US Virgin Islands

roadguy04 · Post by **roadguy04** » July 2, 2005 4:21 pm

We're headed to the US Virgin Islands in about 3 weeks. Staying on St. Thomas for 8 days and St. Croix for 3 days. We were wondering if there were some things that we should do for sure and things to avoid. Any help is always appreciated!

Liminone · Post by **Liminone** » July 2, 2005 4:53 pm

I can't speak about St. Croix but have been going to St. Thomas and St. John for many years.
The following is what I put together for some friends that were heading down for there first time.

Hope it helps and if you have any questions let me know
Liminone

Things to Check Out

BEACHES ST. THOMAS

• Sapphire Beach. http://www.usvi.net/hotel/sapphire Great white sand beach. Snorkeling is good off to the left side. Nice outdoor bar (Say hi to Doc and Bert for us, and tip them well) on the beach. On Sunday they have a beach party with a live band. Starts around 2:30. Lots of locals and a lot of fun. Food at the restaurant is not all that good except on Sunday when they do a Bar-B-Que for the beach party.

• COKI beach. http://new.onepaper.com/virginvoices/?v ... es&p=33111 5 minutes or so past Sapphire take a right when you come to a bunch of small businesses. You’ll see what I mean.. Very good snorkeling. Food stands are very good, local fare. Give it a try. We always rent an umbrella and chairs. It’s like 20 bucks but well worth it. Coral World is also at this beach. We’ve never gone but hear it’s interesting.
• Megans Bay. Voted one of the top 10 beaches in the Caribbean. 3 bucks admission. Huge beach calm water not good snorkeling. Nice bar overlooking the beach. If you’re looking to just chill out, pull up some sand and kick back. There are waiters and waitresses walking the beach to keep you hydrated. LOL
• Secret Harbor. http://secretharbourvi.com It’s a resort/condo complex and has a nice calm beach. Not all that good for snorkeling. Their restaurant is called Blue Moon and it’s very good. Go have dinner.

BEACHES ST JOHN
• Not going to go into detail on this cause they are all wonderful. Our favorites are.
• Trunk Bay
• Hawksnest
• Cinnamon Bay
• Jumbie.
There are so many more but you’ll be doing great if you get to check out some or all of the above.
GO TO ST JOHN!!!!!

BARS AND THE OTHER THING

• Duffy’s love shack. http://duffysloveshack.com Located in a parking lot in Red Hook. It’s a must check it out place. Go for Happy hour. Food is good, try the coconut shrimp and the Conch fritters.
• Caribbean Saloon. http://www.virginislandsmap.com/stthoma ... n-link.htm Across from Duffys. Kinda a sports bar with a Caribbean flare. Good food and drink. We have dinner there often.
• Molly Malone’s. Located in the same group of building as the saloon. We like their Sunday brunch
• Grateful Deli. Located next to Duffy’s. Excellent sandwiches to take to the beach. We always stop there before heading to the airport for our in flight meal.
• East Coast Grill. Located in Red Hook next to Molly’s. Good Italian.
• Senor Pizza. Some of the worst pizza you’ll ever have but we keep coming back. Also located in Red Hook across from the ferry dock.
• Green House. http://www.thegreenhouserestaurant.com/ ... index.html Located in town. Great place for happy hour after doing the shopping thing.
• St John. Don’t miss Joe’s Barbeque in Cruz Bay. Just ask someone where it is. Nice lunch
• Chilly Billy’s. http://www.chillybillys.com St. John Cruz Bay. Next to the lumberyard. Great Breakfasts.
• Woody’s. http://www.woodysseafood.com Cruz Bay St. John. Great happy hours and good food.
•
There are lots more so check out St. Thomas this week .

http://www.print2webcorp.com/news/virgi ... splash.asp

When you get off the plane, after having your complementary rum punch, there’ll be a stand on your right as you walk to get your luggage that has free info on what is going on in St Thomas for the week. Grab one of each.

STUFF TO SEE

• Shopping in town (Charlotte Amelia) If you are looking for jewelry, crystal, linens, perfume, cameras and such check it out
• Shopping at Mongoose Junction – Sue’s personal shopping favorite on St John – much quainter, less of the commercial perfumes, booze and jewelry stuff you see on St Thomas.
• Paradise point tram. http://paradisepointtramway.com You’ll see the tram as you drive by Havensite were the Cruise ships dock. On Wednesday after 5pm the tram is free I think. Great views from the top and Excellent Bushwhackers. It’s a fun happy hour. If you want you can also just drive to the top. Almost straight up. Wooow Hoooo.
• Drakes Seat. http://www.wiol.com/st-thomas/history.html It’s an overlook of Megans bay with some history. Get your picture taken with the donkey.
• Coral World. http://www.coralworldvi.com Located at Coki. It’s a Caribbean aquarium.
• Tillet Gardens. http://www.tillettgardens.com/index.html Artist community with really nice stuff. Nice little bar too with great chicken wings.

We’d like to recommend a day trip with New Horizons 2. http://newhorizonscharters.com Speedboat that takes you to the BVI. Virgin Gorda, Jost Van Dyke and Marina Cay, Home of the Painkiller. It’s a great day!! What can be better than Bloody Mary’s at 9 am?
http://www.sandcastle-bvi.com/soggy.html

Check out our photos at http://www.pbase.com/bill_l

sonofabeach · Post by **sonofabeach** » July 2, 2005 7:24 pm

Megan's Bay was great!!!!
And the "cab" drive there was definiitely a blast.
Nothing like seeing your life flash before your eyes several times while crossing the mountains in what ammounted to a tour bus with no doors.

Liminone · Post by **Liminone** » July 2, 2005 11:56 pm

sonofabeach wrote:Megan's Bay was great!!!!
And the "cab" drive there was definiitely a blast.
Nothing like seeing your life flash before your eyes several times while crossing the mountains in what ammounted to a tour bus with no doors.

So true. Let me drive next time

roadguy04 · Post by **roadguy04** » July 4, 2005 2:37 pm

Thanks for the great suggestions!

CTParrothead763 · Post by **CTParrothead763** » July 5, 2005 4:45 pm

We've never been to a beach we didn't like on St. Thomas or St. John. With that much time, you can try a bunch of them.

Our favorites are Magens Bay (St. Thomas) and Trunk Bay (St. John).

If you are staying at the Marriott, their beach called Morningstar isn't bad either.

hikingontuesday · Post by **hikingontuesday** » July 5, 2005 6:33 pm

If you can find a boat to go to Norman Key -- and the Willie T Bar/Boat. It is an old Pirate Ship that is now a bar -- jump naked and get a T-shirt!

So fun...

roadguy04 · Post by **roadguy04** » July 5, 2005 8:54 pm

We are staying at the Marriott on St Thomas and at the Hotel on the Cay on St Croix. They both look pretty nice.

Norman Key sounds real interesting. They would probably give me a shirt to keep me from getting naked

Liminone · Post by **Liminone** » July 5, 2005 11:31 pm

hikingontuesday wrote:If you can find a boat to go to Norman Key -- and the Willie T Bar/Boat. It is an old Pirate Ship that is now a bar -- jump naked and get a T-shirt!

So fun...

RoadGIRL would get one.. RoadGUY... not so much. Great place though.

CTParrothead763 · Post by **CTParrothead763** » July 8, 2005 4:10 pm

The Marriott is a great place. Our only complaint was nothing to do at night. You have to make your own fun.

There's a water taxi right from the Marriott over to town. Our favorite restaurant at the hotel was the open air place (but roof covered) down at the beach, just past the tennis courts.

Have a great time.

CTParrothead763 · Post by **CTParrothead763** » July 8, 2005 4:11 pm

The Marriott is a great place. Our only complaint was nothing to do at night. You have to make your own fun.

There's a water taxi right from the Marriott over to town. Our favorite restaurant at the hotel was the open air place (but roof covered) down at the beach, just past the tennis courts.

Have a great time.

SuperTrooper · Post by **SuperTrooper** » July 9, 2005 11:11 am

Paradise Point is a must since it is where I had my parrothead epiphany. Listening to OPH with a buskwacker in my hand while looking over the harbor.

*sigh*

We also enjoyed a ride on the "WILD THING", a high speed boat that takes you around to Megan's Bay at 50+ mph. The staff is great and keep things lively on the beach and during the ride back.

joe_pyrat · Post by **joe_pyrat** » July 10, 2005 11:28 pm

Take a day trip to Anguilla.

And visit Anguilla Rums Ltd. for some of the best rum in the world.
http://www.anguilla-beaches.com/anguilla-rums.html

Also the Travel Channel's Best All Around Beach for 2005 is in Anguilla.
http://travel.discovery.com/convergence ... uilla.html

roadguy04 · Post by **roadguy04** » July 11, 2005 1:49 am

joe_pyrat wrote:Take a day trip to Anguilla.

And visit Anguilla Rums Ltd. for some of the best rum in the world.
http://www.anguilla-beaches.com/anguilla-rums.html

Also the Travel Channel's Best All Around Beach for 2005 is in Anguilla.
http://travel.discovery.com/convergence ... uilla.html

Have to check that out. Rum and beaches are our friends

Lundah · Post by **Lundah** » December 12, 2005 7:42 pm

Figured I'd revive an old thread instead of adding a new one. I'll be spending at least 8-9 weeks in the USVI between Jan. and March for work, looking for suggestions to kill time on nights and weekends.

Liminone · Post by **Liminone** » December 12, 2005 8:40 pm

Which Island????

Lundah · Post by **Lundah** » December 12, 2005 9:46 pm

Don't know yet. Our client is the Board of Education, so I guess whichever they're on.

Finsupinfla · Post by **Finsupinfla** » December 12, 2005 10:26 pm

This is a nice little stop to make. Its kind of a tourist trap, but they serve the best banana daiquiris in the world.

Reefdiver · Post by **Reefdiver** » December 13, 2005 6:58 pm

Lundah wrote:Figured I'd revive an old thread instead of adding a new one. I'll be spending at least 8-9 weeks in the USVI between Jan. and March for work, looking for suggestions to kill time on nights and weekends.

Take the ferry to Tortola in the BVI's. It's much more relaxing there than in St Thomas. Every beach looks like it should be on a postcard. Head over to Cane Garden Bay and look for the Callwood distillery...... the same family has been makin rum there for over two hundred years. BTW.... bring me back a bottle of the spiced rum.......... I'm almost out.

Lightning Bolt · Post by **Lightning Bolt** » December 13, 2005 7:13 pm

I'd take the ferry from Red Hook Bay on St. Thomas over to St. John for the day.
All you need is your swimsuit, your snorkel, tanning oil and some cash for lunch.
An incredibly easy way to spend an unforgettable, carefree day that is only a 30-minute boat and island taxi ride away.

This is a MUST-SEE part of your time on St. Thomas!!!