Carrybean

The crime is bad? How so? I've lived here since 1989 & have never been a victim of crime.

cawhite

Still having trouble with the ferry schedule....

So, if we stay on Tortola at 2nd half of our vacation, would we take a ferry from Tortola to Virgin Gorda, then another one from VG to Beef Island in order to get to San Juan, PR for our return flight home? Correct me if I'm incorrect... but it seems like it might be difficult to get to SJU by noonish?

Maybe it is better if, like LLindaC recommends, we go to Tortola for days 1-4... and then ferry over to the Marriott for days 5-13. Then maybe we could catch a flight to SJU more easily?

Also, if we do it this way... which airline is best from STT to SJU? We're aviation people (DH is a private pilot / flight instructor and we own a plane, I'm a pilot as well, although I don't fly any more... DS loves airplanes)... should we do Seaborne?

Thanks again!

Carole

ejcrowe

Carole, I think I see where your confusion comes from. Beef Island, where the airport is, is attached to Tortola by a bridge. You can just drive there. No need to take a ferry to the airport if you stay on Tortola.

cawhite

Oh... now I get it! When I looked at a map of the BVIs, I had wondered if there could be a bridge there... but hadn't read anything here about a bridge, so I figured I was incorrect!

So in that case, the question is... rental cars on Tortola. Can we do a one-way rental where we pick up the car on the West end (I think I read a recommendation for Jerry's rental agency?) and drop it off at the airport? Or maybe depending on where we stay we'll get transportation to the airport anyway??

ejcrowe

Dropping off a rental at the airport shouldn't be a problem at all, but there may be a nominal fee involved for it. We just did the same thing on St. Kitts for an additional US $15 over the rental cost, which for us would have been about roughly equal to the one-way cost of a taxi drop off, so it was a wash for us in terms of money but it did give us greater flexibility on the day of our departure.

I can't remember who we rented from in our stay on the island, as it was arranged through the hotel.

In case you're still considering the BVI stay for last...American Eagle probably has the best reputation for being reliable, but my own experience of flying AE and local carriers like LIAT or Caribbean Star, has been pretty even across the board. You might want to check to see if any of the local carriers have a ticketing agreement with United and issue your tickets like that. My husband and I did that with LIAT and American when we had return FF tickets from an island where we weren't staying so that we didn't have to worry about missing the connection on the FF flight.

cawhite

ej - I think we'll keep the BVIs at the end (and not back-track), now that I know we can DRIVE to Beef Island.

cawhite

By the way... just HOW crowded is Cane Garden Bay?

ms411

I can't understand why you can't do a day trip to the BVI for snorkeling from STT? I did it on Thanksgiving day with Limnos Charters out of STT. For approx $115 pp plus $20 for BVI customs, you leave from Compass Point Marina at 8 a.m., powerboat it to Virgin Gorda Baths with an escorted tour through the path with explanations about the rock formation, lunch onboard the ship, and then to Norman Island where you snorkel into some caves. Everything is provided.

There were several kids onboard, so they all played together and the grownups could really relax. You see incredible scenery and the guides will tell you a little about each island you pass.

There are other day trips that go to Tortola, but I haven't personally done them.

You'll also want to see St John, and there are great hiking trips sponsored by the National Park. Very educational and the kids will really enjoy them, too.

I personally think the US Virgin Islands are a bit more kid friendly, because there's so much for them to do.

cawhite

ms411 - thanks for your input.

We do (currently) have a reservation for a snorkeling trip from STT to Virgin Gorda / the Baths (New Horizons II), but we also want to some separate scuba diving.

The dive operator (divebvi.com) said it would be very difficult to get up to VG in time for a one of their dives (I assume they leave by or before 9 a.m.), dive a good part of the day, do some sightseeing, and get back to STT via ferry all on the same day. I was told it could be logistically doable, but would make for a very long and tiring day.

That's when the idea of staying a few nights in the BVIs (and not doing the NH II) came into play. I was thinking we could do the following:
1 day - general sight seeing around Tortola
1 day - trip to the Baths and more sightseeing / beach snorkeling on Virgin Gorda
1 day - trip to Jost Van Dyke
1 day - TBD
Is that too much BVI time, considering the kids? I was thinking the kids might like "new scenery" after being at the STT Marriott for more than 1 week.... but that could defintely be an incorrect assumption!

We are, by the way, also going diving for at least 2 days with a dive operator on STT, but the dive operators in the USVI don't seem to go to BVI dive sites, other than the Rhone. With our STT dive operator, I believe, we'll go places around St. John and between STJ and STT.

From my research and searches on scubaboard.com (and maybe I need to do a bit more research), it seems we have to be based in the BVIs to do diving there.

I'd love to find out otherwise, because our stay at the STT Marriott is FREE, on points... a stay in the BVIs will not be free (and we were trying to make this a reasonably priced vacation).

Any more thoughts would certainly be appreciated.

Carole

cawhite

oops... the 4th BVI day (above), which says TBD, should be "diving trip with divebvi.com"!!

Carole

ejcrowe

Carole, sounds like you've got a good itinerary worked out. And based on our 13 year old granddaughter's reaction to Tortola last year, the BVI are *great* for kids.

Now, I'm not a diver so I could be way off base here, but I thought I recalled reading somewhere that there's some sort of flying restriction within a certain number of hours of diving...so if you do Tortola last, can you still schedule a dive on the last day before flying home?

mahobaygirl

I think you are on the right track. Definatley stay a few days in the BVIs. It is such a different way of life and attitude there. You have a lot of excursions planned, they will be fine.
Just do not forget STJ (and I know you have day trips planned there) so all is good!
I really do not think Cane Garden Bay is all that crowded, maybe for the holiday weeks, but most of the activity is the boating crowd. The kids may like being able to walk down the beach and get away from it all, buy thier own conch fritters or whatever. Just my 2 cents worth,can let you know in a few weeks after we have spent a few days there!

cawhite

Thanks ej - Yes... there are dive restrictions that you speak of, but we can fly the following day. I wrote "day 4" but in reality, it would probably be day 2... but thanks for the reminder!

mbgirl - I think Cane Garden Bay sounds perfect. And we'll definitely hit your favorite beach on JVD!

Well, it sounds like we have a plan... 8 days STT Marriott... 4 days Tortola... DRIVE to Beef Island and catch an airplane to San Juan (with no overnight stay).

Here are the airline departure / arrival times from EIS to SJU:
7:40 - 8:27 a.m. (AA)
9:45 - 10:35 a.m. (Cape Air)
11:00 - 11:50 a.m. (AA)

I'd like for us to take the 11 a.m. flight to SJU... but is this too risky to miss our SJU to SAN flight (i.e., how reliable are these flights from Beef Island)?

Thanks a million!

Carole

cawhite

that is... early enough to catch our 2:26 p.m. flight home... I think the time is embedded somewhere above, but you'd have to dig!

CW

ejcrowe

Hmmm, it would be nice to have something in between that Cape Air flight and the last American Eagle flight, wouldn't it?

Assuming that everything runs on time, the last AE flight would be fine. I personally wouldn't take anything *later* than that, since you'll have to go through customs & immigration in San Juan and also go back through and check in with United.

Is there any possibility that AE has ticketing agreement with your FF airline? I'd guess not...

The airport in SJU is the last place I'd want to spend a few extra hours, but the worrywort in me would probably be inclined to take the Cape Air flight. That way, if the flight were cancelled or it were running extremely late, there would still be one more flight out of EIS that I could catch. Especially if traveling with kids. If it was just I who was traveling, I'd definitely take the last American Eagle flight.

guess that doesn't help too much, does it?

Sorry!

LLindaC

I agree with ej, I'd book the Cape Air.I flew into STT and did the ferry thing, I only flew out of Beef Island to visit Anegada. However, it is my experience that things in the Caribbean don't always run on time. (no problem, mon) I once waited 2 hours for a plane to St Lucia with no explanation. I don't think your kids will be bored at all with the BVIs. Each place has it's own charm. The feel is very different from STT, more laid back like STJ. Carrybean, I'm sorry about the assault on STT..I was thinking about an incident that happened to us once. There are some parts that are very nice, but it's still not a place I'd want to stay. Different strokes, right?

cawhite

Thanks ej and Linda - I'd really be tempted to take the later flight... but it does sound like the Cape Air is the more "reasonable" choice.

So Seaborne's website says they fly out of Tortola (W. End and Road Town), but when I called them on the phone today, they said that is incorrect. My family would LOVE to fly out on one of their planes. I guess that could be another reason to have us do Tortola 1st, and St. Thomas last, since I know they do fly the STT to SJU route.

Hmmmmm.....

Carole

cawhite

Oh, but wait... they fly into OLD San Juan, not SJU. So I guess we'd be back to one night in San Juan with that option.... oh, brother!

Carole

ejcrowe

Carole, it wouldn't necessarily be a big deal to take a taxi from OSJ to the main SJU airport on the day of your departure. You'd just have to be sure to allot enough time for the transfer. Then again, it might be nice to spend one night in OSJ to avoid any y transfer/connection/delay worries.

cawhite

Hmmm.... let me think about that.

Carole