St. John?

[snwwhite]

I need help from all of you past cruisers. My family wants to do our own excursion to Trunk Bay on St. Thomas Day. I need the specifics on how some of you got to St. John, what time the ferry leaves, what you paid, etc... Any information is appreciated.


Thanks!!!

 

[winnyis]

We were off the ship very early - took at van to the red hook ferry - I beleive the ferry runs every hour or so - we caught the 9am ferry to St, John. Once in St. John - there are taxi's everywhere - just tell them where you want to go and they will direct you.

It cost us about $100 for a family of four and that includes, all the taxi fares, the ferry fare to/from St. John and the admission to Trunk Bay

It is like a postcard. Absolutely stunning

We got there by 10AM and stayed til about 1:15 - caught the 2PM ferry back and were back on the ship with plenty of time to spare.

Good Luck.

 

[CathyCanada]

All I can add is do it!! It is truly paradise!
Cathy

 

[Dave_from_Marietta]

Originally posted by susanf31

You get off the ship FIRST... before the excursion people. Grab a taxi to Red Hook and take the ferry to St John. When you get to St. John, there will be numerous taxis waiting to take you to Trunk Bay. They are about $3.00 each way. At Trunk Bay or Cinnamon Bay, there is snorkeling equipment rentals, including flotation devices...

Leave Trunk Bay at 1:20 p.m. Grab a taxi back to the ferry (taxis are lined up and waiting for you) and make sure you catch the 2:00 ferry back. You'll be back on the ship before 3:00 easily.

Total cost for a family of 4:

Taxi to and from Red Hook: $8.00 p.p. each way or $64.00
Taxi to and from Trunk Bay: $3.00 p.p. each way for $24.00
Snorkel gear: I don't know because we have our own. I'm guessing $40.00
A couple of bags of chips and sodas for the ferry ride back... $20.00
Total, about $150.00 or $37.50 per person.

For that, you get more freedom and more time at St. John... a place in my humble opinion that is one of the most beautiful spots on earth!! You also get the opportunity to enjoy it at your leisure without standing in lines and waiting on the whole group to catch up before you can do anything.

One reason why excursions are attractive is that it is somewhat intimidating to go someplace you've never been before. Armed with this information, there's no reason not to be adventurous.

By the way, here's a <a href="http://www.st-thomas.com/week/ferries.html">link</a> to the ferry schedules.

 

[snwwhite]

Thank you all for your help!! I feel alot better trying this on my own armed with this information.

 

[NJPhyl]

What is there to do at Trunk Bay besides sun and snorkel? I have been toying with the idea of going to St. John as well, simply because we have never been. We have been to St. Thomas though and did the bus tour thing and spent some time at Megans Bay which I thought was lovely. Is Trunk Bay as awesome as Megans Bay? We are going on the 7 night, Jan. 26th, me, my DH and DD (4). It's either Coral World and the beach right there by taxi or now I'm thinking about this little excursion. How long is the ferry ride over to St. John? Thanking you in advance for your thoughts on this one. Much appreciated.

Phyllis

P.S. Has anyone done any interesting trips on St. Marten on their own? I haven't decided what to do on that island yet.

 

[Michelle]

One warning if you want to go off on your own:

BE VERY SURE YOU GET BACK TO THE SHIP ON TIME. THEY WILL LEAVE WITHOUT YOU IF YOU ARE NOT ONBOARD BY THE STATED TIME.

Folks on Disney excursions at least are guaranteed that the ship will wait for them should they be delayed (a very rare occurence).

I'm not saying don't do your own excursion, by all means DO, but just be very, very careful of the time and allow extra time for unforeseen delays.