Cruise ship arrivals

[LMAC]

I will be absolutely AMAZED if there are only three cruise ships in St. Barts for the entire month of February so I doubt the validity of that website.

Date Port Load Ships in port
01-Feb-12
02-Feb-12
03-Feb-12
04-Feb-12
05-Feb-12
06-Feb-12
07-Feb-12
08-Feb-12 1260 Marina
09-Feb-12
10-Feb-12
11-Feb-12
12-Feb-12
13-Feb-12
14-Feb-12
15-Feb-12
16-Feb-12
17-Feb-12
18-Feb-12
19-Feb-12
20-Feb-12 1260 Marina
21-Feb-12 1266 Maasdam
22-Feb-12
23-Feb-12
24-Feb-12
25-Feb-12
26-Feb-12
27-Feb-12
28-Feb-12

 

[zp]

I certainly wouldn't be too concerned about cruise ships ruining your vacation.

The island is small, but there are plenty of places to be where they won't :up: . They don't always have a car, don't always know of the best restos and they can't rain on your parade at your villa. If there are a lot of people in Gustavia shopping, I just change my course. You're on vacation!!!

As to how much they spend, I know a couple who came off a ship, hired a taxi to Eden Rock, rented the beach chairs all day AND had lunch at the Sand Bar AND shopped in St. Jean. (upon my recommendation, of course.) They laid out a few bucks, for sure. Oh, and I'm pretty sure they're going to do it again on the same cruise.

Enjoy your vacay, davidgreen

Likewise, I would not be too concerned. Many cruisers don't get off the boat is Saint Barth, because of the complexity of doing so. Those who do usually stay in Gustavia and shell beach. A few might make it to the other beaches, but it has never, in my experience, felt like a crowd.

You may just see a few people who look somewhat lost and out of place. Sort of funny I think.

 

[tim]

That website is totally misleading.

 

[pascaleschmidt]

I agree with Mike I go high season ad low season and do not notice them much, occasionally.... hey if you guys want quiet and less people chip in together and buy your own island!

 

[jayhawkgirl]

We have been on island since 1/26. The cruise ships are mostly small (windstar-200 passengers) to seaborne( don't know the passenger load) to medium size(less than 1,000). We have noticed addditional car and taxi traffic around the island when the ships are near, but it seems like most are gone by 5 pm, so the passenger load in port doesn't interfere with dinner reservations.

 

[Voosh]

Yep. Usually you just stay out of Gustavia during the day when a cruise is in. Most "cruisers" never venture further.

 

[TPunch42]

I always crack up because several times the cruisers have mistaken us for locals and tried to speak bad French and ask in a loud voice if we speak English...We took that as a compliment.

 

[loverotties]

We were on a Regent cruise ( Radisson Seven Seas ) awhile ago & stoped in St. Barts in April. It was our first time here & had no idea what to expect . We rented a car & explored stopped at Lorient beach had it to ourselves except for a friendly dog that make himself comfy on my towel : ). Stopped at St. Jean beach saw the planes landing, went shopping & ate some pastries. We loved it & have been back 3 times ! Don't knock all cruise ship passengers !!

 

[GramChop]

That BartyB ! He's such a people person!!

 

[Ross&Delaine]

Totally agree...we discovered St Barts during a Windstar cruise nearly 10 years ago..liked the vibe and have been coming back every November. Same villa same time. Have met and made lasting friends with really Great people ...on and off the forum. Still have not mastered the language, get lost once in awhile, thou not as often, have not been to every restaurant..probably never will. The absolute best part of the trip is spending time with my wife,rebonding, listening to music,drinking Rose, simply enjoying the beauty and simplicity of the island. Had it not been for the cruise, we would still be floundering...all of that being said we still enjoy going to Le Select when the cruisers are in port. Cameras and black socks and sandals..oh my

 

[KevinS]

We were on a Regent cruise ( Radisson Seven Seas ) awhile ago & stoped in St. Barts in April. It was our first time here & had no idea what to expect . We rented a car & explored stopped at Lorient beach had it to ourselves except for a friendly dog that make himself comfy on my towel : ). Stopped at St. Jean beach saw the planes landing, went shopping & ate some pastries. We loved it & have been back 3 times ! Don't knock all cruise ship passengers !!

Lovely story! We do appreciate that small percentage of cruise ship passengers who fall in love and return as stayover visiters. Back in the day, when I fell in love with St Barth, I was one of the small percentage of daytrippers from SXM who fell in love. I've never willingly spent a night on SXM since.

 

[Jim Kelly-Evans]

Our fitst visit to St. Barths was by cruise ship a couple of years ago...then we came back for an extended stay last year and we'll be back again this year, just for a day on another cruise. And we'll return for longer stays in the years to come I'm sure. As I wrote elsewhere, when you find the best forget the rest!

 

[jayhawkgirl]

We also discovered St. Barts on a day stop from a Windstar cruise 11 years ago. We rented a car, drove the island to take in all the beautiful vistas, then had lunch at one of the beach hotels and stayed to hang out on the beach. After 3 more Windstar cruises with one day stops on the island, and after having explored many other Caribbean islands from those same trips, we were hooked on St. Barts as the place we wanted to come for a longer vacation stay.

We just returned from our third year in a row staying in a villa on the island, and don't care to go anywhere else.