I've got my eye on a wonderful property on the eastern end of St. Thomas, not far from the Ritz. Would like to take the extended family...ages 6 to 80-something...for a week.

We would prepare some of our own meals; nothing fancy...we'd go out to a restaurant for that. So my one question is... what to expect in the way of grocery stores / supermarkets nearby?

And my second concern is for my 80-something father-in-law. When he traveled to Italy a few months ago, he was able to rent an oxygen tank / "breathing machine" for sleeping at night. The medical supply company even delivered it to the villa. Would we be able to find such a medical supply company in St. Thomas?

you are in luck for grocery stores. there is a medium sized market in red hook with regular things and alot of deli/gourmet type foods. about 3 miles east of red hook is a large market (can't think is the name maybe island pride) that has everything.
the ritz is less than 10 mins from red hook.
can't help with the oxygen tank but i bet your villa management company could find out for you.
booze is available at both groceries and is oh so cheap. butter and milk will even it out though. (6-7a gal. and 6/lb)

Food Center is the larger market. There are medical supply rentals here. I'll call around later & check for you.

You can rent oxygen tanks at Havensight Pharmacy which is in the shopping area at the cruise ship docks.

When I called she said you might want (not a converter but some other word beginning with a C) and both are available there.

Thanks for your help! I hope this works out for us! My next hurdle will be convincing my husband that we can afford to spend the money for the trip!!
;-)

Good luck!

Oh, the word I was trying to remember that the pharmacist mentioned was a "conentrator."

Sorry to keep you in suspense for so long, but guess what! We will be taking this trip! All of the planning has come together, and we leave on Saturday!

Thanks for all of the wonderful advice I have found on this forum --it's been so great to learn from your past experiences, that I hardly have any questions left to ask!

Here's what I've got left:
-What is the schedule for Carnival on St. John? If we happen to be there for those days, are there any events we want to be sure to see, or those we should avoid (with kids)?
-Is there any kid-friendly place (restaurant?) that will have the Caribbean music? (I'm not up on the various styles of music, so just asking in general.)
-How early in the morning do shops generally open --on STT as well as over in Cruz Bay?
-Are there any large tropical gardens to visit?

Thanks again for all of your help!! Especially thanks to Carrybean for checking into that oxygen concentrator!!

St. John's Carnival is on July 4th. It'll be nutty trying to drive over so I would suggest you just go over on the passenger ferry at Redhook. It goes straight to Cruz Bay where all the activities will be anyway. St. Thomas has a botanical garden in Charlotte Amalie. When you arrive at the airport, you'll be inundated with tourist information. Make sure you visit Coral World on Coki Beach which is also on the eastern end. Have a great time.

Hi Checking. Congratulations on your long-planned upcoming trip!
The final day of Carnival season is July 4 (parade and fireworks) but there are activities during the week (or more) before which you may want to do. Perhaps of particular interest for your family, is the Carnival Children's Village in Cruz Bay with activities specifically for young 'uns, from 6 to 10 pm each night, June 29 thru July 3. As Tuxedocat writes, it is an easy ferry ride over from Red Hook. (Load up first on ice cream at Cold Stone Creamery!)
If you check www.vinow.com, click on "vacation message board" and nr the top you'll find info including the carnival week events calendar, children's activiites, etc.

BTW, we too are visiting at that time with three generations in tow. Happy traveling, and have a safe journey on Saturday!

The usual shop opening time in St. Thomas is 9:00 AM.