in St. Andrews

[MalibuCA]

We will be in Saint John on the Crystal Symphony in October. We have a rental car arranged with Avis, and we plan to drive to St. Andrews-by-the-Sea for the day. We would like to visit the Kingsbrae Garden, the Ross Memorial Museum, the Fairmont Algonquin and explore the shops on Water St. Our ship is in port from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

 

1) Will we have time to visit all of these places?

2) If yes, what is the best order in which to visit these places?

3) How much time should we plan for the Kingsbrae Garden? (I know, we could probably spend the whole day there, but I'm looking for a practical amount of time to get a "flavor" for the garden.) How much time should we plan for the Ross Memorial Museum? The Fairmont Algonquin? Shopping on Water St?

4) If we do not have enough time to visit all of these places, what do you recommend we choose to see?

5) If we have good weather, that's great! However, if we have inclement weather, how do you suggest we amend our St. Andrews itinerary to accomodate for wet or extremely cold conditions?

6) Lastly, are there any other comments or recommendations you can make to enhance our day in St. Andrews?

 

Thanks so much for the help!

 

Shelley:)

[sapper1]

We will be in Saint John on the Crystal Symphony in October. We have a rental car arranged with Avis, and we plan to drive to St. Andrews-by-the-Sea for the day. We would like to visit the Kingsbrae Garden, the Ross Memorial Museum, the Fairmont Algonquin and explore the shops on Water St. Our ship is in port from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

 

1) Will we have time to visit all of these places?

2) If yes, what is the best order in which to visit these places?

3) How much time should we plan for the Kingsbrae Garden? (I know, we could probably spend the whole day there, but I'm looking for a practical amount of time to get a "flavor" for the garden.) How much time should we plan for the Ross Memorial Museum? The Fairmont Algonquin? Shopping on Water St?

4) If we do not have enough time to visit all of these places, what do you recommend we choose to see?

5) If we have good weather, that's great! However, if we have inclement weather, how do you suggest we amend our St. Andrews itinerary to accomodate for wet or extremely cold conditions?

6) Lastly, are there any other comments or recommendations you can make to enhance our day in St. Andrews?

 

Thanks so much for the help!

 

Shelley:)

From your car rental pickup to the Kingsbrae Gardens will take close to an hour and a half---the last part of the trip is on two lane, low speed highway. The gardens are lovely but I would say it would not take more than and hour and a half to appreciate them.

The Algonquin Hotel is just down the street from the gardens (about a two minute drive).

The Ross Museum is about a three minute drive from the hotel and is not that big. I have not been in but I cannot see it taking more than an hour. Leave your car parked by the museum and walk the two blocks to the downtown area. It is nearly impossible to park downtown in tourist season.

There are some lovely boutiques in St. Andrews and the goods offered are very high quality. Of course there are a few T-shirt shops but they are found everywhere aren't they?

 

If it is a miserable rainy day you can dodge from shop to shop. You could also visit the aquarium at Huntsman Marine. Just ask anyone how to get there. It is about a seven minute drive from the downtown area.

 

If you have time as you leave town, take a drive out around the Point. There is a beautiful view of Passamaquoddy Bay. St. Andrews is on a peninsula so the trip around the point will loop back past the Algonquin and back out of town.

 

People are very friendly and anyone will be happy to help you find your way. St. Andrews is a very small town and it is pretty hard to get lost.

[MalibuCA]

Thank you so much for your reply. It is exactly what I am looking for!

 

One more question -- How is traffic on the way back to Saint John? Is 1-1/2 hours the time we should allow to get back safely before the ship sails? I'm thinking that we would plan to leave St. Andrews by 3:30 to arrive back at the ship by 5:00. The ship sails at 6:00. Will that work or should we allow more time for traffic in the afternoon?

 

Shelley:o

[sapper1]

Thank you so much for your reply. It is exactly what I am looking for!

 

One more question -- How is traffic on the way back to Saint John? Is 1-1/2 hours the time we should allow to get back safely before the ship sails? I'm thinking that we would plan to leave St. Andrews by 3:30 to arrive back at the ship by 5:00. The ship sails at 6:00. Will that work or should we allow more time for traffic in the afternoon?

 

Shelley:o

If you are talking about a weekend, the traffic in the city should not be a problem, but during the week, the uptown area is pretty jammed up from 4:30 to 5:30. I would personally allow 2 hours from leaving St. Andrews to arriving back at the ship because you have to drop off your car. Also the first half hour of your return trip is on the low speed, two lane road I mentioned. It twists and turns and your chances of passing a slow moving car aren't good. It could hold you up.

I don't know who you are renting your car from but find out from whoever it is if you should take the first or second exit when you leave the bridge when returning to the city. (I don't mean the exit part way over the bridge).. If you miss one of these two exits you will have to travel to the other end of the city before you can get off the highway and then you might have a problem finding your way back easily. Saint John streets can be confusing to a first timer but if you get the correct exit you should have no problem.

The bridge is a toll bridge which will require fifty cents. The machine happily takes American quarters as well as Canadian so if you have change handy you will avoid a lineup at the pay window.

 

http://www.cruisesaintjohn.com

 

You may find this link helpful.

[MalibuCA]

Thanks for your help. I definitely do not want to miss our sailing, and I will heed your advice.

 

Shelley

[trophy_23]

I can vouch for that, we rented a car and went to st martins it was wonderful, but I think we should have gone to St Andrews. The streets are a nit confusing, but with a decent map you shouldnt have too much trouble! PEI was much easier to navigate.

[smmcquilt]

Hi just a couple of points - first off, I agree that Kingsbrae Garden is absolutely lovely! If you want to enjoy the new sculpture garden & competition [highly recommended] and perhaps have lunch at the beautiful Cafe looking over the gardens down to Passamaquoddy Bay, you should allow for more than an hour and a half. There is an admission charge, but it is very reasonable. There are over 50,000 perennials on 27 acres, with many wonderful features - a real Dutch windmill, cedar maze, edible garden, knot, rose, gravel, scents & sensitivity, bird & butterfly [over 65 species of birds throughout the year]... and loads of other themed gardens. When in October will you be in port in Saint John? The regular season closes Oct 9th, but you can still walk through the Garden after that - for free! You can book a guided golf cart interpretive tour for only $2 per person extra - call ahead, though, to book - 866-566-8687 [toll free in North America]

 

Ross Museum is a couple of minutes walk [downhill] from the Garden, on line for the wharf and downtown main square and shops; a delightful decorative arts collection. It is entry by donation and an hr is ample time - a half hr would also be fine.

 

More of the highway between Saint John and St Andrews is twinned and widened now, with fairly frequent passing lanes on the two lane portions. There is a 10-15 minute drive down the peninsula that is two lane, but usually very few cars at once. I would hope Avis would have a good service for pickup near the ship, but you certainly don't want to miss the sailing, so two hours would be prudent, for your return, in case of delay. Having said that, it is important to put it all in perspective - traffic, in maritime Canadian terms, is nothing like you are used to!

 

Cheers, from a happy St Andrews resident

 

From your car rental pickup to the Kingsbrae Gardens will take close to an hour and a half---the last part of the trip is on two lane, low speed highway. The gardens are lovely but I would say it would not take more than and hour and a half to appreciate them.

The Algonquin Hotel is just down the street from the gardens (about a two minute drive).

The Ross Museum is about a three minute drive from the hotel and is not that big. I have not been in but I cannot see it taking more than an hour. Leave your car parked by the museum and walk the two blocks to the downtown area. It is nearly impossible to park downtown in tourist season.

There are some lovely boutiques in St. Andrews and the goods offered are very high quality. Of course there are a few T-shirt shops but they are found everywhere aren't they?

 

If it is a miserable rainy day you can dodge from shop to shop. You could also visit the aquarium at Huntsman Marine. Just ask anyone how to get there. It is about a seven minute drive from the downtown area.

 

If you have time as you leave town, take a drive out around the Point. There is a beautiful view of Passamaquoddy Bay. St. Andrews is on a peninsula so the trip around the point will loop back past the Algonquin and back out of town.

 

People are very friendly and anyone will be happy to help you find your way. St. Andrews is a very small town and it is pretty hard to get lost.

[MalibuCA]

Thanks so much for your reply. It's most informative. We will be in Saint John/St. Andrews on October 6, so, fortunately, we will just squeak into the Gardens before they officially close. We are really looking forward to visiting your beautiful city.

 

Shelley