St. Thomas for a week

[wreckchick]

There is no reason to leave St. Thomas for St. John although it is a gorgeous island I recommend that everyone go for a day and spend time on the beaches and do Woody's happy hour. There is a LOT more to do on St. Thomas than St. John for the non-diving parts of your day for sure.

The Wyndam is a lovely hotel, I stayed there many years ago for my sister's wedding before moving to the islands ever crossed my mind. It is on the east side of the island past Red Hook if you're taking the south road.

If you've not actually booked the rooms at the Wyndam, you can check out Bolongo Bay Beach Resort which is the hotel where the shop is located. This would save the hassle and expense of a taxi or a rental vehicle.

As far as renting a car, yes, we drive on the left. It really isn't as hard to get used to as you might think. There are nutty drivers but there are nutty drivers everywhere. Since we're on the left it LOOKS nuttier than when you're driving on the right. The taxi fares are CRAZY here and you can expect to spend anywhere from $7-14 PER PERSON each way to go anywhere. Rental car rates are around $50-70 per day so for a group of 4... you do the math.

If you decide to come dive with us and don't want to rent a car (or cars), let me know and I can arrange for safari transportation for the whole group to and from the shop at a pre-arranged price. Just let me know.

We have some great diving and I can tell you that I've not worked with a better bunch of people at least for a long time if ever.

Whatever you decide to do, make sure I know when you're here so we can have a mini-SB meet-up!

I hope to see you in October!

Rachel

 

[wreckchick]

i just booked travel out to St. Thomas for August 9 and i'm staying at the Wyndham Sugar Bay as well...reading these posts makes me want to just cancel and take the ferry over to St. John and stay there....how long of a ferry ride is that? Will it be a pain to go from airport to ferry to st. john? Is it honestly worth it for me to cancel Wyndham and book something in St. John?

It's a minor hassle, but not one that should dissuade you from staying over there if that's what you want to do. The ferry ride is about 20 minutes from Red Hook and costs $5/per person each way.

R

 

[Rhone Man]

Truthfully, I would seriously consider cancelling the Windham and staying at one of the resorts on St John. St Thomas is OK, but it does have a bit of a crime problem. St John on the other hand is absolutely gorgeous (and has nicer hotels) - it is about 75% national park, and has no real crime issues.

I live on Tortola in the British Virgin Islands and I regularly go across with my family to stay in St John to get away for the weekend. Trips to St Thomas are restricted to the area between the ferries and either Home Depot or K-Mart.

Just my opinion.

 

[Rhone Man]

Just in case my last post came on a little strong - I should maybe qualify it - I stayed at the Wyndam Sugar Bay once on a corporate freebie and it is perfectly nice hotel, but if it was my dime I would definitely pick St John over St Thomas each day of the week. But if you are younger and fancy better night life, you make take a different view.

Make sure you bring your passport though, because all the local dive operators will try and take you across to the British Virgin Islands to see some proper dive sites!

 

[terrillja]

St. Thomas and St. John may both be in the USVI, but are very different. I have never felt unsafe when we have been on St. Thomas, and can say there are certainly cities I have been to in the US where I felt far less comfortable. St. John was nice when we went there, but there was far less to do. It was good for a day trip, but spending a week there, I'd personally get bored. When we were there, we dove with the previously mentioned St. Thomas Diving Club, and we had a great time.

Bonus if you stay at the Bolongo Bay- free discover scuba lesson, which is how I got my dad (and current DB) into scuba.

 

[wreckchick]

Just in case my last post came on a little strong - I should maybe qualify it - I stayed at the Wyndam Sugar Bay once on a corporate freebie and it is perfectly nice hotel, but if it was my dime I would definitely pick St John over St Thomas each day of the week. But if you are younger and fancy better night life, you make take a different view.

Make sure you bring your passport though, because all the local dive operators will try and take you across to the British Virgin Islands to see some proper dive sites!

There a local ops who do Rhone trips in the BVI, and bringing a passport isn't at all a bad idea in case you decide to do a day trip to the BVI for some reason but to say that all local ops want to take you to the BVI is false and the insinuation that the USVI doesn't have good diving is also false.

Rachel

 

[Rhone Man]

Sorry if I came across as offensive - didn't mean to - I have done very little diving in the USVI, so am not really in a position to pass judgement. I just remember chatting with Chris Sawyer in Red Hook once and him telling me that his favourite local dive was on the Rhone.

As I recall there is also some very nice diving down in Culhebra and Vieques, but I haven't been down that way for years. Never dived St Croix, but I hear that is nice too (although both are probably out of range for most STT and STJ operators).

 

[wreckchick]

Sorry if I came across as offensive - didn't mean to - I have done very little diving in the USVI, so am not really in a position to pass judgement. I just remember chatting with Chris Sawyer in Red Hook once and him telling me that his favourite local dive was on the Rhone.

As I recall there is also some very nice diving down in Culhebra and Vieques, but I haven't been down that way for years. Never dived St Croix, but I hear that is nice too (although both are probably out of range for most STT and STJ operators).

Next time you're in town, feel free to look me up and I'll show you some of our local sites. I think you'll probably be pleasantly surprised!

R

 

[Roguewarrior2]

"There a local ops who do Rhone trips in the BVI, and bringing a passport isn't at all a bad idea in case you decide to do a day trip to the BVI for some reason but to say that all local ops want to take you to the BVI is false and the insinuation that the USVI doesn't have good diving is also false."

I agree 100% with WreckChick about St. Thomas & St. John diving vs the BVI. With the exception of the RMS Rhone the dive sites around St. Thomas & St. John are just as good as the BVI sites IMHO

In the 80's I worked as a Dive Guide/Boat Captain/Instructor for a couple of years out of St.Thomas/St. John and for about 5 years out of North Sound, Virgin Gorda.

While diving out of St. Thomas/St. John the RMS Rhone would be considered a local dive site as it took about the same amount time to get there and back as it did from North Sound, even including checking in and out with Customs & Immigration. Probably takes a little longer these days.

 

[Scuba Laura]

St. John has little diving compared to St. Thomas. Also, because it is mostly state park, it is quieter and less to do. Great place to chill out on and spend time on the beach. We live on St. Thomas and go there often to get away.

Crime in St. Thomas is no worse then anywhere I've lived in the states (Gary, Chicago, Reno). I find the people here are much kinder actually!

St. Thomas has so many better wrecks than the Rhone. We do the WIT Shoal as often as we can and many people who have done the Rhone say it's better. Also offered on the south side of the island is: The Wit Concrete, the Kennedy, the Miss Opportunity, Navy Barges, and the Chysler.

The best thing about diving in St. Thomas is the diversity of diving. We have it all!

I'd also like to suggest bringing a passport and doing a day sail to Virgin Gorda and visiting the Baths. Great day trip and beautiful little island.