St. Thomas or St. John??

[charminnie]

Trying to decide on what to do with my family of 4. Recommendations would be greatly appreciated.
Has anyone done a private catamaran or sailboat? We would love a good amount of beach time, some snorkeling, relaxing. Did you just stay and go over to Magens bay? Was it crowded?

 

[m1ckeym0use1]

I'm interested in this as well. We'll be on the Jan 16th cruise, and we'd possibly like to do some snorkeling at this stop. I'm concerned that the travel time to/from St. John eats up valuable port time.

 

[Quellman]

I'm interested in this as well. We'll be on the Jan 16th cruise, and we'd possibly like to do some snorkeling at this stop. I'm concerned that the travel time to/from St. John eats up valuable port time.

The travel time to and from St. John is part of the fun. The only time we went to St. Johns, the boat had a guide who told a history of the islands, pointed out landmarks, etc. It was a pleasant boat ride. I can see it being less than fun if raining. Found it to be a way to relax on the way to the island and a way to continue the "island feel" on the way back to port.

 

[MUN]

We took a taxi to Megan's Bay in St. Thomas and we had a great time. The beach is fabulous with nice facilities and concessions.

 

[squirk]

We did St. John's the first three times we sailed the Eastern Caribbean itinerary. No shore excursion/port adventure. Made our way to the Red Hook ferry, caught a taxi at Cruz Bay to Trunk Bay, enjoyed the beach for about three hours. We beat the DCL excursion there by about an hour, but even after they arrived, it really wasn't that crowded at all. Caught a late-ish lunch in Cruz Bay and headed back with a comfortable "safety margin" in terms of time to get back to the ship.

Like @Quellman said, getting there is half the fun. The ferry ride is very scenic, and we enjoy making our own schedule vs. being herded like cattle along with a few hundred other cruisers.

 

[charminnie]

We did St. John's the first three times we sailed the Eastern Caribbean itinerary. No shore excursion/port adventure. Made our way to the Red Hook ferry, caught a taxi at Cruz Bay to Trunk Bay, enjoyed the beach for about three hours. We beat the DCL excursion there by about an hour, but even after they arrived, it really wasn't that crowded at all. Caught a late-ish lunch in Cruz Bay and headed back with a comfortable "safety margin" in terms of time to get back to the ship.

Like @Quellman said, getting there is half the fun. The ferry ride is very scenic, and we enjoy making our own schedule vs. being herded like cattle along with a few hundred other cruisers.

Was there any restaurants or bars at trunk bay to buy food or drinks or did you take snacks and water with you? Thanks

 

[squirk]

There's a small "snack shack" at Trunk Bay. Looks like it serves burgers and hot dogs and stuff like that. I would imagine it probably serves at least beer, if not wine and spirits, but we've never eaten there. We always pack a few bottles of water and some energy bars, but build in time to grab a real lunch at Cruz Bay on our way back.

 

[cantontrebor]

Another vote for Trunk Bay. My kids enjoyed the snorkel trail and the beach was beautiful.
I can confirm beer was available from the snack shack. Unfortunately can't recall what else they had...and no, my memory isn't hampered by how many beers I consumed. ;-)

 

[onceuponadream]

we have visited both Trunk Bay and Magen's Bay a few times - you can't go wrong with either. For Trunk Bay we booked with the cruise line and enjoyed the scenic boat ride over. For Magen's we hire an open air taxi. Magen's us a longer beach day with not much snorkeling. Trunk Bay had great snorkeling. The beach is gorgeous at both in my opinion.

 

[dreadpiraterose]

First time we did a boat/snorkel at St. Thomas, and the water was rough enough to make it pretty tiring. Second time we did St. John. St. John's beaches were BEAUTIFUL. I would definitely vote John over Thomas if doing it again.

 

[Mickey4me!]

Hands down St. John. So beautiful....

 

[beachclubber1952]

Tree limon Zipline is neat to do in St Thomas! We did that first thing and then went to Megan's Bay afterward! Both were fun! Did Tree limon thru Disney and took a taxi to Megan's Bay! To look down and see Megan's Bay from Tree limon was breathtaking! St Johns on a previous cruise was neat too! Joes Rum Bar on St Johns was a neat place!