Teenager - what to do?

[sinawitatanka]

My husband and I will be in STJ in 1 month with our 13 year old niece, who has been with us for about 2 years. She's never been very far from the Reservation where we live. Any suggestions for traveling to STJ with a teen? Any activities that are not to be missed, or particularly good for beginners? Also, I remember seeing lots of kids in Skinny Legs - any place you would warn against taking a teen for lunch/dinner? Thanks for the help!

[ifloat]

Yeah, I don't think her cell phone/texting is going to work and she will be forced to experience real life. Hahaha! (Which reminds me, you may want to purchase a cheap pre-paid ATT cell phone and some minutes.)

Don't take her to the strip club, obviously.

Take her to Tutu's and let her purchase some shiny trinkets.

Bring your laptop if there is wireless in your room. Then she can upload pictures of herself to her friends every night.

[waterguy]

My kids loved to parasail other then that they were into the snorkling they never said I'm bored one time

[Agent99]

Hi there! Ditto Waterguy. My kids never get bored snorkeling or noodling around on the beach or in the pool. They bring good books, too. You can rent the snorkel gear for the week from Cruz Bay Water Sports if you don't have your own. I see kids in almost every restaurant here. In particular, we love Shipwreck Landing in Coral Bay and Rhumblines in Cruz Bay. Rhumblines is Thai.

Have a ball and welcome to the forum!

[ShelleyZ]

Thankfully, our cell phones don't work on the Coral Bay side, where we always stay. Being disconnected from friends has become a nice reprieve for our kids, especially our daughter. It's like a social hiatus.

We don't take a computer. We do buy a phone card and make occasional trips to Donkey Diner or Connections for the kids to "check-in" via computer. It works out great -- we have a beer at Skinny's while they spend fifteen minutes checking mail.

Take books, magazines and music. My daughter takes a sketchbook and sometimes watercolors. We also got into playing dominos as a family. We rent movies. Last summer our daughter decided she wanted to learn how to cook, so she became sous chef to my husband.

While we enjoy the more secluded beaches, our daughter likes to people watch at Trunk and Cinnamon. Oh, and a raft is essential for sunbathing and to hang on and observe and talk.

All three of our kids love going to St. John. It's become a precious time for us to take a step back and reconnect. Enjoy every moment!

[cptnkirk]

Are ya offering me a Red Stripe in that avatar if so I'll take two
We took our 16 year old and she was happy just catchin rays at the beach. Much to my disappointment I could not get her interested in snorkeling. If she trys snorkeling and loves it she will be entertained for hours on the beach.
We took a laptop and my princess couldn't be happier at night staying connected to her friends.
St John has some great hiking if she is one of those rare kids that would enjoy such.

[chrisn]

When my now 21 year old was a little younger, she liked Cinnamon alot. Now that I think about it though, I'm pretty sure she just liked the boys that handle the rental gear. I doubt your neice will be board wherever you take her.

Call me evil but I like that my girl woman is forced into "social hiatus." She is attached at the hip here at home to her tatooed rocker boyfriend. She hardly comes up for air. I think it's a good thing. I certainly don't mind it that her phone doesn't work. If it did, I might have to think about accidently dropping it in the crystal blue waters.

She will be taking her laptop so I'm sure once we get to the villa, she'll be plugged in once again. But for that first week, she is stuck on a cat! The poor darlin! Not!

I'm really not as evil as I sound...really...oh and for the record, I must admit, she got the good girl/bad boy thing from me. I have nobody to blame but myself for that one...but dang...

[sinawitatanka]

Thanks for the tips, everyone - keep em coming! cptnkirk, that red stripe is a hearty CHEERS! from our first trip. Find me and I'll buy ya one. We plan to parasail, and I enjoyed the Reef Bay hike we did with the Park Service. My niece said she "thinks" she'd like to hike, so I'm going to sign us up. And we'll rent her some snorkel gear and see if I can get her comfortable with it. Swimming in the Missouri will never be the same. No cell phones, no computer - niece needs to disconnect and so do I! But don't worry, I will post a trip report when we get back! I love the idea of buying a phone card and sending the teen to Donkey Diner for short connects.

[chicagoans]

I just asked my 12 year old, who will be 13 when we go to STJ for the second time, about her favorite things to do there. Her first response was "beach!" She likes snorkeling and also enjoyed kayaking and seeing the wild goats, donkeys, and cats. She likes hiking, too.

If your niece is not sure about hiking, the hike to Drunk Bay is more like a walk -- a short, flat trail. Once you're at Drunk Bay, it's completely different than the serene Salt Pond beach you started from. Crashing waves and hundreds of funny little coral creatures; she can build some herself.

There's a riding stable on STJ called Carolina Corral. We have not done any rides with them, but RickG's daughters have enjoyed those.

It's great that you're brining your niece. I'm sure she'll enjoy it!

[piscesgirl0314]

I agree with everyone...my 7 year old will be going with us on her second trip and I have no worries of "boredom". She LOVES every part of being on St John. I think your niece will do just fine...so much to see and do... Not only that, but there are always a ton of kids at the beach...she will probably make friends...mine does!

[Gromit]

Go to the Annaberg Sugar Mill ruins. Nice walk and it's cool and fun to climb on the ruins. Fantastic views.

You can also rent a Dinghy for the day this is fun.

Lunch:
Miss Vie's (closed Sun & mon)
Tourist Trap (near Salt Pond)
Skinny Legs (Shopping adjacent)
Island Blues (shopping adjacent)

Dinner:
Island Blues (Karaoke night is on Monday)
Shipwreck Landing.

All these are casual spots with a fun atmosphere.

Also any kid would love Big Planet at Mongoose or just wandering the shops at Mongoose Junction.

We're taking my 18 year old cousin for her first trip anywhere and she's pretty psyched. Of course she just found out that the legal drinking age is 18 down there so that might have something to do with it....

If you can get her into snorkeling that will also be loads of fun!

[Greenskeeper]

Highlights of the trip for my 13 year old twins:

Snorkeling
Anaberg
Donkeys and Chickens
Any beach really but especially Trunk and Hawksnest.
Beach Bar and High Tide- they liked to hang out on the beach while we waited for food.
Aqua Bistro
Mongoose Junction- they liked the store that sold all the surfer stuff and they liked the food at Deli Grotto.
Candi's BBQ.
Ipods and Books on the beach.
Woody's- we hung out in front one night with the rest of the crowd just so they could say they "did it".
Pool at the villa- their favorite spot after a day on the beach.
Cards. They played alot of poker at night in the villa.