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Vieques and/or Culebra?
Vieques and/or Culebra?
A colleague recently spent a week on Vieques and loved it. Her photos really stoked my interest. I've been hearing about these islands for a long time but never looked into them too deeply. I've started reading the TA forums and am getting very interested.
Anyone been?
Anyone been?
I was there in May about 5 years ago. I guess I like the fact that after 3 trips, I still know I've got some exploring to do on STJ. We do a lot of walking/hiking while on STJ, and from my short time on Culebra, there didn't seem to be opportunities to do that. It's definitely laid back though, and I liked the fact that the place wasn't full of mansion villas. There seemed to be a lot larger percentage of locals vs tourists.
My colleague owns a two bedroom home on Culebra, which is where I stayed. I can recommend the house as a comfortable and affordable place to stay. PM me if you're interested in details.
Lovermont
My colleague owns a two bedroom home on Culebra, which is where I stayed. I can recommend the house as a comfortable and affordable place to stay. PM me if you're interested in details.
Lovermont
We have been to both of the "Spanish Virgin Islands" and ferried from Fajardo, Puerto Rico (which has a beautiful rain forest above it). The house we stayed at on Culebra was isolated, with marvelous evening breezes, a view of St Thomas, and had a 2-person kayak available for use. The visibilty for snorkeling is excellent as both islands receive little rainfall. We flew to Viequez (exciting) and there, resided in a more residential casa, which did not receive evening breezes and had a view only of the surrounding neighborhood. Viequez has one of the brightest bioluminescent bays we have ever encountered - it was almost surreal. The locals are poor, and creative reappropriation is rampant.
All-in-all, in our mind's eye, there are better "Virgin Islands", but every experience is different.
All-in-all, in our mind's eye, there are better "Virgin Islands", but every experience is different.
Life is an adventure.
Treasure each moment.
Treasure each moment.
We spent 10 days in Culebra two summers ago. We loved it. I was worried that I would spend the time longing for St. John, but it really was a great adventure to discover a new place.
We stayed in a house high up with a beautiful view and great breezes. Our routine evolved into getting up early in the morning, doing a morning snorkel (often as the only people there), going to the bakery for coffee/pastries, rest time at the house. Then we would spend our afternoons swimming, boogie boarding, and people watching at Flamenco Beach, truly a gem of a beach.
We went during off-season. Very laid back. It's an island with a personality. My husband is studying Spanish and loved practicing it with anyone who would dare.
I would definitely return. Let me know if you have any other questions. I'd be happy to try to help.
S.
We stayed in a house high up with a beautiful view and great breezes. Our routine evolved into getting up early in the morning, doing a morning snorkel (often as the only people there), going to the bakery for coffee/pastries, rest time at the house. Then we would spend our afternoons swimming, boogie boarding, and people watching at Flamenco Beach, truly a gem of a beach.
We went during off-season. Very laid back. It's an island with a personality. My husband is studying Spanish and loved practicing it with anyone who would dare.
I would definitely return. Let me know if you have any other questions. I'd be happy to try to help.
S.
Lex, this won't do anything to answer your question but every since I first saw your post something gnawed at the back of my pea brain. Then I remembered.
Regarding Vieques:
"No maneuvers this month," he replied," You ought to see this place when five thousand U.S. Marines come in- it's a madhouse"
I shook my head, remembering that Sanderson had told me how two-thirds of the island was a Marine target range. A strange place to build a luxury rersort, unless you wanted to fill it with retired Marines for cannon fodder.
It was after ten when we finally started for the other side of the island.It was only four miles wide, a good drive through tall fields of sugar cane and along narrow roads lined with flamboyan trees. Finally we came over a rise and looked down on the Caribbean. The minute I saw it I felt that here was the place I'd been looking for. We drove across another cane field and then through a grove of palms. Martin parked the bus and we walked out to look at the beach.
My first feeling was a wild desire to drive a stake in the sand and claim the place for myself. The beach was as white as salt, and cut off from the world by a ring of steep hills that faced the sea. We were on the edge of a large bay and the water was that clear, turquoise color that you get with a white sand bottom. I had never seen such a place. I wanted to take my clothes off and never wear them again.
The I heard Zimburger's voice, an ugly chattering that brought me back to reality. I had not come here to admire this place, but to write a thing that would sell it. Zimburger called me over and pointed where he planned to put the hotel.
Then he pointed to the other hills where the houses would be. This went on for almost an hour-walking up and down the beach, staring at swamps that would blossom into shopping centers, lonely green hills that would soon be laced with sewer pipes, a clean white beach where cabana lots were already cleared and staked off. I took notes until I could stand no more of it, then I went back to the bus and found Martin drinking a beer.
"Progress marches on," I muttered, plunging my hand into the cooler.
He smiled."Yeah, this is gonna be some place"
[Fast forward several paragraphs]
Then I remembered the Marines- no maneuvers this month- and I remembered why I was here. Zimburger wants a brochure.... aimed at investors... your job is to sell the place... don't be late or he'll...
I was being paid twenty-five dollars a day to ruin the only place I'd seen in ten years where I felt a sense of peace. Paid to piss in my own bed, as it were, .....
Hunter S. Thompson 'The Rum Diary"
Regarding Vieques:
"No maneuvers this month," he replied," You ought to see this place when five thousand U.S. Marines come in- it's a madhouse"
I shook my head, remembering that Sanderson had told me how two-thirds of the island was a Marine target range. A strange place to build a luxury rersort, unless you wanted to fill it with retired Marines for cannon fodder.
It was after ten when we finally started for the other side of the island.It was only four miles wide, a good drive through tall fields of sugar cane and along narrow roads lined with flamboyan trees. Finally we came over a rise and looked down on the Caribbean. The minute I saw it I felt that here was the place I'd been looking for. We drove across another cane field and then through a grove of palms. Martin parked the bus and we walked out to look at the beach.
My first feeling was a wild desire to drive a stake in the sand and claim the place for myself. The beach was as white as salt, and cut off from the world by a ring of steep hills that faced the sea. We were on the edge of a large bay and the water was that clear, turquoise color that you get with a white sand bottom. I had never seen such a place. I wanted to take my clothes off and never wear them again.
The I heard Zimburger's voice, an ugly chattering that brought me back to reality. I had not come here to admire this place, but to write a thing that would sell it. Zimburger called me over and pointed where he planned to put the hotel.
Then he pointed to the other hills where the houses would be. This went on for almost an hour-walking up and down the beach, staring at swamps that would blossom into shopping centers, lonely green hills that would soon be laced with sewer pipes, a clean white beach where cabana lots were already cleared and staked off. I took notes until I could stand no more of it, then I went back to the bus and found Martin drinking a beer.
"Progress marches on," I muttered, plunging my hand into the cooler.
He smiled."Yeah, this is gonna be some place"
[Fast forward several paragraphs]
Then I remembered the Marines- no maneuvers this month- and I remembered why I was here. Zimburger wants a brochure.... aimed at investors... your job is to sell the place... don't be late or he'll...
I was being paid twenty-five dollars a day to ruin the only place I'd seen in ten years where I felt a sense of peace. Paid to piss in my own bed, as it were, .....
Hunter S. Thompson 'The Rum Diary"
When you find yourself in a hole.... quit digging.
JT--thanks for providing perspective
ShellyZ--
If we actually decide to go, I'll have a lot of specific questions. Until then, I'd love to hear whatever you feel like sharing. Maybe stuff like: some general comparison with STJ in regard to snorkeling off the beach or are the reefs pretty far out? Beaches remind you of any on STJ? Good coral? Lots of fish? Any surf? Does the island tend to be dry or lush? Hills or flat? Does it feel sparsely populated? More like STJ than STT? More like Jost than STJ? Restaurants and bars more like Coral Bay or Cruz Bay? Food mostly Latin Caribbean? Businesses run more by local folks or by mainland transplants? A lot of English spoken or not so much? Does the culture seem really distinctly Latin? Local folks outgoing or reserved? Centralized villages or all spread out? Nightlife?
Which place did you rent? How did you find it? Any thought on which part of the island to stay? Rent 4WD? Grocery stores more like Coral Bay or Cruz Bay? Expenses in the STJ range?
How did you travel between San Juan and the island? What did you learn on your trip that might affect your plans if you were to return?
Anything you have a minute to share would be appreciated and I'll have lots more questions if we actually go. Thanks.
ShellyZ--
If we actually decide to go, I'll have a lot of specific questions. Until then, I'd love to hear whatever you feel like sharing. Maybe stuff like: some general comparison with STJ in regard to snorkeling off the beach or are the reefs pretty far out? Beaches remind you of any on STJ? Good coral? Lots of fish? Any surf? Does the island tend to be dry or lush? Hills or flat? Does it feel sparsely populated? More like STJ than STT? More like Jost than STJ? Restaurants and bars more like Coral Bay or Cruz Bay? Food mostly Latin Caribbean? Businesses run more by local folks or by mainland transplants? A lot of English spoken or not so much? Does the culture seem really distinctly Latin? Local folks outgoing or reserved? Centralized villages or all spread out? Nightlife?
Which place did you rent? How did you find it? Any thought on which part of the island to stay? Rent 4WD? Grocery stores more like Coral Bay or Cruz Bay? Expenses in the STJ range?
How did you travel between San Juan and the island? What did you learn on your trip that might affect your plans if you were to return?
Anything you have a minute to share would be appreciated and I'll have lots more questions if we actually go. Thanks.
Lex,
My husband and I are sitting here, and we'll try to answer all your questions one by one. It's a lazy Sunday afternoon, and we're happy to go back, if just in our minds.
Snorkeling off the beach -- We're avid snorkelers, so snorkeling off the beach is very important to us. Yes, there is accessible snorkeling on Culebra. By comparison, St. John's North shore offers a quantity and variety of fish that is impressive. With Culebra, there is an abundance of flora and coral that keeps emerging as you swim. Nothing less than dramatic, we were mesmerized by the many varieties of underwater flowers flowing back and forth on the stronger Culebran currents. Yet, Culebra had plenty of fish as well. We saw turtles, a vicious looking and very entertaining light green spotted moray, but not the quantities of schooling fish. We have never seen such magnificent coral and plant life. Equally, we have never seen the schools and schools of fish as we have on St. John.
We didn't have the benefit of a book to guide us to good snorkeling, and we were still able to find wonderful spots. The island is so small, and we did get some directions from the guy who rented us our Jeep.
It works out, not knowing, and we loved our morning snorkel at a beach called Maloney. Most often we were the only swimmers, and given that my husband never wants to see another tourist, this suited us beautifully.
We did not find every beach, but we did find wonders and beauties, different from and equal to St. John. I go back now and read the list of beaches on Culebra, and I don't think we scratched the surface. Like you, we know St. John now, and with Culebra there's that sense of newness, and the "unknown." We know there is more to explore on Culebra, and hope one day to get the chance.
Unlike St. John's smaller beaches, Culebra has two enormous, gorgeous, incredibly beautiful world class beaches. Zoni and Flamenco are astounding.
That is a difference. On St. John, we never really bobbed in the surf. There were times when we cooled in the clear inviting waters of Francis, Maho etc., but always before or after bobbing, we would embark on the joy of snorkeling. On Culebra there's two world class beauties that aren't really there for snorkeling.
My husband swore he had no interest in beautiful beaches, and we both loved snorkeling. But after the long morning swim, we would ride home. We would be hungry and the Jeeps were older on Culebra than the more fancy ones of St. John, but that's when we'd explore the stores for food and whatever else we needed. Foraging. After having a late breakfast, our little one would nap, we read in the breeze on the hammock, and generally everybody would recoup.
The afternoon became about the magnificent shoreline, or just standing in the surf watching and watching the people strolling by, or the goofy airplane that would come in, making its wild left turn over the mountain. We actually took that "goofy plane" and it was great!
Flamenco Beach is for the water, not the fish, not the fauna. It's a big and gorgeous act of nature. There are people, as day trippers ferry in from Puerto Rico looking to enjoy the beach. The locals, too, love that beach for their weekend BBQ's (in the spacious campsites off the beach) but the beach is a mile and a half long and it never seemed crowded. We'd stand in it, watching people saunter and joke in the sun, and we'd watch our kid make friends on the boogie board. It wasn't St. John, but it was exhilarating, enjoyable and a wonderful counterpoint to the morning snorkel. Whipped from the sun, we'd go buy our kid a couple Pinchos (shish-kebob) for the ride home and we'd be off.
2. Getting to each beach is something of an adventure, which is part of the fun. You park next to some, like you do at Francis, and others require small hikes. There was a tough and hot hike over a hill for one particular beach, and it was worth it. I don't know the name but it was a fine beach, and a terrific snorkel. Like every beach, other than Flamenco, it was practically deserted.
The custom is to freeze water and carry your iced bottle. You keep drinking from it as it melts. System works.
3. The island is hilly, not as mountainous as St. John. I don't think Culebra is as beautiful as St. John with Bordeaux Mountain, which is unforgettable and always there in your mind, lush and large. But, I felt that Culebra was as beautiful for its difference. In fact, they are really very different places. Somehow equals, and very very different.
My husband likes to say that each has an independence and an identity. We don't like it when we feel that St. John loses something simply to the tourist trade. But St. John is great, and Pirate Bill remains unbowed, and although the great Fred Samuels has died, Mr. Benjamin is the class of the field, still receiving visitors and watching their eyes bulge when the donkey walks in his house. That's when he sells you his autobiographical book about St. John, "Me and My Beloved Virgin."
But Culebra is fiercely independent, and harder to connect to. They don't even want to be associated with little 'ol Viequez. And they are Spanish, small and the visitor that has to find "it."
St. John has "metropolitan" Cruz Bay, and everybody there will gladly speak English. St. John has the world famous outpost, bad-boy town of Coral Bay. Culebra has one little town called Dewey where the ferry docks. It's tiny, quaint and it is an actual town.
There are houses and vacation homes throughout the island, but not huge villas. There are neighborhoods and the Spanish community is there, but we didn't really get a chance to mix. The language is a barrier, my husband likes to speak Spanish, but it wasn't easy. It's their world, it isn't the Fontainebleau, it's their country. People do speak English, but most of the people we dealt with, other than the car rental guy, and the manager for the house we rented, were pure Spanish speaking Culebrans.
4. The grocery stores are small, run by locals. We liked shopping there -- they closed for siesta in the afternoon and were loose about keeping the hours posted. You come to their world, and we loved the sense of discovery. The fact is, we used Starfish Market, but we preferred the rag tag Love City Foods of Coral Bay.
5. There are ex-pats on Culebra, but not a lot by our count. With St. John, you arrive, it is strange, beautiful, wonderful and foreign, then you find Skinny's or Island Blues, and you're in America. We didn't happen on any vibrant ex-patriot thing in Culebra. It's probably there, but we didn't find it. There's the Dingy Dock and Mamasita's, , which are small and very pleasant, but the sounds were Spanish, and the iguanas were huge. Some ex-patriot American woman has a restaurant she runs out of her home. You order in her living room and when she's ready, she rings a bell and you go get it and eat on her porch. On one hand it was weird, on the other hand it was wonderful. But I wouldn't go a second time.
Yet, we don't look for restaurants either and we aren't nightlife people. We cooked a lot inside, bought food at the small store. It did have decent beef and chicken that was fresh and fair priced. They had frozen food vegetables and some fresh vegetables too. At our house on the hill, we used the outdoor bbq, the outdoor showers, and we grilled most nights, and then poured cheap rum and cokes, playing poker with the kids, laughing, talking etc, until tired. We slept like logs, and then early morning breakfasts were great, then we'd snorkel and so on.
The tropical storm that blew through at 3 in the morning was not a big St. John storm that unleashes the termites, filling any lit house with the bugs, but it was plenty real.
So, to end up, the smaller Culebra is unique, we think. Wonderful in its own way and we hope to return. But our loyalty to St. John is etched in stone and no matter how many houses are built, and no matter how much a lunch at Skinny Leg's may cost, (we miss Doug very much) it is our first love. Oh to sit with a beer and watch one more horse shoe match at the end of the Skinny Leg's bar.
But, somehow Culebra has the rougher edge to it, and I don't suspect there are any "fine" restaurants fated for the island. St. John has a number of eateries that say they are "fine" but as we said, that's not why we love either place or why we would be on Culebra or St. John tomorrow, if we could. Hope we both get to both. Enjoy, Shelley and Greg
My husband and I are sitting here, and we'll try to answer all your questions one by one. It's a lazy Sunday afternoon, and we're happy to go back, if just in our minds.
Snorkeling off the beach -- We're avid snorkelers, so snorkeling off the beach is very important to us. Yes, there is accessible snorkeling on Culebra. By comparison, St. John's North shore offers a quantity and variety of fish that is impressive. With Culebra, there is an abundance of flora and coral that keeps emerging as you swim. Nothing less than dramatic, we were mesmerized by the many varieties of underwater flowers flowing back and forth on the stronger Culebran currents. Yet, Culebra had plenty of fish as well. We saw turtles, a vicious looking and very entertaining light green spotted moray, but not the quantities of schooling fish. We have never seen such magnificent coral and plant life. Equally, we have never seen the schools and schools of fish as we have on St. John.
We didn't have the benefit of a book to guide us to good snorkeling, and we were still able to find wonderful spots. The island is so small, and we did get some directions from the guy who rented us our Jeep.
It works out, not knowing, and we loved our morning snorkel at a beach called Maloney. Most often we were the only swimmers, and given that my husband never wants to see another tourist, this suited us beautifully.
We did not find every beach, but we did find wonders and beauties, different from and equal to St. John. I go back now and read the list of beaches on Culebra, and I don't think we scratched the surface. Like you, we know St. John now, and with Culebra there's that sense of newness, and the "unknown." We know there is more to explore on Culebra, and hope one day to get the chance.
Unlike St. John's smaller beaches, Culebra has two enormous, gorgeous, incredibly beautiful world class beaches. Zoni and Flamenco are astounding.
That is a difference. On St. John, we never really bobbed in the surf. There were times when we cooled in the clear inviting waters of Francis, Maho etc., but always before or after bobbing, we would embark on the joy of snorkeling. On Culebra there's two world class beauties that aren't really there for snorkeling.
My husband swore he had no interest in beautiful beaches, and we both loved snorkeling. But after the long morning swim, we would ride home. We would be hungry and the Jeeps were older on Culebra than the more fancy ones of St. John, but that's when we'd explore the stores for food and whatever else we needed. Foraging. After having a late breakfast, our little one would nap, we read in the breeze on the hammock, and generally everybody would recoup.
The afternoon became about the magnificent shoreline, or just standing in the surf watching and watching the people strolling by, or the goofy airplane that would come in, making its wild left turn over the mountain. We actually took that "goofy plane" and it was great!
Flamenco Beach is for the water, not the fish, not the fauna. It's a big and gorgeous act of nature. There are people, as day trippers ferry in from Puerto Rico looking to enjoy the beach. The locals, too, love that beach for their weekend BBQ's (in the spacious campsites off the beach) but the beach is a mile and a half long and it never seemed crowded. We'd stand in it, watching people saunter and joke in the sun, and we'd watch our kid make friends on the boogie board. It wasn't St. John, but it was exhilarating, enjoyable and a wonderful counterpoint to the morning snorkel. Whipped from the sun, we'd go buy our kid a couple Pinchos (shish-kebob) for the ride home and we'd be off.
2. Getting to each beach is something of an adventure, which is part of the fun. You park next to some, like you do at Francis, and others require small hikes. There was a tough and hot hike over a hill for one particular beach, and it was worth it. I don't know the name but it was a fine beach, and a terrific snorkel. Like every beach, other than Flamenco, it was practically deserted.
The custom is to freeze water and carry your iced bottle. You keep drinking from it as it melts. System works.
3. The island is hilly, not as mountainous as St. John. I don't think Culebra is as beautiful as St. John with Bordeaux Mountain, which is unforgettable and always there in your mind, lush and large. But, I felt that Culebra was as beautiful for its difference. In fact, they are really very different places. Somehow equals, and very very different.
My husband likes to say that each has an independence and an identity. We don't like it when we feel that St. John loses something simply to the tourist trade. But St. John is great, and Pirate Bill remains unbowed, and although the great Fred Samuels has died, Mr. Benjamin is the class of the field, still receiving visitors and watching their eyes bulge when the donkey walks in his house. That's when he sells you his autobiographical book about St. John, "Me and My Beloved Virgin."
But Culebra is fiercely independent, and harder to connect to. They don't even want to be associated with little 'ol Viequez. And they are Spanish, small and the visitor that has to find "it."
St. John has "metropolitan" Cruz Bay, and everybody there will gladly speak English. St. John has the world famous outpost, bad-boy town of Coral Bay. Culebra has one little town called Dewey where the ferry docks. It's tiny, quaint and it is an actual town.
There are houses and vacation homes throughout the island, but not huge villas. There are neighborhoods and the Spanish community is there, but we didn't really get a chance to mix. The language is a barrier, my husband likes to speak Spanish, but it wasn't easy. It's their world, it isn't the Fontainebleau, it's their country. People do speak English, but most of the people we dealt with, other than the car rental guy, and the manager for the house we rented, were pure Spanish speaking Culebrans.
4. The grocery stores are small, run by locals. We liked shopping there -- they closed for siesta in the afternoon and were loose about keeping the hours posted. You come to their world, and we loved the sense of discovery. The fact is, we used Starfish Market, but we preferred the rag tag Love City Foods of Coral Bay.
5. There are ex-pats on Culebra, but not a lot by our count. With St. John, you arrive, it is strange, beautiful, wonderful and foreign, then you find Skinny's or Island Blues, and you're in America. We didn't happen on any vibrant ex-patriot thing in Culebra. It's probably there, but we didn't find it. There's the Dingy Dock and Mamasita's, , which are small and very pleasant, but the sounds were Spanish, and the iguanas were huge. Some ex-patriot American woman has a restaurant she runs out of her home. You order in her living room and when she's ready, she rings a bell and you go get it and eat on her porch. On one hand it was weird, on the other hand it was wonderful. But I wouldn't go a second time.
Yet, we don't look for restaurants either and we aren't nightlife people. We cooked a lot inside, bought food at the small store. It did have decent beef and chicken that was fresh and fair priced. They had frozen food vegetables and some fresh vegetables too. At our house on the hill, we used the outdoor bbq, the outdoor showers, and we grilled most nights, and then poured cheap rum and cokes, playing poker with the kids, laughing, talking etc, until tired. We slept like logs, and then early morning breakfasts were great, then we'd snorkel and so on.
The tropical storm that blew through at 3 in the morning was not a big St. John storm that unleashes the termites, filling any lit house with the bugs, but it was plenty real.
So, to end up, the smaller Culebra is unique, we think. Wonderful in its own way and we hope to return. But our loyalty to St. John is etched in stone and no matter how many houses are built, and no matter how much a lunch at Skinny Leg's may cost, (we miss Doug very much) it is our first love. Oh to sit with a beer and watch one more horse shoe match at the end of the Skinny Leg's bar.
But, somehow Culebra has the rougher edge to it, and I don't suspect there are any "fine" restaurants fated for the island. St. John has a number of eateries that say they are "fine" but as we said, that's not why we love either place or why we would be on Culebra or St. John tomorrow, if we could. Hope we both get to both. Enjoy, Shelley and Greg
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mindehankins
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