ST. KITTS taxi driver warning!

[sis0876]

We got off ship and ended up hiring a taxi driver with 8 others ( people we didnt know.) the driver came across very friendly until he got us all in his van and sealed the deal. He became very rude and aggressive, ordering us all around. I felt like I was in boot camp! he told us at the batik factory we only had 15 min and he would leave if we were not back! we also went to brimstone fortress (very nice place) we had 45 min there. on the way back to the ship he was driving fast passing cars and honking his horn. He was a very angry man and all that were in his car felt the same way. HIS NAME IS ELIVIS AND HE LIKES TO CALL HIMSELF DR. ELVIS, DO NOT HIRE HIM YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED.:mad:

[laceyjane]

Thank you very much for taking the time to post this warning. We will make sure we do not get Elvis for our day in St. Kitts on our upcoming cruise. This is our second time to St. Kitts, and we also had a very bad experience with the taxi driver that took us to Turtle Beach on our last trip there.

 

Thanks again for the important information.

[Casshew]

Sounds like a scary & disappointing experience :(

[Methow Cruiser]

Thank you very much for taking the time to post this warning. We will make sure we do not get Elvis for our day in St. Kitts on our upcoming cruise. This is our second time to St. Kitts, and we also had a very bad experience with the taxi driver that took us to Turtle Beach on our last trip there.

 

Thanks again for the important information.

laceyjane,

We will be in St Kitts in late march Empress of Seas RCCL. Since you have been there before, do you see any problem in renting a car as opposed to taking a taxi?

Thanks for any help.

[SqueakyDust]

Our taxi driver wasn't that great either.

He went so slow, everyone passed us and he wouldn't vere off his circuit. He wanted to avoid the Fort, just pointed out the Carib stone, and only gave us short times to see places.

I think they want to just do a tour, get you back and get on to the next one. Sad really, as if they give a bit more then they'll receive a bit more, and also get recommended on places like here.

Our driver did mention that things were bad on the island with regard to the Sugar Cane and it was the people who were suffering.

[Coolmama_1]

Thank you, thank you very much!:D

[laceyjane]

Does anyone have an email address for either Annette or Terry Williams?

[calliecat]

We went with a driver named Jordan. He said he was a policeman on the island as well. Very pleasant and everyone we passed along the way waved to him. We would go with him again.

His van had his name across the front windshield and a red basketball player (Michael Jordan??) on the back window.

[Loucat]

We cannot say enough good things about the tour we hired off the ship in St. Kitts. We sailed on Empress of the Seas and could not find any good information prior to our sailing. So- we arrived without plans.

We were fortunate to meet up with Rose of Rose and Jim'sTaxi Tours. She is British and has lived on the island many years. Her van is clean, well air conditioned it works. She is a delight and very caring about the island and it's history. :D

[gtaylor]

We got off ship and ended up hiring a taxi driver with 8 others ( people we didnt know.) the driver came across very friendly until he got us all in his van and sealed the deal. He became very rude and aggressive, ordering us all around. I felt like I was in boot camp! he told us at the batik factory we only had 15 min and he would leave if we were not back! we also went to brimstone fortress (very nice place) we had 45 min there. on the way back to the ship he was driving fast passing cars and honking his horn. He was a very angry man and all that were in his car felt the same way. HIS NAME IS ELIVIS AND HE LIKES TO CALL HIMSELF DR. ELVIS, DO NOT HIRE HIM YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED.:mad:

 

WOW!

 

It's been several years, but we had a great tour with Dr. Elvis. Maybe you got an Elvis Impersonater :) ?

 

Dr. Elvis was recently recognized by Princess Cruises for his personalized quality tour service. See the links here and here.

 

p.s. Noticed that the original poster has never posted since.

[Trovador]

Just a heads up...

 

When paying for such services, ALWAYS leave something for the end. Offer 50% upfront and then 50% when it ends. You'll get much better service and will completely avoid those "15 minutes or I'll leave" rude remarks.

[mongoally]

Last year we did a tour with Rose Herbert and thoroughly enjoyed the trip. I believe it was about 15 dollars apiece in a mini van. Her email is Jim@caribsurf.com

[Last Mango]

I'm going back to St. Kitts this year. I was there maybe 10 years ago for a week. The taxi drivers were all licensed not only to drive to taxi but had to go to school to learn the history, geography, etc. of the island to be proper tour guides. Sounds like things have slacked off. Too bad.

[SandRaven]

That's terrible to hear about such a pressured tour!

 

Our taxi driver was also named Elvis; Elvis Wilson. He was a young guy, very sweet, and incredibly patient. He took us to several different beaches, and we finally picked Cockleshell Beach. He left his card with the bar owner in case there were any changes of plan, and said he'd be back at our requested time of 3:30 to pick us up. We liked the beach so much that we had the bar owner call Elvis to come back an hour later. Elvis was ready 30 minutes early, but hung out with my parents and a British couple at the bar until 4:30. On the way back, he stopped to point out monkeys and a mongoose.

[kates70]

I appreciate that sometimes these things can happen ... I have had similar experiences at home and on vacation.

 

I have recently returned from St Kitts and had a very positive taxi experience. Our taxi driver's name was Warner ... he took us to White House Bay ... and returned promptly when we asked him to. His price was fair. He was very pleasant and professional. What more can you ask for?

[Attack Dog]

I haven't decided yet if I will take a tour through the cruise line or take a taxi on my own. If I take a taxi on my own to Cockleshell would it be hard or risky to just hire a cab at the peir? I noticed that there are lot of suggestions posted throughout this forum to arrange for a taxi service in advance. Also has anyone actually used "The Adams Group" who keeps advertising his services all over this forum? If so how was he?

[Attack Dog]

I find myself thanking you again Liz. :) If my family and I can decide to use a taxi then I will try to use Thenford. I'll even tell him you sent me. As always thank you.

[Attack Dog]

Liz, I tried contacting Thenford. However, he is booked for April 4th. Based on his e-mail message he seemed very profesional. I noticed that you recommended other cab drivers as well so I will attempt to contact one of them.

[natcarm]

Unfortunately, I have another really negative taxi experience to report from St. Kitts. My wife and I just returned from a 7 day cruise and this was definitely the low light. After arriving in port we decided that we wanted to see Romney Manor and Brimstone Fortress. The first thing we did was decline all the advancing taxi driver offers and headed to the rate board to see what we could expect to pay.

Well, the rate board was confusing and within about 30 seconds we had another taxi driver on top of us trying to get some business. He was a “Rasta Man” named Adonis. You’ll know him by his dreads and Rasta clothing. We told him the sights we wanted to see. He told us it would be the best deal to just do a full island tour for $80 and that it would be so good we would want to give him a tip. Since we were also interested in seeing Black Rocks on the back side of the island we agreed.

Things were fine for about the first 20 minutes. He told us how everything was laid back on the island and it was stress free. The next two hours were anything but. He escorted us quickly through Romney Manor however he did take our picture which was nice. I don’t think he was actually trying to be nice by doing it but rather using the “service” to leverage more money from us. In the taxi he kept on recapping what great service he was providing and how we would give him a big tip!

The next stop is where the tour went really bad. We told him we wanted to spend about 45 minutes at Brimstone Hill since it was the main site we were interested in seeing and there was quite a bit of ground to cover. He initially suggested 15 -20 minutes. It would have taken that just to walk up and down the hill to the fortress. He made a big deal about the 45 minutes and stressed how important it was that we “take care of him”. After we got back in the taxi he now suggested the price for the tour should be $100! Having to haggle through the tour made me so mad. I told him we could just skip one of the sights if time was an issue.

We stopped at Black Rocks for his suggested 10 minutes and drove the rest of the way around the island and finished the tour in a little over 2 hours. Both my wife and I were so frustrated by being rushed and the haggling that we were ready for the tour to be over.

I wondered about the price of our full island tour afterward and checked the rate board before we got back on the ship. The price listed was indeed $80 for 1 - 4 people; however it also stated there was to be a 4 and half hour minimum. There was absolutely no reason why we should have been rushed. That was plenty of time to see everything we wanted at a relaxing pace. We were no doubt rushed because the drive wanted to snag another fare before the cruise ship left port. I felt liked we got worked over.

The saddest part is that drivers like this, who will likely leave the biggest impression of the island with the tourists, are killing an already struggling tourism industry. If you plan to have a driver take you around St. Kitts please be sure to arrange it with a well recommended driver prior to your trip!

[paul58]

It is too bad that you had an experience like that. Was he a member of the taxi association? The members of the association have photo ID's which they do wear. Did his license plate on his vehicle begin with a T and yellow?

[TheVegasMan]

We had very pleasant drivers on St. Kitts. We just went to Cockleshell Beach and back. Sorry, didn't get their names.

[natcarm]

It is too bad that you had an experience like that. Was he a member of the taxi association? The members of the association have photo ID's which they do wear. Did his license plate on his vehicle begin with a T and yellow?

 

 

Yes he was indeed a member of the taxi association. He showed us the photo id he was wearing around his neck. I'm not sure how to or if it is worth reporting him. Hopefully drivers who rush passengers through the island at a breakneck pace are the exception rather than the rule.

 

My only advice is to just make sure what you are supposed to get and for how much before you ever get in the taxi. Because the rates are fixed on St. Kitts, there should never be any haggling!

[suezmr]

Just back from a cruise last week, used Jim and Rose Taxi ( written accross the van) had a wonderful time. Jim was very knowledgable of the whole Island, took the time to show us our interests as well. No hurry at any stops. I had read a review (I do a cut & paste document and take it along for each port). We actually saw the van from our ship and approached him. Ended up with 8, our choice as we let others join us. Offered a great rate and a great tour.

[dotshub]

could you please post "Thenford's" e-mail address again. Sounds like he might me someone we would want to contact. We willbe in St.Kitt's in October.Thank you

[chamima]

could you please post "Thenford's" e-mail address again. Sounds like he might me someone we would want to contact. We willbe in St.Kitt's in October.Thank you

 

 

thenang06@yahoo.com