Coral World at St. Thomas on own

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

We would like to do the sea lion swim at Coral World. DCL doesn't offer this as a port adventure.

Our port time is 7:30 - 3:45

The times for the swim are 9:15 and 11:15. The program is listed as 75 minutes.

Taking a cab there, how long will it take? Do they have cabs for 5? Which time should we select?

Thanks!

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

We did the exact thing when we were in St. Thomas. Right off the pier there are large open air taxis that can accommodate your family easily. We hopped off Fantasy first thing, got a cab and were over to Coral World in no more than 1/2 an hour. We also arranged for a pickup time with the driver. The taxi was named after a boxer. Joe Louis tours? Don't recall. Anyway, we had plenty of time and chilled at Coki Beach which is (literally) right next door. If that's a thing (amazing beach with clear water & a white sand beach) bring beach gear and *cash*. Loungers & umbrellas are rented and they'll bring you Red Stripe . We had a pickup of 2PM and made it back in time to drop the kids and DW & I to head out to Havensight shopping mall on the pier for some non-kid anchored browsing.

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

We did the exact thing when we were in St. Thomas. Right off the pier there are large open air taxis that can accommodate your family easily. We hopped off Fantasy first thing, got a cab and were over to Coral World in no more than 1/2 an hour. We also arranged for a pickup time with the driver. The taxi was named after a boxer. Joe Louis tours? Don't recall. Anyway, we had plenty of time and chilled at Coki Beach which is (literally) right next door. If that's a thing (amazing beach with clear water & a white sand beach) bring beach gear and *cash*. Loungers & umbrellas are rented and they'll bring you Red Stripe . We had a pickup of 2PM and made it back in time to drop the kids and DW & I to head out to Havensight shopping mall on the pier for some non-kid anchored browsing.

Which time did you pick for the sea lions? How was it?

Do you remember how much the cabs were? If the cab doesn't show, were there cabs at Coral World to get back?

Thanks!

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

I had to go check my notes from a few years back and it was 1030. The show was pretty neat, watching the kids ooh and aww was the best part. The cabs were pretty cheap. I doubt I paid more than $20 for the 5 of us. If the taxi doesn't show, there are tons of others, plus there was 'the guy' in the parking lot with three cell phones coordinating taxis for Coki beach & Coral World. If we were going back, I'd have no worries about the ride.

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

I had to go check my notes from a few years back and it was 1030. The show was pretty neat, watching the kids ooh and aww was the best part. The cabs were pretty cheap. I doubt I paid more than $20 for the 5 of us. If the taxi doesn't show, there are tons of others, plus there was 'the guy' in the parking lot with three cell phones coordinating taxis for Coki beach & Coral World. If we were going back, I'd have no worries about the ride.

Thanks. We booked the 11:15.

With the times, it should be ok either way, but I just realized, is there a time difference?

 

[mousefan73]

For someone who’s a little bit nervous not finding a For the ride back and missing the boat, would cokie beach be the best to feel secure that you will find a cab to get back?

We were also thinking of Magens Beach.

I just figure since there’s also a zoo type place they would have more traffic between the Port and Their facility?

Does the coki beach area also offer many cafés or restaurants or bars were someone can sit. My mother does not do well on beach loungers and needs a real chair.

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

Thanks. We booked the 11:15.

With the times, it should be ok either way, but I just realized, is there a time difference?

St. Thomas is Atlantic Standard Time (no daylight savings) but the clocks roll before we arrived, so that wasn't an issue. Is that what you're asking?

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

For someone who’s a little bit nervous not finding a For the ride back and missing the boat, would cokie beach be the best to feel secure that you will find a cab to get back?

We were also thinking of Magens Bay.

I just figure since there’s also a zoo type place they would have more traffic between the Port and Their facility?

Does the coki beach area also offer many cafés or restaurants or bars were someone can sit. My mother does not do well on beach loungers and needs a real chair.

We didn't go to Magen's Bay, but that's one of the most popular beaches in St. Thomas, so I imagine that finding a taxi won't be a problem. I was skeptical that the taxi would return at the agreed to time (or at all) but he came motoring up right on time and got us back to Havensight Pier with time to spare and then some.

Coki beach was fantastic. Get there a bit early to get primo spots. It's a smaller beach than Magen's Bay, but pretty amazing for that. Being next to Coral World made it a found experience of awesomeness (as my teenage daughters would say)

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

St. Thomas is Atlantic Standard Time (no daylight savings) but the clocks roll before we arrived, so that wasn't an issue. Is that what you're asking?

Yep. So no time change between FL and St. Thomas then.

Thanks!

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

Yep. So no time change between FL and St. Thomas then.

Thanks!

When Florida is on Daylight Savings. When it's EST, then USVI is one hour ahead

 

[Lisa F]

We would like to do the sea lion swim at Coral World. DCL doesn't offer this as a port adventure.

Our port time is 7:30 - 3:45

The times for the swim are 9:15 and 11:15. The program is listed as 75 minutes.

Taking a cab there, how long will it take? Do they have cabs for 5? Which time should we select?

Thanks!

it looks like based on your ticker that you've done this by now...

How did it go?

I would love to take my son to the sea lion swim in february, I think he'd get a real kick out of it.

Is there a place to store beach stuff at Coral World (lockers for the day)?

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

it looks like based on your ticker that you've done this by now...

How did it go?

I would love to take my son to the sea lion swim in february, I think he'd get a real kick out of it.

Is there a place to store beach stuff at Coral World (lockers for the day)?

It was AMAZING!

Taxi is easy as could be, and $9 per person, each way, plus tip. It could be a shared ride with multiple stops so budget 45 min for travel time just in case.

No lockers, but coral world isn't very big, so not a problem to carry a tote bag. There is a place to leave your stuff during the swim, as you can't take anything into the sea lion area.

They do have showers to rinse off and change afterwards. But, they are cold water only, in a stall in the bathroom. Sufficient to to get the salt water and fishy smell off but we still needed to shower when we got back to the ship.

Interaction was great. They are very friendly. Picture package is a reasonable price. We were all sad when our time was up.

Any other questions let me know.

 

[mousefan73]

It was AMAZING!

Taxi is easy as could be, and $9 per person, each way, plus tip. It could be a shared ride with multiple stops so budget 45 min for travel time just in case.

No lockers, but coral world isn't very big, so not a problem to carry a tote bag. There is a place to leave your stuff during the swim, as you can't take anything into the sea lion area.

They do have showers to rinse off and change afterwards. But, they are cold water only, in a stall in the bathroom. Sufficient to to get the salt water and fishy smell off but we still needed to shower when we got back to the ship.

Interaction was great. They are very friendly. Picture package is a reasonable price. We were all sad when our time was up.

Any other questions let me know.

Thanks for the feedback! We are heading to St Thomas in August. How easy were cans? Any tips? How was mich this experience and did you also do the beach? Are there cafes/ restuarants too? Haven’t decided on this or Magensbay thanks!

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

Thanks for the feedback! We are heading to St Thomas in August. How easy were cans? Any tips? How was mich this experience and did you also do the beach? Are there cafes/ restuarants too? Haven’t decided on this or Magensbay thanks!

Cabs are easy. When we walked off the ship there is a taxi stand right there and a coordinator to get you on your way. There was also a stand at coral world.

We booked it online directly with coral world. We got the tickets in January, so I forget how much of hand. But they only have 2 or 3 sessions per day, and limited to 10 people per session, so I would book asap if you are interested

We had an early all aboard time so we only had a couple hours after the sea lions, which is just enough time to see the rest of the park after rinsing off, so we didn't go to the beach next door.

I didn't notice any restaurants near by, but I wasn't looking, either. Coral world has a small snack stand, but we just got drinks there.

 

[Lisa F]

It was AMAZING!

Taxi is easy as could be, and $9 per person, each way, plus tip. It could be a shared ride with multiple stops so budget 45 min for travel time just in case.

No lockers, but coral world isn't very big, so not a problem to carry a tote bag. There is a place to leave your stuff during the swim, as you can't take anything into the sea lion area.

They do have showers to rinse off and change afterwards. But, they are cold water only, in a stall in the bathroom. Sufficient to to get the salt water and fishy smell off but we still needed to shower when we got back to the ship.

Interaction was great. They are very friendly. Picture package is a reasonable price. We were all sad when our time was up.

Any other questions let me know.

oh wow I am so glad to hear this! online reviews are generally positive but I haven't seen any here. My son loves animals so I think this would be great for him!

What time did you end up booking? They are not booking next February yet but I think book 6 months out so in a couple of months it should be open. They seem to have 9:15, 11:15 as possibilities (1pm is too late for comfort for me) - which time did you do and how did you feel about it? We live on Martha's Vineyard so even though caribbean beaches are different, we do a lot of beach so I don't feel the need to prioritize that. I guess if we do 11:15 we could potentially get there early and enjoy the park first, know we are there early enough for the experience and head back to the ship in time to have lunch there and then we could walk around St. Thomas in the afternoon (kind of want to show my son the Synagogue there, we are jewish).

Disney now has the dolphin experience there which I never saw before so I'm wondering if they would add the sea lion swim before my cruise. I guess we'll have to keep an eye on it.

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

oh wow I am so glad to hear this! online reviews are generally positive but I haven't seen any here. My son loves animals so I think this would be great for him!

What time did you end up booking? They are not booking next February yet but I think book 6 months out so in a couple of months it should be open. They seem to have 9:15, 11:15 as possibilities (1pm is too late for comfort for me) - which time did you do and how did you feel about it? We live on Martha's Vineyard so even though caribbean beaches are different, we do a lot of beach so I don't feel the need to prioritize that. I guess if we do 11:15 we could potentially get there early and enjoy the park first, know we are there early enough for the experience and head back to the ship in time to have lunch there and then we could walk around St. Thomas in the afternoon (kind of want to show my son the Synagogue there, we are jewish).

Disney now has the dolphin experience there which I never saw before so I'm wondering if they would add the sea lion swim before my cruise. I guess we'll have to keep an eye on it.

We booked 11:00.
But I think the timing will be different for you. For us, local and ships time were the same, but I think in the winter it'll be an hour difference as they don't have daylights saving time.

The park opens at 9 local. We're got there around 10, walked around for 45 min or so then went to sea lions.

We finished rinsing and changing at 12:30, and left at 2pm. This was ample time to see everything (two or two and a half hours total).

 

[Mom24Princesses]

We did Coral World Coki Beach our first DCL in ‘06! We all loved it! Great place for kids to try snorkeling. Happy to know it’s still a great option.