Bes Place to Snorkel In St John/St Thomas Help

[miss_rach]

All,

Our favorite things to do during our cruise is to find the best places to snorkel. So we have about 7 hrs when we hit St John and want to find the best places to snorkel. Don't think we have the time to do both St Thomas & St John so looking for recommendations. This is WITHOUT a paid excursion from the ship, so I need to know how to get to the place. We have our own gear so we dont' need to worry about a place that rents gear. It WOULD BE NICE if there was a bar/resturant on the beach for ladies to get some food and drinks while we are out onthe water but this is NOT a requirement. I'm just looking for the best places to snorkel that we can do from the beach with no boats required or other fees.

 

Cheers!

[blue_water]

The best off the beach snorkeling is probably Sapphire Beach on the East End of STT. Currently the public restrooms and dive center are closed so no restrooms but there are food and drink options. And Sapphire is a gorgeous beach with a reef and a seagrass area where rays and sea turtles can be spotted. Some cruisers still taxi there because they love it so much and they're either able to get by with no restrooms or use the big restroom just off the beach :eek:. But it promises to be a nice, quiet day for snorkeling. There is a condo resort there so you will share the beach with owners and renters there. But there's a lot of beach to enjoy, and aaa lot of natural shade along the shore to lay your towel under.

 

2nd best choice is Coki, much more crowded and lively in this small bay, and lots of kids in the water.

 

For STJ your best bet is to take a daysail and snorkel off the cays of STJ rather than off a beach. Some of the popular operators include Yacht Nightwind, High Pockets, and New Horizons. Others can be found under daysails at vinow dot com.

 

A brief description of the beaches -

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1993432

Edited March 21, 2014 by blue_water

[augie]

There are a number of beaches on St. John where I prefer the snorkeling to that of Coki or Sapphire, but most of them are tricky to get to without renting a car, and don't have the facilities that those two do.

 

Since you have your own gear and state that snorkeling is a priority, you may find some of the beaches that beginning snorkelers rave about to be less than "all that". That's how I view Sapphire and Coki, as well as the two most popular beaches on St. John - Trunk and Cinnamon.

 

If you're willing to go the "extra mile" to maximize your snorkeling experience I'd be glad to give you my recommendations.

[smilz]

How about Secret Harbor? I have heard the snorkeling there is very good. No charge for the beach though you can rent chairs by the dive shop. My friends took a taxi directly there without a problem. They said it was a great day.PS they are not novice snorkelers.

[blue_water]

SH and Sapphire are both excellent snorkeling beaches, and Cowpet is another option. Friends enjoy Maho and Francis as well as Salt Water Pond Bay when staying on STJ, but their favorite off the beach snorkeling is actually at the reef and in the seagrass area at Sapphire. Other friends prefer SH because it's generally calmer there. And we've enjoyed good snorkeling off the boat among the days of STJ but you're not interested in that.

 

So to maximize your beach/snorkel time SH or Sapphire will give you a couple more hours that you'd spend getting to a STJ beach with the ferry and taxi, or for more natural areas with zero amenities one of the STJ beaches like Maho or that Augie recommends is a great option.

 

EDIT - And yes, if you decide on Sapphire or SH they are free to use and both have food options but no restrooms at Sapphire. Augie can provide more details on the beaches to the north of Cinnamon.

Edited March 22, 2014 by blue_water

[SunEyedGirl]

 

Since you have your own gear and state that snorkeling is a priority, you may find some of the beaches that beginning snorkelers rave about to be less than "all that". That's how I view Sapphire and Coki, as well as the two most popular beaches on St. John - Trunk and Cinnamon.

 

If you're willing to go the "extra mile" to maximize your snorkeling experience I'd be glad to give you my recommendations.

 

 

Hi augie,

 

We too have gear and are looking for primo snorkel spots. Waterlemon Cay on our honeymoon a few years ago was spectacular - all those starfish, and it was so wonderfully quiet. I was able to peacefully follow sea turtles for at least an hour. :)

 

Very much interested in hearing your recommendations on this. A few caveats:

 

Don't want to stray too far from Crown Bay. First time cruisers and don't know how long it takes to get on and off the ship, etc.

 

...As far as food/bevs, those would be mighty handy but we're not picky about the options.

 

Don't mind a bit of walking/lugging gear.

 

Have never been to Water Island, nor St. Thomas except to catch the ferry to St. John that one time.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[blue_water]

Just want to mention that you have plenty of time to enjoy STJ with 9 hrs in port, and STT will be very busy so a secluded STJ beach or daysail among the cays of STJ is ideal! A daysail would also provide the amenities you mentioned, whereas a less touristy beach will not. And although most will sail earlier there are many great daysail operators listed at vinow dot com if you decide to look at that option or you will find recommendations here. And Augie may recommend you just pick up a cooler and supplies before heading to a beach too.

Enjoy!

Edited March 23, 2014 by blue_water

[miss_rach]

Don't think we have the time to be getting on any sort of boat once (if) we go to SJ. Are there any beaches either SJ ot ST that has charis, food and drink? If so let me knw we might have to do that rather than the wifes just sit in the sand and bake and get mad!!!

 

Cheers!

[blue_water]

Since you're looking for the best snorkeling from the beach with amenities but no excursion other than taxi you have 4 choices I see on St Thomas -

 

Coki has all of that with snorkeling although it's a crowded beach on a busy day;

Secret Harbor has more limited chairs and room because condo guests come first so get there early, if you dock late you probably won't get chairs;

Cowpet Bay (at the Elysian condo resort) has a small beach and beach bar and snorkeling, not sure about chairs but you can find that out;

And Sapphire has good snorkeling, food & drink, but no chairs or restrooms.

 

And the Best Western Plus Emerald Beach resort in Lindbergh Bay is a great beach to enjoy with snacks, drinks, and chairs but no snorkeling really.

 

I don't think you have enough time with 7 hrs in port to really enjoy a good snorkel beach on St John (IMHO), and you also won't find any of these amenities at that beach.

 

Hope that helps a little!

[augie]

Bluewater is correct - your best bet for the combination of things you're looking for are one of the STT beaches.

 

The best snorkeling beaches on STJ have no facilities and are off of/beyond the routes where taxis are plentiful and regular.

 

You'd need to either prearrange land transportation on STJ or rent a jeep on STT and bring it over on the car barge. The fact that it will be a busy day and that you're coming from Crown Bay rather than WICO (Havensight) only adds to the issues.

 

FWIW my favorite off the beach snorkel spots on STJ are, in no particular order;

Leinster Bay/Waterlemon Cay

Haulover Bay North

Hansen/Long Bay/Pelican Rock

Maho Bay

Francis Bay

Klein Bay