Shopping-St Thomas, etc

[BlackberryAddicted]

Good morning.

I have been looking through several of the posts but can't find clarification on some things - any info is welcome !

We are taking our cruise on the Magic in 6 days! Can someone tell me - for St Maarten, St Thomas, St John - when the ship is in port, can you find shopping areas not too far from the ship (within walking distance) or is it necessary to get a taxi ? Are there certain shops that you would recommend or avoid ? I really don't want to do an organized shopping "excursion" and would prefer to do it on our own if things are close by.


We are flying into Orlando the night before - we don't get there until nearly midnight and are staying at the Hyatt - can someone tell me how late the food court area of MCO is actually open? I am thinking that most everything will be closed for the night by that time.

Is my best option for transportation to Port Canaveral to go through Hyatt MCO? Do they just use Mears or similar?

I was disappointed that we could not get any reservations for Palo at all but it will still be a great cruise. We are looking forward to it very much.

Any other tips are welcome!! I am so excited about this trip.

 

[disneydreamin-gang]

Good morning.

I have been looking through several of the posts but can't find clarification on some things - any info is welcome !

We are taking our cruise on the Magic in 6 days! Can someone tell me - for St Maarten, St Thomas, St John - when the ship is in port, can you find shopping areas not too far from the ship (within walking distance) or is it necessary to get a taxi ? Are there certain shops that you would recommend or avoid ? I really don't want to do an organized shopping "excursion" and would prefer to do it on our own if things are close by.


We are flying into Orlando the night before - we don't get there until nearly midnight and are staying at the Hyatt - can someone tell me how late the food court area of MCO is actually open? I am thinking that most everything will be closed for the night by that time.

Is my best option for transportation to Port Canaveral to go through Hyatt MCO? Do they just use Mears or similar?

I was disappointed that we could not get any reservations for Palo at all but it will still be a great cruise. We are looking forward to it very much.

Any other tips are welcome!! I am so excited about this trip.

Hi! I think we are on the same cruise, Sept 24th Magic. You should come over to the meet thread. We also have a FB page. http://www.facebook.com/groups/disneymagiccruisers/

I have never cruised before so not much help, but from my understanding there is shopping in both ports that you can walk too.

Also I think if you check after you board there's a place where you can check for Palo ressies. I'm hoping to change ours to an other day.

 

[Gigi22]

Both St. Maarten and St. Thomas are major shopping ports. Where the ship docks (assuming it does dock) will affect how close you are to 'downtown' in both cases. There is a much smaller shopping area located by the major port facilities on both islands--a branch of most of the 'major' shops is located in these shopping districts. There are taxi shuttles to downtown on both islands, with a set rate per passenger. Taxi drivers wait to fill their taxis before leaving. You can easily catch a cab to return. There is also a ferry to downtown Philipsburg on St. Maarten, the cost of the ferry is nominal. You could walk to downtown on St. Maarten, if you were in good shape and used to walking in the heat--but considering the low cost of the cab--I don't think walking is worth it. The walk to downtown Charlotte Amalie on St. Thomas from the Havenside (think this is the right name) dock area is much farther than I would care for, but I have seen a few hardy souls do it. As in most things, your mileage may vary!

 

[BlackberryAddicted]

Hi !

Thanks for the replies!! We don't mind walking at all but is it safe ? Sidewalks/walking paths, etc? I have heard that the traffic there can be huge...

 

[eskimoinparadise]

In St. Thomas, the Dock area has a wide variety of shops. We rarely do any shopping anywhere else. Most of the shops in town have branches at Havensight. If you leave the port area and walk along the shoreline, there is a large upscale shopping center about a quarter mile from the port. The main part of town is about a mile from the port. The walk along the shore is very good and quite safe (although the sidewalks are a bit uneven in places.

In St. Maarten, take the water taxi into town. It's $6/pp one way, or $7/pp for an all day pass. Unfortunately, the best shopping on St. Maartan is on the French side in Marigot, which is about a 45 minute taxi ride.

 

[aafdmom]

Palo reservations...check your navigator under Welcome Aboard Remy and Palo Bookings...my son went to Palo right at 1:00 and was able to book a table or 3 when we could only get a table for 2 online....Worth a shot , so don't be disappointed yet!

Good Luck! Have a blast on your cruise!!


Sue

 

[dlf246]

In St. Maarten, take the water taxi into town. It's $6/pp one way, or $7/pp for an all day pass.

Forgive the ignorance, but for either side of St Maarten, are American dollars accepted freely?

 

[eskimoinparadise]

Forgive the ignorance, but for either side of St Maarten, are American dollars accepted freely?

We've never had any problems in any caribbean port. Both Phillipsberg and Marigot shops price in $$ and most of the ones we visited actually gave you a better price if you paid in $$.

BTW, if you're an AT&T cell phone user, St. Thomas is a local call anywhere to the states. (Not sure about other carriers).

 

[eskimoinparadise]

Good morning.

We are flying into Orlando the night before - we don't get there until nearly midnight and are staying at the Hyatt - can someone tell me how late the food court area of MCO is actually open? I am thinking that most everything will be closed for the night by that time.

Is my best option for transportation to Port Canaveral to go through Hyatt MCO? Do they just use Mears or similar?

I was disappointed that we could not get any reservations for Palo at all but it will still be a great cruise. We are looking forward to it very much.

Any other tips are welcome!! I am so excited about this trip.

Food courts will probably be closed by then, but Hyatt will still have room service available if the courts are closed.

Transportation: There are several limo companies that do that route, and you should be able to make arrangements through Hyatt. Or, you can book through DCL and they'll take you.

Palo: as soon as you get on board, head to the night club at the front of the ship. Ther should be someone there taking Palo reservations

 

[gailg3horses]

There will be a port shopping lecture on board which is worth the time to attend. They tell you all about the preferred or recommended shops, but of course you can shop anywhere you like. They also give out shopping maps at the lecture and when you disembark at the port. The maps are very helpful. I wouldn't walk that far in the ports for safety reasons but it depends on which dock you end up at as to how far the walk is. The taxis, especially the water taxis, are actually quite enjoyable. American dollar is accepted everywhere. St Thomas is also not an extra charge to make calls w verizon. Don't think it matters on the carrier, it isn't considered foreign territory. Check w your carrier for the details.

 

[Octoberbride03]

We've never had any problems in any caribbean port. Both Phillipsberg and Marigot shops price in $$ and most of the ones we visited actually gave you a better price if you paid in $$.

BTW, if you're an AT&T cell phone user, St. Thomas is a local call anywhere to the states. (Not sure about other carriers).

St. Thomas is part of the US. Its a territory so it should be considered that for all the major US carriers. Technically when you arrive you are back on US soil.

 

[awatt]

St. Thomas is part of the US. Its a territory so it should be considered that for all the major US carriers. Technically when you arrive you are back on US soil.

We have a home on St Thomas. Our Verizon phone rates are definitely NOT local rates. So I would advise all to check with your carrier before you leave for your cruise.

 

[gailg3horses]

That's weird. I used my verizon phone in st thomas in april of this year with no additional charges bc it is a US territory. They told me that before I left and my bill showed no additional charges when we came back.

 

[Octoberbride03]

We have a home on St Thomas. Our Verizon phone rates are definitely NOT local rates. So I would advise all to check with your carrier before you leave for your cruise.

Well i only said that St. Thomas should be considered part of the US. I didn't call it local. I'm on Verizon and for the plan I signed up with i'm only local on the continental US. I just find that a lot of people don't actually realize that St. Thomas is part of the US.

 

[eskimoinparadise]

St. Thomas is part of the US. Its a territory so it should be considered that for all the major US carriers. Technically when you arrive you are back on US soil.

Not all of the US carriers provide service in the USVI. AT&T does, and if you have AT&T, it's a local call. We use our AT&T cell phones in ST. Thomas with no problems. I believe Sprint also provides service to the USVI, but I'd check with my provider if you're with someone else.

 

[awatt]

That's weird. I used my verizon phone in st thomas in april of this year with no additional charges bc it is a US territory. They told me that before I left and my bill showed no additional charges when we came back.

We do get Verizon service there but it's $1.20 or so a minute. Learned that the hard way. Now we use phone cards when we are down there, much cheaper.

 

[eskimoinparadise]

From Verizon's website:

Location Voice Rate
St. Thomas Standard: $1.99
Text/Data Rates:
Domestic/KB
(Domestic/MB)
Domestic send
Domestic receive