EASTERN CARIBBEANi

[hollon]

I've already been to the W. Caribbean and loved it. Could someone tell me about St. Martin and St. Thomas and can you get over to St. John and is it worth it. How would you compare the two itinarias(sp?)? I'm am planning a trip on the Oasis 2010. Can yall help? Thanks :)

[karena1]

I've already been to the W. Caribbean and loved it. Could someone tell me about St. Martin and St. Thomas and can you get over to St. John and is it worth it. How would you compare the two itinarias(sp?)? I'm am planning a trip on the Oasis 2010. Can yall help? Thanks :)

 

We already are booked on the Oasis for the Eastern in 2010. IMHO I love the Eastern or Southern over Western anytime. Love STT and SMX. Yes, you can go to St John from STT, but if only there for one day, Coki has great snorkeling, and is a pretty beach and Magen's is very pretty but does not have snorkeling.

[RI cruiser]

I loved St. Thomas!!! It was so beautiful.... we went to Megan's beach. I felt like I was on a Corona commercial. And I really enjoyed the shopping. We went to St. Maarten and it was ok... not my favorite... but we had a lot of fun on the zipline and at Orient Beach (didn't see any nudist). I highly recommend eastern Caribbean... its a great itinerary!!!! I think its more exotic than the western cruises.

[Sky616]

I've already been to the W. Caribbean and loved it. Could someone tell me about St. Martin and St. Thomas and can you get over to St. John and is it worth it. How would you compare the two itinarias(sp?)? I'm am planning a trip on the Oasis 2010. Can yall help? Thanks :)

Great shopping on both of these islands. Great beaches, too. Orient Beach is nice on St. Martin, Magen's Bay on St. Thomas. We like both Western and Eastern. I would say more adventure excursions on the western itinerary. Eastern is more beaches and shopping.

[pcur]

Just so happens I spent quite a lot of time yesterday researching St. Thomas - St. John transpo, as cheap as possible, for our March 2009 Connie cruise.

 

Here's all the info I documented yesterday, with some of it gleaned from other CC threads and other web sites:

 

St. Thomas / St. John:

1.Ship’s tour: ferry to St. John, and scenic bus tour $59

2.On our own:

a.From Havensight, walk up to K-Mart and look for the Vitran bus stop; see below for fares, as they are the same as St. John.

b.Take bus to Red Hook: est. is 1 hour

c.Ferry to Cruz Bay in St. John from Red Hook:

Transportation Services and Varlack Ventures

Rates: One-way, $6.10/Adults and $2.10/Children ages 2-11. Seniors are $2.35 (VI Residents only, 62 years and up, proof of age must be shown). There is a charge of $2/piece for luggage/boxes. Telephone: (340) 776-6282, (340) 776-6412

Time: 15 to 20 minutes

 

Leaving Red Hook, St. Thomas

6:30 am, 7:30 am then hourly from 8:00 am to Midnight

 

Leaving Cruz Bay, St. John

Hourly from 6:00 am to 11:00 pm

 

From Charlotte Amalie:

Transportation Services and Varlack Ventures

Rates: One-way, $11.10/Adults and $4.10/Children ages 2-11. Seniors are $6.10 (VI Residents only, 62 years and up, proof of age must be shown). There is a charge of $2/piece for luggage/boxes. Telephone: (340) 776-6282, (340) 776-6412

Time: 40 to 45 minutes

 

Leaving Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

9:00 am

11:00 am

1:00 pm

3:00 pm

4:00 pm

5:30 pm

 

Leaving Cruz Bay, St. John7:15 am

9:15 am

11:15 am

1:15 pm

2:15 pm

3:45 pm

 

 

d.In St. John: the Vitran Bus System services various areas of the island. Vitran buses run along Centerline Road. The buses travel from the Cruz Bay ferry dock, through to Coral Bay and then to Salt Pond Bay. From Cruz Bay the bus leaves at 6am, 7am, and then 25 minutes pass the hour until 7:25pm. From Salt Pond Bay the bus leaves at 5am, 6am, 7am, 8am and then 10 minutes after the hour until 8:10pm. The fare is $1 a person. Senior Citizens receive a discounted fare of $.55. The Public Bus system is not very reliable, if you are on a tight or limited time schedule it is not a good idea to depend on the bus

 

Here's a link to a St. John map:

http://www.gotostjohn.com/map.htm

 

Here's a map of Cruz Bay in St. John:

http://www.virginislandsthisweek.com/us_virgin_islands_maps/cruz_bay_st_john_street_map.html

[MarinerBride]

I think they're both about equal, but the itineraries may have changed since I've cruised them. As far as Western, Labadee and Grand Cayman were great, but I didn't care too much for Ocho Rios or Cozumel. For Eastern, St. Martin and St. Thomas were a lot of fun, but I could do without San Juan and Nassau (although mostly I've just been to Nassau so many times at this point).

[lovelife]

St. John is definitely worth it - extraordinary in fact.