St. John for 7 days and where to go for next 3?
 

Hello....we are planning a trip to St. John ( 2 couples) at the end of February and have 10 days....we are going to rent a house in St. John for a week and my husband wants to try somewhere else for 3 nights/days....Not too impressed w/ St. Thomas, been to Tortola twice and I think Jost Van Dyke for 3 days might be too much for us and we would all end up in the Betty Ford Clinic. What about Virgin Gorda? How long is the ferry ride? Would it be best to start out or end our vacation there? Our flight doesn't get into St Thomas until 4:00 in the afternoon and we don't leave for home until 5:00...any suggestions? Thanks for your help! Lori

Oh, such pleasant questions! God bless you! I'd start out at Virgin Gorda. I always find that flurry in the beginning of a trip is much better than flurry at the end. Anyway, the ferry is about 1&1/2 to 2 hours from St. John/St. Thomas. I've gone by small speedboat and by big ferry type boat and it depends. I think Virgin Gorda is great. If you're real adventurers, you might try Anegada. I can't wait to go there myself. If you're not arriving on St. Thomas until 4, then you'll probably get stuck in St. Thomas for the night. Hey, worst things have happened. A 5 p.m. departure means you need to be at the airport around 3. Just some thoughts.

Tuxedocat...You are certainly knowledgeable about all things St. John! Can you tell me if we can still take the ferry over to St. John if we don't get into St. Thomas until 4:00? I haven't been there for years and can't remember how long they run. I, too, have always been intrigued by Anegada...I'll have to look into that before I finalize my plans...thanks again....Lori

Hello ltilson! Such a wonderful dillema to have!! Just make sure if you go to Virgin Gorda, go and visit THE BATHS. Go early in the morning and it will not be quite so crowded. THE BATHS are a true CANT MISS Caribbean experience. If you want somewhere good to eat close to the baths go eat at TOP-O-THE-BATHS restaurant. Good food with a beautiful setting and view and you can also have a drink and swim at the same place!! They have a good pool and a great pool bar too. you will love that.

you might go to www.usvi.net click on their "tourist guide". on that page on the right is a ferry schedule which i think will help you make your plans, particularly about where to go first. for example it seems you can only go from st. thomas to virgin gorda on thurs and sun at 8am...
if you are on st. thomas for a night you might stay at secret harbour. about 7 mins from red hook ferry. very nice condo resort with a good restaurant. or stay at frenchmans/morning star, approx 15 mins from char. am., and eat at Havana Blue which is a fabulous!! restaurant.

Itilson: Yes you can definitely take a ferry if you get in at 4 p.m. The passenger ferries run out of Red Hook until 10 or 11 p.m., and the last car ferry will go out at around 6 p.m. Sometimes the car ferry will have a 7 p.m., but I wouldn't rely on it. You can always arrange to rent a car on St. John. Even if you're coming in later, the car rental places will usually have a way of accomodating you.

Thanks for the help....I will check out those ferry schedules!