It was 60 and windy on our arrival day --
cooler than usual for Bermuda in April
Where We Be
Horseshoe Bay Beach offers plenty of rocky "nooks and
crannies" at either end that you can explore barefoot
Bermuda Cruise -- Norwegian Gem
This is an interesting little one-week cruise: two
days at sea, followed by three days in port in
Bermuda, followed by another two days at sea
to get back to Boston. The ship docks at the
Royal Navy Dockyard at the westernmost tip of
Bermuda and never moves -- which sounds
inconvenient, but in fact, the island is so small
(it only takes about 1½ hours to drive from one
end to the other) and so neatly linked together
by ferry and bus that it's no problem. Example:
It cost us ~$10 pp for a bus from St. George's to
Hamilton, and ~$5 pp for a ferry from Hamilton to
the Dockyards (see map below). A cruise also
lets you avoid the notoriously high cost of food,
drink, and lodging on-island.

During our favorite day in Bermuda, we rented a
moped for two for $100 from Oleander Cycles
(right at the Dockyards) and tooled around the
western half of the island from the Dockyards to
Elbow Beach. Along the way we visited Gibbs
Hill Lighthouse (climb the spiral steps for killer
views), but our favorite stop was Horseshoe
Bay Beach. Pink sand, turquoise water, rocky
outcroppings, and longtail birds made for a wow
experience. If a moped seems too intense, you
can also take minibuses from the Dockyards to
Horseshoe Bay for $7 pp each way -- they run
regularly back and forth when a ship is in port.
Our first notable stop was Gibbs Hill Lighthouse. It's worth
climbing the 185 spiraling steps for one of the best views in Bermuda.
We rented a moped for two from Oleander Cycles (located at King's Wharf)
and ventured off for some sightseeing on the western half of the island
We said our goodbyes to Hamilton as a ferry brought us the rest of the way back to the Dockyards
We walked to Front Street (along the waterfront) and got a taste of the Hamilton vibe
Hamilton's famous "Birdcage" where
a cop directs traffic (when it's busy)
Another bus brought us the rest of the way to Hamilton, Bermuda's
biggest city, dropping us off near City Hall and the Catholic church
Relatives told us, "You have to stop at the Swizzle Inn" --
and so we did! We enjoyed rum swizzles and tasty fries.
Along the way, we stopped at the Swizzle Inn, which is something of an institution in Bermuda
Retracing our steps, we returned to St. George's and purchased bus tokens to Hamilton
After exploring the fort, we visited this monument to the Sea Venture -- a must-see for Robin!
Another ten minutes of walking brought us to Fort St. Catherine. What a dramatic setting!
Gates Bay (shown above) is where the survivors of the shipwrecked Sea Venture came ashore.
Tobacco Bay offers lovely views and a protected swimming area
We walked along Government Hill Road for about ten minutes before
reaching Tobacco Bay, a popular beach destination (in warmer weather)
Construction began in 1874 but was never completed due to a split in the congregation
We especially liked the Unfinished Church on the outskirts of St. George's
Towne Hall on King's Square is essentially the center of the historic district
This walkable city is chock-full of delightful architecture dating back to the 1700s
In the other direction, you can see the Norwegian Gem and the rest of the Dockyards
Commissioner's House as seen from the green lawn in the previous photo
Another museum exhibit focuses on
the longtail, a Bermuda resident
The exhibits inside the museum are excellent. Robin's ancestor, Stephen Hopkins (who later sailed aboard
the Mayflower), was aboard the Sea Venture when it shipwrecked in 1609 -- marking the founding of Bermuda.
Here's the view from the verandah of the Commissioner's House
The museum offers historic exhibits combined with excellent views from the Commissioner's House
Our goal on Day 1 (noon arrival) was to explore our home base at the Royal Dockyards. We headed straight
for the National Museum of Bermuda ($18 pp), a gem of a museum housed within Bermuda's largest stone fort.
My initial plan had us mopeding all the way from one end of the island to the other, but we (wisely) scaled back
and did the quieter stretch from Dockyards to Elbow Beach and back. The other sights we saw by ferry and bus.
Day 1. Royal Navy Dockyard
It's about a ten-minute walk from
King's Wharf to the museum
On our way back, we passed Clocktower Mall, which is
housed in a historic building and has all sorts of shops within
Every red dot in this image represents a Bermuda shipwreck!
Day 2. St. George's & Hamilton
Statue of Neptune with trident
Don't miss this cool stairwell mural featuring Bermuda's varied history
Admission to the museum includes
access to the Dolphin Quest enclosure
A nice surprise was the complimentary ferry offered by NCL during
the offseason that runs between the Dockyards and St. George's
(Not my photo)
We caught the 9 am ferry and began exploring the historic
city of St. George's -- a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Commissioner's House at the
National Museum of Bermuda
Day 3. Moped to Horseshoe & Elbow Beaches
At a pullover on the way back, we spotted whales in the distance, which migrate past Bermuda in the springtime
We only saw a handful of other people here. The broad stretch of
sand and turquoise waters make for a wonderful beach getaway.
Our final stop was Elbow Beach. If you really want peace and quiet, this is the place to come.
The sand really does have a pink cast
We also saw dozens of longtails in flight
Next up was one of the highlights of our whole trip to Bermuda --
this lovely stretch of sand known as Horseshoe Bay Beach
The 117-foot lighthouse was built in 1846 of cast iron -- the oldest of its kind
in the world, and one of only two cast-iron lighthouses still in existence
Beyond the "horseshoe" part of the beach are rocky outcroppings
at either end that let you tap into your inner adventurer
We explored this watery cavern
And happened upon this (nesting?) longtail
Not surprisingly, this is one of Bermuda's most popular beaches, but we had it largely to ourselves
Splurging on delicious food is one of the perks of cruising. These were some of the
dishes we enjoyed at Le Bistro (a specialty dining option) during one of our days at sea.
Rows of motorcycles and mopeds
line up in front of the Bermuda sign
(Not my photo)