Vieques or ST.John?
 

I have been looking pretty exclusively at St.John for our Thanksgiving trip this year.However keep reading great things about Vieques,it is certainly less expensive!!!This will be our first trip to Caribbean,so I'm sure anything will be great!Just wondering if anyones been to both and what you think about each of these islands. Thank-you

Flgirl,I've been to both St John and Vieques Islands.Both are very beautiful.
Lot's of great beaches on both.Vieques is more of a 'remote'destination than St John.If it wasn't for a few locals I would have thought we had the island to ourselves.We rented a 3 Bedroom/3 Bath home with a private pool and gated yard.
The man next door was the caretaker and he was great.You can rent a Jeep Wrangler and go discover some hidden (some very) beaches.We went waaaaay into the hills and found the Bunkers where the navy used to store Nuclear Bombs.Way cool.It took us 2 days of looking to find Green Beach.VERY secluded.Miles out and nobody around.Very deserted...Very beautiful.
Vieques has to be the most tropical island I have ever been on...and beleive me I've been on quite a few!
I loved it.
St John is also very beautiful with quite a few beautiful beaches of it's own.If you don't rent a car (we did not)
you can use their taxi service which is really cheap. They have alot of great places to eat,you can take a ferry to the British Virgin Islands from there.
I have been a few times and would love to go back ASAP.Maybe next year.
If you have any questions about either island please let me know.
Debbie

Wow Debden. I love your description of Vieques. I've always been very curious about it - sounds like a really neat place.

We enjoyed St John very much but would likely not go back as we found it to be more "Americanized" than we like. (Of course it IS the US!) I think it's a great choice for a first trip to the Caribbean.

Debden, your description of Vieques really has me intrigued because we like the off the beaten track islands with a laid back vibe.

Are there good local places to eat and hang out and meet and talk with the people who live there? We don't care much about shopping and night life, but a beach bar or local hang out or two are nice.

Diana,A good hang out in the main town of Esperenza is 'Bananas'.The Island Cafe at the Crows Nest Inn is also a good place to go for a bite to eat or a drink.Very nice people there too.We did not go out hardly at all.We were either at the house swimming in the pool or we took the jeep out for a day of exploring and a picnic.
Have you looked at any places to stay?
Are you looking at a Guest House,vacation home,or a hotel? Wydham Hotels has opened a hotel on the island and it looks wonderful.Right next to a beautiful beach.
So quiet,so remote,and sooooo tropical!
I am trying to stress this so you get the whole picture.Some people go to a remote island thinking they will love it and end up being bored stiff and hating it.
It's a unique island.You need to have a sense of adventure and explore.
Oh,also they have wild horses,chickens,and dogs running along the side of the roads so take care driving.
And staying in a rental home instead of a hotel or guest house we had the not so pleasurable experience running into (upclose and personal like) the large insects of the island.
Beside that we loved the island and the remote feeling.
I'll be happy to answer anymore questions,Debbie
Here's a website you can look at:
www.viequesinformation.com/vieques.html

Thanks Debden!
I visited the site and it looks just perfect. We have horses, and it is really neat that there are so many on the island.
Cattle, goats and horses wandering around is one of the things I just love about the Caribbean (except for that time on Tobago when that ram I baaahed at came after me :)
We've also run into creepy crawlies when villa renting, so I guess one just has to kind of go with the flow.
We usually go to Mexico every Spring (just came back from Playa del Carmen and Isla Mujeres) and speak decent Spanish, so Vieques looks to me like it might be a good choice for us.
Thanks for the info!

Debden....glad you had such great things to say about Vieques as my husband and I are traveling there for a week in Feb. What was the name of the house you rented? Would you recommend it? Or where else would you recommend staying on the island? We're both school teachers so are on a bit of a budget, and are looking for a quiet, relaxing place.

lulord,We went thru www.crowsnestrealty.com and they were great. They also have another website:
www.viequesrealty.com
We rented Villa Lattimer in Destin.Up on a hill with a wonderful view of Sun Beach.I think that was the name of the beach.
I know some people who were very happy staying at www.crowsnestinn.com
If you go to www.tripadvisor.com
they have some great reviews of places to stay on Vieques.I beleive it's under the Puerto Rico hotels.
You will love Vieques.
Are you flying from San Juan to Vieques??Or taking a taxi to the ferry terminal?? We flew with Vieques Air Link from San Juan to Vieques.Their plane reminded us of the one we saw in the Aerosciences Museum flown by Amelia Earheardt.We had to laugh about that one!
I hope everyone enjoys the Island and gets out to explore!
Please let me know what you decide on accommodations.I'd love to hear about it!
If I can be of any more help please don't hesitate.
Debbie

Thank you,Debden,I was also wondering about the daytime snorkeling on Vieques.We are very lucky to live in a great little bch.town in the panhandle,however makes

sorry hit the wrong button.I was just saying that finding a vac.destination can be difficult.Overall which island had more scenic bch's?Thank You,again

Flgirl,I am a very bad snorkeler so I limited my snorkeling experience to the swimming pool.I'm positive their are beaches for people who like to snorkel but I don't know which ones they are..
I think both islands have lot's of beautiful,scenic beaches.I would love to go back to either...
Debbie

I've been to both and would say St. John has more beautiful beaches and way better snorkeling.

Vieques was nice but if I had to choose between the 2 St. John would win hands down. Snorkeling is our main priority on a caribbean vacation.

Diana , if it is o.k. I will crash this thread with a St. John only question . My husband and I are seriously considering it for an anniversary vacation in November , my bit of concern was that it was really Americanized , we would like the island we visit to have a caribbean flair etc., there is no debating its beauty and the wonderful beaches , but ..... can you elaborate a bit on this . thanx , Faith .

Willem,that is actually my only concern w/St.john,I know the beauty is there,but living on the bch.in Fl.I do want different culture.But then I think each state has it's own unique flair so surely St.John is nothing like Seaside,anyone have some input?I am in no way trying to say that we are all the same!Would just love some spice and culture with the great bch's and snorkeling etc.THANKS

OK Willem and FLgirl, since you asked about it, I am going to top a post I made last year when I got back from St John.

It got a little testy, but it pretty much gives my views on it. (Of course, it's just my opinion, and many people RAAAVE about St John, so just take it as my opinion and nothing else.) :)

Heere goes...

Dianna,I can't wait to read your post.
Sounds interesting.
Debbie