Dockyard-St George-Hamilton one day

[HappyNow]

This is my proposed itinerary for our first day in Bermuda.

Wednesday Sept 14, 2011

Off ship as quickly as possible after a large breakfast

 

Get 2 or 3 day transportation passes (not sure if I am brave enough to leave dockyard on third day.)

Head with the rest of the huge crowd to Orange Ferry hopefully get 10:00 am Ferry to St. George

Get off the ferry and head left on Water St to Kings St back to Water St to the Post Office (I’m a retired Postmaster). It looks like I can cut through a parking lot to the right of the Post Office and end up right across the street from the Queen St. I would walk up Queen St to the Perfumery then turn onto Church St then left on Clarence back to King’s Square to see the Stocks & Pillory at noon.

Then a quick view of the State House and Somers Garden and a walk up Government Hill Rd, take some photos at the Unfinished Church, then through St. George Golf Course to Tobacco Bay for some beach time.

 

Taxi, if available, or walk back to Bus at Kings Square to get #1, 3, 10 or 11 bus at Blue Pole to Swizzle Inn. (Politely tell bus driver that is where we are going. Drink/Lunch/Snack at Swizzle Inn, then back to Blue Pole for #1, 3, 10 or 11 bus to Hamilton Ferry. Blue Ferry at 4:30; 6:00; 6:30 back to Dockyard. Crash and Burn after dinner on the ship.

 

OK now for the main questions-I know this is a full day, but is it doable? Is it easy to find the ferry from Kings Warf? How far? I think the sites I’ve listed in St. George except for Tobacco Bay are all pretty close (less than ¼ mile) is that correct. Where is the entrance to Somers Garden? Can I walk through it and then to the Unfinished Church? Is there food at Tobacco Bay?

 

If it’s raining I would change Tobacco bay to Deliverance or Caves near Swizzle Inn. Any tips on how do get to those two would be appreciated. I would welcome any comments experienced Bermuda posters would like to share. We can be flexible and will linger at any place that really interests us, but I do need a plan so we are not standing around deciding what to do or getting lost a lot.

[Host Caroline]

IMHO ambitious for first day ... 2 ships arrive... rush for ferry passes etc. We did St George second day (Thurs) and line for ferry was still very long; overflow goes on the tender which gets into St George about 1/2 hr or so later. Assuming there are no delays at all in disembarking you could probably make 10:00 ferry but very hectic. You can't see everything you want to see in St George in time to get to Swizzle for "lunch" unless you eat lunch at 1:30-2:00.. and Tobacco Bay will add time .. not really walkable IMHO...

If you have beach plan for Thursday maybe swap your days?

[SailBadtheSinner]

HappyNow asked:

 

Q: Is it easy to find the ferry from Kings Warf? How far? A: When you leave the ramp to the wharves, make a left and the ferry dock is about 2 minutes in front of you.

 

Q: Where is the entrance to Somers Garden? A: There is an entrance on Duke of York St.

 

Q: Can I walk through it and then to the Unfinished Church? A: Yes, exit onto Blockade Alley on the opposite side of garden from where you entered. Take left onto BA and then right onto Government Hill Rd which you would take to get to the Unfinished Church.

 

Q: Is there food at Tobacco Bay? A: There is a concession stand at TB. There is also a restaurant (BlackBeards Hideout) about .3 mile from TB.

 

Q: Deliverance or Caves near Swizzle Inn. Any tips on how do get to those two would be appreciated. A; The Deliverance is on Ordnance Island which is connected by a bridge starting at King’s Square. The caves are located about a 7 minute walk from SI.

 

You want to do a lot. How late are you willing to stay out?

 

 

SBtS

[HappyNow]

Thank you both for the thoughtful informative responses.

 

Caroline, I was thinking that Horseshoe Beach would be the place most crowded on the first day.

 

SBtS we can do a long day, I'm thinking catching the 6 or 6:30 ferry back to the Dockyard would be most likely. I've got some thinking to do now.

[nextrip]

Just got back and we did St. Georges first day..just get to the ferry line first thing. We did some exploring around St. Georges, including the unfinished church, snorkeling and lunch at Tobacco bay,(got there before it got too crowded), then walked back to the main area, caught a bus, went to grotto bay where we rented a Boston Whaler for a few hours, then walked to swizzle inn for snack and drink of course. Buses went on strike which forced us to grab a taxi back to Hamilton where we walked around a bit during harbor night..then caught ferry back to dockyard and back on ship for later dinner. full day but doable!