Magen's Bay Questions (Time, doing it solo, etc)

[Princesca]

We're looking at the Magen's Beach Break on St Thomas. I know the excursion says 4.5-5 hours but how much of that do you get to spend actually at the beach after the ground transportation and stop at the viewing area? It seems kinda crazy that DCL charges $79/pp and you can get there via taxi on your own for like $15 and have much more time there. Do they provide food or anything to justify the cost difference?

Relatedly, we were thinking of doing it on our own but I'm so nervous about something like a taxi breaking down and causing us to miss the boat... are the taxis able to call for another cab if that happens? How much time is safe to leave to get back to the ship?

 

[Calantha]

We're looking at the Magen's Beach Break on St Thomas. I know the excursion says 4.5-5 hours but how much of that do you get to spend actually at the beach after the ground transportation and stop at the viewing area? It seems kinda crazy that DCL charges $79/pp and you can get there via taxi on your own for like $15 and have much more time there. Do they provide food or anything to justify the cost difference?

Relatedly, we were thinking of doing it on our own but I'm so nervous about something like a taxi breaking down and causing us to miss the boat... are the taxis able to call for another cab if that happens? How much time is safe to leave to get back to the ship?

I would totally just grab a taxi over there. There are literally taxis everywhere on the island. And especially if you’re on one of the open air taxis, it would be very easy for them to get another one.

I don’t know the exact time from the bay to the terminal because I have not done them on the same trip, but I would always add extra time just because I don’t like to be rushed, and you never know when there might be some other sort of delay.

Also, you could just get a taxi company phone number and have that as a back up since most US phone plans should cover St. Thomas.

 

[Princesca]

I would totally just grab a taxi over there. There are literally taxis everywhere on the island. And especially if you’re on one of the open air taxis, it would be very easy for them to get another one.

I don’t know the exact time from the bay to the terminal because I have not done them on the same trip, but I would always add extra time just because I don’t like to be rushed, and you never know when there might be some other sort of delay.

Also, you could just get a taxi company phone number and have that as a back up since most US phone plans should cover St. Thomas.

Thank you! We will have a 3.5 year old and no car seat. Are the open air taxis pretty safe?

 

[CruiseGoon]

In 2016, we just hired a taxi to take us there. It was actually a van and the driver wound up staying there the whole time with us, so it turned out well. There may not be a whole lot directly on the beach in the way of places to eat, so plan accordingly. That beach is beautiful!

 

[auntlynne]

Thank you! We will have a 3.5 year old and no car seat. Are the open air taxis pretty safe?

Not really. But then, I rode around Bonaire in a golf cart without seatbelts this month. And people didn’t wear seatbelts (still don’t) before they became mandatory in the US.

Bottom line, you have to decide if it’s a risk you are willing to take (for both a child and adults). The roads are on mountains, curvy.

I have known kids who freak out if they are not in a car seat; getting on a tour is not the place I would want to try it for the first time.

Compared to Kilimanjaro Safaris at WDW, it is more risky. It is on a road with other vehicles at higher speeds. The seating situation is somewhat similar, but it feels more like you are perched ON a pickup bed, as opposed to IN the back of a dump truck.

And I did it last October. Without a kid, though.

 

[auntlynne]

The map app says it’s 4.4 miles (15 minutes). A drive over there feels like longer, more like 20-30. They will build in some time waiting for stragglers at the beginning and end. If you a stop at the lookout, count on nearly 15 minutes when they give you a 5 minute stop. (Basing this on my last trip there). Call all of that 1.5 hours. That still gives you 2.5-3 hours at the beach.

The excursion description should mention what’s included. I think I have seen lounge chairs included. The canteen and bar at Magen’s have a limited menu; burgers, pizza, BLT, fries, Cokes (in cans). Full service bar.

Depending on your group size, I would look into renting a car for the day. There should be a car rental at the dock. Check prices / reserve before you go. Take your car seat or see about renting one. The car is American steering wheel location, but they drive on the other lane. Nowhere is the traffic fast. Your outbound drive will clue you in to when you need to return.

We park further down the beach from the canteen building. Lots of available parking near a bathhouse and a very peaceful area of the very long beach. You could stop and grab some snacks along the way. There groceries prices are amazingly close to those on the Mainland. Gas prices will be higher, but you won’t use much.

Most cars will have USB ports. And cell plans might work there (T-Mobile and similar do; we use Mint Mobile. Verizon, not so much. And its the US; there should be no extra charges - unless your phone plan is not from the US.

Admission to Magen’s Bay is $5 per adult; under 10 is free. Car parking is $2.

This is one option.

 

[ladyofthetramp]

We are just back from an eastern and we did the Magen's excursion. I just did not want to have to think about transport or worry about any of it-we were a party of 4 adults. Meet time was about 9:15am. On to our open air taxi for the scenic stop, which was lovely. Then to the beach. I want to say that took about an hour. Beach was beautiful. Had our own area with loungers and an umbrella. If you go on your own, you will have to rent if you want. Fun bar there over looking the bay. Food is limited, but they have pizza, burgers etc. Expensive- $44 for a whole pizza, but the most economical. Small, but well stocked gift shop. Snorkeling was great!! You can see turtles if you swim out far enough- I brought my own mask and snorkel, but they have them for rent. We were there about 3 hours, which for us was plenty.

 

[Tass]

We did the Magen's Bay excursion last weekend. Taxis were readily available everywhere when we got off the ship. I will say though the Magic was the only ship in port. Perhaps on a busier day, they might not be as readily available? Taxi rate to Magen's Bay from Havensight is $15 pp each way, or $12 pp if your party has 2 or more people. Most of the taxis were open air vehicles and will wait until full before departing. There were no seatbelts and children had to ride in the middle of the bench seat between adults. The Disney excursion includes roundtrip transportation, entry fee to the beach (I heard someone say it's now $7 per person), one bottled water, one lounger and umbrella per person. The rental rate for the lounger and umbrella was $20 per person.

The reserved area for the Disney excursion guests was right in front of the restaurant. It has handy being in front of the restaurant/bar, but the restrooms were farther down the beach. We met in the Disney theater at 9:15 am, did not get the photo stop at all and had to be back at the bus by 1:30 (so about 3.5 hours of beach time). We were picked up right outside the ship, but dropped off in the mall area on the return trip. It was about a 5-minute walk back to the ship from there.

It's obviously less expensive doing it on your own. We chose to do the Disney excursion for convenience. I can't verify, but I did read that you will need cash for the taxis as they do not take credit cards. I also believe there is a minimum at the bar/restaurant in order to use a credit card.

However you get there, enjoy it - it's a beautiful beach with no waves, clear water, and a smooth sandy ocean floor. We enjoyed this beach even more than Castaway Cay.