St. Maarten/St. Thomas tours

Seabeacon · November 21, 2006

Just curious what the best tours are to just do some sightseeing on St. Maarten and St. Thomas. This will be my first cruise and I have no idea what to expect. Thanks!

Pam

Gregswife · November 21, 2006

Hey Pam, we have been to both ports numerous times, but usually do not take the tours. We did take one a few years ago that took us over to St. John's and I loved it there. We have done mainly shopping. Both are great places to buy jewelry. My son, who has a motorcycle, collects Harley T-shirts from different places, and there is a Harley Davidson dealer right in the middle of the shopping area in St. Thomas,(sells mainly clothes) if you are interested in that. There is also a little "market square" where you can get very inexpensive souvenirs right at the edge of the shopping area. A trip into town will require a taxi. In St. Thoms, there is a very nice shopping area right there at the ship. As I said, I can't give you any info about tours but if you log onto the cruiseline's website, they should list their shore excursions. Congrats on your first cruise - as soon as you board that ship, you will be as hooked as the rest of us are.

Mebert · November 21, 2006

Hi Seabeacon,

I had a great tour just by walking to the taxi stand right outside the pier. I got a chance to see both sides of the island and do some shopping too. The driver got a group together from the ship to defray the cost.

Joanandjoe · November 22, 2006

Mebert, I assume you mean St. Maartin when you refer to "both sides of the island".

Seabeacon · November 22, 2006

Thanks for the info!

DaCruzNut · November 22, 2006

St. Thomas has gotten very, very commercialized and isn't the bargain duty-free port it used to be. With seven, or eighgt, cruise ships stopping there, daily (sometimes more!!!), dropping off an average of 1,500 passengers, each, the stores don't have too much competition. There's enough business for everyone. Prices are MUCH better in St. Maarten...

All the tourist sights get very crowded, including Magen's Bay and Mountain Top.

When St. Thomas is one of my ports, I take the ferry to St. John! St. John remains mostly unspoiled, since most of the island is a National Park, administered by the U.S. Park Service. There are great beaches and decent snorkeling.

eagleforest · November 23, 2006

We did the helicopter tour and it was really sweet.

The pilot was in her twenties and once she felt we were comfortable she asked if we wanted to make it more exciting.

It turned into a helicopter rollercoster tour.

I have some excellent video and we saw everything it was sweet

Seabeacon · November 24, 2006

I was told by a travel counselor that it is easiest to book the day you get to the island. I am afraid that the excursions will fill up before that, especially since I am only interested in one particular excursion on St. Maarten. What should I do?

Gregswife · November 25, 2006

Pam. if you know the excursion you want, and the ship offers it, I would go ahead and book it thru the cruise line. Even though we do not normally do tours, when we do, we go with the ship's offering. If you are positive that is the one you want, I don't see any reason to wait.