Fra_Diavolo

Gather that the ferry ride itself is about twenty minutes, with another twenty to thirty for the cab to the airport on St Thomas. Although this is technically an internal flight, do we need to allow extra time for security, or would the standard one hour suffice? Traveling Saturday morning, mid February. Thanks!

qwovadis

2 hours B4 flight time always a minimum for me in case of delay along the way. Good Luck!

blamona

I've had the ferries break down, I would go early to St Thomas, you can always have lunch and shop around the ferry if you have too much time, but thou want to make sure you're at least in St thomas with enough time to get to airport

virginia

st john ferry to red hook is 20 mins. time to airport is minimum 30 mins & could easily run an hour or more depending on time of day/traffic.
st john ferry to charlotte amalie 45 mins. then if you have spare time you're right by shops & restaurants and about 10 mins to airport.
i think 90mins to 2 hrs before flt.

Fra_Diavolo

Thanks all!

hawksbill

I'd arrive at STT at least two hours before departure, even if you're planning to use the self-serve kiosks, and maybe even farther in advance if you need to wait in line. It is not an efficiently run airport, and you will indeed need to clear U.S. Customs.

I just flew back from STT a couple of days ago, and I got caught in a new trap that I hadn't seen before. After Customs, there was a uniformed airport employee who was steering passengers without checked luggage (e.g. me) away from the main security line, and into the check point that is usually used for crew and general aviation passengers, which is down a hallway off to the right. He made it seem like it would be faster that way, but it wasn't. I waited a really, really, really long time in that line, and nearly missed my flight, despite arriving two hours in advance. There was only one x-ray machine and metal detector, and the TSA agent running the x-ray machine kept wandering away to do God-knows-what.

Additional STT tips:

1. Bring a pen, and fill out your Customs form BEFORE getting on the Customs line.

2. It can be kind of stuffy in the Customs and security areas. Consider keeping your island clothes and flip-flops on until you get into the terminal, and then changing into your warmer airplane clothes (if you have them) in the bathroom in the terminal.

brenandg

You will need to be at the St Thomas Airport a full 2 hours before your flight. Having said that, we leave on the ferry that is 3 hours before our flight. Depending on what day you travel, the airport can be really busy. Especially Saturdays. We have been 10 times and always leave earlier than later. They close the check in I believe an hour before the flight leaves. Or as suggested, you can leave even earlier and spend some time on St Thomas having lunch and leave your luggage with the taxi driver. The Frenchtown area on the waterfront has several nice choices.

Fra_Diavolo

Thanks again for this very useful information.

FD

MP07950

In my experience, the St. Thomas airport is one of the craziest I've flown out of (and have been there for many visits to St. John) and I'd definitely plan to get there at least 2 hours before the flight. One way to "speed" up the process a bit is to engage one of the porters who are there to help with luggage, etc. Somehow, once you've completed the long wait to check into your flight, they manage to get you through the rest of the process (up to security) relatively quickly. Good advice above about staying in your island clothes until getting through security. It is very stuffy in the airport. Also, food choices are very limited.

brenandg

Good mention about the food choices. Pretty terrible! We always make sure to eat before we get to the airport. About the porters. If you get a porter, you can do it as soon as you get to the airport. We always do it if the lines are long. Have your taxi driver find you one, or just call out "porter". They take you to the front of the check in line, get your boarding passes and take you to the front of the customs lines, then check your bag if you have one. One strange thing about the STT airport is you don't check your bag at the initial check in counter. You have to drag it all the way through the customs line, then check it, then go through security. It is a pain, especially if it is really hot! We usually tip them about $20. It may seem like alot, but just think about how much money you will have already spent on STJ, LOL! I agree about filling out the Customs form even before you get to the airport. We always grab extra ones. We usually have them from a previous trip, but you could try the customs office on St John near the National Park Building. Saves lots of time to walk up, get a porter, and have your forms ready. Granted, you will still have waiting time, but at least it is not spent waiting in lines. There is a small bar at the airport with sports or whatever on.

Just re-read your post. and see you are traveling on a Saturday in February. Is that President's Week? If so, it will be crazy at the airport!!

wliwl

The kiosks are fake. We were all checked in and still had to wait in a long line just to get some kind of dumb form. (I forgot what it was, I think it was asking about purchases.) A very disorganized airport. We had many, many things go wrong on our departure flight, not the least of which was 34 passengers bumped and a 3 hour delay wherein everyone missed their connecting flights...