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I had made another posted last week on here about how we are getting 9 visits from Disney cruise ships this summer (and Mickey made a special appearance at our peds ward at the Hospital). This is a first for us.
I had a couple people reply to that thread asking for tips etc. so I thought I would make a new post for this topic specifically. I was born and raised here in Saint John so I've currently got 27 years experience lol. If any of you have any questions on absolutely anything to do with Saint John please let me know and I'll do my best to give you some insider tips Everyone on the Passporter has been SO helpful to me in planning my daughter and mine's first ever trip to Disney coming up at the end of August so I thought maybe I could do my little part in helping some of you!!
I hope you all enjoy your visit to our little city!!
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Thank you. We are not sailing until September 2012 but I'll keep an eye on this thread. We are older seniors 66+ and did not book any cruiseline tours for St. John. DH likes crafts and gardens.
Hi - I was wondering, how you felt about the excursions being offered, and if there was anything you would consider "not to be missed".
My party is Myself, my wife, two daughters 14 and 6.
Thanks,
Jim
I didn't realize there was as many excursions as their are!! Honestly you can't go wrong with St. Andrews, St. Martins and Hopwell Rocks.
I see that in St. Andrews it's some kind of tea. Not too sure how that would be but St. Andrews is a beautiful place. If they actually let you go and explore it would definately be at the top of my list. We go down every summer, wander along the main street and have ice cream on the boardwalk. It's pretty much perfect.
St. Martins is my happy place We go constantly. It's beautiful. The restaurant on the beach is fantastic as well. On a side note, the beach is not sand it's rock and shells and you will need sturdy shoes to walk around. As well, always bring a sweater or light jacket because there's always a bit of wind even on the hottest day and it can get a little chilled at times especially if you're not used to it.
Hopwell Rocks is also a beatiful place to visit. I haven't been there in a few years but it is an awesome family day.
As well, all three of these places are a bit of a drive from the boat but the scenery and landscape is beautiful!!!!! You'll really be able to see the beauty of New Brunswick outside of the city.
The jet boat ride is really fun!! Though, word of warning, keep your mouth CLOSED on the boat. You don't want to swallow that water, trust me!! If you and yours kids like some adventure the jet boat would also be a great time.
As far as the city tours you can't go wrong with the pink busses (they also raise money for a great cause). You'll get to see lots of great places around the city at your leisure.
The trolley tours are true "Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada" LOL. They're horse drawn carriages. The "crew" is dressed in traditional Loyalist outfits and they're in character. I've always wanted to hope a trolley ride when I see the horses out. I work uptown, 2 seconds from where the boats dock lol I'll wave from my window at all my fellow Disney lovers coming into port.
So those are a few suggestions I would make. There are a ton of excursions on that site though. Those would just be my personal picks. If you want to know anything about any other specific ones let me know
How great to be able to ask a local about the excursions, especially for a destination that's new to DCL. Thanks for posting here and helping out, Shauna!
Thanks for the tips about sturdy footwear and a jacket for St Martins! We are doing the St MArtins and Bay of Fundy excursion in September, so I expect it may be a little on the chilly side anyway.
Thanks for the tips about sturdy footwear and a jacket for St Martins! We are doing the St MArtins and Bay of Fundy excursion in September, so I expect it may be a little on the chilly side anyway.
No problem!! A good rule for Saint John in general is that if you're doing any excursions that are around the water it's a good idea to bring a jacket of some sort. Even if it's 30 degress inland there will almost always be a cool breeze coming off the water. September is a beautiful time here (it's one of my favorite months). Depending on the day it could be beautiful and hot or there might be a slight chill. Rule here is, if you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes Also even if it's rainy and gross in town (where you get off the boat) it could be beautiful and sunny in St. Martins or St. Andrews...you just never know so it's best to be prepared.
do you have any input on some of the snorkeling tours? DS (age 16) would like to do one of thses but he doesn't want one with a beach break. Here is what I've narrowed it down to:
1) catamaran to Shipwreck Cove snorkel for 52.00 pp
2) power boat to Turtle Cove & Little St. James Island for 75.00 pp
3) doubloon schooner to Turtle Cove for 58.00 pp
4) catamaran to St. John for 82.00 pp and get bread, cheese, fruit, champagne (or soda)
DS looked at descriptions and wanted choice # 4. I think because the catamaran looked the nicest in the picture . We aren't spending much money for excursions, so the price difference is o.k., but just wondering if St. John vs. other choices is good. Any thoughts on if any of the locations are better than the others? We've never snorkled, so any of them would be a new experience for us! We don't spend time on the water (except for 4 disney cruises ) so we don't really know the differences/advantages of schooner vs. power boat vs. catamaran. Any help would be appreciated.
The excursions to St. John take a good bit longer than the other excursions, which are to islands just off the coast of St. Thomas, not far from the harbor. I prefer St. John to St. Thomas - on the whole it'll be more pristine, but those shorter excursions will also leave you with time to do more while you're in port. If you have a hankering for about an extra hour or two of sailing time on the boat, go with St. John. But just for the quality of the snorkeling? Probably not worth it.
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The excursions to St. John take a good bit longer than the other excursions, which are to islands just off the coast of St. Thomas, not far from the harbor. I prefer St. John to St. Thomas - on the whole it'll be more pristine, but those shorter excursions will also leave you with time to do more while you're in port. If you have a hankering for about an extra hour or two of sailing time on the boat, go with St. John. But just for the quality of the snorkeling? Probably not worth it.
Thanks. This has me leaning toward the St. John one. My mom also said she prefers St. John to St. Thomas which is why I thought I'd get more opinions. I don't imagine I'll ever be back again, so I could take advantage of being able to see both cities, even if for a short time. Being we've never snorkeled it won't matter, we won't know any different. There are only 2 ports to do excursions in on this cruise, so we'll have an extra day on the ship compared to oue other cruises. Plus, our San Juan excursuion is a short duration one so we'll be back on the ship earlier on that day.
Anybody have thoughts on type of boat offered in the various excursions I mentioned. I don't really know the difference between them.
do you have any input on some of the snorkeling tours? DS (age 16) would like to do one of thses but he doesn't want one with a beach break. Here is what I've narrowed it down to:
1) catamaran to Shipwreck Cove snorkel for 52.00 pp
2) power boat to Turtle Cove & Little St. James Island for 75.00 pp
3) doubloon schooner to Turtle Cove for 58.00 pp
4) catamaran to St. John for 82.00 pp and get bread, cheese, fruit, champagne (or soda)
DS looked at descriptions and wanted choice # 4. I think because the catamaran looked the nicest in the picture . We aren't spending much money for excursions, so the price difference is o.k., but just wondering if St. John vs. other choices is good. Any thoughts on if any of the locations are better than the others? We've never snorkled, so any of them would be a new experience for us! We don't spend time on the water (except for 4 disney cruises ) so we don't really know the differences/advantages of schooner vs. power boat vs. catamaran. Any help would be appreciated.
Hi there! Sorry it took me so long to get back to you. I don't think we're talking about the same Saint John lol. I live in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada (where the Disney ship is coming for the first time this year). I think you're talking about the Disney cruise to the Caribbean which is spelled St. John.
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Hi there! Sorry it took me so long to get back to you. I don't think we're talking about the same Saint John lol. I live in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada (where the Disney ship is coming for the first time this year). I think you're talking about the Disney cruise to the Caribbean which is spelled St. John.
Oops, that's an embarassing mistake on my part, ha, ha! I thought NB was short for newbie, didn't realize it was New Brunswick!! I didn't even knowDCL was sailing into Canada. Guess I'm too focused on our ports for our next cruise. I'll have to post my question in a new thread.
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Everyone on the Passporter has been SO helpful to me in planning my daughter and mine's first ever trip to Disney coming up at the end of August so I thought maybe I could do my little part in helping some of you!!
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Pixie Dust
. We aren't spending much money for excursions, so the price difference is o.k., but just wondering if St. John vs. other choices is good. Any thoughts on if any of the locations are better than the others? We've never snorkled, so any of them would be a new experience for us! We don't spend time on the water (except for 4 disney cruises 
) so we don't really know the differences/advantages of schooner vs. power boat vs. catamaran. Any help would be appreciated.
Michelle
I didn't even knowDCL was sailing into Canada. Guess I'm too focused on our ports for our next cruise. I'll have to post my question in a new thread. 
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