Trunk Bay for the Day ??

[rlanting]

I'm planning on going to Trunk Bay on our own when coming in on the destiny cruise ship. I think I have read most of the treads about doing this, but still have a couple questions.

 

1. Is there some place on the way that the Taxi could stop at a store to get sodas or beer for the beach??

2. Is it ok to bring a small cooler into the park at Trunk Bay.

3. After we leave would the shopping be better if we go to the dock instead of going back to Red hook??

Last think is there any good places to eat in Cruz Bay when we wait for the ferry to come ??

 

Also any other information would be great. Thanks Randy :)

[GoBigRed]

I'm planning on going to Trunk Bay on our own when coming in on the destiny cruise ship. I think I have read most of the treads about doing this, but still have a couple questions.

 

1. Is there some place on the way that the Taxi could stop at a store to get sodas or beer for the beach??

2. Is it ok to bring a small cooler into the park at Trunk Bay.

3. After we leave would the shopping be better if we go to the dock instead of going back to Red hook??

Last think is there any good places to eat in Cruz Bay when we wait for the ferry to come ??

 

Also any other information would be great. Thanks Randy :)

 

Here is what I can tell you.

 

1) There is no place on the way really to stop, and the taxis carry multiple people, so they aren't going to stop and wait for you. They do sell beer and soda at the beach, as well as food (burgers and such). I can guess there are plenty of places right near the dock at Cruz Bay, but don't know for certain.

2) Don't know about this one.

3) Don't know which dock you are talking about. There is NO shopping near the dock at Red Hook. If you went back to Red Hook, you would have to go downtown, or go to Havensight mall near the ship docks.

4) Not sure about this, however, with ferries leaving every hour, I don't think you would really be waiting too long. We enjoyed the beach so much we could make ourselves leave until the last minute to catch the ferry. :)

 

Hope that helps!!

[The Islander]

1. You could walk to the grocery store in Cruz Bay, that is where the ferry pier is, and buy what you need and then walk back to the main ferry area and catch a taxi. Cruz Bay is very small.

 

2. It is ok to bring a cooler.

 

3. Yes the shopping is better in Havensight and downtown than in Red Hook.

 

4. Yes there are restaurants in Cruz Bay.

 

--Islander

http://www.*****

[rlanting]

What ferry is that which goes downtown, does it have a name like Red Hook ?? and how far will the taxi ride be back to the Cruise ship docks.

 

That way I plan right... Thank you for the other info. :)

[Sheffie]

Red Hook is not the name of the dock down town. You have to take a taxi to get there and if I remember correctly it is about 20 minutes from the ship's pier.

 

Hope this answers your question.

 

Here is a link to the Ferry Schedule:

If you scroll down you can see the schedule for the ferry from down town, also.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/editpost.php?do=editpost&p=3738210

[The Islander]

Ferries going to St. John from St. Thomas leave from two areas of St. Thomas and they are called by the area. So you have the Charlotte Amalie ferry and the Red Hook ferry. The Charlotte Amalie ferry is the downtown one (downtown's name is Charlotte Amalie).

 

The taxi ride from Havensight to Downtown Charlotte Amalie is about 6 minutes and is $3.

 

You can find both ferry schedules and their cost, operator, at http://www.*****/general_usvi/interisland_ferry/

 

and you can find a comparison time wise, cost wise at: http://www.*****/general_usvi/cruiseship/cruiseguide_page1.php scroll to the bottom of that page.

 

--Islander

http://www.*****

[rlanting]

As listed above, we will be going to the main part of the City (thanks great info. above) But when we get to the downtown area, what is some of the good shoping areas. Maybe give use info. amybe working back to the Cruise Ships.

 

Thanks again for all the great info. about Trunks Bay, looks like most of my Group is going there with me. :)

[Sweetdreams]

Rplanting,

We just came back from the Caribbean and did the independent tour that you are planning. This board was very helpfun in answering all my questions and I printed out all the ferry schedules for both Red Hook & Charalotte Amalie ferries as well as the taxi schedules. The expense of "doing it on our own" as compared to our cruiseline excursion was within $20 for two people. We chose to do it on our own because the planned ship excursion only allowed two hrs. or less at the beach. Let just say that this beach is beautiful and the snorkeling (which was the biggest reason we wanted to go) was good but not the best of our experiences during this cruise. I have not regrets in going there but the traffic congestion was horrendous in St. Thomas when we were there and there were only 4 cruise ships in port that day. I would hate to be there when there are more-I've read that as many as 8 have been there at one time. We did the Red Hook route to catch the ferry & taxi service was easily obtained from our dock. We were the only ship docked at Crown Bay, there were three of the largest ships docked at Havensight that day (2 with 3000 pax each!). Taxi was air conditioned & as previous poster explained the taxis are usually vans holding 6-10 people. So you might be stopping several places along the way until you get to Red Hook. I don't want to discourage you about going to Trunk Bay but I would definitely not do this again the taxi & ferry rides take up alot of your precious port time. We had no problems getting back to the ship on time but I promised myself that if I ever read a post of someone asking for help to get to Trunk Bay that I would encourage them to consider-Do you really want to spend half of you port day in in a taxi sitting in traffic & on a ferry?

I heard a lot of good things about other beaches in St. Thomas-Sapphire & Maegans Bay particularily but those cruisers also had horrendous traffic jams to contend with but much more time to relax on the beach. Have a great time no matter what you decide. Oh, by the way we took our own snorkel gear & it was the best money we spent! The park at Trunk Bay is wonderful and they have some refreshments right there. We had just taken along bottled water & granola bars. Some folks stopped at a shopping area just before the Red Hook dock to shop or eat. There were a few places to buy frozen adult drinks while waiting for the Red Hook ferry nearby. The beach at Trunk Bay is much more narrow than I expected from viewing pictures & little shade, so everyone tends to grab an area quickly. We spent most of our time in the water along the snorkeling trail and the beach is protected by life guards. There are fresh water showers (not soap/shampoo allowed) and changing areas directly behind the beach. Hope this helps.

[rlanting]

Thank you for a different view of doing the tour on your own....

 

What day of the week were you there ?? And the maybe the time that way I can maybe beat the traffic?? :)

[tadjr]

We did Cinnamon Bay on St John and had a great day. We did it on our own and did not have trouble with traffic except coming back another taxi broke down in the road, but it didnt take more than 5 mins for it to clear. We had some at our table that wanted to go to a beach on St Thomas and after trying to get a cab there twice without having to wait for them to get "a full load" to go, they decided to give up and stay on the ship. On the other hand, we were off the ship at 830am, in a cab and at Red Hook at 855am. Caught the 9am ferry over. Once in St John, hopped in a cab and was at Cinnamon Bay by 950am. It was definitely worth the trip. The ferry ride was nice and relaxing and the beach was very nice. The ride on St John was quite a trip too with the hills and turns in the road. Not too many people at Cinnamon Bay either and lots of room to be alone. People we talked to who snorkeled saw all kinds of wildlife including a nurse shark and grouper in addition to the smaller fish. Someone brought a cereal container and was feeding the fish about 15 feet offshore. There were some beautiful angel fish he managed to get to come and we didnt need equipment to see them. In my personal opinion, I would recommend a trip to St Johns to get away from the crowd for a while.

[Sweetdreams]

Thank you for a different view of doing the tour on your own....

 

What day of the week were you there ?? And the maybe the time that way I can maybe beat the traffic?? :)

 

Didn't mean in any way for my opinion to affect your decision making. When we were in the planning stages of our cruise-I just made decisions based on the best information I could tap into. We did have a wonderful time at Trunk Bay but no one discussed the traffic problems. This port (St.Thomas) is very popular for all the cruiselines so no matter which day of the week you are there, there is a very good chance that you won't be the only ship in port. If you find a way to beat the traffic be sure to post. One way might be to wait for the ferry from Charolotte Amalie (leave every hour) to avoid the taxi ride across town to Red Hook but this is a much longer ride by ferry at 45 minutes each way to Cruz Bay. Research other threads to learn about others experiences on other St. Thomas beaches too. This option might be your best bet for more beach time. Good luck & have fun no matter what you decide.

[lisaanne0220]

are there water activities on Cinnamon Bay ?

 

Trunk bay?

[The Islander]

If someone is visiting right now through say October - thats our slow season - there are typically 1, 2 or 0 ships in port... a few days 3 ships. During season we have 5,6,7 sometimes 9 ships. So during off season less traffic and crowds will be incountered.

 

PS. The Charlotte Amalie ferry doesn't run every hour; the Red Hook ferry does. The Charlotte Amalie ferry has a more limited schedule. You can compare the two of them at http://www.*****/general_usvi/interisland_ferry/

 

Lisaanne - yes there is a watersports booth at Cinnamon Bay with windsurfers... maybe kayaks.

 

Have a great time!!

 

--Islander

http://www.*****

[Jimbo in Ma.]

So Islander, I am in St Thomas in the end of October with only 2 other ships. Is it worth the time to get over to St. John too see the beaches or with less crowded condition in St. Thomas should we just stay there and hit a beach like secret harbor?

[The Islander]

Hello Jimbo,

 

I think its worth going to St. John to see St. John, period. The National Park/St. John is beautiful. I also think if you haven't been to St. Thomas then its worthwhile to get the most out of your time and pick some highlights on that island and do that. A great time can be had on either island is what I am saying. You really could do an 'inny-minnie-miny-mo' and either pick would be a great one. ;) Secret Harbor is a lovely beach and Blue Moon Cafe there is great for lunch and they have a nice beach side bar - great day.

 

--Islander

http://www.*****

[Jimbo in Ma.]

Thanks for the info, it's so nice to get advice from someone who knows each island! It is our first time to St Thomas, so I think we will do secret harbor and see some of the island. Our kids have never been snorkling and they say it's pretty good at secret harbor. That was the main reason I was thinking of St Johns, was the snorkling. We have seen nice beaches since we are right nest to Cape Cod in Massachusetts! Just assure me that Secret Harbor is a really clean beach with nice water! Thanks

[rlanting]

When we are in port there will only be one other ship, so I'm hoping that will help a lot. I read and tried this link to check what ships are in port the same time we are in port.

 

http://www.cruisecal.com/dnn/default.aspx

 

I will let everyone know how my trip works out.... :)

[The Islander]

Hello Jimbo,

 

Many of our beaches in the VI are small compared to the really long beaches I have experienced in the states (Florida, California... haven't been to beaches up toward MA).

 

Secret Harbor is a medium size bay, by our standards. It has maybe three dozens palm trees scattered around the shore - very neat looking. Some with hammocks hanging from them. The water is clear and typically very calm. The left side of the bay has some sandstone (I think that's what it is)... hard, white, sandy looking rock - solid... in a few spots in the water. There is a floating raft in the middle if one wanted to swim out to it and jump off it, lay on it etc. The good snorkeling I have experienced there is on the right hand side... just follow allow the rocks from shore and out. Many fish in the coves formed by the rocks, under rock ledges etc.

 

--Islander

*****

[rlanting]

Another quick question.... I found out that we leave at 5:30 pm a little earlier then I planed on, If we go in town shopping after Truck bay, how far away are we from the Ship or would the shopping be ok around the Port??

 

Thanks Randy :)

[The Islander]

Hello Randy,

 

When you get downtown to shop... there is just one shopping area. The shopping area is made up of three roads - waterfront, main street and back street. And then there are alleys that connect between main street and the waterfront that you can go up and down. Most of the shops are along Main Street and Waterfront and in the alleys.

 

As for working your way back to the ship... the 35 minute walk from downtown to Havensight doesn't have shops. Its just a walk along the waterfront apron and the waterfront road.

 

You can shop in Havensight as well, where the ships usually dock.

 

A taxi from downtown to Havensight takes about 6-8 minutes in low traffic. And cost $3 a person.

 

--Islander

http://www.*****