St. John on your own

[cnjoy26]

We are doing the St. John on your own excursion half day through RC. I believe it is from 11-4. We want to go to trunk bay. What long does it take to get from the port to trunk bay? I know we have to take a taxi from st Cruz (I believe?) to trunk bay? How long does it take from the port to st Cruz then st Cruz to trunk bay? I reallllyyyyyy wanna go to trunk bay but just trying to figure it out time wise! Thanks to all! 

 

Also- If  you have pics of trunk bay-I’d love to see them! 

[blue_water]

With the cruise line excursion (RCCL STY4) you take a 45 minute ferry from from the ship to Cruz Bay and a short taxi to Trunk. You get ~2 hours on STJ which is not enough time IMHO, and it can be a rough ferry ride through more open water.

 

Going on your own you grab a safari taxi going to the Red Hook ferry terminal (20 min, $10 -$11pp), ferry to Cruz Bay (15. In, $7pp), and taxi to Trunk or Cinnamon Bay (10 min, $7pp).  So you see some of STT and get a shorter but nicer ferry ride at about out the same travel time as the ship excursion. The self-excursion will cost more (~$48pp vs $39 through the ship) but you have the freedom and flexibility to enjoy the beach longer and see Cruz Bay as well.

 

The ferries are very reliable and depart from both Red Hook and Cruz Bay every hour on the hour. Most folks who go on their own will take the return ferry from Cruz 2 hours before their BOB time to be safe. Enjoy your day whatever you choose!

Edited November 25, 2018 by blue_water

[msmayor]

We were on St. John four weeks ago, and toured the island.

 

I suggest checking to see what, if anything, is available at Trunk Bay for you to enjoy your beach time.  Our ferry crew told us that there were no concessions at all available at Trunk Bay yet due to the hurricane damage.  They were selling water, soda, chips and hot dogs for the people to take with them as they said nothing would be available.

[OCruisers]

We normally love going to Trunk Bay but will not go until the the concession area/bar is up and running again.  

[blue_water]

10 hours ago, OCruisers said:

We normally love going to Trunk Bay but will not go until the the concession area/bar is up and running again.  

Yes I was wondering what the status was. I read that as of April the reverse osmosis system had been repaired so the restrooms and showers are working, and the concessions can now be put in place. The rental hut is also open with lounge and other rentals. Representatives from the concession operator (Redwood Parks) visited Trunk but that’s the last update I read.

 

If cruise lines are not yet offering excursions specifically to Trunk then it might be a great time to visit Trunk Bay! You could grab a picnic lunch in Cruz Bay. But with Trunk Bay’s popularity with cruisers it may be too late to take advantage anyway...

[Host Anne]

We have vacationed on St. John for years.  Spent ten days on island in May.  She really is on a good road to recovery.  Things like concessions at the beaches are tough but you do have options.  Call ahead for sandwiches that you can pick up when you get off the ferry.  Two options near the ferry dock are Cruz Bay Landing and North Shore Deli.  The Deli option would require your taxi drive to stop for you to pick up your order (not really a big deal as it should only take you a few minutes to do this and they can pull into the side parking lot).  Cruz Bay Landing is immediately in front of the ferry dock.  You could pick up your order first and then jump in a taxi to the beach.  North Shore has a bigger sandwich selection but Cruz Bay Landing might be a bit easier to pick up.  Here are links to both of those:

 

http://northshoredeli.restaurantsnapshot.com/  Call to order 340-777-3061

 

http://www.cruzbaylanding.com/lunch.html    Call to order - 340-776-6908

 

I'd also suggest bringing a small soft sided cooler to keep drinks in.  Remember that glass bottles are not permitted on National Park Beaches so please take cans or the plastic bottles.  

 

There are restrooms you can use at Trunk.  

 

We've done the St. John On Your Own Excursion through the ship in the past, mostly when we have other guests with us from a cruise ship.  If you call a lunch order in, you can still get in 2.5 hours at Trunk given the excursion goes from 11 - 4.  Going it on your own is easy if you are comfortable doing that.

 

Have a GREAT time no matter what you decide.

[vacationlover_mn]

I wonder how rebuilt they will be by February?

[blue_water]

3 hours ago, vacationlover_mn said:

I wonder how rebuilt they will be by February?

They? The concession stands? Everything else is waiting for you...

[vacationlover_mn]

On 11/26/2018 at 8:01 PM, blue_water said:

They? The concession stands? Everything else is waiting for you...

Yep- the concession stands.

[blue_water]

4 hours ago, vacationlover_mn said:

Yep- the concession stands.

I know that cruise lines once offered excursions specifically to Trunk Bay because we had taken that excursion on our first cruise to STT oh so many years ago. So perhaps these will be added to your excursions list soon...

 

But I would also post your question on the TripAdvisor St John forum, if there is a planned opening date for the concession stand a destination expert there would know it

[hvbaskey]

We took the Celebrity DIY excursion to St. John (via St. Thomas).  Although we didn’t have a lot of time on the island, several people did venture off to beaches.  We decided to hike a trail instead of the beach.  Saying that the trail that we did hike did go to Solomon and/or Honeymoon beaches.

Our blog review of the ferry transfer, morning in St. John, and return is hereL

https://baskeytravels.com/st-john-via-st-thomas-usvi/

 

Heather

[Houndfish]

Planning a future RCI cruise that will include St. Thomas and want to do St. John on your own exc. Probably explore, eat, drink and shop in Cruz Bay. Are there enough activities there to consume our shore time?

[blue_water]

>> Probably explore, eat, drink and shop in Cruz Bay. Are there enough activities there to consume our shore time? <<

 

Depends on your time there, and if by "activities" you just mean shopping, eating and drinking? There are several shops and eateries/bars in Cruz Bay, but unless you are looking for a quality Hook Bracelet or something else specific I wouldn't travel all the way to Cruz Bay for that (unless of course you've been to Charlotte Amalie several times and want something different?)...