Transportation
 

For my honeymoon, we are planning on staying on St. John, and taking the ferry to St. Thomas every so often to do things. My question is, what is the best way to get around the islands? Id rather not rent a car because 1) Renting can get rather pricey, and 2) Im on vacation and I dont want to drive. Say I take the ferry over to St. Thomas and want to do a specific activity. How do I get there from where the ferry drops us off? How do I get to dinner, shopping, ect....

Take a taxi!!!

One cavate - you may find that if you do 2 or more round trips a day in a taxi the cost will be about the same or more than a rental car.

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! Now, vacation or not you will want to rent a car on St. John. There are so many beautiful beaches to explore that a car is a must, IMHO. Using a taxi to see the island would be very, expensive. Even if you are staying on Caneel Bay I would think you would want to roam the island.

Once you land at STT and take a cab & ferry to St. John I feel confident in saying you won't make but one trip back to St. Thomas, if any. St. John is that special.

Where are you staying?

Im not sure where we will be staying yet, but Im thinking Caneel Bay Resort.

So you're saying I should get a rental car just for St. John? If/when we go over to St. Thomas, then use taxis?

Are taxis that expensive? Are rental cars that cheap?

If you stay at Caneel Bay Resort, you may(call and check) get unlimited ferry transfers to and from their resort.

We stay at the Westin and they offer this amenity(sp?).

You most likely will spend most of your time on St. John and go over to St. Thomas once or twice at the most. There is just so much to do and is more relaxing than St. Thomas.

The rental of a 4 wheel drive vehicle would be a plus even if it is for only a couple days to get to some of the more remote areas of the island where Taxis will not go. Well worth it.

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding, too!

If you are going to travel around St John you will want a car. Taxis are expensive and do not pick up from every location (although caneel bay would not be a problem). If you plan to snorkel you will want to travel around as there are many woderful places from which to snorkel. There are car rental agencies in St Thomas (and there may be in St John??) that will rent you a car, allow you to take in on the car ferry and use it in St John. If you chose this option you would have a car on both Islands.

We have stayed on St John without a car but I wouldn't recommend it. You will be pretty much limited to the north shore beaches. We stayed at Gallow's Point Resort without a car because it is walking distance to Cruz Bay.

http://www.gallowspointresort.com/

I'm not as familiar with St Thomas, but you can take the ferry to Charlotte Amalie and be walking distance to shopping. If you want to go to the beaches on STT, you would need a taxi.

Rental cars on St John are not really cheap. We are renting a Suzuki SX4 for out trip next month for $72 per day. That is pretty much the going rate.

Forgot to mention, there are plenty of restaurants as well near the Charlotte Amalie waterfront. Hook, Line and Sinker is walking distance from the CA ferry dock and has excellent food.

I go to St. John several times per year. It would be easy to be there without a vehicle. The scenery is so spectacular you don't want to be driving and miss it! Go on a taxi for a tour to the east side (Coral Bay) for a day. Not that expensive. The taxis are by the Cruz Bay ferry dock all day and evening. Evenings they park near the restaurants. They will take you to any beach where you hang out all day long. Trunk Bay has a little restaurant so you don't even have to pack lunch! Catch the taxi back to town. There is a ton of shopping, restaurants, bars all over Cruz Bay. No need to drive anywhere! Besides there is just not enough parking available. The beaches on the north side are all wonderful! One for every day of the week. Hawksnest Beach is $5 per person one way from town for the taxi. Trunk Bay about $7. Go to Deli Grotto (located in Mongoose Junction) to pick up a picnic lunch and take it to the beach. Don't hassle yourself with a car! Remember to say "Good Morning", Good Afternoon" It makes all the difference in the world!!