everyone has provided great info so far!! My fave snorkel spots were Francis Lameshur and Salt Pond Bay. We love the short hike to Drunk Bay and making our own coral person to leave behind.
We had a poor experience at Miss Lucy's for several reasons, but really love Skinney Legs and Island Blues.
This most valuable piece of info on this thread is Trish's last paragraph!!!

I agree Trish... I'm going to plan for 4 days on St. John... but if we decide at any time it's too much, then we'll just stay on St. Thomas. Now that we're thinking about renting a car on St. John for each day we're there (rather than bringing one over from St. Thomas), that may make our St. John days easier.

I like the suggestion about doing the most important things on the first day, just in case... now we have to figure out what are those most important things!!

soggydollar - it looks like everyone likes Francis Bay... we've moved that into our list of beaches to see.

make sure to do Francis early in the day and avoid late afternoon-no see ums are out late afternoon!
have fun

Car rental prices are about $70/day. I wonder how much a taxi would be. There are joint open-air taxis available that meet at the ferry and go to many of the more popular beaches. I think you can arrange a pick-up time with them.

Or rent a car near the ferry for the four days with the provision that you could leave it at their lot. We were pleased with Denzil Clyne which is near the ferry and has one of the larger car lots.

ditto, we always use Denzil Clyne...

Thanks.... I just tried to find Denzil Clyne on the internet. I see a phone number... is there also a website and/or email... or is a phone call best?

Thanks.

Carole

phone call is best, remember to start your request with good morning, evening, etc!!

Yes, I'm practicing that with all my calls to the VIs, soggydollar!! :-)

I'll give them a call. I see now they are a locally run place, most likely with no website, etc..

Thanks.

I just checked my Denzil Clyne receipt and there is not web address listed. The phone number is 340-776-6715.

I have ferried from St Thomas to St John many times, usually from Charlotte Amalie. On my last visit, I left from Red Rook and was surprised how much faster it was. If you enjoy hiking, stop at the National Park (a short walk from the ferry)for maps. Solomon and Honeymoon Beach are an easy hike, great snorkeling at both. It's easy to enjoy St John without a car.I have heard that Solomon is a clothing optional beach, but on my many visits everyone has been dressed.

Thanks for the phone number Evelyntrav. I just called Denzil Clyne and was told the price is between $72 and $77 per day for an SUV.

I was also told that we'd have to return the car by 5 p.m. each day, which actually defeats the purpose of renting on STJ (instead of STT) in order to take the later passenger ferry back to STT each day.

I then asked about renting for several days in a row and leaving the car in their parking lot over night (when we return to STT) and picking it up again the next morning. She told me the car would be our responsibility over night if something happened to it. So maybe that's not a good idea either?

Should we return to the original idea of bringing a rental car over on the car ferry?

Carole

jdbird - You mention it's easy to get around St. John without a car. Would that mean taking taxis everywhere?

I've spent several days on St John's totally on foot. National Park trail heads are a 5 minute walk from the ferry dock. Solomon Beach is approx 30 minutes of easy hiking through the woods, with several lovely views along the way. A few extra minutes of walking gets you to Honeymoon Beach. These two beaches are beautiful, and rarely crowded. Arrive early and you can have them to yourself. Other connecting trails can keep you busy (and provide a 360 degree view of the island) or you can head back to Cruz Bay to hang out, eat, drink, shop, whatever....
Even if you do take (always available)taxis, I think it would be much easier (no parking hassles, more choice of ferry times)and cheaper than driving.

About the car being your responsibility overnight, I don't think there is much risk. The lot is in a very centralized part of Cruz Bay (on a main street), you have insurance, and the car can't leave the island. In addition, St John is a relatively safe place.

Personally, I think I would taxi to the nearby popular beaches for the first two days and get an idea of the taxi service. If needed, I would then rent for two days. However, I have never tried this so it is just a hunch. If the taxi works out well, you could just rent the car for one day to tour the island and have the car back by five and have dinner in town. By using the taxi, you get the additional benifit of a solution to the parking problem in town and at some of the beaches. The price of the car and taxi might not be all that different, especially if you factor in the cost of transporting the car from STT.

Perhaps it would make some sense to post a new topic on this forum and ask about rates and convenience of taxis on St John.

Thanks jbird and evelyntrav - I'm going to do a bit more research on all of this including the costs of the various options (including bringing no car for a couple of the days).

I do know the car ferry is $40 round-trip and 4 round-trip passenger ferry tickets are also $40... so it's a wash as far as getting to St. John.

Thanks again.