Despite telling us the shuttle would be fifteen minutes it took an hour. By the time we arrived at the lodge it was close to midnight and unseasonably cold but instead of warming up in a welcoming lobby we were forced to wait outside while a teenage desk clerk checked in a guest ahead of us. He operated through a small bank sized window while we waited under a very grubby breezeway. After check in we hauled our suitcases up very steep stairs because access to elevators were located in the lobby and the clerk refused to open the doors saying it was against policy after 10pm.

We passed boarded up rooms and finally arrived at ours. After attempting several times to unlock the door with the room card we entered the worst smelling room we have ever encountered. Overwhelming odors of cigarettes and damp assailed us. We had requested a ground floor non- smoking room. Surprisingly the room was neat and quite large but the furniture seemed old and in need of repair. Bedding reeked of stale cigarettes and the bathtub was peeling. The light wood furniture had certainly seen better days however the sheets seemed clean and the towels fresh. We decided it was useless appealing to the sullen clerk and we were very tired. After a fitful night we rose early intending to grab a quick coffee and bun before picking up our rental car.

Expecting the promised continental breakfast we entered the lobby around seven only to be informed there was nothing left but we saw no evidence of coffee nor could we smell it. I picked up the hotel brochure extolling free breakfast, Data ports, and Swimming pool. I can tell you there were no data ports they are located next door in the Clarion. The Clarion shared the swimming pool and that area seemed quite nice.

We complained to the middle aged professional looking manager but he was indifferent and stated this area is unsafe hence the locked lobby he had no explanations regarding the poorly maintained premises.

The surrounding area views are of the freeway, a derelict parking lot and a MacDonald's. We also noted a seven eleven store besides the Clarion hotel and there were some very weird looking characters hanging around outside. I would advise anyone to avoid this hotel and area.

The chief port and capital Charlotte Amalie has been a haven for seafarers from all over the globe since 1600. The harbour is beautiful and especially so at night as lights twinkle across the island. It was reportedly the homeport of pirates, Captain Kidd and Blackbeard being the most notable, from this lair Sir Francis Drake launched his attacks on Spanish Galleons on their way to Spain. Today Thousands of cruise ship guests and other visitors descend on this island daily and the old warehouses that once stored the pirate’s booty contain many of the town’s boutiques and shopping arcades.

The best way to explore the town is on foot, we had spent five hours at Coki beach and on our way back to the ship asked the driver drop us close to Emancipation Park, so named because Seventeen years before emancipation the Dutch governor freed the slaves of the Virgin Islands. A replica of the liberty Bell and a sculpture of King Christian the fifth are on display.

The vendors market across the street from the Legislature building was once the busiest 18th century slave market in the West Indies, in those dark days of slavery humans were bought and sold into untold hardships and horrors, today a sea of colorful tee shirts and cheap souvenirs attract consumers.

The green Legislature building is a 130-year-old Italian Renaissance structure once used as a barracks for Danish police, when the US acquired the building it housed U.S. Marines. The 1917 ceremony transferring ownership of the islands to the U.S was signed here. The building is open to visitors.

We have been to St Thomas many times but this was our daughter and grandsons first visit, they are really more interested in beaches than towns but they said they did enjoy walking the town and visiting its shops, while they shopped Neil and I found a nice patio bar where we sat and had a cold one and watched the sun play over the interesting buildings. Much of the stone on these restored 17th –18th century warehouses were built with stone from ships ballast and coral resulting in interesting light shadows. Navigating through the narrow alleyways of the town will give its visitor a real flavor of what used to be. Saying that, on cruise ship days the place is a beehive of hustle and bustle and wall to wall hawkers, traffic snarls along its small street is commonplace so take that into consideration and give yourself ample time to re - join your ship.

There is of course more to see around this town, on our last visit we climbed over a hundred steps to see " Blackbeards" Castle and government house. I can recommend the climb for the vista that waits at the top. We also visited St Thomas Synagogue, it is the oldest synagogue in continuous use under the American flag and the second oldest continuously used synagogue in the western Hemisphere. I remember it had a floor of sand. During the Spanish inquisition Spanish and Portuguese Jews needed to muffle the sound of their services. The Synagogue is located on Crystal Gade and is a steep climb up from the main street.

Columbus is said to have discovered the island on Saint Martin’s day in 1493 and claimed it for Spain. No Spanish settlers were sent but French and Dutch settlers arrived in early 1630. The Northern part of the island was settled by the French and the southern section the Dutch, however you can travel between the two without restriction.

There are a wide variety of ships tours offered at this port, prices range from $450 for Harley in Paradise {6hrs} to St Maarten Island tour at $23.{3hrs} We have visited many times always by ship and have never taken a ships tour. Beaches and shopping are easily accessible. Because our daughter had not visited this island before we opted to take a taxi tour {$10 pp. 3 hr tour} and then spend the afternoon at the closest beach.

The Arawak Indians named this island the isle of salt because of its proliferation of salt ponds. Salt was its mainstay until the 1900’s and the French part of the island continued to export salt until 1967. The salt pond in great bay Phillipsburg is still there but no longer in production. Today tourism is the islands main source of income; it is indeed a lovely place.

Our tour started in Phillipsburg the Dutch capital. There were four in our party and we waited about ten minutes until four others joined us. The taxi prices are well posted at the pier and several taxi tours are offered at a much-reduced rate than those of the ship.

At the top of the hill outlined against the sky was a white obelisk monument signifying both countries, a small garden surrounded it and the view over the bay was remarkable. We continued onward through the district of Orleans once the capital of the French side. I must say traffic was bumper to bumper, as we crawled along inhaling the aroma of diesel fumes we had lots of time to check out the surrounding country; Old sugar mills, pastel toned European style villas perched atop hillsides surrounded by dense bush with its mosaic of color; the orange flamboyant trees, red hibiscus and magneta bougainvillea suggests quiet tranquility and a yearning to actually sit on those terraces. Our next quick photo stop was at Orient Bay with its spectacular view over Orient beach, Pinel island, and St Barts.
In the village of grand case we viewed the pretty Creole buildings and art galleries, Grand Case has the well-deserved reputation of being the gourmet capital of the island and I can guarantee from past visits that is the case

Marigot on the French side is an attractive port town housing sidewalk cafes and markets. Overlooking the bay is imposing Fort St Louis, the last time we were here we made the steep climb to the summit and I can tell you the panoramic view was well worth that climb. There are also several high-end shops offering West Indian souvenirs, art, jewelry, and perfume. I purchased perfume that I was unable to obtain when in Paris. Okay it’s old, I’m old but not redundant, will need to go back for a refill!
Marigot market is a lively place filled with the aroma of spices. Fresh fruit and vegetables abound plus a pretty impressive array of local arts and crafts and beautiful batik wraps.

I always enjoy this French town with its pastel colonial buildings and friendly people. The pretty harbor is a fine place to enjoy a quiet moment and watch the lively crowds. It is also the pick up and drop off point for taxi’s and tour groups. We stopped at several scenic lookouts and I do recommend this tour to orient you to this beautiful island

Following lunch we spent the afternoon in Phillipsburg at the beach closest to the ship Great bay. We rented a lounge chair and umbrella, {$10 all day} jet ski rental and other water sport activities are available but it is not a good place to snorkel.
If you like shopping you won’t be disappointed nor will you get lost. It is a pretty easy place to navigate. The two main roads are named Front St and Back street! They connect by a myriad of narrow passageways. At the eastern end of the town Wathey square is a busy hub and there too you will find the tourist office and the impressive white wooden courthouse. {now the post office} There are tiny courtyards leading from some of the alleys and I loved the characteristic pastel coloured west Indian buildings around this town.
From the ship you can walk into town but most people take the water taxis

Transportation.

Taxi fares from the cruise terminal. One way per person.

Mullet Bay $16.
Marigot. $12.
Dawn Beach. $15.
Orient Beach.$18.
Divi Little Bay. $8.

Getting to Town.

Water Taxi to town pier. $5. unlimited transport all day.

Land Taxi to the courthouse. $3. per person one way.

Great bay Beach is conviently located at Phillipsburg where cruise passengers disembark the tender. This beach is within walking distance from the tender.

The snorkel shack rents out equipment and offers instruction. A mandatory snorkel vest is required rental for those who have their own snorkel, mask and fins at a cost, $6.00, for those guests who do not have equipment. Unlimited snorkeling is offered including all equipment and instruction, perfect for beginners or advanced snorkelers. {$27. Adult. $16. Child}

The designated snorkeling area is crystal clear; small yellow fish can be seen as you enter the water. A short swim from the beach takes you to well-marked areas where fish congregate. A red buoy marks the spot of a submerged Spanish Galleon replica the fish are plentiful and friendly thanks to a fish feeding extravaganza.

Toward the lifeguard platform approximately 15 feet on the sandy bottom lies a plane wreck it was placed there to create an artificial reef, close to the wreck are clusters of reef balls, schools of yellowtail, snapper, mangrove, flounder and parrot fish abound. We saw stingrays and contrary to popular misconception they do not sting {unless one turns one over and steps on its stinger} they sleep on the bottom cover their body with sand so that you can only see their head and tail but they are quite something gliding through the water.

I am not really a beach person, lounging in a chair finds me restless after 10 minutes however the day on this island was anything but boring. We arrived by tender around 9am in the first group of passengers. From the ship the tranquil golden island looked like something out of Robinson Caruso, once on the island we were charmed by pretty pastel buildings housing the straw market, sports huts and various food and beverage venues staffed by RCL personnel. There is no permanent habitation on the island aside from a handful of huts that house support staff during cruising months; everything is brought onto the island for the comfort and consumption of RCL guests.

We hiked around the island prior to snorkeling and to our delight once we passed the beach area we left behind people. There is a marked nature trail but we walked at first along the edge of the water. Once we reached the beach head we had to walk in the water; pretty soon we came to a part where the rocks were high and ascending thus we climbed up onto the path at the edge of the trees where the nature trail meandered through dense woods. Along the way we noted piles of beautiful conch shells and a myriad of pretty pink shells. On the trail we couldn’t hear a soul nor did we see many birds, we passed through dense palms Casuarina trees, coconut and fan palms. Sheltered in thick foliage it was hard to believe that less than half a mile away thousands of passengers were descending upon the island.

Lounge chairs are plentiful and hammocks are interspersed between shady trees and along the foliage areas on the beach. The buffet lunch is provided by the cruise line and staffed with the ships wait staff, everything was well organized and vegetarian options were available.

After lunch we walked around the west part of the beach and rented a Hobie Cat sailboat for a leisurely hour, from it we spied stingrays and puffer fish. We chatted with a friendly young man who had rented us the cat, part of the sports team he spends months on the island during cruising season. He was from the Bahamas and pointed out that this area was known as slaughter bay. Pirates lit bonfires along the beaches to entice ships, once they grounded the pirates attacked. Black beard is touted to have roamed here in fact we noticed a fake grave site with his name on it beside the woods, behind the grave site was a ruined cottage but our friend was unable to give me any background on it. We enjoyed our day on this " fantasy island and would certainly recommend it for clearing the stress and warming the soul.

Rental Rates

Rental mandatory snorkel vest $6

Floating Beach Mat $10

Scuba Dive2 hours all equip $55 Tank & weights only. $45

Parasailing one hr $$79

Kayak adventure one & a half hour$38 adult $32 child.

Hobie Cats Sailboats $45 hour/ Paddle boats$15 half hour/ Wave runner one hour $89 passenger $29