Itinerary Help Please

[NJskibum]

Hello All,

I am looking to get some itinerary help for my brief visit in Bermuda….I will be on the RCL Explorer, which only is in Bermuda for a day and ½….The second day is leaves at 3pm , I believe….Here is some of the things I would possibly like to do on day 1…..I think it might be too much:

Horseshoe Beach – We would only go to sightsee, and not actually layout or go swimming. From what I have read, this is a gorgeous beach, but would another beach make more sense?

Bermuda Aquarium – We have been to Aquarium’s before, but this place looks nice.

Fantasy Cave – We have never been to a cave before, thought it might be interesting to see:

Swizzle Inn – I have run so much about this being a landmark, figure a perfect place to have lunch.

Would you recommend doing all this in one day…..Is it possible???

Is there anything that you would recommend over these things???

What order would you recommend doing these???

Does anyone know the bus route to take?

For Day 2, figured we would just relax and hangout at the dockyard, so we would be close to the ship.

Thanks in advance for the help and suggestions….I am trying to plan everything for our trip, as it will be a surprise for my wife, for an early celebration of our first year anniversary.

[Writeratsea]

Hello All,

 

I am looking to get some itinerary help for my brief visit in Bermuda….I will be on the RCL Explorer, which only is in Bermuda for a day and ½….The second day is leaves at 3pm , I believe….Here is some of the things I would possibly like to do on day 1…..I think it might be too much:

 

 

Horseshoe Beach – We would only go to sightsee, and not actually layout or go swimming. From what I have read, this is a gorgeous beach, but would another beach make more sense?

 

 

Bermuda Aquarium – We have been to Aquarium’s before, but this place looks nice.

 

Fantasy Cave – We have never been to a cave before, thought it might be interesting to see:

 

Swizzle Inn – I have run so much about this being a landmark, figure a perfect place to have lunch.

 

 

Would you recommend doing all this in one day…..Is it possible???

 

Is there anything that you would recommend over these things???

 

What order would you recommend doing these???

 

Does anyone know the bus route to take?

 

 

For Day 2, figured we would just relax and hangout at the dockyard, so we would be close to the ship.

 

Thanks in advance for the help and suggestions….I am trying to plan everything for our trip, as it will be a surprise for my wife, for an early celebration of our first year anniversary.

 

You can pair Horseshoe Bay with the Swizzle Inn as they are located near each other. There are two Swizzle Inns, the original is located near St. George and the other is on the South Shore between Horseshoe bay and Elbow beach. I am presumming that you are docked in the dockyard (King's Wharf) so normally you would take the number 7 bus along the south shore to Hamilton, getting off at Horseshoe bay. But when there are cruise ships docked, they run special buses (marked appropiately enough "special") that go direct to Horseshoe Bay without stopping. This really is a must see beach. It will look exactly like the photos in all the travel brochures complete with the pink sands and tourquois water. On the way to Horseshoe you could stop at Gibbs lighthouse which has a great view of the entire island.

One thing about Horseshoe Bay, it is at the bottom of steep hill. The walk down is no problem but the way back in the heat and humidity is tough. There is a guy there who offers a short shuttle in his mini van to the top for only $1, well worth it.

Another beach is Warwick Long Bay. I think it is just as beautiful but it will not be anywhere near as crowded.

Another consideration is whether you buy a bus pass. One day costs only $12 (two days would be $20) and is good for unlimited use of the buses and ferries.

You could take the ferry from the dockyard to Hamilton, then bus to Swizzle Inn/ Horseshoe Bay. If you want to go to the aquarium, caves etc. you still need to take the ferry to Hamilton. Then go to the caves first, (there are two: Fantasy and Crystal) which can be reached directly by number 1 or 3 bus. You can also take the 10 or 11 bus, but you would have to get off at the Swizzle Inn and then walk a little ways to the caves. You need to go to the caves first thing in the morning because they are popular and fill up fast. Also the turnover is slow as there is only one long flights of stairs to go in and out. Your group can't enter until the previous group comes out. But they are worth the trip as they are spectacular, especially is you have never been caves before.

Afterwards you can take either 1,3,10 or 11 bus to the Aquarium/Zoo. It was very clean and interesting with its own snack bar with decent food reasonably priced.

You then have two choices, depending upon how comfortable you are with the buses. The easiest is to continue on to Hamilton and take the ferry back to the dockyard or the number 7 bus along the south shore to Horseshoe Bay. The shortest way is to take the number one from the aquarium to George sixth Hospital, get off, cross the street and take the number 7 bus to Horseshoe Bay. One tip to help you is at the bus stop there will be a pole. If it is pink the bus is going towards Hamilton. If blue, it is going away from Hamilton.

For your second day, I would recommend the dockyard itself. There is a mall there with lots of fun places to see and go, including a Hagen Daz ice cream shop. I loved the Bermuda Maritime Museum. Lots of interesting exhibits. Dolphin Quest, the interactive dolphin experience is located within. You don't need to spend the nearly $200 to swim with the dolphins however. There are benches right next to the pools where you can watch for free.

This is a few ideas to help give you a feel for what you can do. If you can tell me what you would most like to do, then I can offer more suggestions.:) We just got back Sunday on the Majesty and it was as usual a great time and Bermuda is stunningly beautiful.

[NJskibum]

Writeratsea,

Thanks for the suggestions & Bus route info….Yes, we will be docked at the Dockyard (King’s Warf). A few more questions:

How long do you need to tour the Aquarium??

Here is the schedule I am thinking about:

Day 1

 

Take the Ferry to Hamilton, and get on either the 1 or 3 bus towards Fantasy Cave.

After the Cave,

Take the 1 bus to George Sixth Hospital, cross the street, and take the 7 bus and Stop at Gibb’s lighthouse, then continue on towards Horseshoe Bay Beach……..

Would that be the quickest route?

After the Beach

 

Go to Swizzle Inn for Lunch – Need to find out how to Get to Swizzle inn From Horseshoe Bay Beach.

After Lunch

 

Either take the 10 or 11 Bus towards the Aquarium, if time permits, or take the bus back towards Hamilton to catch the Ferry, or the 7 back to the dockyard.

My thinking is to go to the caves, lighthouse, Horseshoe Bay Beach, and Swizzle Inn for Lunch. If time permits, and we still feel like doing something, go to the aquarium. If not, save that for the next trip to Bermuda.

I plan on getting the unlimited Bas / Ferry Pass for Day 1….If we are going to just hangout by the dockyard on Day 2, Do we need the pass, or are the different attractions within walking distance. The Museum sounds interesting, and thanks for the tip on seeing the Dolphins. That is something that I will add to the schedule….Of Course, the wife will Vote to then get some ice cream…

Thanks for all of you help. Do not need an exact figure, but how long will it take to get to the caves, and how long will we spend there???

Do not want to pack too much into the day….

Does my schedule make sense?

Thanks again.

[Writeratsea]

Writeratsea,

 

 

Thanks for the suggestions & Bus route info….Yes, we will be docked at the Dockyard (King’s Warf). A few more questions:

 

 

How long do you need to tour the Aquarium??

 

Here is the schedule I am thinking about:

 

Day 1

 

 

Take the Ferry to Hamilton, and get on either the 1 or 3 bus towards Fantasy Cave.

 

After the Cave,

 

Take the 1 bus to George Sixth Hospital, cross the street, and take the 7 bus and Stop at Gibb’s lighthouse, then continue on towards Horseshoe Bay Beach……..

 

Would that be the quickest route?

 

 

After the Beach

 

 

Go to Swizzle Inn for Lunch – Need to find out how to Get to Swizzle inn From Horseshoe Bay Beach.

 

 

After Lunch

 

 

Either take the 10 or 11 Bus towards the Aquarium, if time permits, or take the bus back towards Hamilton to catch the Ferry, or the 7 back to the dockyard.

 

My thinking is to go to the caves, lighthouse, Horseshoe Bay Beach, and Swizzle Inn for Lunch. If time permits, and we still feel like doing something, go to the aquarium. If not, save that for the next trip to Bermuda.

 

I plan on getting the unlimited Bas / Ferry Pass for Day 1….If we are going to just hangout by the dockyard on Day 2, Do we need the pass, or are the different attractions within walking distance. The Museum sounds interesting, and thanks for the tip on seeing the Dolphins. That is something that I will add to the schedule….Of Course, the wife will Vote to then get some ice cream…

 

Thanks for all of you help. Do not need an exact figure, but how long will it take to get to the caves, and how long will we spend there???

 

Do not want to pack too much into the day….

 

Does my schedule make sense?

 

Thanks again.

The aquarium takes about l hour or so to do. There is so much to see that it really depends upon how fast you want to do it. The entrance is Bermuda Natural History, which I thought was interesting but my wife just zipped by it. There are many windows with coral and fish in the aquarium section. I thought the zoo was great. I am not usaully enamored by them due to the smells and lack of cleaness, but there was no smell and it was very clean. There are a lot of varied animals in displays and roaming loose. The orange, Lion tamarinds are very exotic monkeys. There is also a decent snack bar with good food and reasonable prices.

 

As for your schedule, definitely take the ferry to Hamilton and the number 1 or 3 bus to the caves. You will go right by the aquarium before reaching the caves. After the caves you have a lot of choices. Walking distance from the caves is the original Swizzle Inn and accross the street is Bailey Bay's ice best, which is the best on the island. You could go there and then get a one or three bus to the aquarium. I have a suggestion. After the aquarium, take the number one bus to Devil's hole. This is a natural pond where fish can get in when they are small but once grown cannot go back out. You can feed the fish with baitless hooks. They have also raised sea turtles from hatchlings and they are enornmus, 300 -400 pounds, they are easily seen and impressive. After Devil's Hole just walk up the street next to it about 500 yards to John Smith's bay. It is my favorite beach in Bermuda. Just as beautiful as Horseshoe but there will probably be less than a dozen people there. Take the number one bus back to Hamilton and then the dockyard.

You can save Horseshoe for the second day. If you want to skip the above and go to Horseshoe from the caves, the south shore swizzle Inn is before Horseshoe Bay. Gibbs Hill lighthouse is after Horseshoe on the way back to the dockyard.

If go to the caves early in the morning, you can get in and out in an hour or less The later you go the larger the lines. It will take you about 25 minutes for the ferry from the dockyard to Hamilton and about 40 minutes to get to the caves. You could also take the 10 or 11 bus and get off at the Swizzle Inn, then walk down to the caves.

Hope this information clarifies everything for you.:)

[NJskibum]

Writeratsea,

 

Thanks very much.....This information will be very helpfull. Tomorrow night I am going to surprize my wife about the trip.....She loves going to Acquarium and Zoo's....The pond sounds really cool.....

 

Thanks again

[BermudaSunshine]

You HAVE to see Horseshoe Beach. It is on the bus route from Dockyard to Hamilton. Long hill to walk down and back up but beautiful. Best seen actually from a lay by on the road before you get to the beach Sit on the right hand side of the bus for good view of beach if you take this to Hamilton. Aquarium is great especially if you have kids. Many fish but also a musuem with Bermuda History and mini zoo. I am not sure about Fantasy caves but you could see Crystal caves (five minute walk from Swizzle Inn) and ten minute bus ride from Aquarium. Caves, Swizzle and Aquarium all at opposite end of island from Dockyard. Taking bus is your cheapest. Also worth considering is a Fast Ferry from Dockyard to St Georges and then bus to Swizzle/ Crystal caves and that way you see Bermuda by sea and by land. Have fun!