Hi everyone. We are sailing out of NYC in July to the Caribbean with a stop in Bermuda. Any suggestions of what to see/do there? Have never been. Don't expect its quite "Caribbean", but was hoping to see pink sand beaches and British style living. Any suggestions appreciated. Thx.
You can't go wrong with Bermuda. Which port are you coming into? I'm assuming the West End, Royal Navy Dockyard. Do you want to see the beach, explore history, or go shopping?
Yes, the itinerary says West End. I have no idea how big Bermuda is. We don't care about shopping - want to see pink sand, some history, and what makes Bermuda so special - I am expecting quaint homes, etc. Dont' really want to spend hours in a cab either - can we explore an area on our own then go to a beach?
Okay, now I have something to work with. Bermuda is only about 21 square miles, very small. If you think of Bermuda like a fish hook, you will be docking at the extreme West End, the hook. The middle port is Hamilton, the capital. The East End is St. George.
Royal Navy Dockyard-As far as history, you are in a great location. The Maritime Museum is there. There is a small fee, but it is worth it. You can see the Dolphin Quest, climb to the top of the dockyard towers (what a veiw). There is a Craftmarket where local crafts are available. The Clock Tower also has shops. The Frog and Onion Pub (right outside the Craft Market) is a great restuarant-very English pub-like. This is very easy to explore and there are signs for direction. As far as the beach goes, there is a small area there, but you are really not going to get a good feel for a true Bermuda beach there. To do that, you would have to take a taxi which can be costly or grab a bus. Hamilton has shopping mostly. Another option would be to take the ferry over to Hamilton (absolutely breathtaking) and then grab a bus back towards the dockyard stopping at Horseshoe Bay (the must see Bermuda beach). St. George is kind of like a Bermuda Willamsburg-lots of history, a ship replica. You can also grab a ferry to St. George.
We are going back to Bermuda this June, it is one of our favorite places to cruise. The last time we were there we got a 3 day bus/ferry pass and traveled all over the island. If you are looking for beaches, try Horseshoe Bay or Tobacco Bay, they were both splendid, one had waves and the other big boulders. We are going to try St. Catherine's this time, we heard it was nice. The cavern tour is nice and you can get there by bus, Hamilton has great shops (but my favorite, Trimmindales, I heard has closed) and St. George is very very quaint and I am looking forward to spending more time there. We were disappointed with the glass bottom boat tour (the only tour we went on) the glass was very hard to see through, all scratchy looking. Hope this helped, have a great cruise!
Plus, what is great, Bermuda is pretty safe and quite civil. Very Brit.
You don't need to spend alot on excursions; you can do it all on your own. The ferry to St George's and back might set you back 10 bucks but it's the best deal in town. An hour long boat ride! St Catherine's is fun and you can do some snorkling there. A ride up there is about 3 dollars per person and worth it. Grocery stores at the bottom of the hill before you go so you can pack some refreshments if you wish.
It's my favorite island and beautiful. Expensive to eat there tho, get your voucher from the ship.
Have fun; thats a great destination!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Does the bus go to Horseshoe Bay ? Can you pay with American $ ? Do you need change ? How long of a ride ? Are the buses accesible to get you back on time ? Obviously our first time.
There is a ferry terminal right at the Royal Navy Dockyard and a bus stop. If I were you, I would buy a one day pass (which is good for ferry and bus), head over first thing in the morning to Hamilton to do a little shopping and then grab a bus back towards the Dockyard via the South Shores (where Horseshoe) is located. The buses come pretty regularly and locals are friendly and always willing to point you in the right direction. I'm not sure how long it takes to get from Hamilton to Dockyard by bus. I'm thinking 1 hour or so, speed limit is slow. If you leave first thing in the morning, you should be fine. If you go to Horseshoe, there will be people offering to take you from the main road down to the beach for $1. This is very much worth it, especially on the way back up. Bermudian money and American money is dollar for dollar. They will give you back American money if they have it, but small bills are always better. I'm not sure about taking the bus directly from the Dockyard as I've never done thing. Feel free if you have other questions......
Robin, Thanks this is great info ! We are in port from 8:00 to 5:00, will the shopping be open when we get there ? What time should we leave the beach to get to the ship on time without worrying ? Any idea of hopwmuch the day pass costs ? Thanks, I'll check back Lisa
I think we are going to take the ferry to St. George, then back to Hamilton then hopefully get by bus to Horseshoe Bay. Or, we may do it in reverse. We are also there from 8 to 5 - Caribbean Princess. I have heard that things move slower than what we would expect so you have to allow extra time - more than you might anticipate.
All the above posts are on the money. Love the Frog & Onion Pub, there is also a craft shop nearby at the Royal Dockyard.
Horseshoe Beach is superior to Elbow Beach, and shopping is fantastic. You will be amazed at how clean and civilized this little bit of Heaven is.
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Thanks, you will find that most shops open at 9am. Remember, the ferry from Dockyard is going to take about one half hour. Day passes were $12 per person the last time I was there. I checked my bus route and it takes 1 hour, 20 minutes from Hamilton back to Dockyard. You will be closer to dockyard when you are at Horseshoe Bay. If you are going to leave at 5, you will have to be back on ship no later than 4:30. To be very very safe, plan to leave horseshoe no later than 3. Remember, you can always grab a taxi if you get in a pinch. They are expensive, but much quicker. Don't forget your underwater disposable camera. If is much cheaper to take along. Also, I always take my own snorkel equipment. Much cheaper than renting. Enjoy. Bermuda is awesome.
Robin, once again thanks for the great info,especially as to the time to leave the beach (biggest fear of first time cruiser is to miss the ship) as for taking the ferry to Hamilton, one of the other posts suggested St. George as well. will I be able to fit that in as well or should I not even try ? Should I just stick to Hamilton and Horshoe Bay ? Again time is my big concern. Just want to make sure I have it all planned, ferry to Hamilton from there bus to Beach and bus to ship ?
I completely understand your fear about missing the ship. I'm a seasoned cruiser and still experience this. I'll never forget one cruise when people actually missed the ship and a small coast guard-like boat brought the people back to the cruise ship. They had to climb up these rope ladders with everyone watching (not something I would like to do!)
I would not try to fit all three activities in one day. Hamilton is basically shopping. St. George is definitely more interesting-kind of like a throw back to the revolutionary era. There is also a very cool beach, Tobacco Bay, there. However, St. George and Dockyard are at opposite ends of the island with Horseshoe being closer to the dockyard.
Check out bermuda.com and you will get a feel for what is in each port.
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