US Virgin Islands: Beaches, Food, and So Much More
Before you go
When traveling to the US Virgin Islands, you must get a negative COVID test result within 5 days of your arrival day and submit your result in the USVI portal. You’ll receive a confirmation barcode that I recommend you print. Security will collect it when you land, take your temperature, and let you go inside to baggage claim if you pass the temperature check.
Where to stay
We stayed at the Marriott Frenchman’s Cove and we really enjoyed it. There are two Marriott’s here. One is currently open - Marriott Frenchman’s Cove - the other one is under construction for another year or two due to hurricane damage. Ours has a fantastic beach with little to no waves, lots of fish, good snorkeling, and you can even spot the occasional stingray. Our favorite part was the floating mats. You can swim out and tan in the ocean!
Getting around
Taxis:
Most taxis are $10 or less per person and you can definitely negotiate. Our favorite thing to do when we travel without a car is to find a driver that we like, ask for their contact info, and text/call them when we need a ride. This way you’ll get a slightly better deal and you’ll have a contact the next time you visit. I have the contact information for our driver if anyone is interested, just message me on Instagram (@mashonthemove).
Most of the taxis on St. Thomas are bigger vans, but on St. John, they’re open-air trucks. This is great for going from beach to beach!
Rent a car:
We opted not to do this because here they drive on the left side of the road and none of us felt comfortable doing that. Plus, without a car, we didn’t need a designated driver! There are plenty of places to rent a car from, but I’m not sure what the prices are like. Lots of people rent Jeeps due to the roads - there are many potholes and they generally aren’t well maintained.
Water Taxi
We had a water taxi at our hotel that took us right to town. It is $7 per person each way and it’s super convenient. It dropped us off one block from Main Street where you can find all the Diamond shops.
Good to knows
Snorkeling:
Rent your gear for multiple days in a row. It’s usually cheaper and you’ll save yourself some time. My mom got a traditional snorkel set, but the rest of us tried the full face snorkels so we could breathe through our nose or mouth. I preferred the full face, but if you plan to dive down, opt for the classic.
A great place to rent if you’re going to St. John is Beach Bum - it’s to your right when you get off the ferry in Cruz Bay. It’s $15 for a full day for the full face snorkel and fins. Another good spot is right next to the ferry terminal in Red Hook, on St. Thomas. A classic snorkel + fins were $10 for two days!
Drink Recommendations:
Lime in Da Coconut: It’s essentially a Pina Colada with limes. Super refreshing!
Painkiller: I’d never seen these before, but they’re everywhere on the islands. They’re combos of pineapple juice, orange juice, rum, and cream of coconut.
Bushwacker: Basically dessert in a drink. It’s fantastic! Sometimes called a chocolate Pina Colada, it traditionally contains rum, vodka, Bailey’s, Kahlua, Amaretto, cream of coconut, whipped cream, and chocolate syrup.
Leatherback Brewing Co Beer. I love trying local beer when I travel! This brand was my favorite from the Virgin Islands and they have three different varieties. Our favorite was the Beach Life (in a pink/orange can) which is a Blonde Ale, but they also have an IPA called Reef Life (in blue cans), a Farmhouse Ale called Bush Life (in green cans), and a Lager called Island Life (in sand-colored cans).
Iguanas and chickens are everywhere! I’ve only seen wild chickens in Key West, so this was rather interesting since the USVIs aren’t connected to the mainland. The iguanas are always lounging in the trees, bushes, and sunny spots by the pool and beach. They’re usually quite docile, but don’t feed them or you’ll condition them to it and they’ll start to annoy you by begging. Most of the time they’ll just hang out with all the humans.
Restaurants book up quickly. I’m not sure if this is because of COVID or if it’s always like this, but consider making reservations in advance. Recommendations below!
St. Thomas
Let’s get into the specifics of our stay on St. Thomas.
Beaches:
Coki Beach
A really popular beach for seeing tropical fish up close, no snorkeling needed. We were warned not to bring valuables because there might be some pick-pocketers, so just be aware of your surroundings.
Magen’s Bay Beach
This is a local beach on the north side of the island. There’s a nice hike that starts near the middle of the beach and climbs up into the trees. There isn’t a super spectacular view, but it’s a nice way to get your exercise on vacation. After the hike (it’s an out and back trail), head back down to the beach and enjoy the clear water and breezy air. There is a little bar and cafe so don’t worry if you forget your own refreshments.
Activities:
Diamond District (aka Main Street)
If you’re in the market for high-quality jewelry (or even if you’re not), you’ll want to pop into some of these shops. There are a bunch of stores all right next to each other. Their selections vary, so I recommend checking out 3-5 shops to get a sense of your options. The prices are 50%-75% of what we’d pay in the continental US. I bought high quality, very reasonably priced diamond earrings, my friend and my mom also bought gifts and weren’t even planning on it!
We shopped at Bobby’s and also heard that Eden was a great spot.
Night kayaking
This was an option at our hotel. We were skeptical, but it was super cool! We saw giant tarpons, red snappers, stingrays, and a couple of turtles. The kayaks have LED lights on the bottom and plexiglass bottoms so you can see straight through to the bottom of the ocean. It was a fun first-day activity since we didn’t know much about the ocean life around us.
Sunset cruise
This was also an option offered by the Marriott. It was fun, but the sunset cruises we did in Cabo were better in my opinion. We didn’t really sail around the bay like we thought we would, but the food was great! It was also unlimited drinks, which was nice because it made up for the price. Ours cost $65 per person for a 2.5 hour cruise.
Snorkeling & dive tours
We didn’t do either of these. No one in our group is a diver and we opted to snorkel at beaches on our own without a guide. I spoke with another group that enjoys diving and they said they did a half-day tour and saw lots of fish, Caribbean Reef sharks, and plenty of coral reefs.
Private charters
Another thing we didn’t do but heard great things about is private charters. You can charter a catamaran from a day up to several weeks. The day trips are nice because you can spend the day sailing around St. Thomas, St. John, St. Croix, and all the smaller islands and explore all the beaches your heart desires.
Food:
Prime: Great steakhouse with an amazing view of the entire harbor. If you go at sunset, you’re in for a treat!
Navy Beach: Nice spot right in the yacht harbor. The food is great, but the drinks are a little overpriced in my opinion. It’s all outdoors and a great evening spot if you don’t want to dress too fancy.
Stone House Cafe: This is next to the Diamond District. The food is fantastic and the prices are great! We loved the service as well and all recommend getting sliders from the appetizer menu with a Lime in Da Coconut.
Lanai Restaurant: We went here the first night because they were closest to our hotel. The food was really good, but the service wasn’t amazing. They were definitely overworked and understaffed. If you make a reservation in advance, you’ll enjoy it here. It’s right by the beach and the drinks here were fantastic.
Sarah’s Desserts: We tried her desserts at Stone House Cafe and they were phenomenal! She makes cakes, cupcakes, muffins, and tarts. If you’re celebrating something, you can order from Sarah a day or two in advance and she’ll deliver it to you!
Agave: This is by the ferry terminal in Red Hook. It’s a pretty good and reasonably priced Mexican spot. We went here after coming back from St. John in the evening and enjoyed the fajitas and lobster tacos.
Pueblo Supermarket: We bought some food for breakfast, snacks, and alcohol plus mixers. We saved some money by making our own drinks since we had a blender and cups.
St. John
We highly recommend taking the ferry to St. John for at least one day (we did two days). The nature and beaches here are unmatched and definitely one of my favorite spots in the world. We left early and took the 8 am ferry so that we had a full day to explore. Tickets are $8.15 per person one-way and the ferry only takes 15-20 minutes. You’ll also get great views of Epstein’s islands.
Beaches:
Maho Beach
We’re so so glad we heard about this from the locals! This beach has turtles EVERYWHERE. We rented a paddleboard ($20 for 3 hours) and used goggles and our snorkel gear to dive down and look at them. They’re mostly green sea turtles, but if you get lucky you might see a leatherback! The turtles are pretty laid back and friendly. They surface every 6 minutes to breathe (Fun fact: they breathe 3 times because they have 3 lungs) and then go back down to feed on the seagrass. They’re still wild animals so give them their space, and enjoy these magnificent creatures.
Amenities: Paddleboards, kayaks, and snorkel rentals. They also have restrooms and a bar.
Trunk Bay
This is one of the most popular beaches in St. John and for good reason. It’s a stunning beach and it features an underwater snorkel trail. There are lots of cool fish near the coral reef and you might see a stingray too. You’ll swim out a couple of hundred feet to the little island where the reef is and then snorkel around as you take in all the fish. Most people don’t recommend going to the right side of the little island because the current tends to be much stronger there.
Amenities: The park entrance fee is $5 per person. They have restrooms, changing rooms, showers, a bar, a cafe, and snorkel rentals.
Water Lemon Cay
This beach is considered a local spot because it doesn’t have any amenities and most people get to it by boat. You can take a taxi here, but make sure to ask them to pick you up in a couple of hours because taxis don’t come out here regularly. Once you get dropped off, you’ll walk about a mile along the coast until you reach a little bay where there will likely be boats. Continue around the bay until you reach the point closest to the island in front of you. You’ll need to swim out to the island but once you’re there the water will only be about waist deep. You’ll see lots of fish, stingrays, and maybe a turtle! When wading into the water, be super careful because there are sea urchins EVERYWHERE. If you step on one, you won’t die, but it’ll be extremely unpleasant. After we snorkeled by the island, we went back to the little bay and swam. We saw several turtles and a stingray! You might also get lucky and see a mongoose. They’re funny little creatures and there are tons of them in the areas surrounding the beach. If you’re not paying attention, they’ll sneak up on you and grab your food. Don’t worry, they’re small and very skittish, but quite quick.
Hawknest Beach
This beach is beautiful. It’s wilder than Trunk Bay, but not as much as Water Lemon Cay. The water was insanely clear here and it’s also a great spot for snorkeling.
Amenities: There are changing rooms and restrooms, as well as a nice picnic area with grills.
Honeymoon Beach
We didn’t go here but it is one of the most popular beaches in St. John, so it’s worth mentioning. We opted to explore lesser-known beaches, but if you’d prefer to chill with nice amenities, this is the beach for you.
Amenities: It’s pretty expensive at $50 per person for the day, but this includes an assortment of equipment rentals and a cabana.
Food:
Cruz Bay Landing: Right in front of the ferry landing spot and all the taxis. We had breakfast here one morning and it was fantastic. It wasn’t super expensive either.
Bayside Mini Mart: There’s a store in the same building as the Cruz Bay Landing but on the other side of it. We went here to grab some fruit and beer before venturing to the beaches.
Activities:
A large part of St. John is a designated national park, and there are some great hikes that you can do. It’s a smaller island and the longest trail on the island is only 3.5 miles. The best part (for me haha) is that there aren’t any snakes!
Shopping: Mongoose Junction
This is a cute little shopping area with lots of nice stores to explore for souvenirs and personal gifts. There’s also a gallery called Baja El Sol.
Final thoughts
This was my second time in the US Virgin Islands, and certainly not my last. I barely remember the first time I came, but this time I made memories to last a lifetime (and literally wrote them all down haha). The highlight of this trip was swimming side by side with sea turtles at Maho Beach and Water Lemon Cay - truly an unforgettable experience. The next time I return, I hope to finally make it over to the British Virgin Islands and explore some new beaches!
