St. Thomas versus St. John

[mseldga]

Hi all- I am hoping some of you can help me decide what my family and I should do on our day in St. Thomas on an Eastern Caribbean cruise next March. I have been to St. Thomas a few times on cruises and spent a week there many years ago as a child. I've never been to St. John, so I'm leaning toward heading to St. John for the day either on our own or w/ a boat tour.

 

But, my husband and daughters have never been to the U.S.V.I. at all and I'm wondering if we shouldn't stay on St. Thomas so they can see that island. With 3 other beach/snorkel stops on our cruise (private island, st. Marteen and grand turk), I'm thinking we might be burned out on water activities if we do that at every stop. Looks like a day at st. John would be primarily the boat ride and beach/snorkel experience while st. Thomas could be a scenic tour, shopping, ziplining, etc.

 

Can anyone who has done both give advice on this? Is st . John much more beautiful and peaceful than st. Thomas? We like to go "off the beaten path" and try to stay away from the worst of the crowds, so the comparative crowds on the 2 islands would be important

to us. Thanks so much for any advice!

to us.

[Ms411]

You might want to do the new zip line on St Thomas, because of the beautiful views, and it's the only one in the Caribbean that does something. There's also a souvenir shopping opportunity.

[blue_water]

Yes St John is less busy and more off the beaten path and the popular areas of St Thomas are much more crowded on ship days. You are right in that the private isle and GT will be beach days as they don't offer much else. St Marteen offers beautiful beaches as well as shopping similar to St Thomas and so I would use the St Thomas stop to take advantage of going to St John. Beautiful place to sail to and hit the bays, or you can take a self-excursion and ferry there and take an island tour then have lunch in Cruz Bay or elsewhere (see other recent posts for guidance on ferrying from Red Hook). There are also some very nice shops in Cruz Bay.

From your last statement I would definitely choose the St John option. You will see some of St Thomas however you get to St John.

 

Have a great cruise!

[mseldga]

I appreciate the replies very much! Now I'm researching non-beach/water options on St. Maarten and see some interesting options there, so I may go that route and stick with my St. Johns plan for St. Thomas. Thanks again for the help -

[noshoobie]

I appreciate the replies very much! Now I'm researching non-beach/water options on St. Maarten and see some interesting options there, so I may go that route and stick with my St. Johns plan for St. Thomas. Thanks again for the help -

 

 

Might I suggest Bernards Tours in St Maarten? We did it last month and it was a great way to see the island. There is some beach time though. But one of the stops - Maho Beach - is where the planes land over your head so you can make it a sightseeing stop as opposed to a beach stop. You tube Maho beach and you'll see for yourself how cool it is.

 

PS - You will not regret going to St John. It is gorgeous!

[Host Anne]

mseldga ~ I am a big St. John fan. Not that I don't like St. Thomas. We spent many a cruise ship stops there before venturing to St. John. St. Thomas is much more crowded and even though the beaches are a big party of St. John's beauty, for us it's far more than that. You don't even need to go to a beach to have a great day on St. John if you don't want to but I do recommend spending at least an hour on one of the beaches. It is so peaceful.

 

I'd recommend taking one of the island tours available at the Cruz Bay ferry dock ($25 per person for two - three hours). You'll get the history of the island, stops at amazing overlooks of beaches and the British Virgin Islands. Tell your driver you want to head out to Coral Bay for lunch and go to Shipwreck Landing, Skinny Legs or Miss Lucy's. Tell them you want to stop at the Annaberg Sugar Plantation ruins and the Chateaux Bordeaux overlook (one of my favorite vistas anywhere).

 

And your kids may very well encounter some of the fun wild donkeys on the island (but don't approach them...they are wild). Here's a photo a the baby donkey last April. We named the baby Zoey!

 

Whatever you decide....have a great time!

[Ms411]

Though St John may be more beautiful and peaceful than St Thomas, those qualities may not be priorities for "kids." They might appreciate a beach with lots of activities and motorized watersports. If that's the case, STT would be better. If they like hiking, St John would be better.

 

BTW, the worst beach in the VI is probably better than most beaches, so you'll have a good beach experon either island as long as it doesn't rain.