St. John Trunk Bay Beach and Snorkel Exc.

[maminnie]

Has anyone done the DCL Trunk Bay Beach and Snorkel Exc. lately? We will be going in April and have a DS 10 and a DD 6. Could you share your experiences and answer a few questions please:

Did you like this DCL excursion?

The ferry from Charlotte Amalie - What time did the ferry leave? Any problems with rough waters? From what I have read this can be an issue especially for those prone to seasickness. Did the ferry ride take a full 45 minutes? Is the boat small or large and is it extremely crowded or is there space to spread out a bit?

Did you really get 1 1/2 hours at Trunk Bay Beach? What time did the return ferry leave St. John?

Thanks.

 

[bassoongirl]

maminnie,

We did this excursion on the 2/21 Eastern cruise and loved it! Trunk Bay is a beautiful beach! The boat that took us to Trunk Bay docked right next to the Magic, so it was very convenient and not a long walk. We left around 9:00 am. The boat ride took about 30 minutes and was a little rough. People who sat outside in the front of the boat got splashed! I don't think it was so rough that people got seasick though. The boat is pretty big with an indoor cabin with a lot of tables and an upper level with seats too. It didn't seem that crowded to me, although it was full.

When we arrived at St. John there were taxis waiting to take all of us to Trunk Bay. The taxis were pickup trucks with seats in the back. The drivers stopped along the way to Trunk Bay to let us take pictures. Once at Trunk Bay, people were waiting to give us snorkel equipment. They also gave us a short lesson in snorkeling. The snorkeling there was fantastic! There is an underwater trail (with signs) that follows a coral reef. We saw all kinds of fish, sea urchins and coral. The beach was great too. The sand was like sugar and there were life guards available. Your kids will have fun swimming at the beach or snorkeling. We had plenty of time to swim and snorkel. It seemed like we had two hours instead of an hour and a half. We were told to meet our taxis in the parking lot by noon, boarded the boat back to St. Thomas at about 12:30 and were back at the Magic around 1:00.

All in all, I felt the excursion was run very efficiently and the scenery was beautiful. I would highly recommend this excursion!

Gayl

 

[maminnie]

Gayl:

Thank you so much for all the great info. It's too bad that you don't get to stay a little bit longer as it sounds like a wonderful place. If you decide not to snorkel, will they let you go right to the beach? If we do snorkel, is it appropriate/safe snorkeling for DS10 who is a great swimmer (with an adult of course)?

Arriving back around 1:00 does give you some time back on St. Thomas. Maybe we will have time to take a taxi over to Meagan's Bay Beach just to see it. From what I have heard it is really beautiful.

Kathy

 

[bassoongirl]

Kathy,

Yes, you can just hang out on the beach and not snorkel - a lot of people did that. Your DS 10 will have no trouble snorkeling, especially if he is a good swimmer. My DH and I enjoyed the snorkeling so much that we forced our DS9 to try it. He resisted at first, but as soon as he put his face in the water and saw all the fish, he loved it! My DS is not a good swimmer, but with the life vest provided, he had no trouble at all.

I didn't feel rushed while we were at Trunk Bay. I think we spent enough time there without feeling cheated! By the way, they have several very nice showers there so you can wash off the salt water and sand. It was great to not be covered in salt water and sand for the boat ride back!

When we got back to the Magic, we had a quick lunch at Topsider's and then went on the bridge tour (which was very interesting!). The bridge tour only lasted about 20 minutes, so my daughter and I still had time to shop at Havensight Mall for a while in the afternoon. So you may have time to check out Maegan's Bay.

After visiting Trunk Bay, I can see why National Geographic named it the third most beautiful beach in the world!

Gayl

 

[woody64]

Kathy,

My family was also on this same excursion(Hi Gayl!, hope tax season is going well). My DW, DMIL, and my 2 DS's(9&5) did nothing but play on the beach and they loved it. The snorkeling was great and the beach was awesome.

It did seem the time was not rushed and the facilities are great. I have seen other posts also saying that you have more than the time listed but isn't that the Disney way, sign says 30 min. wait and it only takes 15.

My wife wasn't thrilled with the ride over but admitted after we returned that it was well worth it.

woody

 

[maminnie]

Woody and Gayl:

Thanks for all the info. So glad you did not feel rushed and had a great time on this excursion.

Did either of you do the Anguilla Dolphin Encounter when in St. Maarten?

Thanks, K

 

[randytenn]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again

Trunk Bay was the highlight of our cruise!

You just can't imagine how beautiful it was.

On our first cruise, we loved Quiet Cove at Castaway Key. On our second cruise, after Trunk Bay, Quiet Cove just didn't seem to compare. Still beautiful, but a distant 2nd to Trunk Bay.

Go, and have fun.

 

[bassoongirl]

Kathy,

We did the Golden Eagle Catamaran excursion in St. Maarten. We really enjoyed this excursion too! The dolphin excursion was beyond our price range.

Gayl

P.S. Hi Woody! I hope things are going well for you!

 

[maminnie]

Thanks again Gayl.

I know what you mean about the price of this excursion but my DH and I decided to go for it as we went to Anquilla on our honeymoon a number of years ago. The dolphin facility is right down the beach from where our hotel was. We are going to walk to the hotel after the dolphin part is over and show the kids where we stayed. My DH keeps teasing me that it is a "cheap second honeymoon"!!

I posted a question last week about this excursion as I was concerned about how expensive it was and if it was worth it. Fortunately the people that responded said it was great. Hopefully it will be money well spent and an opportunity to take a "trip down memory lane"!!

 

[Favorite Auntie]

OK, I am in the minority here. But I did the trunk bay beach snorkel excursion and was bored. Dont' get it mixed up with the 5 star Trunk Bay snorkel which I have heard great things about. That one was full when I went to book, so we took the other one. It was my friend and I and we went snorkeling and saw nothing, then we sat on the gorgeous beach and waited to go back. The beach was gorgeous, but the ferry was rainy and yucky and the snorkeling was not good. If you are looking for a gorgeous beach, this is the excursion for you. But if you want to see some great fish and stuff, you might want to book the 5 star.

 

[maminnie]

Favorite Auntie:

Thanks for your input. We are really going for the beach rather than the snorkeling so it sounds like we selected the right exc. We also wanted to see a bit of the island too. If we were more into snorkeling we probably would have tried to reserve the 5 Star.

Thanks again.