St. Croix Local

[Cruise_Anne]

Drake...all of this helpful information and yet nobody seems to have taken you up on the offer of a beer with you?

 

Count me and my DD in on 'said beer' when we arrive Jan. 2016! :D

[drake2014]

Thanks for providing your input Drake2014. It is so helpful! We arrive on a Sunday and have a costal pedal bike tour planned, but it does not start until 1pm. We would like to enjoy something between docking at 8 and the start of the excursion. What is there to see and that that is in walking distance? Are there historical landmarks, city parks, etc. Not interested in shopping or the beach. Just want to stroll and see the sights. Also, is there a website that would show us pictures of the port and surrounding things to see?

 

The visit usvi page isn't too bad (http://www.visitusvi.com/stcroix/homepage) if you want to get a preview.

 

I suggest you tour the fort, stroll along Strand St. (the waterfront), check out the ball park across from freedom city (there might be a game going on), and generally explore my town. There are lots of old colonial buildings to see, especially churches. Hell my office is in a building that's over 100 years old. There is the fish market down at the far end of town if you want to see locals, and the shady sitting area next to it.

I think that's a pretty good morning!

[drake2014]

Drake...all of this helpful information and yet nobody seems to have taken you up on the offer of a beer with you?

 

Count me and my DD in on 'said beer' when we arrive Jan. 2016! :D

 

You are the first! I'll take you up on that. :)

[momrules]

Sure, the taxi will take about 20 minutes, maybe a half hour, to get you downtown. I prefer Frederiksted (it's my home after all) but there's no reason you can't walk around both towns. Just be aware of the time and you should have no problems.

 

Thank you so much for your help, very much appreciated!

[bjtomko]

The visit usvi page isn't too bad (http://www.visitusvi.com/stcroix/homepage) if you want to get a preview.

 

I suggest you tour the fort, stroll along Strand St. (the waterfront), check out the ball park across from freedom city (there might be a game going on), and generally explore my town. There are lots of old colonial buildings to see, especially churches. Hell my office is in a building that's over 100 years old. There is the fish market down at the far end of town if you want to see locals, and the shady sitting area next to it.

I think that's a pretty good morning!

 

Thanks so much!!

[CRUSINGFAMILY]

Drake...all of this helpful information and yet nobody seems to have taken you up on the offer of a beer with you?

 

Count me and my DD in on 'said beer' when we arrive Jan. 2016! :D

 

I have been reading this thread since the beginning and haven't finished as yet but meeting you Drake was going to be one of the first things I said. We will be there October 18 and would love to meet you!

[CRUSINGFAMILY]

This is our first visit to St. Croix.....have read this entire thread now and wonder what you would deem the best/most important thing for a first time visitor to do. Our interests are wide and varied, I am really asking what you think is the most important thing to do on your island.

Edited March 1, 2015 by CRUSINGFAMILY

[drake2014]

I have been reading this thread since the beginning and haven't finished as yet but meeting you Drake was going to be one of the first things I said. We will be there October 18 and would love to meet you!

I look forward to it!

[drake2014]

This is our first visit to St. Croix.....have read this entire thread now and wonder what you would deem the best/most important thing for a first time visitor to do. Our interests are wide and varied, I am really asking what you think is the most important thing to do on your island.

Cruzan tour and relax on the beach. That's it! I can recommend (and have on this thread) a dozen great restaurants, a ton of wonderful bars, and we can debate the best beaches, but all you really need is the Cruzan tour and spend the rest of the day on the beach.

Ask your taxi driver to take centerline road to the distillery and you'll get a nice picture of the island also.

[gms5002]

Sounds like the best way to get to Cruzan is to take a taxi from the ship right? Is it easy to get a cab for the return trip?

[drake2014]

Sounds like the best way to get to Cruzan is to take a taxi from the ship right? Is it easy to get a cab for the return trip?

 

Absolutely. Some people have their cab wait for them if they have a big enough group or arrange for the cab to pick them up at a certain time.

If nothing else you can always have Cruzan call a taxi for you.

Something important to remember: taxis are cash only and Cruzan only takes cards. Carry both!

[gms5002]

Absolutely. Some people have their cab wait for them if they have a big enough group or arrange for the cab to pick them up at a certain time.

If nothing else you can always have Cruzan call a taxi for you.

Something important to remember: taxis are cash only and Cruzan only takes cards. Carry both!

 

Great, thanks so much for the info! One more question - I saw somewhere I should visit a place called LA Cafe for the "world's best" dirty banana. Have you heard of this drink and if so is this the best place to get it?

[drake2014]

Great, thanks so much for the info! One more question - I saw somewhere I should visit a place called LA Cafe for the "world's best" dirty banana. Have you heard of this drink and if so is this the best place to get it?

That place is (in my opinion) a dump. It's not worth going there for a dirty anything.

[gms5002]

That place is (in my opinion) a dump. It's not worth going there for a dirty anything.

 

Haha ok, fair enough! Thank you again for the info!

[Emerald73]

Do you recommend renting a car? Thanks for your input.

[drake2014]

Do you recommend renting a car? Thanks for your input.

If you're only in town for the day I would skip it and just use the taxi system.

[StronsvilleOH]

Drake,

We are a family of 4. Mom likes to lounge and would want some shade. Dad likes some activity and to lounge. The 2 teen boys will want to snorkel, ride jet skis or parasail.

 

What beach do you recommend that meets the most of these criteria:

1. Easy walk from ship.

2. Can get beach chairs/lounges.

3. Has some shade.

4. Restaurant

5. Decent Snorkeling and can rent gear.

6. Swimming (for mom w/out having to climb over rocks)

7. Other rentals (jet skis, parasail...)

 

Would love it if you could make a chart of beaches vs. amenities (and prices).

[drake2014]

Drake,

We are a family of 4. Mom likes to lounge and would want some shade. Dad likes some activity and to lounge. The 2 teen boys will want to snorkel, ride jet skis or parasail.

 

What beach do you recommend that meets the most of these criteria:

1. Easy walk from ship.

2. Can get beach chairs/lounges.

3. Has some shade.

4. Restaurant

5. Decent Snorkeling and can rent gear.

6. Swimming (for mom w/out having to climb over rocks)

7. Other rentals (jet skis, parasail...)

 

Would love it if you could make a chart of beaches vs. amenities (and prices).

While I will get around to writing a longer answer when I'm in front of my computer I figured I could help real quick from my phone this morning. The only jetskis on the west end of STX are at rainbow beach. You'll need a taxi to get there but that's the best fit for you.

[CHuntMD]

After a 1 day RCCL stop 2 years back we decided to go to St. Croix for 2 weeks in may. I've cut-n-pasted all the good info into one big email.

 

Do the cruise ships stop just on Sun or Mon? Any other suggestions for the 2-weeks? We are staying at a villa and should be reserving a rental car soon.

[drake2014]

After a 1 day RCCL stop 2 years back we decided to go to St. Croix for 2 weeks in may. I've cut-n-pasted all the good info into one big email.

 

Do the cruise ships stop just on Sun or Mon? Any other suggestions for the 2-weeks? We are staying at a villa and should be reserving a rental car soon.

 

Welcome! I'm glad you'll get to spend some time with us!

The only ship currently on the schedule for May is on the 24th so you may not even see one.

So many suggestions!! Ok let's start with food: you need to eat at Villa Morales, Savant, Bombay Club, Turtles Deli, Turtles After Dark, Pier 69, Blue Moon, Beachside Cafe, Polly's, Domino Club, and Rainbow beach.

Beaches: Fort Frederik, Dorsch, Rainbow, Buck Island, Cane Bay, Pelican Cove, and the Annaly Tide Pools.

Bars: Too many to name. Hit me up when you get here!

[drake2014]

Drake,

We are a family of 4. Mom likes to lounge and would want some shade. Dad likes some activity and to lounge. The 2 teen boys will want to snorkel, ride jet skis or parasail.

 

What beach do you recommend that meets the most of these criteria:

1. Easy walk from ship.

2. Can get beach chairs/lounges.

3. Has some shade.

4. Restaurant

5. Decent Snorkeling and can rent gear.

6. Swimming (for mom w/out having to climb over rocks)

7. Other rentals (jet skis, parasail...)

 

Would love it if you could make a chart of beaches vs. amenities (and prices).

 

I hope that the pdf I attached helps you make your decision. I did not include prices nor do I intend to. It's a vacation in paradise, don't sweat the cost.

West End Beach Guide.pdf

[StronsvilleOH]

Wow! Thanks so much for putting that together. Really nice of you.

I can't believe how hard it is to find that type of basic information for other ports' beaches.

 

I've narrowed it down to Freedom or Rainbow based on your descriptions.

Can you tell me a little more about the swimming and snorkeling at each? Can we rent snorkeling gear at both? I don't need great snorkeling, but would like it to be good (plenty of colorful fish) and to be easy (not a long swim or difficult entry). Would like swimming to be sandy bottom.

Thanks again.

[StronsvilleOH]

Just read about Cane Bay. Can you also evaluate that for swimming, snorkeling and amenities (restaurants)?

thanks.

[gms5002]

Besides Cruzan are there any other local food/drink specialties we should try?

[drake2014]

Wow! Thanks so much for putting that together. Really nice of you.

I can't believe how hard it is to find that type of basic information for other ports' beaches.

 

I've narrowed it down to Freedom or Rainbow based on your descriptions.

Can you tell me a little more about the swimming and snorkeling at each? Can we rent snorkeling gear at both? I don't need great snorkeling, but would like it to be good (plenty of colorful fish) and to be easy (not a long swim or difficult entry). Would like swimming to be sandy bottom.

Thanks again.

Glad you appreciated it! Freedom City is really the best, that's why it's the most crowded. Rainbow has gear for rental but the water is rougher and there are jetskis constantly buzzing the beach.

 

I've talked about cane bay in the past but to summarize: it's too out of the way and too expensive.