Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

St. John with SEVEN ships in port?

sstich79

By sstich79,
in St. Thomas/St. John

Recommended Posts

sstich79

sstich79

Posted
Posted

So we'd been planning on just ferrying ourselves over to St. John and back instead of doing a ship excursion... but there will be a total of SEVEN ships in port, so I'm super-concerned about things like street traffic and limited space on the ferries. Any thoughts on this from those of you who have been there, done that? Would we be better off just sucking it up and doing a ship excursion for the safety of it, or will we still be okay doing it on our own? Thanks in advance!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
kdooley

kdooley

Posted
Posted

We were just in St. Thomas last week on Princess and I had a few things to share.

 

Docks: Since this was the first time there, I didn't know that there are 2 docks, 1 in the downtown area and the 1 where we were (don't know the name, but by a marina). As far as I could see, there were a total of 5 ships in St. Thomas, 2 at our dock and 3 over at the main dock. There may have been more around the corner that I couldn't see.

 

Traffic: We went on the turtle cove trip and when we came back, asked about taking a taxi to the downtown area at one of the shops. The lady told us that it was almost 2pm and school would be letting out so the traffic would be terrible and we would never make it back in time (we had to be back on at 4:30).

 

Excursion: And the last thing I saw... at 5pm, both of the ships at our dock were waiting for either an excursion or the ferry to return from somwhere (I think it was St. John). By waiting, I mean the guys on the dock were waiting to release the lines and send us out to sea. At about 5:10, about 20 people came running around the dock and jumped on the ship and off we went!

 

I think I would take the excursion...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Betsy's Mom

Betsy's Mom

Posted
Posted

With that many ships and that many tourists that are not familiar with the islands I would vote for the ship's excursion:) Having fought the traffic ourselves for many years the aggravation is not worth it and the chance of missing sail away is high.

B

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Caribbean Sunsets

Caribbean Sunsets

Posted
Posted

We were in St. Thomas during Thanksgiving. Our ship docked at Crown Bay and there was a ship docked at the Havensight pier. That was only 2 ships in total. We did a ship sponsored excursion to St. John. I was surprised by how full the ferry was. I didn't think there was enough room for the group from our ship but there was--and not a seat to spare.

 

On a side note, I don't know if the waters were a little extra choppy that day but the people that sat in the front outside got soaked, and I don't mean a little spray either.

 

With that many ships in port, if you want to go to St. John, I would book through the ship.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
SoFloGal

SoFloGal

Posted
Posted
So we'd been planning on just ferrying ourselves over to St. John and back instead of doing a ship excursion... but there will be a total of SEVEN ships in port, so I'm super-concerned about things like street traffic and limited space on the ferries. Any thoughts on this from those of you who have been there, done that? Would we be better off just sucking it up and doing a ship excursion for the safety of it, or will we still be okay doing it on our own? Thanks in advance!

 

Please enlighten me. How do you find out how many ships will be in port on any given day????? Thanks! (We'll be there March 15)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
SoFloGal

SoFloGal

Posted
Posted
We will be in St. Thomas the end of March with 7 ships in also, 18,000 passengers... Should we stay on the ship?

 

No!!!!!!! Get off that ship and have a good time! We have done the ferry/Trunk Bay tour to St. John, which is so beautiful you will remember it for a lifetime. The picture of Trunk Bay from the overlook is still on my refrigerator 8 years later. Beach gorgeous, snorkeling so-so if you have been many other places. And just two years ago we did the tour to Coki Beach and Coral World, which was also lots of fun. If you do that one, though, go to the beach first ( snorkel here) because the beach will be mobbed if you tour the aquarium first. There are changing facilities and food stands at Coral World....a fun place if you like sealife. There is a big viewing area built out in the water. You walk down a winding staircase and look out windows to see the fish swimming around the coral reef. Like snorkeling without getting wet. We saw the cutest yellow octopus there on the window. Had a great time! You can feed stingrays, too. Children would love it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
SoFloGal

SoFloGal

Posted
Posted

Queeniecruiser, You are a doll. Many thanks! We'll have 5 ships in on our day so have booked a ship excursion, just sightseeing mostly. Amber Museum and Blackbeard's (never done those). May switch to the one that includes Maegan's but am undecided with that many people in port. Again, thanks for the response.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
souyouki

souyouki

Posted
Posted

I'll be in St. Thomas with six ships in port (and on top of that, I'm on the Allure--so please accept my apologies for contributing to the likely overcrowding.)

 

I'd like to tour around the port as well as relax about 1~2 hours at a beach--whether at St. John or not doesn't matter, I just want to pick the option that would allow for ample time to go back to the Crown Bay pier. I'm inclined to take a ship-sponsored excursion, but I was wondering if there may be cheaper options if I choose an independent option... and would such independent options be safe and allow for time to return to the ship?

 

Thanks so much in advance for your help!

 

(A note re: beaches: I've read on these boards that the Magens Bay beach is the most famous beach, but since it's so famous, I'm a little concerned about crowds...)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
YOW

YOW

Posted
Posted
Go to this website; cruisett.com

 

cruisett.com does not list any RCI ships going into St. Lucia.....that is weird.

 

Cruisett.com is incomplete and not updated regularly.

 

We've seen better accuracy on cruisetimetables.com ... and when something isn't right, they respond promptly to emails for correction.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
paulanddarnell

paulanddarnell

Posted
Posted

We were in St. Thomas with 5 ships in port. We did the St. John Eco hike with the ship (Princess). It was great. We were sent over on a private ferry that was pretty full, but because this was marked as strenuous, the group for our hike was only 8. It was great and really not strenuous. A one mile hike with some rocks and a small incline. If you do it, bring snorkel gear. My husband and I were the only two that snorkeled. It was great. Saw an octopus! I had read this was a nice small tour on the board, and it was.

 

We got back with about 3 hours to spare and went to Charlotte Amalie. Too many people, I was ready to go back to the ship after 5 minutes!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Host Anne "Live from...." Rare

Host Anne

Posted
Posted

If you google St. Thomas Cruise Ship Schedule you will find several sites that provide a list of ships scheduled to dock in St. Thomas on any given day. Some are more up to date than others.

 

As long as we are docking in Havensight, regardless of how many ships are in port, we head to St. John. There are so many beautiful beachs on St. John, there are some that will not have crowds. With a bunch of ships in port, I'd suggest skipping Trunk Bay (catch a shot of it from the overlook....you'll see it in my avatar) and head to Cinnamon which is just up the road. Head back to St. Thomas a little earlier than normal (if your ship leaves at 6:00 PM, take the 3:00 PM ferry from Cruz Bay back to Red Hook). But don't stay on the ship. This is one of the best stops in the Caribbean. Get out there an enjoy one of the U.S.A. best treasure!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Chesie

Chesie

Posted
Posted

When we first rented a home on St John 35 years ago, not much at all happening on the island and we had Trunk Bay all to ourselves! Absolutely georgous area and the snorkeling was wonderful. However, we visited there a couple years ago and we were packed in like sardines on the beach and elbow to elbow snorkeling. So, when we dock at St Thomas this time, we'll eat breakfast after everyone is off for the day and walk around a bit. Glad we were in St John years ago to truly enjoy the area.

 

Get off the ship if this is your first time. You'll regret it if you don't

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Host Anne "Live from...." Rare

Host Anne

Posted
Posted

Queenie ~ here's a thread that provides all the details you need to do St. John on your own. Let em know if you have questions: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1196166

 

Chesie ~ while St. John is not nearly as deserted as it was 25 years ago, she still has plenty of places where you can enjoy the serene beauty of the island. If you are willing to skip Trunk Bay and venture a bit further to Cinnamon and Maho, you can avoid the crowds. Or if you stop at Hawksnest (before Trunk) you can enjoy a beautiful beach, too. And, if you are truly adventuresome and rent a jeep, you can explore all kinds of places/beaches that cruise ship passengers don't go. While it certainly isn't the same as 25 years ago, nothing is. But that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of wonderful places to explore on St. John. There is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Queeniecruiser

Queeniecruiser

Posted
Posted
Queenie ~ here's a thread that provides all the details you need to do St. John on your own. Let em know if you have questions: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1196166

 

Chesie ~ while St. John is not nearly as deserted as it was 25 years ago, she still has plenty of places where you can enjoy the serene beauty of the island. If you are willing to skip Trunk Bay and venture a bit further to Cinnamon and Maho, you can avoid the crowds. Or if you stop at Hawksnest (before Trunk) you can enjoy a beautiful beach, too. And, if you are truly adventuresome and rent a jeep, you can explore all kinds of places/beaches that cruise ship passengers don't go. While it certainly isn't the same as 25 years ago, nothing is. But that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of wonderful places to explore on St. John. There is.

 

 

Annie,

Thanks for the link to this thread, lots of great information!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ValerieJo

ValerieJo

Posted
Posted

We decided to do a ship sponsored excursion to St. John due to 6 ships in port.

 

Our excursion will take us to Honeymoon Beach/Cove. Is that near Trunk, Hawksnest or Cinnamon? I can't really find much on the boards about Honeymoon.

 

Does anyone have any info?

 

Thanks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • ANNOUNCEMENT: Set Sail on Sun Princess®
      • Hurricane Zone 2024
      • Cruise Insurance Q&A w/ Steve Dasseos of Tripinsurancestore.com June 2024
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...