jhberkley

My husband, 12 year old son, and I are heading to Maho Bay on St. John for a week later this winter. The last time we went we relied solely on the jitneys that traveled around the island and were cheap. I'm not seeing reference to these in any current St. John info. Do they still exist? If not, it looks like we'll need to rent a jeep/car. Any recommendations for car rental agencies that you've found work well? Thanks.
Joanna

brenandg

You will need to rent a vehicle to get around from Maho. By jitney, are you referring to the open air taxi's? They pretty much only travel the north shore road and Maho is one of the farthest beaches from Cruz Bay. Francis and Leinster Bay follow Maho. The taxi's don't routinely like to go that far. We have been on STJ without a car but we stay right in Cruz Bay so had easy access to restaurants and the grocery stores. We didn't miss what we didn't have. Live and learn, because it really is a must at least for a few days. Maho has a shuttle that goes into town but I'm not sure how often it runs. I recommend a drive to Salt Pond and short hike to Drunk Bay. I think your 12 year old would be facinated by all of the "coral people figures" that people have made and could make one of his own.

As for car rental agencies, I have read the good, bad and ugly about most of them. I don't think there is that much difference between them. I would go for one that has a lot in Cruz Bay that you can park in. We used Cool Breeze twice and had no problems but they don't have a lot in town. We didn't really need it because we stayed at Gallow's Point and walked into town anyway.

If you haven't already heard of it, I recommend a copy of Feet, Fin's and Four Wheel Drive by Pam Gaffin. It was very valuable when we were initially "naviguessing" around the island and we still bring it in the beach bag when we go for reference. One of the things I like about the book is she points out what seems to be every "landmark" along the way whether it be a church, smoothie stand or whatever. We even found the tiny Salt Pond lot without passing it. There is no sign to mark it. Have a great vacation.

jhberkley

Yes, they were open-air vehicles, but only cost a couple of bucks and left from Cruz Bay and stopped at Caneel, Trunk, Hawksnest, Cinnamon, Maho, wherever you requested. Seems like they no longer exist. I haven't gotten the Feet, Fins book but I will be doing that soon. Thanks for the ideas and recommendations.

brenandg

I don't mean to mislead you. The ARE open air taxi's that run the north shore road and to The Westin in the other direction. You just won't see them as often as far as Maho and since the rate is per person, it will quickly add up round trip for the three of you. You will also be seriously restricted as to where you can go. DH and I had the bright idea to take the $1 bus to Coral Bay from Cruz Bay to have lunch at Miss Lucy's. I guess thay had less vehicles running because we waited for at least 1.5 hours after the bus should have arrived. The goats were great company while we waited on the curb. Having the freedom to come and go as you please is invaluable.

MP07950

Can't contribute anything to whether the jitneys will go to Maho or not, but we were just at Caneel, and it's $5/person to go from Caneel into Cruz Bay (to give you perspective on what it might cost to go to Maho). The jitneys were really trolling for customers when we were there so I'm having trouble believing that they wouldn't be interested in the longer ride (and higher fare)..

brenandg

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Here is a link to some information about taxi rates etc. Some of the far reaching places listed would I'm sure cost a lot more because if you are the only ones on the taxi, the price is negotiable with the driver. As you probably know, they wait for the taxis to fill up as much as possible.

"I'm having trouble believing that they wouldn't be interested in the longer ride (and higher fare)". There are far less people that take a taxi all the way to Maho as opposed to the closer north shore beaches. Since the rate is per person, they make less money that way. I agree that the taxis are plentiful at Caneel, Trunk and Cinnamon Bay. We never had a problem getting to those. What I do know is that it will be tough to get back to Maho at night unless they use their shuttle.

brenandg

http://www.vinow.com/stjohn/getting_around_stj/taxi.php

Oops! Let me try this link again.

Tuxedocat

The jitneys or taxis are definitely still around and readily available, although, I've never felt they were very economical for us, but we like to go to several places any given day. I like the freedom to come and go so it's better for us to rent a jeep. It can be costly when it's $5-10 per person per trip. The taxis will definitely take you out to Maho, but may not be as frequent going there. If you are staying at the campground, though, I'm sure there is a way to "hail" or call for one.