Enchanted Princess from the snorkel boat
Long before our Caribbean Cruise on Enchanted Princess we booked an excursion for our first port stop in Saint Thomas that was to have a bit of a tour on Saint John and then go to Trunk Bay for snorkeling. I’d had this same excursion booked on a previous cruise on a different line only to have it cancelled shortly before the cruise started. This time it was cancelled about an hour before it was to start while we were in the midst of getting ready to go. Trunk Bay is supposed to have excellent snorkeling and we’ve never been to Saint John so that was quite a disappointment. We took a last-minute replacement for a different excursion that was a 2-stop snorkel and beach tour. The excuse for cancelling the first excursion was that it was too stormy for snorkeling at Trunk Bay, but we later found out it had been dead calm there that day so they probably really were just short of the minimum amount of people required for the excursion and hoping someone would sign on last minute, then canceling when they didn’t. Our back-to-back cruise stopped at Saint Thomas again the second time around so we booked that excursion again figuring to take the ferry over and get there on our own if it got cancelled, but it was actually stormy that day so we didn’t end up going then either.
view of ships in Saint Thomas from the snorkel boat
The new tour met on the dock shortly after the time scheduled for the original one. From there we walked just shy of a kilometer to where a catamaran was docked. Not the sort with sails that often do snorkel excursions. This one was called a fast cat. We were far enough back in the line to be the last ones to get seats in the covered area rather than the open area out in the sun, where nobody sat until the shady seats were all full. On the way back some of the people from the inside moved out there though.
snorkel boat at the first stop
The crew of this vessel were all young and female. Probably early 20’s other than the youngest deckhand in the fleet, 3-year-old Nai Nai, Captain Jen’s daughter. Gigi was quite the performer. Her rendition of all the rules and how-to’s for the tour were far more entertaining than any of the ship’s comedians at the comedy shows. The other deckhand Rosi seemed to have all the worst chores (like cleaning out the toilet if people threw paper into it instead of in the garbage where it belonged.)
dark fish in the rocks
The first stop was at Buck Island, which is a bird sanctuary so nobody is allowed on land. There was already another boat there when we arrived, with the area around it full of people from that boat. We were told we could go anywhere in the little bay between rocky outcroppings on either side. Over on our side the water was pretty murky.
colorful fish in the rocks
Out by the boat there was nothing but seagrass and the occasional fish. Closer to shore there was more structure and more fish, but the water was pretty murky there too so it was hard to see them. Since the other side was so crowded with people from the other boat I never went over there, but the people who did said the water was clearer on that side. It had more fish and even some small corals so the other boat definitely took the prime spot.
beached boat wreck
After an hour at the first stop the boat moved on to our second stop, a sandy beach on Water Island. There was a beached boat wreck in the rocks on one side of the bay. Lots of boats were anchored there. Some occupied and for others it appeared to be the moorage where they stayed when not in use. Especially the unoccupied one with the giant rent me for charters or tours sign.
beach at Water Island
The beach there had lots of amenities, but other than the restrooms everything came with a cost. Beach chairs, water toys, even a volleyball had a rental cost. We were there for an hour in which people could have a drink or a meal, rent a beach chair or water or beach toys, or go swimming or snorkeling.
snorkel boat anchored at the beach
The boat anchored up quite close to the beach, but there was a drop-off just beyond the shoreline. The foot or two at the edge of the water was shallow, but after that a very steep little hill went down a couple feet. It wasn’t far from shore to the boat ladder, but the water at the ladder was waist deep – at least on me.
The beach had a roped off swimming area, but you could go beyond the rope when snorkeling rather than swimming. Out between a couple buoys beyond the rope was where the boat crew said turtles hang out. I swam out there and did find a turtle, but the water was so murky I could barely see it. The crowd of people hovering over the turtle made it impossible to get close. If the water had been clearer I would have stayed out there and looked for other turtles, but since it was so murky I could probably pass over one without even noticing it was there I went to the side of the bay where it was rocky to look for other sea life.
sea urchins in the rocks
There were urchins and corals among the rocks, but in order to see them you had to be among the rocks as well and there wasn’t a lot of water to pass safely over the rocks without risking damaging the corals or damaging yourself on a spiny black sea urchin so I didn’t stay there very long.
time to get back on the boat
John hadn’t wanted to snorkel again at that stop so I met him on the beach and we just walked along the water’s edge until it was time to go back to the boat. It was quite a pretty little beach.
serving up the rum punch
After the first snorkel stop and on the way back to the ship the pitchers of rum punch came out. Most snorkel excursions in the Caribbean end with rum punch. Occasionally land tours serve it as well, though it mainly seems to be a boat thing.
Nai Nai with the tip jar
The snorkeling wasn’t that good on this excursion, but the boat crew made it fun. Instead of waiting to collect tips as people exited the boat or setting out a tip jar, as we approached the dock they had adorable little Nai Nai walk around the aisles of the boat with a tip jar. Apparently that was her job on the boat crew. Smart move. I bet that probably came close to doubling their tips. People who hadn’t had any money out like they were going to give them anything on their way off the boat were digging through their stuff for money to put in the jar for Nai Nai.
medallion in a waterproof bracelet
Once the boat docked we all walked the nearly one kilometer back to the ship. The walk passed by a lot of shops so if anyone felt like shopping along the way they could. I am so going to miss the medallions Princess has when we sail on a different line and it’s back to fishing through my stuff to find a ship card instead of wearing the medallion in a waterproof bracelet. Since the medallion is waterproof there’s need to take it off for snorkeling or any other water activity which is really convenient on a Caribbean cruise.
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