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STJ, VG, & Anegada in 12 nights?
STJ, VG, & Anegada in 12 nights?
Hey everyone,
My wife and I are going to shake up our usual trip in September to include a couple other Islands. We will be flying in and out of STT. We will be in the area for 12 nights.
What would be your suggestions on our itinerary? Since we get in at 3:30 pm, we can either go on to STJ first or we could spend the night in STT and head for the BVI's the next morning and work our way back to STJ for the last leg of the trip.
Does it even matter which order we visit each island? We will probably only stay on Anegada for 2 nights and 5 each on STJ and VG.
I know some of you have split your trip and thought you might have some insight.
My wife and I are going to shake up our usual trip in September to include a couple other Islands. We will be flying in and out of STT. We will be in the area for 12 nights.
What would be your suggestions on our itinerary? Since we get in at 3:30 pm, we can either go on to STJ first or we could spend the night in STT and head for the BVI's the next morning and work our way back to STJ for the last leg of the trip.
Does it even matter which order we visit each island? We will probably only stay on Anegada for 2 nights and 5 each on STJ and VG.
I know some of you have split your trip and thought you might have some insight.
Since no one has responded I thought I would chime in here.
Sounds like you've been heading to the VI's for a while so clearly you have a sense of what it's like and of course everyone has different vacay styles.
But honestly, that's a lot of island hopping for 12 days. Taking into account that things are operating on island time and "youknowwhat" (rhymes with pit)happens -- especially during peak hurricane season.
Seems to me you'd be better off picking two islands and splitting your time between them rather than trying to cram in a third.
Just my .02.
Sounds like you've been heading to the VI's for a while so clearly you have a sense of what it's like and of course everyone has different vacay styles.
But honestly, that's a lot of island hopping for 12 days. Taking into account that things are operating on island time and "youknowwhat" (rhymes with pit)happens -- especially during peak hurricane season.
Seems to me you'd be better off picking two islands and splitting your time between them rather than trying to cram in a third.
Just my .02.
*Another fine scatterbrained production
I'd have to agree with Gromit on this one. I'd say your plans are a bit ambitious. You are going to end up losing a lot of your 12 days packing and unpacking and island hopping that you're really not going to have much time in one place to relax and enjoy your time in the islands. Whatever you decide, I'd suggest that you save the best for last and end your trip in St. John. I'm really not much of a BVI fan except for day trips. I'm a STJ lover so I admit to being very biased.
Since getting to/from BVI's is the longer travel, I would do that at the beginning of the trip and save the easier (more frequent) ferry from STJ to STT for the end.
I would try to do VG - Anegada - STJ.
If you're packing light and doing carry-on only, then the time packing/unpacking is not so bad. If you're doing full luggage, it would be helpful if you could possibly "store" your luggage on VG while you spend your couple of nights on Anegada.
Take a look at the ferry schedule, it might help you plan/decide. If I recall, the VG - Anegada ferry only ran a couple of times a week. Also, depending on the day you travel, you might be able to get to Tortola for the night or possibly all the way to VG.
We did 12 nights a couple of years ago between VG and STJ with a day trip to Anegada from VG.
One other thing, we went in November and while St. John was pretty active, Virgin Gorda still had a very off-season feel (some places still closed or limited menu's). I would be sure to check "closings" in VG for September.
have fun,
I would try to do VG - Anegada - STJ.
If you're packing light and doing carry-on only, then the time packing/unpacking is not so bad. If you're doing full luggage, it would be helpful if you could possibly "store" your luggage on VG while you spend your couple of nights on Anegada.
Take a look at the ferry schedule, it might help you plan/decide. If I recall, the VG - Anegada ferry only ran a couple of times a week. Also, depending on the day you travel, you might be able to get to Tortola for the night or possibly all the way to VG.
We did 12 nights a couple of years ago between VG and STJ with a day trip to Anegada from VG.
One other thing, we went in November and while St. John was pretty active, Virgin Gorda still had a very off-season feel (some places still closed or limited menu's). I would be sure to check "closings" in VG for September.
have fun,
janet
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Xislandgirl
- Posts: 4163
- Joined: Tue Aug 08, 2006 4:03 pm
- Location: Slightly left of center
Last June we flew into STT and spent the night. Took the ferry the next morning to VG where we spent 5 nights. One of those days we took the ferry to Anegada rented a Jeep and spent the entire day there. We partied at Lloblolly, drove the sand roads, found the flamingos, then capped it off with Belle on Cow Wreck. From VG we took the ferry to STJ and spent our last week before returning to STT.
I think it just depends on what you want out of your vacation. For some this might sound ambitious (and we did do a lot), but for us, well, it was amazing and perfect and I would not have done it any differently. LOOOOVE VG. Can't wait to go back. Just make sure you pay attention to ferry schedules. They only do direct routes on certain days and I took that into consideration when booking our trip dates.
I'd do it again in a heartbeat!
I think it just depends on what you want out of your vacation. For some this might sound ambitious (and we did do a lot), but for us, well, it was amazing and perfect and I would not have done it any differently. LOOOOVE VG. Can't wait to go back. Just make sure you pay attention to ferry schedules. They only do direct routes on certain days and I took that into consideration when booking our trip dates.
I'd do it again in a heartbeat!
You can pretty easily get to Virgin Gorda on the day you arrive in St. Thomas. We are doing it in January. You have 2 choices - take Air Sunshine ($125 one way per person - 15 minute flight) from the St. Thomas airport, or the direct to VG ferry from the CA terminal. Depending on what time you get into St. Thomas, the ferry may be your only choice.
On our last trip, we spent 4 nights in VG and 4 in Anegada. I loved both, but Anegada was just spectacular.
We are "ambitious" travellers as well, and I don't think your itinerary is all that crazy. Just pack light and do it. I would do St. John last. In fact, I would probably skip St. John altogether for 12 nights, but I may get banned from this board for suggesting it!
Have fun whatever you choose. All options are good ones.
Ken
On our last trip, we spent 4 nights in VG and 4 in Anegada. I loved both, but Anegada was just spectacular.
We are "ambitious" travellers as well, and I don't think your itinerary is all that crazy. Just pack light and do it. I would do St. John last. In fact, I would probably skip St. John altogether for 12 nights, but I may get banned from this board for suggesting it!
Have fun whatever you choose. All options are good ones.
Ken
My St. John Photos: http://rcplanefan.zenfolio.com/
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ClevelandDave
- Posts: 291
- Joined: Wed Sep 10, 2008 3:51 pm
- Location: Cleveland
We've split 4-VG and 6-Tortola before and will be splitting 5-JVD & 5-STJ next spring. We look at the travel day as a fun part of the trip and a chance to get on the water a bit.
As others have said, September can be tricky with closings and severely reduced ferry runs.
You may find a run to VG on your arrival day to be too ambitious with route cut-backs. The only scheduled direct run that would work for you is the 5:00 but it only runs on Tues & Thurs and that's subject to change pending useage. You may need to resort to the Road Town Fast Ferry with a connect to Speedy's for the run to The Valley. (we've done this...not too bad) If all else fails, North Sound Express runs late to The Valley from Trellis Bay.
Personally, I think that 5-2-5 is not too much, pending ferry cooperation. I love VG and Anegada is said to be magical. All of the VIs have a different flavor and I commend you for branching out to experience more.
It does make sense to save STJ for the last leg to simplify getting to STT for your flight home.
Good luck!
Dave
As others have said, September can be tricky with closings and severely reduced ferry runs.
You may find a run to VG on your arrival day to be too ambitious with route cut-backs. The only scheduled direct run that would work for you is the 5:00 but it only runs on Tues & Thurs and that's subject to change pending useage. You may need to resort to the Road Town Fast Ferry with a connect to Speedy's for the run to The Valley. (we've done this...not too bad) If all else fails, North Sound Express runs late to The Valley from Trellis Bay.
Personally, I think that 5-2-5 is not too much, pending ferry cooperation. I love VG and Anegada is said to be magical. All of the VIs have a different flavor and I commend you for branching out to experience more.
It does make sense to save STJ for the last leg to simplify getting to STT for your flight home.
Good luck!
Dave
This is a great trip that we've enjoyed in the past. Something to consider is that things will be VERY quiet in September!
If possible, I would consider getting a charter flight to Anegada and starting there - getting all the way out to Anegada and back from STT is going to mean a lot of transit time. You can get pretty good deals at Caribbean Wings - http://www.bvi-airlines.com/index.html
If you must fly into St. Thomas, check with Ace Flight Center. Better yet, talk to Randy or Linda at Neptune's Treasure about who to catch a ride with.
Why fly to Anegada rather than take ferries? The schedule going from St. Thomas to Anegada via VG or Tortola is going against you. You are going to end up burning a day in transit in order to hit the ferries.
An itinerary I would consider would be:
- Anegada - 3 nights
- Virgin Gorda - 5 nights
- St. John - 4 nights
Once you get to Anegada then the ferries will work nicely for you to go to VG and then STJ.
I would go ahead and rent a car on Anegada. Taxis work, but you need to plan ahead.
Here's a brief trip report from a similar trip in 2004: http://www.garvin.us/STJ/Trip_Reports/2 ... pping.html
Cheers, RickG (echo)
If possible, I would consider getting a charter flight to Anegada and starting there - getting all the way out to Anegada and back from STT is going to mean a lot of transit time. You can get pretty good deals at Caribbean Wings - http://www.bvi-airlines.com/index.html
If you must fly into St. Thomas, check with Ace Flight Center. Better yet, talk to Randy or Linda at Neptune's Treasure about who to catch a ride with.
Why fly to Anegada rather than take ferries? The schedule going from St. Thomas to Anegada via VG or Tortola is going against you. You are going to end up burning a day in transit in order to hit the ferries.
An itinerary I would consider would be:
- Anegada - 3 nights
- Virgin Gorda - 5 nights
- St. John - 4 nights
Once you get to Anegada then the ferries will work nicely for you to go to VG and then STJ.
I would go ahead and rent a car on Anegada. Taxis work, but you need to plan ahead.
Here's a brief trip report from a similar trip in 2004: http://www.garvin.us/STJ/Trip_Reports/2 ... pping.html
Cheers, RickG (echo)
S/V Echoes - Coral Bay - St. John, VI
Thanks for all the great suggestions.
We are packing light. Carry-on only. We also love the ferry rides, so no biggie there.
I will need to check on Anegada closings during September. Most of our trips our in September for the very reasons mentioned. We love feeling like we have the Island to ourselves. It is sad to miss out on some eats, but we have never had any complaints or trouble finding good food.
The VG, STJ split with a day trip to Anegada may be a possibility, but we would really love to spend more than one day there since we love the isolated feeling.
We are packing light. Carry-on only. We also love the ferry rides, so no biggie there.
I will need to check on Anegada closings during September. Most of our trips our in September for the very reasons mentioned. We love feeling like we have the Island to ourselves. It is sad to miss out on some eats, but we have never had any complaints or trouble finding good food.
The VG, STJ split with a day trip to Anegada may be a possibility, but we would really love to spend more than one day there since we love the isolated feeling.
Actually you can do it without wasting a day for the ferry or staying on St. Thomas. Assuming you arrive in time for the last downtown ferry and you very likely will unless the plane is quite late --indeed you can call Smith's Ferry and they'll hold it for you a bit or send a taxi for you. I would do it VG-Anegada-St. John.
Then you can simply go to Tortola--it would be best to catch the Ferry that continues to Roadtown from West End rather than only going to West End--but you can taxi on over to Roadtown from West end. Then catch the Ferry to Virgin Gorda and you will be there on the evening of your arrival at St. Thomas in time for dinner.
Then pick a Monday Wed or Friday and call the Anegada Ferry the day before and tell them you want to go. They will pick you up at the Spanishtown dock and an hour later you will be Anegada. Almost any place on Anegada in September "check in time" will be when you arrive. Actually you can do that on either the morning or the afternoon ferry. Then coming back--take the MORNING Anegada ferry (remember it's mon-wed friday all the way to Roadtown (the morning ferry does not stop at VG on the way back from Anegada but you would not want to in this case anyway)
Taxi over to west end--10-15 minutes or so.
Pick up a ferry at West End Tortola to St. John and you will be on St. John about 1PM. Will give you a couple hours to kill on Tortola--can take a taxi tour that's fun, or just go down to West end and look at the shops or eat at The Jolly Roger, one of our favorites next to the ferry stop in Sopers Hole and word has it they serve liquor there.
Then finish your trip in St. John. You actually would have spent very little time traveling. Heres a good ferry source.
http://www.bestofbvi.com/info/info_bviferry.htm
Have fun and PM me if you have any questions because after years of spending vacations on ST. John we ended up with a boat in charter on Tortola and a place on Virgin Gorda so now spend most of our time in the BVIs but sometimes still come via STT and have made the various ferry connections many times--and we still love to visit some friends on St. john.
Then you can simply go to Tortola--it would be best to catch the Ferry that continues to Roadtown from West End rather than only going to West End--but you can taxi on over to Roadtown from West end. Then catch the Ferry to Virgin Gorda and you will be there on the evening of your arrival at St. Thomas in time for dinner.
Then pick a Monday Wed or Friday and call the Anegada Ferry the day before and tell them you want to go. They will pick you up at the Spanishtown dock and an hour later you will be Anegada. Almost any place on Anegada in September "check in time" will be when you arrive. Actually you can do that on either the morning or the afternoon ferry. Then coming back--take the MORNING Anegada ferry (remember it's mon-wed friday all the way to Roadtown (the morning ferry does not stop at VG on the way back from Anegada but you would not want to in this case anyway)
Taxi over to west end--10-15 minutes or so.
Pick up a ferry at West End Tortola to St. John and you will be on St. John about 1PM. Will give you a couple hours to kill on Tortola--can take a taxi tour that's fun, or just go down to West end and look at the shops or eat at The Jolly Roger, one of our favorites next to the ferry stop in Sopers Hole and word has it they serve liquor there.
Then finish your trip in St. John. You actually would have spent very little time traveling. Heres a good ferry source.
http://www.bestofbvi.com/info/info_bviferry.htm
Have fun and PM me if you have any questions because after years of spending vacations on ST. John we ended up with a boat in charter on Tortola and a place on Virgin Gorda so now spend most of our time in the BVIs but sometimes still come via STT and have made the various ferry connections many times--and we still love to visit some friends on St. john.
Virgin Gorda-the gem of "Nature's Little Secrets"
More likely that most folks here are predisposed to getting to STJ and planting themselves in one place and something like this would be considered way too ambitious. However, if you don’t mind the effort and have done similar stuff in the past, it could be worth it. We did 8 days STJ and 5 in VG in 2006 and really liked it – so much that we returned to VG in 2008 and included 2 nights in Anegada.
We’ve never minded moving and living out of the suitcase in order to experience more places in a region. A great way to minimize the effort involved is to travel “one way” as much as possible i.e. fly into STT, do STJ first, ferry direct to VG, ferry to Anegada, then either ferry back to VG (some backtracking) and take Air Sunshine or Seaborne sea plane from North Sound (I think runs on weekends) to SJU, or, no backtracking at all - take charter flight from Anegada back to SJU.
As noted here and in other replies, this does take some doing to figure out the logistics and the logistics can dictate how the trip unfolds because direct ferries only run STJ to VG certain days of the week (not critical, but easier and less time than going through Tortola and a cool ride if they take the south shore route around STJ); ferries only run to Anegada certain days of the week; Anegada charter flights very limited etc. etc.
So, know thyself - if just thinking about this kind of extra trip planning makes you dizzy or groan, OR if you are the type who would enjoy making the puzzle work. Trip planning like this keeps me busy on long winter nights, or while stuck in traffic or in a boring meeting.
Also, some of the points mentioned about Sept being a bit of a wild card weather wise and seasonal availability of amenities needs to be taken into account. Trip insurance would be advisable.
We’ve never minded moving and living out of the suitcase in order to experience more places in a region. A great way to minimize the effort involved is to travel “one way” as much as possible i.e. fly into STT, do STJ first, ferry direct to VG, ferry to Anegada, then either ferry back to VG (some backtracking) and take Air Sunshine or Seaborne sea plane from North Sound (I think runs on weekends) to SJU, or, no backtracking at all - take charter flight from Anegada back to SJU.
As noted here and in other replies, this does take some doing to figure out the logistics and the logistics can dictate how the trip unfolds because direct ferries only run STJ to VG certain days of the week (not critical, but easier and less time than going through Tortola and a cool ride if they take the south shore route around STJ); ferries only run to Anegada certain days of the week; Anegada charter flights very limited etc. etc.
So, know thyself - if just thinking about this kind of extra trip planning makes you dizzy or groan, OR if you are the type who would enjoy making the puzzle work. Trip planning like this keeps me busy on long winter nights, or while stuck in traffic or in a boring meeting.
Also, some of the points mentioned about Sept being a bit of a wild card weather wise and seasonal availability of amenities needs to be taken into account. Trip insurance would be advisable.
When we come to place where the sea and the sky collide
Throw me over the edge and let my spirit glide
Throw me over the edge and let my spirit glide
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lovethebeach
- Posts: 48
- Joined: Fri Jan 18, 2008 9:11 pm
- Location: St. Louis
My husband & I did a similar trip this past summer, but we had 14 days. We stayed the first 7 nights on St. John at Maho Campground, then 3 nights on Jost Van Dyke at Ivan's apartments, then 3 nights on Anegada at Neptune's Treasure, and our final night was on St. Thomas at Galleon House. Anegada was a new island for us and we loved it. We rented a car so we could explore for two of the days. The taxi was very reasonable from the ferry to Neptune's (I think it was only $4 or $5 but we gave him a good tip.) The lobsters at Neptune's are huge and delicious. I would go back to any of these islands in a heartbeat. We went in July and it was very quiet on Jost and Anegada.