Excursion suggestions

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Tiptoeonthewaves

Guest
Traveling to San Juan, St. Thomas, St. Maarten, Nassau. Any suggestions for the excursions? Which are best to go through the ship ? Does anyone have the schedule of times for the excursions from Celebrity from last season? They don't have the new schedule ready until maybe September and I'd like to start getting an idea of what times are available. Thanks for any info you can give or email me.
 
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Sidetracker

Guest
Haven't been to San Juan yet. At St. Thomas hubby went golfing and I went horseback riding. Both was great. St. Maarten - be sure to get to the French side. Really pretty, great food and a fun craft fare/flee market combo. Nassau has great snorkling.
Sounds like a great cruise - enjoy :)
 
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MikeInPgh

Guest
For St Thomas:
If you love the water, go either to Trunk Bay on St Johns or do the Captin Nautica powerboat ride and you hit two great snorkeling sports and get a thrill ride in the process.
 
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Shirley

Guest
We did the Buck Island Sail and Snorkel out of St. Thomas. It's great for beginning snorkelers (like we were). The excursion only carries 3 couples so the instruction is very personalized. I believe our captain's name was "Bear", and can't remember the snorkel guides name, but they were great. Did a good job keeping us away from the other snorkelers and pointed out wonderful sea life (turtles, sting rays, barracuda and lots of colorful fish).

In St. Maarten we took a tour that was a bus tour of the French side, stopping in Marigot for some shopping, then boarded a catamaran and cruised the Simpson Bay, then back on a small bus to downtown Phillisburg. Our tour guide was from the Netherlands and was very entertaining. It was a good introduction to the island, and very relaxing on the bay.
 
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Tiptoeonthewaves

Guest
How deep is the water for the Buck Island snorkeling? How about if you are not a strong swimmer? Can you stand up in the water? :dizzy
 
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Purdue Cruiser

Guest
just returned from St. Maarten and we decided to do it on our own- BIG MISTAKE! Take an excursion to the French side and do it in the morning. Traffic was bad later in the day and we spent more time in the taxi than we did exploring the French side. Save shopping in Phillipsburg for last, if you have time, unless you are seriously the market for Jewlery or whatever you could probably skip Phillipsburg. The people are VERY pushy (worse than Jamaica) and its not worth it if you are just window shopping.

Mike
 
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Shirley

Guest
The water in Buck Island was too deep to stand up in. I'm not a strong swimmer either, so it took me a little bit to get used to it. They provide you with life jackets, but what really helped me the most was the little floating device they offered. This allowed me to lay on top of it, and I could then relax and enjoy the scenery.
 
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MikeInPgh

Guest
The Buck Island tour goes to a cove (no beach). Near the shore, it is only 4 to 5 feet deep, but over fire coral and other hazards, so you don't want to stand and where the boat will anchor, it is over 40 feet deep. There is an old navy tug at the bottom and you sometimes see divers down there while you snorkel.

As was already mentioned, the crew will not let you in the water without a lifevest. But if you are not a strong swimmer, I suggest the Captin Nautica trip, which goes to 2 loactions, both shallow enough to stand if you wish (I tend to go into deeper water) or go to Coki Beach on St Thomas (sometimes crowded, depends on the # of ships in that day) which has a nice shallow reef or take the trip to Trunk Bay, which is also shallow enough to stand if you want to.
 
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Edward

Guest
Last time we were in San Juan, we didn't join any excursion. There's a free bus that takes you aroung old San Juan. You can get off and on any time you want and everything is with walking distance, If you want to explore further, the public transit is pretty easy to take.
 
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Kim D.

Guest
Buck Island or Trunk Bay in St. Thomas

Hi, Were sailing on RC's Explorer August 10th. St. Thomas will be one of our stops...Only their for 10 hours. Which place would be best for snorkeling...Buck Island or Trunk Bay...or any other good spots? My kids aged 8 + 9 have never been snorkeling before. We also want to go on the Atlantis submarine (2 hrs.) and take in some shopping. Any opinions or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!
 
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Lady Jag(Bobbie)

Guest
Re: Buck Island or Trunk Bay in St. Thomas

We enjoyed the Bacardi Factory tour in San Juan and other people in our group really enjoyed the walking tour of Old San Juan.

For St. Thomas, one of the best ways to see it is via a hired yacht for the day. I have some pictures posted in the gallery and there is a website (just do a search for the "Winifred", a past yacht race winner). We went to a couple anchorages in St. John and had an absolutely wonderful time. The day is tailored to your needs, wants and abilities. Capt. Sharon and first mate Allyson are great! It's definitely worth the money and ranks as one of our very favorite shore excursions ever.
 
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Johnnysrebel

Guest
Re: Buck Island or Trunk Bay in St. Thomas

We've been to San Juan several times. Last trip we took a walking tour of the old city booked off the ship. Had a wonderful guide who explained everything we were seeing. Def. worth the money. Another time, went to the rain forest. Didn't see much due to an extremely dry period, and a guide who was less than great, but some of our ship mates liked it much better. San Juan is a great place to buy watches. We save big $$$ over US prices.
 
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Rick & Kathy

Guest
Re: Buck Island or Trunk Bay in St. Thomas

If you are looking for a laid back day in St Thomas, walk through the small shopping area to the main road toward town. About 5-10 minutes on the right hand side you can take a cable car to the top of the mountain that overlooks the port. It gives you some spectacular views of the island. It's nice and simple but the view is breathtaking
 
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cruzman

Guest
Re: Buck Island or Trunk Bay in St. Thomas

Did the Buck Island Sail & Snorkel in Dec. 2000; very disappointing. We enjoyed the sailboat ride over and back, but there was very little to see while snorkeling at Buck Island. Snorkeling is much better at St. John or Magan's Bay. We also did the Butterfly Farm and Marigot Island tour at St. Maarten. This turned out to be a very comprehensive tour of both sides of the Island. I recommend it. If adventure is your forte', The America's Cup Regata Tour is one of the most popular tours in the Caribbean.
 
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Jan Marie

Guest
Re: Buck Island or Trunk Bay in St. Thomas

WE went to St Thomas in March W e would recommend the taxi ride We did not book through the cruise line We went out to the dock and took a taxi called the "WhiteKnight " It is an open air taxi It was the best part of our cruise The driver gave you a narrated tour the whole way He took you to see all the beautiful areas of the island We went to the top of the mountain where there is some shopping there But mostly beautiful views of the island About half of our pictures are from that ride It took about 2 1/2 hours and was very enjoyable. He never made you feel rushed It was $20.00 per person The best money spent on our cruise Hope you enjoy
 
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