Snorkeling in St. Thomas

[LunaBuna]

Hi Everyone,
I need help! We're going to St. Thomas mid-January and really want to snorkel. We are trying to determine if we need to rush to get a passport so we can go to the British Virgin Islands. We are staying near Water Bay (in the attached pic I marked where we are staying on my Navionics app). To tell you the truth, I'd prefer to not have to worry about a passport. What are some good places to snorkel in the US Virgin Islands? Or is it imperative that we get our passports for BVI? Thanks so much!

 

[runsongas]

just head over to st john and do trunk bay. bvi has better diving than the usvi.

 

[diversteve]

I agree, there's a snorkel trail at Trunk Bay mentioned pretty often. Also: 7 Best Snorkeling Spots in St. John

On St. Thomas - Hull Bay on the north side is supposed to be good for snorkeling. A lot of people snorkel at Coki Beach but I found it pretty flat and featureless on a dive there - the cruise lines do snorkel excursions there.

If you're staying off Water Bay - so did we. Coki beach is the peninsula on the north side of the bay - we mostly walked along the beach to it. A few minutes drive south is Red Hook where some of the ferries dock - including 2 car ferries to St. John so you can bring your rental if you have one.

You need a passport to go to the BVI's. The fast ferries all port in places where there's a customs/immigration office.

Coming back we cleared on St. John prior to docking on St. Thomas in Red Hook.

 

[LunaBuna]

I agree, there's a snorkel trail at Trunk Bay mentioned pretty often. Also: 7 Best Snorkeling Spots in St. John

On St. Thomas - Hull Bay on the north side is supposed to be good for snorkeling. A lot of people snorkel at Coki Beach but I found it pretty flat and featureless on a dive there - the cruise lines do excursions there.

If you're staying off Water Bay - so did we. A few minutes drive south is Red Hook where some of the ferries dock - including 2 car ferries to St. John so you can bring your rental if you have one.

You need a passport to go to the BVI's. The fast ferries all port in places where there's a customs/immigration office.

Coming back we cleared on St. John prior to docking on St. Thomas in Red Hook.

But you don't need a passport to go to St. John, right?

 

[runsongas]

nope, us soil.

if you are just snorkeling, there isn't an absolute need to head over to the bvi. st john has some decent spots for that.

 

[Jessica Anderson]

Johnson Reef is also a good place to snorkel. I see you use Navionics so I'm including a screen shot of its location using my Navionics mobile app. BVI has better snorkeling for sure, but if you're strapped for time to get your passport then I would say visit some of the places that are suggested on this forum and then get a passport when you can and put BVI on your list for next time. Have fun!
.

 

[SHE Carib]

There are two ferry routes between
St. Thomas and St. John, USVI.

The Shortest Boat Ride (will require taxi to/from airport):
Between Red Hook, St. Thomas & Cruz Bay, St. John.

• $6.00 each way

• Approximately 20 minutes

• Runs hourly between 6:00 am and Midnight.

The Direct Ferry Route: Between Downtown Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas & Cruz Bay, St. John.

• $12.00 each way

• Approximately 40 minutes.

• Runs start in Cruz Bay at 8:45am and the latest returns from Charlotte Amalie at 5:30 pm in the evening.

Varlack Ventures Ferry Services Between St. John and St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands

 

[Jersey]

Worked on St. Thomas for almost a year. For my money, Sapphire Resort, near Red Hook has really good snorkeling - reliable turtle sightings, normal pretty reef fish, tarpon, barracuda, schools of squid. Easy entry. A beachside bar/restaurant (at least in Nov 2016) onsite and water sports rentals - kayaks, etc. The snorkel trail at Trunk Bay is neat. The facilities there make is easy to make a full day trip to St. John - hang at the beach all day, bring a dry change of clothes and some toiletries, grab a shower and head to Cruz Bay for happy hour and dinner before jumping a ferry back to St. T. If you like a bit of adventure, head to Waterlemon Cay on Leinster Bay. It's about a 20 minute stroll along a path to a lovely beach, then snorkel across the bay to the island. Wear sturdy shoes - the trail is sandy and rocky.

 

[JimmySnorkel]

I've heard from many people that Coki Beach was the best snorkeling in the Virgin Islands. I don't have experience myself there, but it left an impression on many people that have snorkeled there.

 

[runsongas]

coki is flooded with cruise pax a lot of the time. it also is pretty sandy and barren. there are a decent amount of small reef fish that hang about, but i believe they are there because they are getting fed by people