Jost Van Dyke canceled. Why? Options?

[goterps1986]

Thanks for all that great information. I had no idea they had you swim in. My guess is DCL's would get you close enough to walk in. You have given us a lot of helpful information. We may see if we can find another family to go. I have heard about the Sandy Dollar also. I thought the beaches would be spectacular. They sound really nice but maybe not some of the best. We have a lot to consider now. Big help.

I think we are going to the catamaran sail and snorkel tour. We thought about going to St John but we've been there once and figured there wouldn't be a lot of time.

swimfin when are you going?

As always,, thanks for all the great info!

 

[phinz]

FYI, when you go by boat, you have to swim into the beaches.

You have to swim in if you are headed to White Bay for the Soggy Dollar, but if you go to Great Harbour, where my favorite bar, Foxy's Tamarind, is then you can get right off there at the dock. No swimming necessary.

 

[swimfin]

Thanks for all that great information. I had no idea they had you swim in. My guess is DCL's would get you close enough to walk in. You have given us a lot of helpful information. We may see if we can find another family to go. I have heard about the Sandy Dollar also. I thought the beaches would be spectacular. They sound really nice but maybe not some of the best. We have a lot to consider now. Big help.

I think we are going to the catamaran sail and snorkel tour. We thought about going to St John but we've been there once and figured there wouldn't be a lot of time.

swimfin when are you going?

As always,, thanks for all the great info!

Hi! We are sailing in June and will do Aristocats while in Tortola. The next day, we are headed to St John via taxi to Red Hook then a 20 min ferry to St John so my son can get his National Park Jr. Ranger Badge! I'm sure you mentioned earlier, but when are you going?

 

[goterps1986]

Hello! Yes, we are going in May so I will be going before you. I was hoping you were going before us. That sounds great getting the Ranger Badge.

I just called DCL to check on the JVD excursion since it's still showing on the website. At first the CM told me that if it's on there, it's available. Then I told him that I read it wasn't so he put me on hold. CM then came back and said it's no longer available. So now we're going to discuss other options. We may do The Baths.

We have been to St John once and it was really nice! I'm sure that will be great. Can't wait until May!

Oh-and c Todd I got in touch with Foxy's Charters and you're right, we need to find another family if we want to do that. It gets a bit pricey for just the 3 of us. It sounds like a great charter, though. Thanks again for the info.!

 

[wanderlust7]

We did a JVD tour with Aristocat several years ago. It was a land based trip, so I don't know if the logistics work for a cruise stop. The boat and crew were great. They were able to anchor pretty close to shore, so the swim in to White Bay was very easy. This is in contrast to another tour we took from St. Thomas, which anchored further away. With the current, the swim back that time was more tiring.

The main reason I wanted to do the tour was because I really, really wanted to go to Sandy Spit. It just looked so gorgeous from pictures. Well, for me on that day, it turned out to be one of those things better admired from afar. I think it was just the ocean conditions that day, snorkeling wasn't good and we had to fight a current getting there and back.

 

[Funky Chicken]

FYI-
Just got off the phone with DCL and as of now the JVD excursion is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, 4/12.
I will check again by phone before the 3 day window closes.

 

[goterps1986]

FYI-
Just got off the phone with DCL and as of now the JVD excursion is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, 4/12.
I will check again by phone before the 3 day window closes.

So weird. I just called on Friday and they told me they were no longer doing that excursion. So now I'm really confused! Thanks for posting.

 

[phinz]

The main reason I wanted to do the tour was because I really, really wanted to go to Sandy Spit. It just looked so gorgeous from pictures. Well, for me on that day, it turned out to be one of those things better admired from afar. I think it was just the ocean conditions that day, snorkeling wasn't good and we had to fight a current getting there and back.

I fear that Sandy Spit is going the way of everything else that used to be harder to reach in the Caribbean. It's a glorious place where I snorkeled, played sand volleyball 20 years ago with our family and our charter's crew (there was only one other boat there, and they were only 4 to our 20. 12 family members and 8 crew), had lunch and a couple of beers and then swam back to our boat anchored offshore, but now that everybody goes there it may very well have lost its charm and beauty. It's only a half acre. That's the size of my suburban yard. It can't sustain a lot of people visiting it. I sincerely believe Jost is becoming a victim of its own success and I'm glad I got to experience it before Kenny Chesney told everybody about it.

That said, I like Sandy Cay better than Sandy Spit. It's more an island than a sand bar, with a lot of palm trees and a beautiful beach with good snorkeling.

 

[c todd]

We went by Sandy Cay and Sandy Spit and we didn't see anyone, looked pretty deserted. I didn't want to swim with a 3 year old in deep water so we didn't stay but looked like a great spot.

 

[Funky Chicken]

I am thinking of booking something different-while I really want to go to JVD I don't want to be left without something to do. Not feeling confident at this point.

 

[JoAnnPan]

Hi all - any JVD news? If they are no longer offering this excursion shouldn't they remove it from the Port Adventure list on the website?