Avoiding Fish at Coki Beach

[LuCruise]

Last night we told our kids about our cruise. They were super excited. I showed them our ports and the plan to go to Coki beach on our St Thomas day. I am thinking of this beach since it looks beautiful, waves not too rough, food and washroom available. Another bonus is having Coral World next door if we've had enough beach time.

 

My kids love the pictures but when I said there are fish and you can snorkel , my 10 year old said he doesn't want to go there as he doesn't want to swim with fish.

 

Can you avoid the fish in areas (eg near the shore). Or should we select another beach such as Magens Bay?

 

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Edited January 1, 2016 by LuCruise

[Karysa]

Fish can be at any beach really. Coki is a perfect beach to introduce your children to snorkeling and fish. It was our girls first ever Caribbean beach and one was a little apprehensive but she got used to the little fish by her DD holding her while feeding them. The fish that we encountered were small colorful and very used to people.

[LuCruise]

Thank s for the reply. But are the fish all over or only if we swim out deeper or near rocks? I'd hate to go there and have them have no desire to go into the water.

 

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[inai]

The fish are usually near the rocks. So, just stay away from there.

[LuCruise]

The fish are usually near the rocks. So, just stay away from there.

 

So if they stay near the shore, then they won't be surrounded by fish?

[erniesband]

You can't avoid the fish it's their home. If you go in there water you will swim with them. Now your kids may think that there are BIG fish near by. Nope. They will only see small ones, no sharks or large rays. Nothing that will harm them.

[Karysa]

Stay clear from anyone feeding the fish. The fish love being fed and that's where you will see the crowds of fish at a time. I agree with the other poster and would choose a spot in the middle of the beach between the rocks and coral world. If you see someone going in with a dog bone or frozen peas eat then redirect your child as the fish will follow the food.

[LuCruise]

Stay clear from anyone feeding the fish. The fish love being fed and that's where you will see the crowds of fish at a time. I agree with the other poster and would choose a spot in the middle of the beach between the rocks and coral world. If you see someone going in with a dog bone or frozen peas eat then redirect your child as the fish will follow the food.

 

Thanks. I guess like anything, if there is food, then they will gather. So we'll stay away. And good to know...go away from the rocks towards Coral World.

 

Still deciding if this if the correct beach for us. The waves I've seen in pictures looks just like what we are looking for (slight waves to make it fun, but not too rough that it'll be dangerous for swimming or that will push my younger one over at the shore). Will need to see what my son meant by 'I don't want to swim with fish'...He may be thinking more of bigger fish swimming around, which would probably scare me too.

 

Again, I apologize for posting in St Martin board. Was hoping a moderator would move it over to St Thomas.

Edited January 3, 2016 by LuCruise

[Lard Greystoke]

Was hoping a moderator would move it over to St Thomas.

 

You might be in luck.

[LuCruise]

You might be in luck.

 

Thanks to the moderator for moving this to correct board :)

[skeeter195]

We have had there almost on the sand, no more than 5 feet from the beach. Most of the fish you will see will be seargent majors(yellow fish with black stripes about 4-6 inches long) in schools up to a few hundred at a time. They also swim alone. They have tiny mouths and will not bite. It is really like looking into a fish tank from above at times. I have only seen a couple of barracuda their and they were pretty far out. Lastly, unless you have a snorkel mask on, you will not see most of the fish. Once under the surface, it is a whole new world.

[LuCruise]

We have had there almost on the sand, no more than 5 feet from the beach. Most of the fish you will see will be seargent majors(yellow fish with black stripes about 4-6 inches long) in schools up to a few hundred at a time. They also swim alone. They have tiny mouths and will not bite. It is really like looking into a fish tank from above at times. I have only seen a couple of barracuda their and they were pretty far out. Lastly, unless you have a snorkel mask on, you will not see most of the fish. Once under the surface, it is a whole new world.

Thanks for explaining. We have no plans to snorkel (at most, use a mask at the surface for a few seconds at a time). The water at Coki does look crystal clear (which is part of what is attracting me to this beach as it looks beautiful) so won't we see them? Will just have to explain to our kids that they are harmless.

 

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Edited January 5, 2016 by LuCruise

[zqvol]

Thank s for the reply. But are the fish all over or only if we swim out deeper or near rocks? I'd hate to go there and have them have no desire to go into the water.

 

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At Coki the fish are everywhere, mainly because people take dog biscuits into the water and feed the fish. At the other beaches you can encounter fish everywhere but they are more concentrated near the reef and rocks, and not so much over the sand.

 

While the attached photos are not too good they will show you the fish at Coki. These were taken December 30, 2015.

 

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[zqvol]

Thanks. I guess like anything, if there is food, then they will gather. So we'll stay away. And good to know...go away from the rocks towards Coral World.

 

Still deciding if this if the correct beach for us. The waves I've seen in pictures looks just like what we are looking for (slight waves to make it fun, but not too rough that it'll be dangerous for swimming or that will push my younger one over at the shore). Will need to see what my son meant by 'I don't want to swim with fish'...He may be thinking more of bigger fish swimming around, which would probably scare me too.

 

Again, I apologize for posting in St Martin board. Was hoping a moderator would move it over to St Thomas.

 

 

Coki will have the smallest waves of any beach you attempt to snorkel on St. Thomas.

[LuCruise]

zqvol, thanks so much for the pictures. Perhaps we should revisit our St Thomas pick as that's a lot of fish. :(

[piginmud]

Last night we told our kids about our cruise. They were super excited. I showed them our ports and the plan to go to Coki beach on our St Thomas day. I am thinking of this beach since it looks beautiful, waves not too rough, food and washroom available. Another bonus is having Coral World next door if we've had enough beach time.

 

My kids love the pictures but when I said there are fish and you can snorkel , my 10 year old said he doesn't want to go there as he doesn't want to swim with fish.

 

Can you avoid the fish in areas (eg near the shore). Or should we select another beach such as Magens Bay?

 

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Was just at Coki last week. Right off the shore there were no (or hardly no) fish there. Only when I went out further and near the rocks did I see fish. The day I was there the water was VERY rough, but I think there was a storm brewing off shore since every single beach day on this cruise we had lots of big waves, which is unusual for Caribbean waters.

 

Check out how many ships in port the day you are there. We had 8 ships in port and the beach was more crowded than a Jersey shore beach on 4th of July! Plus all the tourists and locals smoking pot on the beach wasn't very nice.

 

Megan's bay is much calmer and seemed more family friendly to me. And there's no coral or rocks so the chances of seeing a fish is much slimmer than Coki.

 

debbie

[satbeachbill]

Maybe try a swimming pool?

[LuCruise]

Maybe try a swimming pool?

 

Obviously a bit of sarcasm :rolleyes:

 

Yes, oceans have fish. I was meaning more if we can avoid swarms of fish by staying at shore, avoiding the rocky areas, etc.

 

We're actually leaning towards Coki over Magens for light waves as we want a beach experience instead of a swimming pool.

[piginmud]

Obviously a bit of sarcasm :rolleyes:

 

Yes, oceans have fish. I was meaning more if we can avoid swarms of fish by staying at shore, avoiding the rocky areas, etc.

 

We're actually leaning towards Coki over Magens for light waves as we want a beach experience instead of a swimming pool.

 

It all depends on the weather and the tides. The day we were there the ocean was sooo rough that the water and waves were coming up to the restaurants! It did calm down a little mid morning but a lot of people had soaking wet towels, shoes, etc...

 

debbie

[LuCruise]

It all depends on the weather and the tides. The day we were there the ocean was sooo rough that the water and waves were coming up to the restaurants! It did calm down a little mid morning but a lot of people had soaking wet towels, shoes, etc...

 

debbie

 

Thanks Debbie. You've been very helpful.

I wonder if the ship or local taxi drivers can give us an idea of the conditions when we arrive? If this is the case when we go, then we'd definitely chose Magens over Coki. We want slight waves but not dangerous...especially with a 6.5 and 10.5 year old.

Edited January 19, 2016 by LuCruise

[piginmud]

Thanks Debbie. You've been very helpful.

I wonder if the ship or local taxi drivers can give us an idea of the conditions when we arrive? If this is the case when we go, then we'd definitely chose Magens over Coki. We want slight waves but not dangerous...especially with a 6.5 and 10.5 year old.

 

I know the taxi driver in Martinique told us the waves were rough. But also when you get off the ship there are information booths and I'm sure those attendants will know!

 

Have fun!

debbie

[LuCruise]

I know the taxi driver in Martinique told us the waves were rough. But also when you get off the ship there are information booths and I'm sure those attendants will know!

 

Have fun!

debbie

 

Perfect. Thanks so much. We will be sure to ask/look for the info.

[O2B@Cagain]

When there is a swell, the taxi drivers will know. They will direct you to the best beaches for the weather.

[legaljen1969]

I promise this post is not to be snarky.

 

Remember that any beach is always there. The island is a home to many people and to many fish. They are not selectively placed to amuse the tourists.

 

I live in a tourist town and it is always fascinating to me when people walk up and ask questions like "How much do they pay you all to walk around make this look like a real town?" When people use the expression "They roll up the streets after 9:00," I think people actually may think the town just gets rolled out in a container, stored and then set out when another tour group shows up.

 

No. We are here every day. Buses or no buses, ships or no ships. We are certainly glad to have the tourist dollars come to our town. That said, we actually live here. We know about our community. We know the "off the beaten path" and the special things about the beaches.

 

Please do rely upon/take advantage of the knowledge of your tour directors and/or taxi drivers. They definitely know when certain things are going on. They can tell you about the number of fish. They can tell you about the waves at a particular beach. If you want to see specific kinds of fish, they can probably tell you where to go to see those. If you want to avoid fish, they can help you with that as well.

[MrSchwump]

We have had there almost on the sand, no more than 5 feet from the beach. Most of the fish you will see will be seargent majors(yellow fish with black stripes about 4-6 inches long) in schools up to a few hundred at a time. They also swim alone. They have tiny mouths and will not bite. It is really like looking into a fish tank from above at times. I have only seen a couple of barracuda their and they were pretty far out. Lastly, unless you have a snorkel mask on, you will not see most of the fish. Once under the surface, it is a whole new world.

 

The nastiest fish bite I've ever had was a Sgt. Major. Stay away from their house. They're very protective!