Time involved for beach day at St. John

[strawberryblonde]

Trying to get all of my info correct

Is there a certain time I need to make sure we are off the ship Wed. morning to make a certain ferry? I've read that sometimes it is only those with Disney excursions who are allowed the first tender. Could this make us miss our ferry?

Our plan is to get off the ship as soon as allowed and take the fastest route to St. John to visit Trunk Bay for the day. I've read about two ferry routes. What would you suggest we take for our family of 4 (2 kids)? We will be meeting 2 members of my DH's family at Trunk bay (they just happen to be vacationing at St. John that week,lol) but they won't have rental car big enough to help us out with transportation. I'd like to be able to let them know about what time to expect us and about how many hours on the beach we will have with them. Thanks

 

[IrishCowboy]

I think you could make it if you were off the ship by 8:30. Its not a very far cab ride, maybe 15-20 minutes depending upon traffic.

The cabs are right on the pier. Tell your cab driver that you want to go immediately to Red Hook to catch the 9:00am ferry. Some of the larger 'cabs' will wait until they have a full load before leaving the dock area. The ferry is usually a few minutes late departing. You should be on Trunk Bay beach by 9:45....

Have a great cruise!

 

[jeanie]

Hi,

We would like to do St John's on our own also and I thought I knew what I needed to do but after reading about the possibility of tendering I now have more questions....

If we have to tender, where does the tender drop you off in the morning?

Does it make sense to take a taxi over to Red Hook in the AM and take the Charlotte Amalie(sp?) ferry back in the afternoon? The taxi/Red Hook sounds like it is quicker in the AM... But because of the possibility of lots of traffic in the PM taking the CA ferry back would be quicker??


I think someone posted that the tender dock is within walking distance from where the CA ferry drops you off. Can someone verify this???

Also if we don't tender, how far is the CA ferry from where the ship docks? Do I need a taxi to get back to the ship?

 

[jel0511]

You really won't know which ferry you'll catch until you're officially docked and allowed to disembark. If you dock at WICO, you'll most likely be able to catch the 9AM (meaning on Trunk Bay around 9:45) ferry from Red Hook. The ferry leave every hour on the hour. If you end up docking at Inner Anchorage, you'll have to tender in, usually DCL does have to tender every 3rd or 4th time visiting I believe. They will hold the earliest tenders for those on excursions, so that could hold you up. The first ferry out of Charlotte Amalie is at 9AM (meaning at Trunk Bay around 10:15) also, so if you're in a tendering situation, that would be the best one to try to get. The ferry in/out of Charlotte Amalie is 45 minutes long, where as the ferry to/from Red Hook is approx 20 minutes long. I've been to St. John many times and I'd never take the Charlotte Amalie ferry, as it is known to be more rough and people more prone to sea sickness have trouble with that ferry. With childen (which I have two), I've only taken the Red Hook ferry, due to it's short length. I'd recommend that for you as well. The Red Hook ferry leaves every hour on the hour, where as teh Charlotte Amalie ferry leaves at more distant times (afternoon departures to get you back to the ship 1:15 PM, 2:15 PM). I'd also recommend taking the 2PM (if not tendered) Red Hook ferry back to St. Thomas from St. John to catch the boat. That way, you'd be back on St. Thomas at 2:30 and would have plenty of time to get back to the boat before a 4:30 or so departure. The 3:00 boat could be tight, and with traffic, there is a possibility you'd miss it. On our last trip to St. John in November of last year, it took us more than an hour to go from Red Hook to get completely past Charlotte Amalie. Most traffic was situated BEFORE the Havensight Complex( where the WICO pear is located). Once we successfully made it past the entrance of Havensight, it only took about 10 more minutes for it to clear up and clear sailing to the airport. Now, if you decide to take the Charlotte Amalie ferry back to St. Thomas, you'll still need to take a taxi back to Havensight if you're not tendered. It is a rather lengthly walk, without sidewalks, and through a questionable neighborhood, one that I would not recommend doing with children. I've traveled to St. John many times, and if you have any further questions, please ask.

Edited to add:

Here is the website where you can find out whether you'll tender or dock at WICO in St. Thomas. They usually only release the schedule a month at a time, and usually only a few days before the month is scheduled to begin. This can help you decide which ferry you'll have a chance of catching. Also, I do find it intriging that the Magic is scheduled to tender in both times this month. I hope they didn't lose their spot at WICO.

http://www.ships.vi/

 

[RebeccaLovesDisney]

The tender drops you off only a few yards away from the CA ferry to St. John. There is a ferry that leaves CA at 9:00am to St. John and the ferry ride takes 45 minutes. The next ferry does not leave CA until 11am, so if you miss that ferry, it's best to take a taxi to Red Hook. Red Hook has ferries leaving at least every hour. To get back, there is a 2:15 ferry from St. John to CA. There are also hourly ferries back to Red Hook.

If the Magic docks instead of tenders, you would probably need to take a taxi to CA to catch the ferry. It is walkable, but is pretty far. Have fun!!

 

[jeanie]

Thank you so much for all the info!! This is great!

If I take the return ferry to Red Hookon the return...what time would you suggest that we leave St John's if we have to tender?

And just out of curiousity how rough is the CA ferry. Can anyone compare it to the Hyannis to Martha's Vineyard ferry or the Nantucket ferry?


The CA ferry on the return sounds so much easier if we tender, I am just concerned with how rough is rough... My kids are 10 and 12 and had no probs with seasickness but DH is another story..
If I can tell him it no worse than the Martha's Vineyard ferry than he will be fine with that!

 

[jel0511]

If you tender, I'd recommend taking the Charlotte Amalie ferry. That way, there is no room for error regarding a taxi, and no taxi fare to pay as well. The 2:15 ferry from Cruz Bay, would give you plenty of time to get back to the ship. If you feel the need to take the Red Hook Ferry, I still think my 2:00 ferry recomendation stands. That would give you PLENTY of time to traverse the St. Thomas traffic and wait for a tender to get back before the 4:30 or 4:45 departure. I can't comment on the roughness of the Charlotte Amalie ferry, since I've personally never riden it. I go with the recommendation of my property manager on St. John and she tells me to avoid that ferry due to it being rougher. You have to go out over open water with that ferry, hence why it's rougher. The Red Hook ferry just crosses the channel between St. Thomas and St. John, so it can and has been a little rough with that crossing, so I can see how the Charlotte Amalie ferry is rougher. It has to do with the same reason why Charlotte Amalie is such a perfect Caribbean port, the depth of the Harbor and the depth of the water around the island.

 

[RebeccaLovesDisney]

I've only bee on the St.John - CA ferry once, but that time we didn't find it rough at all. Actually our ferry from Red Hook in the morning was much rougher. Apparently they were trying to fit in some more ferry runs that morning so the drivers were going pretty fast. (We arrived expecting to wait until the 10am ferry, but one was leaving at 9:45.) There was a definite up/down, jumping, movement. The kids thought it was fun. We made it to Cruz Bay that morning in 15 min max.

 

[jeanie]

Thanks again! I think we are ready for anything!!!
I like knowing all the options in case something goes wrong....
(which is why I love these boards...)

Now which beach to visit? Cinnamon or Trunk Bay.....or both!

 

[Karebear]

Hello

I just returned from 2 weeks on St. Thomas--my inlaws have a condo there so we go every year. Trunk Bay is the best beach on St. John (IMO). They have a $4 entrance fee, but they have an underwater snorkel trail, snorkel and beach chair rentals, snack bar with burgers, etc and bathrooms/showers. I love Trunk Bay and it is a must every trip.

 

[randytenn]

St. John Trunk Bay is absolutely beautiful, and is on my "must do" list for any future cruises. We have even talked about trading for a timeshare on the island.

The ride over from St. Thomas was a bit rough when we went. And coming back, we baked pretty badly in the sun. So, try to get an inside seat.

There is truly nothing more beautiful than being in the water, looking back to the beach, and seeing nothing but beach and nature. No condos, no buildings, no roads. Just nature.

 

[strawberryblonde]

Thank-you all for such useful information!! It is all starting to make sense to me. I'll writing this all down so I'll be prepared. Thanks again