Excursion Advice for San Juan and Tortola for 2.5 & 5 yr old?

[mommy2boys]

Hi, can anyone offer any advice on excursions in San Juan and/or Tortola? We have our two boys, aged 2.5 and 5 and will be bringing a stroller and would like to include them in our sightseeing adventures. We will be arriving in SJ at 3pm. Any past experiences you all would like to share? Thanks.

[Turtle Girls]

Hi! Did you ever consider renting a car on the island? I'm going to Tortola with my 3 kids(3,6,7 yrs) in October and I have found it easier to get a car and put the stroller, snorkle equipment, towels,etc and explore myself. I've started my research on great beaches and other attractions already!

The added bonus is that it is so much cheaper than the ship's excursions.

[ljmandelbaum]

In San Juan, we walked (pushed) my 2 year olds daughters to the fort that is closest to the ship. They loved being up high and sitting on the canon balls.

 

If you like beaches, CaneGarden Bay in Torola is great. People said it was a $12 cab ride there (guess $12 back as well). The ship (Carnival Miracle) had an island tour that was way to long to the beach for about $43 a person.

[mommy2boys]

Thanks very much for your tips on tortola and san juan. Btw I never thought of renting a car! :) great idea.

 

I had heard that the streets in San Juan were cobblestones and I was a little concerned about whether a stroller was a good idea on the uphill trek to the fort .... just imagined lots of stairs and other stroller obsticals. :eek:

[eyegel]

We stopped in both ports when we were on the Noordam last December with our three children (ages 4, 5, and 6).

 

Old San Juan is very hilly. The streets and sidewalks are narrow and uneven. The area is packed with cars. Much of it is a nightmare to navigate with a stroller. If you are going to try sightseeing, I suggest that you take a taxi and have it drop you off at El Morro (the old fortress). After visiting that, take the major pedestrian thoroughfare, Calle de la Princessa which runs along the harbor's shore and leads you back to the cruise ship docks. There is scant traffic and you will be going on level ground (or even downhill in some stretches). A stroller is fine in that area.

 

If you want to go through the heart of the old city itself, go west (left) when you exit the cruise ship. Ignore the touts who are trying to persuade you to board a bus for a special tour. At the end of the docks there is a small park with a tourist center. There, you can embark on a tour in a horse-drawn carriage. While you do not stop to get out and pose for photo ops, you can take ample pictures from the carriage itself. Also, they did not charge us for our children, so the price of the longer tour ($75.00) was pretty close to the price we would have paid to be packed into a bus with other turistas.

 

As for Tortola, do not expect to rent a car if (as we did) you arrive on a Sunday. Almost everything shuts down. We hired a taxi to take us to Brewers Bay. It was lovely, shallow (perfect for the kids). Nicole's Beach Bar and Restaurant provided burgers and liquid refreshment. It was almost devoid of people (unlike Cane Garden Bay which is just on the other side of the point). It was perfect for us. I found that it was cheaper to hire a taxi by walking out beyond the fenced-in "port" area where "officials" were assembling groups for "Island Tours" and open air "taxis" to Cane Garden. The taxis just outside the gate do not have to pay a premium for port access. We had a driver take us an impromptu tour (pointing out the houses where his various "wives" lived) on the way to the beach. He dropped us at the beach and retrieved us three hours later. We then took the "long way around" back to town, stopping wherever we wanted to take pictures. The driver waited for me while I made a stop at the supermarket for supplies (reasonably priced Diet Coke, etc.) then took as back into the port area (allowed since he was transporting a fare) for less than we were quoted for taking five us us to Cane Garden. If you want lots of activities and amenities, Cane Garden is the place to go, but it comes with lots of crowds.

 

As for the prospect of driving in Tortola, having seen the roads, I recommend that you do not try it. I am excellent with maps and directions and have driven extensively in Puerto Rico, Spain, Mexico, and the United Kingdom with no real problems. I rented a car in St. Maarten on that same trip and regretted the decision within minutes of getting on the road. I was longing for the comforts of our Tortola taxi where my attention could be focused on the scenery instead of trying to figure out unmarked roads and worrying about traffic. We wound up returning the car early after going to the Zoo and aborting our trip to the beach. Never again.