Help me plan a USVI trip (St. John/St.Croix)
Aug 10th, 2012, 02:45 PM
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Help me plan a USVI trip (St. John/St.Croix)
Hi!
We're planning to go to the USVI in December and can't decide between St. John and St. Croix. We're a family of three: Our 2.5 yrs old daughter (she'll be 2.5 in December), my wife and I.
We've never done beach vacations, but done a lot of traveling to historic places instead (before the kid came). However, our daughter loves in the ocean and the beach, so we figured we'd take a vacation to the Caribbean in December.
A few things I was hoping for:
- Apartment on the beach/oceanfront (we had a similar apartment in Maui and loved it). A kitchen would be a plus. I thinking VRBO should have a plethora of such apartments.
- A swimming pool on the complex sometimes help if the water is cold or the baby just wants to swim (as opposed to play in the sand/ocean)
- Relatively inexpensive. We can go $250 per night max (that would be my upper limit).
- I would prefer not to have madly crowded beaches where you can barely walk. People on the beach is nice (especially people with kids - since kids make friends easily with each other and love to play). Beaches with nice sand (not just rocks)
- Beautiful beaches with lovely views: I'm a photographer (amateur, but I like to think I'll go pro someday when I have nothing else to do
) and love taking good pictures.
- Shallow snorkeling water: Not sure how to describe this. The only time I went snorkeling was in Maui and the depth of the water, underwater view of the hull of the catamaran that took us out - both just freaked me out. So if I could just wade in a bit and swim around, that would be ideal.
- Decent food - variety especially since we're vegetarians.
- Safe: This goes without saying
- Good medical facilities. I'm not expecting something like UCSF which is close to us, but something that will assure us decent care in case of emergencies.
Sorry, if these are a lot of things to ask for. I just listed things that came to my mind, hoping more information is better for you to make a recommendation!
St Croix vs. St. John: One of the reasons I picked St. Croix is because there are direct flights. We live in San Francisco and getting to St. John will end up being a production (here to Miami, change planes, to St. Thomas, mostly have to stay there overnight, take a boat). The kid gets cranky and we generally prefer to keep it simple with her.
Other thoughts/suggestions/ideas would be highly appreciated!
We're planning to go to the USVI in December and can't decide between St. John and St. Croix. We're a family of three: Our 2.5 yrs old daughter (she'll be 2.5 in December), my wife and I.
We've never done beach vacations, but done a lot of traveling to historic places instead (before the kid came). However, our daughter loves in the ocean and the beach, so we figured we'd take a vacation to the Caribbean in December.
A few things I was hoping for:
- Apartment on the beach/oceanfront (we had a similar apartment in Maui and loved it). A kitchen would be a plus. I thinking VRBO should have a plethora of such apartments.
- A swimming pool on the complex sometimes help if the water is cold or the baby just wants to swim (as opposed to play in the sand/ocean)
- Relatively inexpensive. We can go $250 per night max (that would be my upper limit).
- I would prefer not to have madly crowded beaches where you can barely walk. People on the beach is nice (especially people with kids - since kids make friends easily with each other and love to play). Beaches with nice sand (not just rocks)
- Beautiful beaches with lovely views: I'm a photographer (amateur, but I like to think I'll go pro someday when I have nothing else to do
) and love taking good pictures. - Shallow snorkeling water: Not sure how to describe this. The only time I went snorkeling was in Maui and the depth of the water, underwater view of the hull of the catamaran that took us out - both just freaked me out. So if I could just wade in a bit and swim around, that would be ideal.
- Decent food - variety especially since we're vegetarians.
- Safe: This goes without saying
- Good medical facilities. I'm not expecting something like UCSF which is close to us, but something that will assure us decent care in case of emergencies.
Sorry, if these are a lot of things to ask for. I just listed things that came to my mind, hoping more information is better for you to make a recommendation!
St Croix vs. St. John: One of the reasons I picked St. Croix is because there are direct flights. We live in San Francisco and getting to St. John will end up being a production (here to Miami, change planes, to St. Thomas, mostly have to stay there overnight, take a boat). The kid gets cranky and we generally prefer to keep it simple with her.
Other thoughts/suggestions/ideas would be highly appreciated!
Aug 10th, 2012, 02:46 PM
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Oh one more thing! How will the weather be in December? Will it be very cold that we cannot hang out on the beach and my daughter can't play in the water? I've heard/seen mixed things online.
Aug 11th, 2012, 07:08 PM
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The Caribbean is routinely warm year-round, with very little differentiation in temperatures. That won't be an issue, though there can be winds in December that bring dust and affect water clarity. Also, if you are planning to come during the Christmas season, then you will pay a huge huge premium and face minimum-stay requirements, and your budget is not realistic for Christmas. In early December, however, it should be sufficient.
You're mistaken if you think that there will be many different beachfront apartments available on either St. John or St. Croix. There simply aren't that many ... particularly in St. John. St. Croix has a lot of beach front villas, but not that many apartments. St. John has very few beachfront anything other than resorts. And none I can think of would be $250 per night. But there are a lot of apartment-style hotels in St. Croix that would work for you, most along the north shore and some on very nice beaches.
You'd find more options in St. Thomas, and it might be a better choice for you.
You may find it difficult to find really good choices as vegetarians, and this is true in many places in the Caribbean except perhaps in Jamaica, where Rastas are common (and are vegetarian).
You do have a long list of requirements, many of which make it difficult to find what you want on either St. John or St. Thomas. But I"m not understanding why it's so difficult to get to St. John for you. Yes, you fly into St. Thomas, but then you take a fairly quick (15 to 30-minute) ferry which runs until around 11pm. A night on St. THomas is rarely required unless you want to have one.
I'd actually recommend either Providenciales (Turks and Caicos), Barbados, or Grand Cayman over the USVI (or the BVI over the USVI). All of these places have more of the things you are looking for.
You're mistaken if you think that there will be many different beachfront apartments available on either St. John or St. Croix. There simply aren't that many ... particularly in St. John. St. Croix has a lot of beach front villas, but not that many apartments. St. John has very few beachfront anything other than resorts. And none I can think of would be $250 per night. But there are a lot of apartment-style hotels in St. Croix that would work for you, most along the north shore and some on very nice beaches.
You'd find more options in St. Thomas, and it might be a better choice for you.
You may find it difficult to find really good choices as vegetarians, and this is true in many places in the Caribbean except perhaps in Jamaica, where Rastas are common (and are vegetarian).
You do have a long list of requirements, many of which make it difficult to find what you want on either St. John or St. Thomas. But I"m not understanding why it's so difficult to get to St. John for you. Yes, you fly into St. Thomas, but then you take a fairly quick (15 to 30-minute) ferry which runs until around 11pm. A night on St. THomas is rarely required unless you want to have one.
I'd actually recommend either Providenciales (Turks and Caicos), Barbados, or Grand Cayman over the USVI (or the BVI over the USVI). All of these places have more of the things you are looking for.
Aug 12th, 2012, 08:03 AM
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Okay, I hate to argue with a Fodor's editor ;-) but...
There are plenty of vegetarians in the USVI. Rastas, yes, but also Seventh Day Adventists who tout a vegetarian life style. St Croix is a more agricultural island, and your chances of getting fresh items would be greater there. Otherwise, there are small farms on St Thomas and St John and more difficult to find fresh,local produce. Contrary to popular opinion, most of the roadside stands do not carry local stuff, but produce shipped in.
As Doug said, very little beachside property on St John as much of the land is national park. And mostly not budget friendly. There are beachside condos on St Thomas and St Croix. It is easy to get to St John from St Thomas, not so easy to get to St John or St Thomas from St Croix.
St John has a clinic, but for emergencies, there is an ambulance boat to the hospital on St Thomas. St Croix has a hospital.
If you are from San Francisco, the weather and water will seem warm in December. There can be storms in the north Atlantic that kick up the surf, but then you would just go to a south side beach. The Hawaiian islands have a very quick drop off compared to the US Virgins. Lots of places to snorkel right off the beach.
There are plenty of vegetarians in the USVI. Rastas, yes, but also Seventh Day Adventists who tout a vegetarian life style. St Croix is a more agricultural island, and your chances of getting fresh items would be greater there. Otherwise, there are small farms on St Thomas and St John and more difficult to find fresh,local produce. Contrary to popular opinion, most of the roadside stands do not carry local stuff, but produce shipped in.
As Doug said, very little beachside property on St John as much of the land is national park. And mostly not budget friendly. There are beachside condos on St Thomas and St Croix. It is easy to get to St John from St Thomas, not so easy to get to St John or St Thomas from St Croix.
St John has a clinic, but for emergencies, there is an ambulance boat to the hospital on St Thomas. St Croix has a hospital.
If you are from San Francisco, the weather and water will seem warm in December. There can be storms in the north Atlantic that kick up the surf, but then you would just go to a south side beach. The Hawaiian islands have a very quick drop off compared to the US Virgins. Lots of places to snorkel right off the beach.
Aug 12th, 2012, 12:15 PM
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It sounds to me like you might be trying to look exclusively at US territories (understandable if your daughter doesn’t have a passport yet!). If so, you might really want to consider Puerto Rico – lots of good beachfront fun for the little one, plus the beautiful 500 year old cobblestone streets and forts of Old San Juan for the history buff in you.
If you really are thinking about Croix, high season rates start in mid-December, but the first two weeks of December (and all of November, including Thanksgiving week) are usually low season rates that are in your budget. If you want a condo, I think Gentle Winds on St. Croix will be in you price range if you are there low season - two bedroom condos on a nice beach near Salt River, and on the eastern end of what is known as the North Shore. Avoid the condos nearer to Christiansted in what is known as “Condo Row,” as the location leaves a lot to be desired.
The later you get into December the greater your chances of meeting up with the Christmas Winds, which can made for some rough surf on the north side of the islands (in which case I would recommend something like Divi, a large hotel complex on the south shore of Croix that is much more protected, or maybe something like Cottages by the Sea on the west side in Frederiksted, which is also going to be much calmer). I’ve been on St. John and on St. Croix in early January where it was impossible to go in the water on the north side of the island because the waves were too dangerous.
I can think of several restaurants all over St. Croix that routinely have excellent vegetarian selections on their menus, so I wouldn’t worry about that too much. And there is a great local hydroponic farm that supplies fabulous fresh veggies to some of the better restaurants on the island.
If you really are thinking about Croix, high season rates start in mid-December, but the first two weeks of December (and all of November, including Thanksgiving week) are usually low season rates that are in your budget. If you want a condo, I think Gentle Winds on St. Croix will be in you price range if you are there low season - two bedroom condos on a nice beach near Salt River, and on the eastern end of what is known as the North Shore. Avoid the condos nearer to Christiansted in what is known as “Condo Row,” as the location leaves a lot to be desired.
The later you get into December the greater your chances of meeting up with the Christmas Winds, which can made for some rough surf on the north side of the islands (in which case I would recommend something like Divi, a large hotel complex on the south shore of Croix that is much more protected, or maybe something like Cottages by the Sea on the west side in Frederiksted, which is also going to be much calmer). I’ve been on St. John and on St. Croix in early January where it was impossible to go in the water on the north side of the island because the waves were too dangerous.
I can think of several restaurants all over St. Croix that routinely have excellent vegetarian selections on their menus, so I wouldn’t worry about that too much. And there is a great local hydroponic farm that supplies fabulous fresh veggies to some of the better restaurants on the island.
Aug 13th, 2012, 04:49 AM
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I was thinking of restaurants, which I've never found particularly vegetarian friendly, though you will always be able to find something. I agree that St Croix is by far the better choice of these two, but other islands would be better.
Aug 26th, 2012, 02:03 PM
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Thank you, all. Apologies for replying so late. Had a bit of an illness and decided to rest (and off internet) until it was cleared up.
Really appreciate the sound and detailed advice. It sounds like Puerto Rico might be a better choice for us from the comments. I will start a new and similar thread for Puerto Rico planning!
Really appreciate the sound and detailed advice. It sounds like Puerto Rico might be a better choice for us from the comments. I will start a new and similar thread for Puerto Rico planning!
Aug 29th, 2012, 12:01 PM
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You should check out Sugar Beach Resorts in St. Croix. They are condo style apts with ocean view and right in front of the beach. You can dive right in and snorkel in the waters in front of your place and lounge all day. I would also suggest doing a snorkel day in Cane Bay which is close to Christiansted, St. Croix.
Dec 21st, 2012, 05:18 AM
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I'm in agreement that St. Croix probably won't work out for you - unless you're into spending $100/couple to eat, you're out of luck for "good" food in STX from our experience. Puerto Rico, while not as breathtaking from a outdoorsman's perspective, offers tenfold options for restaurants as there are like 70X as many residents and the job opportunities that bring in talented chefs at "family" prices. That understood, you're exchanging choice for raw beauty.
