Arriving 8 am on Triumph-will we be able to catch 9 am ferry to St John?

[Gumtree]

If I'm reading the schedule correctly, I see the morning ferries depart @ 9 am and 11 am from Charlotte Amalie .. also, how far is the ferry departure from the ship arrival? Does it take long to purchase the tickets, or do you pay onboard the ferry? Thanks!

[CruiseNut7]

I'd be interested in finding out this info too. Hope someone can offer some insight.

[njoyndride]

The ferry picks up right across the street from the open air market in Charlotte Amalie, about a 5 minute cab ride. The only problem is the vans are lined up at the pier and want to fill up before they take off. Make sure you tell them you want to go to town. We got into a van and made it clear we wanted to go to the CM ferry. After she started driving the driver kept insisting we should go to Red Hook, it was faster etc. etc. and we had to get kind of nasty and tell her we would not pay her if she took us to Red Hook. Do not go to the ferry terminal in CM, this is NOT where the St. John ferry stops. We walked down there, a vendor had instructed us to, and had to hussle back to the market area where the driver had dropped us to catch it. We made it with time to spare but it was a hectic due to our own ignorance. Hope this helps.

[PelicanBill]

Why do you want to go to Charlotte Amalie to take the Ferry? The cab drivers try to persuade you to go to Red Hook because it actually may be faster. The main road from Havensight (cruise dock) to downtown is JAMMED all day. It took us 30 mintues to drive that stretch, then 20 more minutes to Red Hook when we drove it last year. Even if you try to get to the parallel back streets, they too are slow and you must go through one terrible intersection where all traffic converges.

 

If I were coming in by ship, I would take a cab the back way to Red Hook (20 minutes). The ferry here is every hour, on the hour. Buy tickets before boarding.

 

Wy take the risk to get downtown and then have to wait 2 hours? By Red Hook you only have to wait one hour if you don't make it - and I bet you will.

[njoyndride]

We enjoy the long ferry ride PelicanBill and having been in St. Thomas numerous times enjoy seeing something different. You're right the cab drivers try to convince everyone to go to Red Hook but I think it's more of a monetary issue since Charlotte Amalie isn't much of a fare for them.