Our most recent trip to St Thomas was in March of 2017. It is hard to comprehend the damage done by hurricanes Irma and Maria. Below is my review of this beautiful island before the hurricane. I pray for the people. My original intent of this review was to assist travelers who are planning their own trip. Now, this review can only be used as a historical record.
There are two cruise ports in St. Thomas. Our ship docked at Havensight. All of the usual souvenir shops line the street and funnel travelers toward a taxi/shuttle area.
Open-air buses offer a $4 per person shuttle into town for shopping or a $25 pp tour of the island which gives the option of a drop-off in town after. We were dropped off first and scheduled a noon tour from a local guide at the drop off location.
The brick and mortar stores offered jewelry, jewelry, and more jewelry with a few other shops scattered among them. St. Thomas provides duty free shopping, which means you pay no taxes on purchases. If you are in the market for jewelry or electronics, shop at home first, have a good idea of the price, and then compare. The cruise company will provide a list of recommended stores. Other stores will “guarantee that their prices are lower.” Tax-free saves a lot of money, but remember, purchases over a certain amount must be declared when returning to the states (or wherever you live) so you will end up paying tax/duty on purchases over the limit.
The local tour we purchased was on an open-air, yellow bus painted in a bee motif owned by Luen (pronounced Lou’ – en) He grew up in St. Thomas and also has a job as a fire fighter. He gave a great tour. His sound system worked well and he was easily heard even in the back of the bus. Another great feature of this bus was a glassless window in the front between the passengers and the driver. This allowed for the fresh air to circulate better than it would on busses that are completely closed in at the front.
We drove by Roosevelt park which has four pillars representing four branches of the armed services. This is a nice little park located close to the shuttle drop-off area with a playground (behind and to the right of the local tent vendors – close to the fort.)
Luen explained that there was a time that as many as thirteen ships docked at one time in St. Thomas. Now the ships are much larger and six ships hold as many passengers as those thirteen did.
Our first stop was a scenic overlook for great pics of our ship in the harbor.
Next stop: the Mountaintop, a huge souvenir shop with a nice scenic overlook of Megan’s Bay beach.
Beach access at Megan’s bay is $5 per person and there are no high-rise hotels nearby because the original owner stipulated that when he donated the land to the city.
We made an unscheduled stop when Luen spotted a gentleman giving a steel drum demonstration. This talented musician explained how the instrument is made and played several tunes for us. His CD’s were for sale.
Next stop: Secret Harbor Beach. For about twenty minutes, we enjoyed walking around and getting my feet in the water and relaxing with a soft drink. Here, The Sunset Grill offered a menu at their beachside sit-down restaurant. They also offered a walk-up bar and restroom facilities. There is a small hotel there, too, and it appeared that beach chairs were available for rental.
We rode through a lot of the island and learned about daily life. We saw the Red Hook Ferry Terminal which has nearby restaurants and shopping. Ferries to other islands leave from there.
Luen dropped some passengers at Havensight for shopping and others closer to the dock. We purchased some bagged coconut-flavored coffee at one of the shops at the Havensight Mall for $2 less than what it cost at The Mountaintop.
I took one last photo of St. Thomas from the upper deck of our ship.
If I return to St. Thomas…..
A pretty day will take me back to the quiet Secret Harbor Beach for a day of relaxation or perhaps to the ferry for a trip over to St. John’s.