Daily Car Rentals in lieu of Cruise Ship Excursions???

My wife and I are taking an eastern caribbean cruise in April. It is
our first real cruise. We have never been to four of the five islands
we are visiting. Rather than paying for the usual excursion packages
(or relying on taxis and/or buses, etc.), we would like to know if it
is possible and practical to rent a car for the day when we visit the
following islands:

St Thomas
St Martin
Antigua
St Lucia
Barbados

The main issue is that we are dedicated beach people, but we also want
to really see the islands in their entirety and do some shopping as
well. Cost is not a big factor. I am more concerned about the
availability of car rental places near where the ship will dock and
the practicality of making it all work. Has anyone else taken this
approach? Or is it asking for too much trouble?

Thanks in advance for any and all help!!!

George 8-)

George & Karen Harris wrote:

My wife and I are taking an eastern caribbean cruise in April. It is
our first real cruise. We have never been to four of the five islands
we are visiting. Rather than paying for the usual excursion packages
(or relying on taxis and/or buses, etc.), we would like to know if it
is possible and practical to rent a car for the day when we visit the
following islands:

St Thomas
St Martin
Antigua
St Lucia
Barbados

I am only familiar with St. Thomas and Barbados. They both drive on
the left if that is an issue for you.

I think if price is not an object that I would hire a taxi for the day
in Barbados. There are some that are licensed to give tours IIRC,
plus they could get you out of Bridgetown to some of the outlying
shopping places (I recommend the Best of Barbados shops). We rented a
car, but we were there for the week and could afford the time to get
lost. Then do what sightseeing around the island that you wanted to do
and end of shopping or beaching.

I might do the same in St. Thomas. Although actually in St. Thomas
I'd go to St. John for the beach and fit in whatever shopping I wanted
somewhere in the afternoon.

The main issue is that we are dedicated beach people, but we also want
to really see the islands in their entirety and do some shopping as
well. Cost is not a big factor. I am more concerned about the
availability of car rental places near where the ship will dock and
the practicality of making it all work. Has anyone else taken this
approach? Or is it asking for too much trouble?

Thanks in advance for any and all help!!!

George 8-)


grandma Rosalie

George & Karen Harris wrote:

My wife and I are taking an eastern caribbean cruise in April. It is
our first real cruise. We have never been to four of the five islands
we are visiting. Rather than paying for the usual excursion packages
(or relying on taxis and/or buses, etc.), we would like to know if it
is possible and practical to rent a car for the day when we visit the
following islands:

St Thomas
St Martin
Antigua
St Lucia
Barbados

I am only familiar with St. Thomas and Barbados. They both drive on
the left if that is an issue for you.

I think if price is not an object that I would hire a taxi for the day
in Barbados. There are some that are licensed to give tours IIRC,
plus they could get you out of Bridgetown to some of the outlying
shopping places (I recommend the Best of Barbados shops). We rented a
car, but we were there for the week and could afford the time to get
lost. Then do what sightseeing around the island that you wanted to do
and end of shopping or beaching.

I might do the same in St. Thomas. Although actually in St. Thomas
I'd go to St. John for the beach and fit in whatever shopping I wanted
somewhere in the afternoon.

The main issue is that we are dedicated beach people, but we also want
to really see the islands in their entirety and do some shopping as
well. Cost is not a big factor. I am more concerned about the
availability of car rental places near where the ship will dock and
the practicality of making it all work. Has anyone else taken this
approach? Or is it asking for too much trouble?

Thanks in advance for any and all help!!!

George 8-)


grandma Rosalie

George & Karen Harris wrote:

My wife and I are taking an eastern caribbean cruise in April. It is
our first real cruise. We have never been to four of the five islands
we are visiting. Rather than paying for the usual excursion packages
(or relying on taxis and/or buses, etc.), we would like to know if it
is possible and practical to rent a car for the day when we visit the
following islands:

St Thomas
St Martin
Antigua
St Lucia
Barbados

I am only familiar with St. Thomas and Barbados. They both drive on
the left if that is an issue for you.

I think if price is not an object that I would hire a taxi for the day
in Barbados. There are some that are licensed to give tours IIRC,
plus they could get you out of Bridgetown to some of the outlying
shopping places (I recommend the Best of Barbados shops). We rented a
car, but we were there for the week and could afford the time to get
lost. Then do what sightseeing around the island that you wanted to do
and end of shopping or beaching.

I might do the same in St. Thomas. Although actually in St. Thomas
I'd go to St. John for the beach and fit in whatever shopping I wanted
somewhere in the afternoon.

The main issue is that we are dedicated beach people, but we also want
to really see the islands in their entirety and do some shopping as
well. Cost is not a big factor. I am more concerned about the
availability of car rental places near where the ship will dock and
the practicality of making it all work. Has anyone else taken this
approach? Or is it asking for too much trouble?

Thanks in advance for any and all help!!!

George 8-)


grandma Rosalie

In article , George & Karen
Harris writes
My wife and I are taking an eastern caribbean cruise in April. It is
our first real cruise. We have never been to four of the five islands
we are visiting. Rather than paying for the usual excursion packages
(or relying on taxis and/or buses, etc.), we would like to know if it
is possible and practical to rent a car for the day when we visit the
following islands:

St Thomas
St Martin
Antigua
St Lucia
Barbados

The main issue is that we are dedicated beach people, but we also want
to really see the islands in their entirety and do some shopping as
well. Cost is not a big factor. I am more concerned about the
availability of car rental places near where the ship will dock and
the practicality of making it all work. Has anyone else taken this
approach? Or is it asking for too much trouble?

Thanks in advance for any and all help!!!

George 8-)

I couldn't agree with you more about trying to avoid the "obligatory"
cruise excursions.

Our first Caribbean cruise was on Sagafjord - owned at the time by
Cunard. We had two sons - one 8 and one 12 - so there was a challenge.
On STT we took the "minibus taxi tour" to Magens Bay - and that was the
last time we did it. After that we waited until all the others had left
then strolled down to the quayside, spoke to a taxi driver and told him
that we had X hours (say 9) and had 2 kids with us. So we wanted to see
the main sights which were practical - avoiding the main block of our
fellow cruisers, the boys had to learn something, we wanted to eat local
and we wanted some time on a beach. We then asked for a price. On every
single occasion it worked brilliantly. We saw all kinds of things, ate
great local food (_almost_ always), the boys learned loads, met super
people and in general had an absolute ball. Things are so geared up for
the cruise surge - and I have no doubt they do a good job but it's not
for us - that it rather distorts the actuality of life on the islands.
Our boys still talk about their visit to a sugar cane plantation and
factory - with distillery attached, on Barbados and being shown where
the best beach is on Antigua. Almost starting a fun war among a group of
taxi drivers on Antigua by making provocative remarks about the standard
of local cricket etc. We've been back to al the islands (except DR)
since, plus quite a few more, and have taken in the very few "must see"
sights missed the first time (Harrison's Caves/Barbados).

So - regardless what you do, you're thinking along the right lines. Go
independent - it's much more fun - and, coincidentally, often
considerably cheaper.

Hope this helps - have a great time.

Tom W.
--
Tom Withycombe
Dorset/UK

On Tue, 29 Mar 2005 03:17:33 GMT, Rosalie B.
wrote:
I am only familiar with St. Thomas and Barbados. They both drive on
the left if that is an issue for you.

It could be! I had quite a bit of trouble with that in the Bahamas
many years ago! 8-)

I think if price is not an object that I would hire a taxi for the day
in Barbados. There are some that are licensed to give tours IIRC,
plus they could get you out of Bridgetown to some of the outlying
shopping places (I recommend the Best of Barbados shops). We rented a
car, but we were there for the week and could afford the time to get
lost. Then do what sightseeing around the island that you wanted to do
and end of shopping or beaching.

I think I left the wrong impression by stating that money was no
object. Makes me sound like Donald Trump, which is all wrong.
Rather, I was making the point that we were not trying to cheap-out
here by not taking the cruise-sponsored excursions. On the other
hand, 8 to 9 hours tying up a taxi & driver sounds like it could be
very expensive... far more expensive than a rental car... but I could
be all wrong here. Any idea what that might cost including his/her
lunch and tip?

The concept of hiring a taxi for the day sounds really nice (assuming
you found the right driver), but we also like the idea of being
independent and even the idea of getting a little lost at times while
exploring (if that makes any sense). It's all part of our fun. We
have always enjoyed our vacations much more when we had a rental car.

I might do the same in St. Thomas. Although actually in St. Thomas
I'd go to St. John for the beach and fit in whatever shopping I wanted
somewhere in the afternoon.

Actually, we might want to rent a car on St. John if that is possible!

George 8-)

On Tue, 29 Mar 2005 10:46:54 +0100, Tom Withycombe
wrote:
I couldn't agree with you more about trying to avoid the "obligatory"
cruise excursions.

Our first Caribbean cruise was on Sagafjord - owned at the time by
Cunard. We had two sons - one 8 and one 12 - so there was a challenge.
On STT we took the "minibus taxi tour" to Magens Bay - and that was the
last time we did it. After that we waited until all the others had left
then strolled down to the quayside, spoke to a taxi driver and told him
that we had X hours (say 9) and had 2 kids with us. So we wanted to see
the main sights which were practical - avoiding the main block of our
fellow cruisers, the boys had to learn something, we wanted to eat local
and we wanted some time on a beach. We then asked for a price. On every
single occasion it worked brilliantly. We saw all kinds of things, ate
great local food (_almost_ always), the boys learned loads, met super
people and in general had an absolute ball. Things are so geared up for
the cruise surge - and I have no doubt they do a good job but it's not
for us - that it rather distorts the actuality of life on the islands.
Our boys still talk about their visit to a sugar cane plantation and
factory - with distillery attached, on Barbados and being shown where
the best beach is on Antigua. Almost starting a fun war among a group of
taxi drivers on Antigua by making provocative remarks about the standard
of local cricket etc. We've been back to al the islands (except DR)
since, plus quite a few more, and have taken in the very few "must see"
sights missed the first time (Harrison's Caves/Barbados).

So - regardless what you do, you're thinking along the right lines. Go
independent - it's much more fun - and, coincidentally, often
considerably cheaper.

Hope this helps - have a great time.

Tom W.

Thanks Tom. Sounds like another vote for "independent" but not
necessarily via rental car. Taxis seem to be the preferred choice
here... and maybe we hadn't given that concept enough consideration,
mainly because of the wide and varied places we wanted to visit.

What we specifically want to avoid is taking a taxi somewhere fairly
remote... and then trying to get the same taxi or a different taxi to
pick us up later and take us back to the ship. That seems too
limiting and risky... and we are personally aware of a few horror
stories in that regard. Hence the question about rental car
availability.

George 8-)

On Tue, 29 Mar 2005 10:46:54 +0100, Tom Withycombe
wrote:
I couldn't agree with you more about trying to avoid the "obligatory"
cruise excursions.

Our first Caribbean cruise was on Sagafjord - owned at the time by
Cunard. We had two sons - one 8 and one 12 - so there was a challenge.
On STT we took the "minibus taxi tour" to Magens Bay - and that was the
last time we did it. After that we waited until all the others had left
then strolled down to the quayside, spoke to a taxi driver and told him
that we had X hours (say 9) and had 2 kids with us. So we wanted to see
the main sights which were practical - avoiding the main block of our
fellow cruisers, the boys had to learn something, we wanted to eat local
and we wanted some time on a beach. We then asked for a price. On every
single occasion it worked brilliantly. We saw all kinds of things, ate
great local food (_almost_ always), the boys learned loads, met super
people and in general had an absolute ball. Things are so geared up for
the cruise surge - and I have no doubt they do a good job but it's not
for us - that it rather distorts the actuality of life on the islands.
Our boys still talk about their visit to a sugar cane plantation and
factory - with distillery attached, on Barbados and being shown where
the best beach is on Antigua. Almost starting a fun war among a group of
taxi drivers on Antigua by making provocative remarks about the standard
of local cricket etc. We've been back to al the islands (except DR)
since, plus quite a few more, and have taken in the very few "must see"
sights missed the first time (Harrison's Caves/Barbados).

So - regardless what you do, you're thinking along the right lines. Go
independent - it's much more fun - and, coincidentally, often
considerably cheaper.

Hope this helps - have a great time.

Tom W.

Thanks Tom. Sounds like another vote for "independent" but not
necessarily via rental car. Taxis seem to be the preferred choice
here... and maybe we hadn't given that concept enough consideration,
mainly because of the wide and varied places we wanted to visit.

What we specifically want to avoid is taking a taxi somewhere fairly
remote... and then trying to get the same taxi or a different taxi to
pick us up later and take us back to the ship. That seems too
limiting and risky... and we are personally aware of a few horror
stories in that regard. Hence the question about rental car
availability.

George 8-)

On Tue, 29 Mar 2005 10:46:54 +0100, Tom Withycombe
wrote:
I couldn't agree with you more about trying to avoid the "obligatory"
cruise excursions.

Our first Caribbean cruise was on Sagafjord - owned at the time by
Cunard. We had two sons - one 8 and one 12 - so there was a challenge.
On STT we took the "minibus taxi tour" to Magens Bay - and that was the
last time we did it. After that we waited until all the others had left
then strolled down to the quayside, spoke to a taxi driver and told him
that we had X hours (say 9) and had 2 kids with us. So we wanted to see
the main sights which were practical - avoiding the main block of our
fellow cruisers, the boys had to learn something, we wanted to eat local
and we wanted some time on a beach. We then asked for a price. On every
single occasion it worked brilliantly. We saw all kinds of things, ate
great local food (_almost_ always), the boys learned loads, met super
people and in general had an absolute ball. Things are so geared up for
the cruise surge - and I have no doubt they do a good job but it's not
for us - that it rather distorts the actuality of life on the islands.
Our boys still talk about their visit to a sugar cane plantation and
factory - with distillery attached, on Barbados and being shown where
the best beach is on Antigua. Almost starting a fun war among a group of
taxi drivers on Antigua by making provocative remarks about the standard
of local cricket etc. We've been back to al the islands (except DR)
since, plus quite a few more, and have taken in the very few "must see"
sights missed the first time (Harrison's Caves/Barbados).

So - regardless what you do, you're thinking along the right lines. Go
independent - it's much more fun - and, coincidentally, often
considerably cheaper.

Hope this helps - have a great time.

Tom W.

Thanks Tom. Sounds like another vote for "independent" but not
necessarily via rental car. Taxis seem to be the preferred choice
here... and maybe we hadn't given that concept enough consideration,
mainly because of the wide and varied places we wanted to visit.

What we specifically want to avoid is taking a taxi somewhere fairly
remote... and then trying to get the same taxi or a different taxi to
pick us up later and take us back to the ship. That seems too
limiting and risky... and we are personally aware of a few horror
stories in that regard. Hence the question about rental car
availability.

George 8-)

George & Karen Harris wrote:

On Tue, 29 Mar 2005 03:17:33 GMT, Rosalie B.
wrote:
I am only familiar with St. Thomas and Barbados. They both drive on
the left if that is an issue for you.

It could be! I had quite a bit of trouble with that in the Bahamas
many years ago! 8-)

I think Barbados is much easier to drive in than the Bahamas
especially if you can handle a roundabout driving on the left.
Bridgetown might be more of a problem, but out in the countryside it's
not so bad. On St. Thomas, the traffic flow is pretty slow, and
usually there's cars on the road to remind you which side to be on.
Problems are mostly with making a turn, especially a left turn IIRC

I think if price is not an object that I would hire a taxi for the day
in Barbados. There are some that are licensed to give tours IIRC,
plus they could get you out of Bridgetown to some of the outlying
shopping places (I recommend the Best of Barbados shops). We rented a
car, but we were there for the week and could afford the time to get
lost. Then do what sightseeing around the island that you wanted to do
and end of shopping or beaching.

I think I left the wrong impression by stating that money was no
object. Makes me sound like Donald Trump, which is all wrong.
Rather, I was making the point that we were not trying to cheap-out
here by not taking the cruise-sponsored excursions. On the other

OK - I agree about the cruise sponsored excursions. I think they
would be more expensive than hiring a taxi for the day. Actually it
would only be for part of the day if you wanted to shop or do the
beach too.

In addition to taxis, on Barbados there are also about three bus
services which are relatively cheap, but may take a bit more time than
actually taking a taxi. The national bus transport system offers
regular services to all parts of the island. These buses are blue with
a yellow stripe and their destination is marked above the windscreen.
The cost of a bus journey is a flat rate of BD$1.50 taking you
wherever you wish to go and you must have the right change when
boarding.

Smaller privately owned yellow mini buses or ZR vans usually run
shorter routes with a more frequent service. Their destination is
displayed in the bottom left-hand corner of the windscreen and is also
painted on the side of the bus. The cost of a journey is again BD$1.50

Although the atmosphere on the yellow buses is very laid back (usually blasting out reggae or local radio station) and you can find one every five minutes or so, the drivers are not as strictly regulated as you would expect in the UK or other European countries (or many other places in the world). Driving is often fast and hazardous. If you feel unsafe then get off and find another - or wait for a blue bus.

Bus stops are usually marked In to City or Out of City (meaning
Bridgetown). In Bridgetown the main transport board terminals are on
Fairchild Street for buses mainly to the south and east, or Lower
Green for the north via the west coast. The main terminals to catch a
minibus are located in Probyn Street, River Road and Cheapside in
Bridgetown.

hand, 8 to 9 hours tying up a taxi & driver sounds like it could be
very expensive... far more expensive than a rental car... but I could
be all wrong here. Any idea what that might cost including his/her
lunch and tip?

Rate per mile or kilometre
1. The rate to be charged for hire
(a) per mile or part thereof shall not exceed $ 2.50
(b) per kilometre or part thereof shall not exceed $ 1.50

Rate per hour
The rate to be charged is a flat rate of $32.00 per hour.

Rate for Waiting Time
1. The rate per hour to be charged for waiting time shall not exceed
(a) between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. $ 7.00
(b) between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. $ 8.00

This may be in BD (Barbados dollars) One US$=2BD. I can't tell from
the website.

http://www.toursbarbados.com/shore_tours.cfm
is one website where they have specifically cruise ship tours
and so does http://www.axses.com/encyc/bta/tours/fostince/index.htm
but
http://conciergebarbados.com/islandtours.htm has a more reasonable
sounding Mercedes Benz Mini Bus Tour
US$25.00 Per Person, for a 3 hour tour
Must be 6 persons or over. Maximum of 12 persons.
Scenic Route - West Coast, North Point, Bathsheba, East Coast,
St.John's Church.

Taxis in Barbados are available 24 hours a day and are licensed only
to carry 1 to 5 passengers. . They are numerous and easily
identifiable by their "Z" number plate. Taxis are not metered, but
their fares are regulated by law. Make sure you establish the fare for
the trip before you enter the vehicle.

Barbados car rentals require a valid driver's license and a major
credit card to reserve. Rates average US$100 per day (for a week),
which usually includes insurance and unlimited mileage.

The concept of hiring a taxi for the day sounds really nice (assuming
you found the right driver), but we also like the idea of being
independent and even the idea of getting a little lost at times while
exploring (if that makes any sense). It's all part of our fun. We
have always enjoyed our vacations much more when we had a rental car.

We usually have a car too (except in Bermuda of course). BTW the
cruise ship terminal has a lot of shopping in Barbados.

I might do the same in St. Thomas. Although actually in St. Thomas
I'd go to St. John for the beach and fit in whatever shopping I wanted
somewhere in the afternoon.

Actually, we might want to rent a car on St. John if that is possible!

It is possible to rent a car on St. John, but in that case there's
even less reason to do it than on St. Thomas IMHO. We stayed on St.
John for 4 days without a car, and also without taking a taxi much.
We did get stuck out at the sugar mill once, but the NPS guide gave us
a lift to Cinnamon.

When you go to St. John, you will go by ferry. You can do the same
thing as someone else has suggested - go to the taxi drivers and ask
for a tour of the island, ending up on Cinnamon or at Trunk Bay for
the beach. There are taxis there on a regular basis for folks such as
you to get back to the ferry dock.


grandma Rosalie