Clearwater Beach

[Son of a son of a ...]

We are on the June 30th NCL Escape cruise to Bermuda.  We would be very appreciative of any advice on how to get from the port to Clearwater Beach and back.

 

I heard NCL has a ferry from the dockyard to Hamilton.  Can we take a bus or taxi to Clearwater Beach?  Any idea of a reasonable cost?  We are most anxious about getting back from the beach to Hamilton - are taxis available near the beach?  Also, should I be saying “Clearwater Beach” or is there a local term or more appropriate term for that location?

 

When we get to the beach, are chairs and an umbrella available for rent?  If so, do they take credit cards, USD, or do we need to covert to Bermuda currency?  Do we need to “reserve” chairs and an umbrella or are they readily available?

 

PS - are there food and beverages available at the beach?

 

Sorry for so many Qs ... this is our first time in Bermuda.

 

Thanks!

[njhorseman]

3 hours ago, Son of a son of a ... said:

We are on the June 30th NCL Escape cruise to Bermuda.  We would be very appreciative of any advice on how to get from the port to Clearwater Beach and back.

 

I heard NCL has a ferry from the dockyard to Hamilton.  Can we take a bus or taxi to Clearwater Beach?  Any idea of a reasonable cost?  We are most anxious about getting back from the beach to Hamilton - are taxis available near the beach?  Also, should I be saying “Clearwater Beach” or is there a local term or more appropriate term for that location?

 

When we get to the beach, are chairs and an umbrella available for rent?  If so, do they take credit cards, USD, or do we need to covert to Bermuda currency?  Do we need to “reserve” chairs and an umbrella or are they readily available?

 

PS - are there food and beverages available at the beach?

 

Sorry for so many Qs ... this is our first time in Bermuda.

 

Thanks!

NCL has a free ferry from Dockyard to St. George, not Hamilton, but that's good if you want to go to Clearwater Beach, because Clearwater Beach is near St. George, not Hamilton.

 

FYI there are also public ferry routes from Dockyard to Hamilton and Dockyard to St. George. Those ferries cost $5 cash per person per ride, or you can buy tokens for $4.50, or there are transportation passes that can be used on both ferries and buses.

 

 You can take a taxi from St. George to Clearwater Beach. Taxis are metered.  It will probably cost about $18 for 1 - 4 passengers one way.

 

There is a concession operator at Clearwater Beach,  the same group that operates the concessions at Tobacco Bay, which is another beach near St. George (but not near Clearwater). They have rentals, food and drink...I haven't see a recent report on their prices. Here's a link to their website. Perhaps you can email them to ask about prices and whether they accept credit cards.  https://www.tobaccobay.bm/

 

Bermudian dollars are on par with  the US dollar and you can pay with US dollars everywhere . You don't want to take any Bermudian currency home except if you want a souvenir because you can't change it back to any other  currency when you get home.

 

Just curious...is there a particular reason you want to got to Clearwater Beach? There's nothing wrong with it but it is man made, and it's a long trip from the Dockyard. It's much quicker  to get to Horseshoe Bay, which is considered one of the world's great beaches...and it's a natural "pink sand" beach...the type Bermuda is famous for. Admittedly it can get crowded, but you just have to go a short distance from the area closest to the concessions to have more room to your self.

Edited June 10, 2019 by njhorseman

[Son of a son of a ...]

19 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

NCL has a free ferry from Dockyard to St. George, not Hamilton, but that's good if you want to go to Clearwater Beach, because Clearwater Beach is near St. George, not Hamilton.

 

FYI there are also public ferry routes from Dockyard to Hamilton and Dockyard to St. George. Those ferries cost $5 cash per person per ride, or you can buy tokens for $4.50, or there are transportation passes that can be used on both ferries and buses.

 

 You can take a taxi from St. George to Clearwater Beach. Taxis are metered.  It will probably cost about $18 for 1 - 4 passengers one way.

 

There is a concession operator at Clearwater Beach,  the same group that operates the concessions at Tobacco Bay, which is another beach near St. George (but not near Clearwater). They have rentals, food and drink...I haven't see a recent report on their prices. Here's a link to their website. Perhaps you can email them to ask about prices and whether they accept credit cards.  https://www.tobaccobay.bm/

 

Bermudian dollars are on par with  the US dollar and you can pay with US dollars everywhere . You don't want to take any Bermudian currency home except if you want a souvenir because you can't change it back to any other  currency when you get home.

 

Just curious...is there a particular reason you want to got to Clearwater Beach? There's nothing wrong with it but it is man made, and it's a long trip from the Dockyard. It's much quicker  to get to Horseshoe Bay, which is considered one of the world's great beaches...and it's a natural "pink sand" beach...the type Bermuda is famous for. Admittedly it can get crowded, but you just have to go a short distance from the area closest to the concessions to have more room to your self.

 

‘Thanks for the info!  We read good things about Clearwater and thought it might be a fun “adventure” ... we were going to book an excursion to the beach through NCL, but are inclined to DIY due to what seemed like an unduly high cost for a ride.

[CruisnDeb]

On 6/9/2019 at 9:00 PM, Son of a son of a ... said:

 

‘Thanks for the info!  We read good things about Clearwater and thought it might be a fun “adventure” ... we were going to book an excursion to the beach through NCL, but are inclined to DIY due to what seemed like an unduly high cost for a ride.

 

We will be in Bermuda at the end of August and also are planning a day at Clearwater Beach.  We also plan to go to Horseshoe beach for one day, but like you, we have heard great things about Clearwater (and it will be nice to have a beach day on an uncrowded beach.)  We are going to Ferry over to St. George's and then catch a taxi to a beach bar called Gombey's.

 

I have been in contact with Gombey's (they have a Facebook page and have been really good about responding to my questions.)  FYI they have food and drinks and also take credit cards 🙂.  I also read that there are rentals for beach chairs and umbrellas, but it is not from Gombey's.  I have been unable to find out an specific information about the rentals, so I guess we will find out when we get there.

[TenForward]

On 6/12/2019 at 11:22 AM, CruisnDeb said:

 

We will be in Bermuda at the end of August and also are planning a day at Clearwater Beach.  We also plan to go to Horseshoe beach for one day, but like you, we have heard great things about Clearwater (and it will be nice to have a beach day on an uncrowded beach.)  We are going to Ferry over to St. George's and then catch a taxi to a beach bar called Gombey's.

 

I have been in contact with Gombey's (they have a Facebook page and have been really good about responding to my questions.)  FYI they have food and drinks and also take credit cards .  I also read that there are rentals for beach chairs and umbrellas, but it is not from Gombey's.  I have been unable to find out an specific information about the rentals, so I guess we will find out when we get there.

 

I've been looking at Clearwater Beach as well.  We'll be going in October.  Our last trip to Bermuda (2017) we spent the day at Tobacco Bay and it was nice having the smaller, quieter day.  Would really love to hear what you find on your visit to Clearwater... insights on the taxi from ferry, chair/umbrella rental, facilities and safety of the water (calm and serene?).   The Excursion sounds nice but as the ferry is free, it seems very high priced.   

 

Have a great time and look forward to (hopefully) hearing how everything went!

 

 

[Lady Lucy]

Clearwater is our favorite beach in Bermuda, mainly because you can walk to Cooper Island Reserve, breath-taking views and several smaller beaches with very few people.  Food and drinks at Gombey's are great.  If you go by taxi, you may want to ask him/her to come back to get you at a certain time.

[63galaxie]

How far of a walk is it toCooper Island Reserve?

[Lady Lucy]

It's about 5 minutes or less from Clearwater Beach.  Just walk down the road to the right as you look at the water.  There's a sign there and a gate, but the gate is just to keep cars out so just walk around it.

[CruisnDeb]

On 6/14/2019 at 5:21 PM, TenForward said:

 

I've been looking at Clearwater Beach as well.  We'll be going in October.  Our last trip to Bermuda (2017) we spent the day at Tobacco Bay and it was nice having the smaller, quieter day.  Would really love to hear what you find on your visit to Clearwater... insights on the taxi from ferry, chair/umbrella rental, facilities and safety of the water (calm and serene?).   The Excursion sounds nice but as the ferry is free, it seems very high priced.   

 

Have a great time and look forward to (hopefully) hearing how everything went!

 

 

I will do my best to remember to report back 🙂 

[CruisnDeb]

On 6/15/2019 at 4:44 PM, Lady Lucy said:

Clearwater is our favorite beach in Bermuda, mainly because you can walk to Cooper Island Reserve, breath-taking views and several smaller beaches with very few people.  Food and drinks at Gombey's are great.  If you go by taxi, you may want to ask him/her to come back to get you at a certain time.

 

We plan to visit the reserve too 🙂 

[dznymom]

We went last year and really enjoyed it.  We are going back on Monday provided the weather cooperates!  I don't remember the price for a chair and umbrella, so it must have been reasonable.  The walk to the reserve was easy and we had a beach all to ourselves for awhile beforehand, but there are no chairs so we moved to Clearwater for the afternoon.  There were a few locals there, and it was delightful to watch their children frolicking in the water.  We also had a couple of Dark and Stormy's at Gombey's and shared a fish sandwich which was delicious.  I am very excited to be going back with first timers to Bermuda!

[1bets1]

So is Gombey's in between Clearwater and the nature reserve? Are these places easy to find? And if I'm taking a cab from St George, where should I ask to be dropped off?

[Lady Lucy]

Gombey's is at Clearwater Beach so just ask the taxi driver to drop you off there.  Nature Reserve is a short, easy  walk up the road.  Neither is hard to find.

[1bets1]

28 minutes ago, Lady Lucy said:

Gombey's is at Clearwater Beach so just ask the taxi driver to drop you off there.  Nature Reserve is a short, easy  walk up the road.  Neither is hard to find.

Thank you. Some said it is hard to get a taxi back to the ferry. Couldn't I just ask someone at Gombeys to call for me?

[Lady Lucy]

Yes.  I'm sure they would be happy to call for you.  There may be a delay in a taxi responding though.  One year when we were there, they couldn't get a taxi to come at all, but that was several years ago.  There are many more people going to Clearwater now, so, hopefully, that won't be a problem for you.