Is there anything "to buy" in E. Carib?

[vesw01]

We are going to be in Nassau, St. Thomas and St. Maarten...I have never heard of things to shop for here...any thoughts?

[moonvine]

I haven't been (yet) but I hear it is shopping paradise. One of the best places to shop as I understand it.

[DPILGRIM]

Diamonds are a great buy in St. Thomas & St. Maarten, last year my wife and I bought a new set of diamond wedding rings. When we were at our local jewelry store we told them what we paid for the rings and they were shocked at the quality and the price we paid :eek: the rings appraised for quite a bit more than we paid.

[vesw01]

Wow that is very interesting - my DH and I have talked about getting me a new one (diamond that is) maybe we should not book a OV cabin and save the money for jewels.

[nmarsh]

No! your on vacaton, you can have both!!

[Caribbean Dad1]

Believe me, bring deeeeeeep pockets. There is plenty to buy.

[vesw01]

I could have whatever I want - I just have to justify it later LOL Sometimes I think - gee the $ to upgrade could be used towards our next cruise instead.

[bab]

ST. Thomas and St. Maarten are shopping MECCAS! Jewelry, watches, electronics, crystal, leather, etc. etc. etc. There are LOADS of great deals on things - you do however need to know the cost here in the states of the items to make sure you're really getting a good 'deal' there. No tax in St. Thomas and the shops are definitely willing to negotiate. I can't remember how the duty and tax work in St. Maarten but all their shops are willing to negotiate also. If looking for diamonds, make sure you really understand the ratings and prices here before going but I've never bought anything there that hasn't appraised for more and in some cases much much more than I've paid for it. We also deal with only 1 jewelry store for all of those purchases so we've gotten to know them well and can really make some good deals (Glitters at Havensight - Bella and Jimmy are the owners - they're wonderful to deal with!). Have fun - if you like to shop the E. Caribbean is definitely the place to go!!

[megansdad1]

I found a good deal on a tanzanite and diamond ring for my wife. It took some good negotiating to get the right price. don't settle for sticker Price unless you absolutely have to own it.

[jerick]

:D Do some pricing before you leave. You can save up to 50% on alcohol - all kinds. Keep bottle sizes in mind. Many types come in 750ml bottles in the US, but in full liters in St. Martin and St. Thomas. For example, 750ml of Myer's Dark Rum in the US is $16-17. In St. Thomas I got 1 liter for $10.50.

 

I also got a good deal on a nice SLR Digital camera. Don't forget to let them sweeten the deal before you buy. It was late in the day and they (Royal Caribbean Electronics) were closing. He threw in a camera case, 256mb memory card and some other stuff. The camera alone would have been a good deal. With the extras it was a great deal!

[Sonnylove]

ST. Thomas and St. Maarten are shopping MECCAS! Jewelry, watches, electronics, crystal, leather, etc. etc. etc. There are LOADS of great deals on things - you do however need to know the cost here in the states of the items to make sure you're really getting a good 'deal' there. No tax in St. Thomas and the shops are definitely willing to negotiate. I can't remember how the duty and tax work in St. Maarten but all their shops are willing to negotiate also. If looking for diamonds, make sure you really understand the ratings and prices here before going but I've never bought anything there that hasn't appraised for more and in some cases much much more than I've paid for it. We also deal with only 1 jewelry store for all of those purchases so we've gotten to know them well and can really make some good deals (Glitters at Havensight - Bella and Jimmy are the owners - they're wonderful to deal with!). Have fun - if you like to shop the E. Caribbean is definitely the place to go!!

 

This is true. St. Maarten has a town called Phillipsburg, it is wall to wall gold and jewelry stores that entice you in with cold Hienekins and food. I bought a Movado watch and a San Marco bracelet for my wife last time I was there.

[BlueHerons]

Make sure you do plenty of homework before you leave.

 

Do not walk into a jewelry store and spend a large amount of money on something unless you know exactly what you are buying and have a good idea of its worth.

[vesw01]

Any tips on how to haggle - it has been a LONG time since I got to negotiate the price on something

[mac4cruise]

Lots of cheap RUM

[caychateau]

Vesw01, I got a gorgeous blue/white diamond ring in St. Thomas, one neat thing, they ENCOURAGE you to do is go outside and see the ring on in the sun, so I used this to my advantage. When I found "the ring" I went to the shop next door, tried on a ring and made sure to stroll by the shop that had the ring I really wanted... when I returned to the shop that had "the ring" they came in with a much lower price, just a thought.

[caribbean dreams]

Can someone please bring me back a Cabana Boy and have him shipped to me C.O.D.

[cruisy]

Fun shop with many different flavors of liquors, and free samples of all of them. You go in, stand at the counter and ask for the ones you'd like to try. They also make a very good guavaberry colada, and you can sample that too.