We took ferries to and from STJ both Red Hook and CA. Taxi from the airport to Redhook was 13.00 per person plus my husband tipped, although I'm not sure it is expected. Ferry cost and $2.00 per piece of luggage except what you carry. Doesn't matter if you load the luggage on the ferry yourself or use a porter, it is $2.00/bag for both ferries and they are piled up in a corner of the ferry inside.

Taxi from CA to airport was $10.00 person although the guide books said it was $7.00. Both were vans and they wait to fill them up before leaving, but it really didn't take long when we were there during the holidays.

If Westin ferry is $75.00 total round trip, I would use the Westin ferry, but if it is $75.00 per person round trip, I would be looking at options as well. The ferries are not always on time if that is an issue for you and it doesn't matter how early you get there, they will not sell tickets for a specific ferry until a few minutes before it leaves. Westin ferry probably serves you drinks and would be more hospitable I suspect, but I have not used it myself. The regular ferries are just transportation, although a beautiful ride either way. If you take the regular ferries, will the Westin pick you up in Cruz Bay? It is a bit chaotic around the ferry terminal in STJ and The Westin is not walking distance so you need to use their shuttle or take a taxi which would be more cost.

The Westin Ferry includes transfers to and from the airport to the Crowne Bay Marina. No charge for the baggage and they take care of getting it from the airport to your room. Ours got there before us even though we went on the next available ferry. Don't know how they pulled that off.

It goes directly to the dock at the Westin. There's no alcoholic drinks available, but they provide complimentary water. Complementary rum punch is served at check in right as you get off the dock. It's about $75 per person (we paid $72 last June), and it includes unlimited roundtrips back to STT during your stay. I believe they make about 4 roundtrips a day, spaced out about 2 hrs apart, and there's an air conditioned waiting area in the airport you can use when you get there.

It's cheaper, although somewhat less convenient, to get the taxis and ferries on your own if you only make the one roundtrip. I think at one point I figured that the do it yourself approach would run about $25 per person each direction to cover STT taxi, tip, ferry, baggage, STJ taxi, tip. I chose to use the Westin ferry for the convenience and free trips back to STT for the "required" shopping trip. (Come to think of it, if we didn't have free roundtrips, then we might not have to shop. And think of all the money THAT would save. Man, I've got to rethink this!!)

One other thing to consider. The Red Hook crossing takes about 15 minutes. The Westin leaves the Crowne Bay Marina, not far from the airport and takes 45 minutes. If motion sickness is likely to be an issue, go from Red Hook.

Enjoy and let us know how your trip goes.

Hey all...
I am also stayin at the Westin in March. Where/how do we book this ferry? Any help would be great. Thanks!

I've used the Westin Ferry on two different trips. My feeling is that is well worth it. The reasons for my opinion are stated pretty well in the previous posts. What I can add is that you need to really examine what your airline schedule is. If you get in later in the day and can get to Crown Bay to catch the ferry without a lot a sitting around,this will allow you some more precious time on St. John. I did not like sitting around in Char.Amalie at all. Too much traffic,exhaust fumes,congestion etc. More importantly,look at your flight departure time and how it matches up with the Westin Ferry. What happened to us last year was that we were "forced" to take a departure from the Westin dock that got us to the airport over 4 hours prior to our flight time. Contact the Westin via their website and request a copy of the ferry schedule for the time frame of your trip. I believe that there is only a winter or a summer schedule for the ferry.The whole process with the Westin is very easy. If this your first trip to the area, you may be better off with the Westin service as opposed to doing the taxi/public ferry on your own. Good Luck. The Westin and St.John are both beautiful.

I was there in October and used the Westin Ferry to get from the airport to the hotel. We and several of the other passengers asked for our money back the next morning. It was one of the lowlights of our trip (one of a few problems we had with the Westin). Admittedly, we were on rough seas the day we came in, but the way they captained the ferry didn't help. Several people got sick on the trip. Heed the advice above about motion sickness. The boat never planed out and by the time we arrived in STJ luggage was strewn across the back of the boat where it came loose jumping the waves. They advertised the trip as a 45 minute ride. I suppose mercifully (or maybe this made it worse) we did it in about 25 minutes. I was assured by several people at the hotel and a few who took the ferry before that they had never seen it like that before. Also of note, we were later told the Westin Ferry was diverted to Red Hook some days due to rough seas. I don't know if the Westin ate any of the increased taxi fares guests would pay from Red Hook vs. Crown Bay. From my experience, and from someone who only made one excursion back to STT I would recommend the Red Hook ferry.

From a purely financial standpoint, we took the ferry to Red Hook for one day of shopping as well as the return to the airport. We figured the cost for the Westin Ferry for two people ($150.00) was relatively comparable(maybe a bit more expensive) to the cost of 2 round trips for two on the Red Hook ferry, taxi fares, bag charges and tips. If we had gone on two or more excursions back to STT, the Westin deal would have been more financially sound. That being said, as much as there is to see on STT, we had more than enough to keep us busy on STJ and we could not have crammed another trip in had we tried.

One way or the other good luck and have fun!

Contact the Westin directly.

we took the ferry to and from the westin - be careful if you have an early flight - they were late picking us up from the westin - and we all missed our flight - sat in San Juan for hours - Westin ended up refunding us but was a nightmare! apparently have heard this happens a lot - they are on what they say on "islnd time" that is ok if you are shopping or something but NOT for a flight! they were in NO hurry!

I had just the opposite experience. We had an early flight, don't remember the exact time, but I think it was around 8:00 or 8:30. I always get anxious in a situation like that when you have to make a lot of plans just to get to the airport. They arranged a water taxi that picked us up at 5:30 AM. Watched the sun come up on the trip to Red Hook. There was a taxi waiting for us in Red Hook and we got to the airport in plenty of time. No additional charge of course.

What really impressed me was that the bellman was waiting for us outside our door at about 4:30, even though I'd asked for him to show up at 5:00. First time something like that has happened anywhere.

Over the last seven years, we've done it both ways. When it was just the two of us, we did the Red Hook ferry. Now that we have a child and all the extra "kid" stuff, the Westin ferry is a blessing. We, too, have had to leave the resort many hours before our flight, but there is a way to get around it. Take the Westin ferry to the dock in St. Thomas. Get your luggage before it's put on the trucks. Go have a nice lunch at the restaurant there at the docks (but be sure to tell them you have a flight). After lunch, have the bartender call you a cab and take it to the airport. Ok, so maybe it's an extra $10-20 for the cab, but you've had a nice lunch. By the time you get to the airport, most of the lines will have cleared out and you can go through to your flight. Last year, we got our luggage off, had lunch, went to the airport and were in line IN FRONT of people who done the whole Westin transport. There was some delay with the luggage and they were all standing around for about an hour waiting. This is a really good alternative to doing it on your own and worrying if the cab is going to fill up in time for your to make the ferry/flight.

Just my opinion of course.

Lori