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Hello, Me and my wife are arriving via cruise ship to Bermuda in June for two nights and 3 days and I cannot decide on what to use for transportation mode. I love scooters but them i also heard that St George and Hamilton are more than hour's drive from royal dockyard on scooter and I do not want to waste time on it.
Also I am not sure if ferries allow scooters on board or not and if there are extra charges. I also want to maximize to see everything in St George and Hamilton and I was thinking about going to St George on the day we dock and the next whole day between Hamilton and St George and last day on the dockyard area.
Would you be able to tell how to maximize and fully utilize my days using various method or single method of transport. Could you please help.... creating a good itinerary if possible while mentioning if scooter are better or not considering we are docking at kings wharf. Thank you
Tulan (May 2012)
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Hi, Scooters are great if you are used to the left hand drive and know exactly where to go and the directions. Otherwise you may end up wasting a lot of time. From the dockyard it will take about an hour to reach Hamilton by Scooter and another hour to St. George. Most of the ferry routes allow scooters and bikes at additional charges (but not all). A direct ferry from the dockyard to Hamilton City takes only 20 mins and to St. George only 35 minutes.
Since you want to spend most of your time in St. George, Hamilton City and Dockyard complex, you can take a look at the following self guided tours that I have designed. Go through all the links within the pages. They should give you a comprehensive flavor of the places. However, fine tune the itinerary to suit your requirements. You will be required to take a public transport (like a ferry or bus) to get to the start point and begin your tour. Hamilton and St. George's are essentially walking tours.
Hope this helps.
Raj (bermuda-attractions.com) May 2012
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We will be taking a cruise to Bermuda on Norwegian. We have booked an Island Tour through cruise. The tour ends in Hamilton at 11:45am. Is there a tour we can sign up for in Hamilton for the Aquarium, Zoo and Caves for Wednesday afternoon in August? If so Where would we go to sign up and pick up the tour. How far away are the caves from the Aquarium? Should we take a bus or a taxi to get there? Is there a tour In Hamilton which, we could sign up for, that would combine both activities?
Thank You for your time. and help. Regards,
Sandra (June 2012)
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Hi Sandra, Yes you can make it to both the Aquarium and Crystal/ Fantasy Caves on the same day. You need not take any tour from Hamilton. First get to BAMZ (Bermuda Aquarium Museum Zoo) by bus # 10 or 11 (takes 20 minutes) or by taxi (15 minutes).
After spending some 2 hours here, continue on the same bus for Crystal caves (takes about 10 minutes). Both BAMZ and the caves are in Hamilton Parish.
You will get a guided tour for the caves in its complex itself which takes place every 20 minutes. While the caves are open until 5pm, the last guided tour is at 4:30pm. I am assuming that you will complete your lunch at Hamilton and then come to BAMZ.
Otherwise for lunch, you can try Rustico, an Italian restaurant near BAMZ. There is also a snack bar available at the BAMZ complex. Alternatively, for late lunch, you can drop at the famous pub Swizzle Inn (same buses). The caves are walking distance from here. There is a cafe (Cafe Ole) inside.
Hope this helps!
Raj (bermuda-attractions.com) June 2012
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Raj, My family and I are traveling on RCI next week into Bermuda and your site has given us lots of great information! One thing I am wondering about is how to maximize the two half days (the full day will be taken up by Jesse James snorkeling and a private van tour). We arrive at Kings Warf on Sunday the 8th around 3ish. Because it is a Sunday I figure much isn't open? Would this be the best time to go visiting the beaches and if so, which are best with the timing of the ferries/buses on a Sunday?
Would we also we able to swim/snorkel that late in the day? It would be great to find a beautiful beach with wonderful coral reefs/fish and that had equipment to rent. (Do you need cash only for beach rental stuff?) Also, what about our last day in port, Tuesday? We have to be back at the ship by noon and I wasn't sure again timing wise with buses and ferries what we should see/do. We are huge foodies and welcome any great places to eat on those two half days and are interested in more local and moderate to inexpensive. Any and all help and suggestions are welcome!!
Kirsten (July 2012)
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Hi Kirsten,
On Sunday, the beaches are your best bets. In Bermuda the sun sets around 8:30pm during this season and you have ample time to swim and snorkel. But the problem is where do you find a beach which is not swamped by tourists. Unfortunately the most popular beaches like Horseshoe bay beach would be very crowded on a Sunday afternoon. So here are my suggestions for some good swim and snorkel:
1. Warwick Long Bay beach in Warwick parish. Bus #7. Has a concession that rents out snorkel gears.
2. Church Bay: In Southampton parish. Bus #7. Has a concession stand but the person running it has recently moved out. So not sure if it is open these days.
3. Daniel's Head Beach and Park: There is a tiny public beach at Daniel's Head next to the 9-beaches resorts. This is one of the best kept secrets and quite close to the dockyard. Take bus#7 and get off at Somerset, and then take the Daniel's Head Road. Best is to take a taxi from the dockyard (should be 12-15 minutes drive).
The beach is not known to the general tourists and is great for swim and snorkel. There are reefs and you can see lots of fish in the calm waters. Louie runs a concession stand here (at the 9-beaches) renting snorkel gears.
Most of the good restaurants are in Hamilton City. The last ferry from the dockyard to Hamilton on Sunday is at 6:30pm, and the bus service also stops early. So you will need to go and come back by a taxi, which will be expensive. So I guess your choice of restaurants on a Sunday is limited to the ones in the dockyard like Frog and Onion which is actually a great pub and restaurant.
On Tuesday, try out an authentic Bermudian Codfish breakfast at Bouchee or The Speciality Inn. We also love Homer's Cafe for a late breakfast and that gives you an additional opportunity to visit the botanical gardens (it is inside the garden premises). If you can't make it to any of them, at the least try out some great fish cakes made in Bermuda that are local's favorites.
Since you will need to return to your cruise ship by noon, there isn't much touring that you can do on that day. After Breakfast, go around the dockyard complex... lots of history and tourist attractions like Maritime Museum, Dolphin Quest, Dockyard Glassworks etc.
Regards,
Raj (bermuda-attractions.com) July 2012
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Thanks so much for all your help! If we decide on 9 beaches, which sounds awesome, how do we find a return taxi? Is it pretty close to a main road? Also, do we need cash only for the snorkel gear? Also, I just read where business are only accepting credit or debit cards that have a PIN or chip. We don't currently have either with the one credit card we were going to bring, it is just a regular magnetic strip. What should we do? Thanks
Kirsten (July 2012)
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Hi,
You can either ask the taxi driver to comeback and pick you up at a specific time, or it's a short walk back to the main bus road. Generally only cash is accepted for renting snorkel gears (At Daniel's Head: Mask and Snorkel $10, fins additional $5, vests or life jackets $5). You can pay with US$ anywhere in the island and don't need to convert into Bermuda currency.
Don't worry about the PIN. Most businesses in Bermuda continue to accept the regular credit cards.
Raj (bermuda-attractions.com) July 2012
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Hi there, My boyfriend and I will be coming to Bermuda starting July 27th through August 3rd. I have two questions...1- we would like to possibly rent a boat for a few days to check out many areas of the island and to snorkel different areas and caves. Who would you recommend I contact? 2- would you recommend a boat company that we could hire one day for just the two of us to take us around and to possible dive? Both of us are diving certified and he has a captains license to run a boat. Thoughts or ideas? Thank you greatly.
Libby (July 2012)
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Hi Libby,
I have reviewed the boat rentals in Bermuda and what you can explore with a small boat in the following article: Exploring Bermuda's islands and coasts on rental boat
For diving I would suggest that you go through a dive center. Check out the following link where I have discussed scuba diving in Bermuda and also reviewed the best divers. They will provide the dive boat, gears and also guide you on the dive locations:
Hope this helps!
Raj (bermuda-attractions.com) July 2012
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We are planning a cruise in late September to Bermuda. The ship docks at 3:30 in King's Wharf. What would you suggest for a tour beginning that late in the afternoon, to get the most out of our time that day? We would certainly consider not returning to the ship for dinner. Any restaurant suggestions? The next day allows for all day sightseeing, so I would appreciate suggestions for a beach, bike and /or walking tour for the whole day experience. Thanks!
Barbara White (July 2012)
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Hi,
Most of the public attractions in Bermuda close between 5-6pm. So after reaching so late, it's better to explore the Royal Naval Dockyard complex (where Kings Wharf is located) rather than going out to other places. There are several great attractions within the dockyard complex itself. Check out the following link:
In the evening, either you can dine at one of the dockyard restaurants (like Frog n' Onion) or take a ferry from the dockyard to Hamilton city. There are great many shops and restaurants there. Check out the following link for the ones that are our favorites:
For the next day, check out the link below for walking / self guided tours. You can mix and match some of them to fit your requirements:
Regards,
Raj (bermuda-attractions.com) July 2012
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I absolutely LOVE this site! This will be our first cruise to Bermuda and some things seem a bit confusing when you are a first time visitor. We will be docking in a couple weeks in Kings Wharf and from reading all your information and having limited time we were thinking of combining a day by going to the caves, then eat at the swizzle inn, then go to Horseshoe Bay (although we are terrified of encountering a jelly fish) then getting back to our ship while taking public transportation. On a weekday is that do-able ?? Easy to figure out what ferry and buses to take?? Due to my history of skin cancer we wouldn't want to spend more than an hour or so at the beach, but I LOVE the water!! Thank you so much for your time!
Edna Walters (August 2012)
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Hi Edna,
Your itinerary looks great and absolutely doable. Getting around the island on a week day is better than on a weekend... you get frequent buses and ferries. However, Bermuda should have done much better with guiding the tourists about bus routes and schedules. Unless you know in advance or ask someone, it's difficult to know timings and routes of the buses. The final destination is displayed in front of a bus though. But don't worry, you can't get lost in a tiny 21 square mile island.
I suggest you read all information in the following link to my website where I have discusses almost everything about Bermuda's public buses. The page also has links to bus routes and schedules: Bermuda Bus Schedule and Information
While getting to the caves, take the blue route ferry from the dockyard to Hamilton City. From the central bus terminal there, take bus #1,3, 10 or 11 for the caves. Note that #10 and 11 take shorter routes and will be faster.
On your way back from Swizzle Inn, take a bus back to Hamilton, and then change to bus no. #7 for horseshoe bay beach. What you mention as Jelly Fish is known as Portuguese Man of War. They look like Jelly Fish but their stings can be much more venomous and painful than jelly fish. But don't be scared. You don't see them often, but once in a while at the beaches. They are usually found in the mid ocean feeding on fish. Even if one such creature gets washed up the shore, there will be hundreds of persons on the beach having already spotted that and warning you about where it is.
From the beach you can continue on the same bus for dockyard (Kings Wharf). Remember to buy a day pass (from Visitor Information Center at the dockyard) so that you can access to buses and ferries any number of times during the day using the pass (hop on and off access). This will be far cheaper and will help avoiding queues at the ticket counters.
Have a great time in Bermuda!!
Regards,
Raj (bermuda-attractions.com) August 2012
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By Raj Bhattacharya