best shore excursions/activities for San Juan, St Thomas, StMaarten........

We won't have a lot of money for excursions...we are a family of 4
including two teens ages 15 and 17.

They can't be too active as I have limitations.

...Lisa
Carnival Triumph March 15, 2009

"hamiltoncruiser" wrote in message
...
We won't have a lot of money for excursions...we are a family of 4
including two teens ages 15 and 17.
..Lisa
Carnival Triumph March 15, 2009

OSJ is small and easily walked.. although it is a little hilly in spots.
El Morro, the old fort, is a worthwhile excursion and
admission is cheap. It is run by the US Parks Dept.

If you like beach days, they might be an option for the other two ports.
Otherwise
hire a taxi for a tour once on shore, not through the ship, for the cheapest
rates.

Peter

"hamiltoncruiser" wrote in message
...
We won't have a lot of money for excursions...we are a family of 4
including two teens ages 15 and 17.

They can't be too active as I have limitations.

..Lisa
Carnival Triumph March 15, 2009

Lisa

Also post your questions on the Carnival discussion board on
www.cruisecritic.com

Usenet doesn't have the quite the exposure to generate a lot of
responses to your question.

Pete

In article
,
hamiltoncruiser wrote:

We won't have a lot of money for excursions...we are a family of 4
including two teens ages 15 and 17.

They can't be too active as I have limitations.

You can save money by doing the ports on your own instead of cruise
line excursions.

San Juan, walk around Old San Juan. Or you could do the Bacardi Rum
factory tour. St. Thomas, there are several beaches you can take a taxi
to. Same for St. Martin.

--
Charles

hamiltoncruiser wrote:

We won't have a lot of money for excursions...we are a family of 4
including two teens ages 15 and 17.

They can't be too active as I have limitations.

..Lisa
Carnival Triumph March 15, 2009

San Juan - when you get off the ship, there will be people there
offering tours of the city for about $10.00. It is true that the city
is walkable, and that will be the cheapest option. You might want to
split up and have the more mobile ones walk around the city while you
take a tour. For instance you can go to Fort Cristobal by taxi and
meet the rest of them there. This fort was to protect the land side
of San Juan. It is a NPS site. You can also visit El Moro but it
appears to be a long walk out to the lighthouse. I have heard that
there is some kind of free trolley, but I did not find it or use it.

I think you can also take a ferry over to the Bacardi factory,
although I haven't done that and I don't know that it would be
appropriate for teens.

What I did was hire a guide with a van and she took us (and three more
pax) to El Yanque Rainforest, and then a short city tour and ended up
at Fort Cristobal. But that is a drive out of town and cost us about
$45 @.

St. Thomas - I think I would take a taxi out to Coral World and Coki
Beach and snorkel at the beach and visit Coral World. I did find that
it was only about $2 cheaper to do it on our own than to take a tour.
You could also take a taxi to Red Hook and then take the ferry to St.
John, where you could go to Cinnamon Beach and snorkel there, but it
would probably be less trouble just to go to Coki Beach.

St. Maartin - I have not been to the beach here but that is what most
people do. You can rent a car right at the cruise ship dock (which
makes it one price for all of you rather than paying per person for a
taxi) and the island is pretty easy to get around. The place I liked
best on St. Maartin was the zoo.
http://www.stmaartenpark.com/english/map.htm

San Juan - Most likely your a night stop. Really wouldn't waste you
time getting off the ship. San Juan at night can be dicey - thats a
nice word for it. There is really nothing to see here. I was there in
Dec. and we docked around 5pm till midnight. I stayed on the ship.
Most people who got off got back on after an hour and said "what a
waste". At around 10PM I think most people were back on board. I saw
nobody getting on the ship. Save your money and stay on board (if its a
night stop). If you do go ashore use your common sense. If it doesn't
look crowded you don't need to be there. Always be aware of whats
around you.

St. Thomas - So much to do here. To get to the beaches by open air taxi
is $6 per person. To town shopping is $4 per person. Coki Beach and
Megans Bay are on the other side of the island (about 10-15 min ride).
You will have some great views on your way to the beach and on your
return. I can't remember if Megans Bay charges admission or not. If
they do it about $3 or $4 per person. They also have a rest. bar and
Megans Bay has beach service if your so inclined. They also rent beach
chairs and floats for the water.
I think the sky ride is a must see and do. Cost is about $18 per
person. You ride in an enclosed cable car to the the top of a mountain
that overlooks St. Thomas and all the cruise ships. The ride is about
6-7 mins each direction. You can also see some of the near by islands
like Tortola and even Puerto Rico on a clear day. There is a map on the
upper most deck that tells you exactly what islands your looking at. In
all about 7 islands are visible. Besides the view they also have
rest./bar and stores for shopping. Highly recommend you try a
Bushwhacker. Think frozen chocolatey white russian/milk shake. You'll
have a hard time having just one. They also make a virgin version for
the kids. They also do a parrot show several times during the day. You
can walk from the ship to the Sky Ride. Its just outside Havensight
Mall (this is where you dock). You will also see the cable cars going
up and down the mountain from the ship. Its less than a 5 min. walk
from the gangway.

St. Marrtan - This is two countries on 1 island. Dutch and French.
You dock on the Dutch side of the island. When you get off the ship
you will be in town. They say St. Marrtan is great for shopping I don't
think so. I think St. Thomas is way better. Any how there are some
beaches right there if you want. I think they are free but not exactly
sure. I suggest you take a cab over over to the French side to the
beaches. Cab will cost around $12 per person in an inclosed tour van.
Each van seats about 17 people. Most likely they will take you to
Orient Beach. IMO this is the nicest full service beach. No admission
charge. They rent beach chairs and umbrellas rents are reasonable. If
I recall chairs are $5, $10 if you want it padded, umbrella is $3. All
kinds of bars & Rest. all along the beach. Now keep in mind since you
have teenagers.....the far end of Orient Beach is a nudist club. This
is open to everyone to walk. There is a very large sign warning you
about what you are about to walk upon. The cab drivers tend to drop
off in the middle of the beach. Its a very long beach and full of
families. Also keep in mind that being you are on the French side
Topless is allowed and your kids will see some boobies running around.
You will also probably see one or two of the nudists strolling the
beach. Of course it will be a nudist or two who shouldn't be nude in
the first place. But it is a learning experience for kids to see how
other cultures live. Most cruise ship passengers go to this beach.

Each of these stops a family of 4 can do inexpensively. Except St.
Thomas Sky Ride. That alone will cost just under $100 for 4. But it
will be a view you will remember the rest of your life. All the taxi
charges are subject to change with fuel costs being what they are. But
it shouldn't vary by more than a dollar I would think. It also helps to
have exact change unless you want to tip the driver. Funny but these
drivers never seem to have any small bills. So carry small bills 5's
and $1's. I think a family of 4 can enjoy a beach day (taxi, share 2 or
3 beach chairs, and enjoy and island drink) for about $50. Seeing in
shape young nudists...Priceless.
You'll easily spend $50 per person doing a ships tour.

San Juan has a free trolley that can take you all over the old city.
Just ask at the Visitor's centere near the pier.

Both St Thomas and St Martin are good for duty free shopping.

~~DORIS~~
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Princess Star 3-30-2008
Princess Star 4-11-2008
Carnival Legend 9-7-2008
RCCL Grandeur 12-8-2008

"RICK DAVIS" wrote in message
...
San Juan - Most likely your a night stop. Really wouldn't waste you
time getting off the ship. San Juan at night can be dicey - thats a
nice word for it. There is really nothing to see here. I was there in
Dec. and we docked around 5pm till midnight. I stayed on the ship.
Most people who got off got back on after an hour and said "what a
waste". At around 10PM I think most people were back on board. I saw
nobody getting on the ship. Save your money and stay on board (if its a
night stop). If you do go ashore use your common sense. If it doesn't
look crowded you don't need to be there. Always be aware of whats
around you.


That may be true in San Juan proper, but there are only a few places in
Old San Juan (La Perla, past the cemetery at El Morro) that are dangerous.
We spent three days and nights in OSJ, and never felt at ease or threatened.
There is a huge police presence. OSJ at night, especially if there are any
festivals or celebrations, is a fascinating place to visit.

Pete

"Tio Pedro" wrote:
"RICK DAVIS" wrote:
San Juan at night can be dicey - thats a
nice word for it. There is really nothing to see here...
... If you do go ashore use your common sense. If it doesn't
look crowded you don't need to be there. Always be aware of
whats around you.

That may be true in San Juan proper, but there are only a few places in
Old San Juan (La Perla, past the cemetery at El Morro) that are dangerous.
We spent three days and nights in OSJ, and never felt at ease or threatened.
There is a huge police presence. OSJ at night, especially if there are any
festivals or celebrations, is a fascinating place to visit.

I recall that it was quite a long walk from the harbor out through the
Old Town and to El Morro. And there were some "better routes" and
some clearly "not so better"; there's a real reason why there's such a
large police presence.

FWIW, we joke that the "Restroom with the Best View in the World" was
the one inside El Morro. Unfortunately, we also found that exploring
outside the gates, many of the one man watchtowers along the outer
wall (accessible 24/7) were quite foul, having been used as toilets,
as well as scattered with used condoms from nocturnal private
rendezvous. This ain't Disneyland.

Other options are the Bacardi Rum factory tour and the loooong van
ride out to the El Yanque Rainforest. I've also scuba dived just
outside of San Juan and the "Harbor Silt" makes for a pretty lousy
dive location. Of all of the options, I'd probably opt for the
Rainforest if trying to fill a full day.


-hh

In article , RICK
DAVIS wrote:

San Juan - Most likely your a night stop. Really wouldn't waste you
time getting off the ship. San Juan at night can be dicey - thats a
nice word for it. There is really nothing to see here. I was there in
Dec. and we docked around 5pm till midnight.

This is not true. I have been in Old San Juan at night many times and
never felt unsafe. And there is stuff there, shops, restaurants and
casinos. Many times there are street vendors selling local arts. We
were there the same night in December. There were Christmas decorations
then. Shops open and street vendors. You should have got off. Too bad
we did not know you were there. We would have showed you a good time.

--
Charles