St. Thomas Question
 

Hello call me crazy due to hurricane season but my husband and I just booked a week in August. I am not interested in car rental due to the driving changes from what we are use to in U.S We are staying at a Wyndham on the East Side. I am wondering if we should use the hotel transportation which I believe is $80.00 rd trip or utilize taxi service. Thanks for any advice.

Are you staying at Margaritaville? A shared taxi should be $11 per person plus luggage from the airport. If you don't have a car, taxis charge per person, so add something like $16 round trip to Red Hook for dinner for two. It adds up quickly.

Yes we are. I am concerned about the driving on the other side of road. We always rent a car and my husband wants to but I am not comfortable with doing so. Thank you for the information.

I've seen Americans driving on the wrong side of the road in the Caribbean, most recently in T&C last year. One of them decided that they should stop half way around the roundabout, for no apparent reason. Understanding the rules of the road might help, as well as getting used to the other side.

IIRC cars on St. Thomas are left side drive cars (like the mainland US), but drive on the left side of the road so the driver is on the outside of the lane which makes it confusing. With no cars around it's easy to pull out into the wrong lane.
A skilled driver should have no problem understanding and following the rules and having a rental car provides a great deal of freedom.

You get used to driving on the left rather quickly, so I wouldn't let that deter me. However, I really do not like to drive at night on St. Thomas (roads are windy and often poorly lit and signposted), so you have to decide. One thing to keep in mind is that Margaritaville isn't close to much anything else except for Coki Beach, so you do have to rely on taxis to get around, and that does add up. If you assume two round-trips per day, then that's about $64 a day ($8 each person each way). A car rental is usually cheaper than that, but I would caution to check on parking before making a final decision. It's a timeshare, but I don't know if they charge for parking. The resort does have its own shuttle, but it's limited. Their quote for airport transportation is outrageous; say no to that.

Yes we own in Aruba and I am using my timeshare for this place so that makes sense. I am still up in the air about the rental car I have time to decide. Thanks for your thoughtful answers. I guess we will be spending quite a bit on taxis.

Just to come back and let you all know we did experience Dorian for a day. It was just a day our of our vacation. We did rent a car and my husband drove and we did just fine. We really didn't go our in the p.m. as the roads are a tad bit a total hair pin. We did go to St. John. What a lovely pristine island. A beach lovers dream. I survived the driving and the hurricane. Thanks for your inputs.

I'm glad everything worked out for you and Dorian was not a deal breaker.

I lived there for 2 years and I believe they still have a local Safari Bus that pick people up and from I remember it was free or very little money.

Ask the local residents if the Safari Bus is still active.

The safari is $1 or $2, depending on the route. It goes in a one-way circle along the main road and is not very convenient for visitors unless they want to go to Sapphire, Smith Bay, or Red Hook. Also it doesn't run at night. The OP did rent a car and found it not too bad.;)

Thanks for the update!

Are replying to the OP? If so their trip is over . . . see post #9

Glad the car worked out -- told ya' it was no big deal ;)

You truly dodged a bullet with Dorian.

Yeah, just noticed, sorry.