Virgin Island trip

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Anyone been to any of the VI"s? I am heading to St. Croix, but first flying in & out of St Thomas. Flights in St Croix were terrible.
We decided not to go to Kauai this year, and my research for comparable island to Kauai was VI. 1/2 the flight price and 1/2 the time. Going 1st week in April.
Anyone have any must see "sights" or activities? Any recommendations for a rental house or cottage? (not motels)
We will probably stay in St Thomas for day or two before ferrying over to St Croix.

 

[Jogeephus]

I usually rent a house when I go down that way. I don't have any must see things because we just go with the flow and don't plan anything. I just enjoy mingling and exploring. If possible, rent a boat and some snorkel or scuba gear. Some really nice reefs to see. BTW - FWIW, at one time I was the limbo champion of St. Croix. Involved copious amounts of alcohol - rum mostly - but I won the prize. :lol2:

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Jo - we don't usually worry about "structured" activities. We will rent a boat for at least one day of fishing. And we (my nephew) and I each have the new style snorkels. I love it. Go every year we've been in Kauai. In Kauai, we had a friend that we had full access to fishing equipment, crab traps, kayak, etc, so this will be different not having "stuff". And, yes, VRBO is a good place. They are who I have used previously. We like a house or cottage.
Jo - have you been to St Thomas also? Have you been on the new Catamaran Ferry?

 

[True Grit Farms]

Last time I was down there I bought one of my girlfriend's a pearl necklace. Probably the best $500 I've ever spent. She's been my wife for 32 years, and still wears the pearls regularly. Have fun and enjoy yourself, just don't buy any pearls. Back in the day the USVI was known for it's duty free jewelry stores.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

We like to walk the beeches & shell pick. Nephew makes beautiful jewelry with shells. I have absolutely LOVED Kauai each year. Nephew lived there for 6-7 years (mostly on the beech), so I had my own personal tour guide who knew every local nook & cranny.

 

[sstterry]

I spent my honeymoon on St. Thomas and St. John, but that was a long long time ago. I did catch a 300 lb Blue Marlin while there though!
It has been so long, I really don't have any advice. But if you get the chance in the future, a trip to Grand Cayman is fun and I really liked that trip.

 

[Jogeephus]

Jo - have you been to St Thomas also? Have you been on the new Catamaran Ferry?

Yes, I've been to St. Thomas but its been several years ago. What I remember the most was a hotel we stumbled onto where we had some drinks and the children played in their pool area. It was really nice and relaxing and the children loved the pool area with slides and stuff and also there were live parrots and other tropical birds around the porch area. Normally when we go to the Caribbean we stay out of the touristy areas and sometimes stay on little known islands referred to us by some friends who have either relocated in this area or stumbled on them while sailing. At one time we were seriously looking at buying an island that was for sale. I like the area. My neighbor and I were also looking at doing a long term lease on one island and growing produce. Government there was tickled at the idea of us doing this as it would create some jobs but we couldn't work out how things would be taxed since the area relied on an import tax and this wouldn't be imported. The fix was simple but the moron over the taxation demanded that we ship the produce to Miami then ship it back so it could be taxed. Simply taxing it as it left the farm made too much sense I guess. :roll:

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

We also like out of the way areas to stay.

 

[Jogeephus]

You guys are sure to have a blast. My life is so full of schedules and deadlines when I go on vacation the last thing I want to do is worry about time so I just go where the thrill takes me.

 

[gdale]

We went to St Croix in December 2016, and rented a house there, and felt was the perfect choice for us. The house was in a gated community just steps away from the beach, where we spent our evenings in the water or sitting on the beach listening to the waves. We spent a lot of our time driving all over the island, and very impressed with the place. It sure was hard getting used to driving on the "wrong" side of the road, though! In the middle of the island, we drove past several herds of beautiful red Angus-looking cattle, which turned out to be Senepol.
We noticed everyone on the island speaks English, and it felt very similar to being in the U.S. Beautiful island, lovely weather, and a great experience!

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

gdale - thanks. I have a cottage lined up in the hills.