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Car Rental STJ vs STT and ferry over. Several Questions!
Car Rental STJ vs STT and ferry over. Several Questions!
For our August trip the other family that is going with us want to rent something other than 4WD. Do any of the agencies on STJ even offer this?
We just planned to rent an SUV from St. John Car Rental like we did in May. Will they have to rent on STT and ferry over. Our villa company says that we don't need 4wd to get to the villa.
If they rent on STT, who allows cars to STJ. Also, what if the car has something go wrong with it, does the rental agency help on a different island or will they be on their own?
All help is appreciated! I did a forum search, but could get the exact answers I'm looking for!
Thanks,
Nicolle
We just planned to rent an SUV from St. John Car Rental like we did in May. Will they have to rent on STT and ferry over. Our villa company says that we don't need 4wd to get to the villa.
If they rent on STT, who allows cars to STJ. Also, what if the car has something go wrong with it, does the rental agency help on a different island or will they be on their own?
All help is appreciated! I did a forum search, but could get the exact answers I'm looking for!
Thanks,
Nicolle
Hey Nic
Anyway, as far as I know only 4wd available on STJ so yes they would have to rent on STT.
If the car breaks down they are on their own as far as getting the car back to STT for repairs (I watched a couple who had rented on STT wait 6 hours for a tow truck to arrive last year - no fun)
Something to think about as well is even though the villa may not need 4wd some cars have a hard time making the hills on N Shore and towards Chocolate Hole (up Jacobs Ladder for example) after ashower or rainfall - saw 2 accidents where cars slid off the road after the rain in the last month
Hope this helped
Pia
Anyway, as far as I know only 4wd available on STJ so yes they would have to rent on STT.
If the car breaks down they are on their own as far as getting the car back to STT for repairs (I watched a couple who had rented on STT wait 6 hours for a tow truck to arrive last year - no fun)
Something to think about as well is even though the villa may not need 4wd some cars have a hard time making the hills on N Shore and towards Chocolate Hole (up Jacobs Ladder for example) after ashower or rainfall - saw 2 accidents where cars slid off the road after the rain in the last month
Hope this helped
Pia
First has this family ever been to STJ if not I'd try and talk them into a 4 wheel drive If you don't need it great but when you do and don't have it your out of luck or worse Other then the cost do they have a reason for not wanting one. Part of the fun of the island is cruising around in the jeeps with no doors.
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Bob & Anita
- Posts: 611
- Joined: Tue Aug 08, 2006 11:20 pm
- Location: Charlotte, NC
Below is our standard STT vs STJ car rental answer we have posted several times:
The renting a car on STJ versus STT is a question that gets asked quite a bit on this forum; in fact we were asking the same question ourselves a few years ago. There are opinions (sometimes strong) for both ways; our preference is for renting on STT for the following reasons:
1) A lot less baggage handling – the car rental company (Dependable) picked us up at the airport and loaded our bags into our rental car. The next time we touched the bags was unloading them at the villa,
2) Avoid the whole taxi thing and its associated costs,
3) Avoid the bag handlers/handling at the passenger ferry and the associate cost and tipping,
4) We buy most of our groceries for the week on STT on the way to Red Hook from the airport at lower cost then STJ; same with the booze,
5) When we drove off the barge, our villa rep was right there and we kept driving straight to the villa; we never stopped rolling,
6) Some STT car rental companies (such as Dependable) have no issues with the top being removed from the jeeps, unlike the STJ companies. If fact, Dependable evens boast it as one of their features, and
7) Flexibility when returning to St Thomas to drive around, find a lunch spot, etc, before returning the car and flying home.
Some of the positives on renting on STJ are:
1) Some companies will let you use their lots when parking in Cruz Bay (we never experienced a parking problem in Cruz when we went in June, but some note it as an issue during the high season),
2) It is easier to get your STJ based car fixed if you have an issue. We consider this possibility remote and willing take the risk. I’ve been driving for 35 years, have rented many cars and never had a breakdown while driving, although some of the island cars are a bit older.
3) Some people have noted the difficulty in dealing with car barges (lines, getting on), but we found the whole barge loading (backing on) and unloading to be very easy.
4) Passenger Ferries run later; so if you have a late flight or if your flight is delayed, then you might not be able to get your vehicle across if you rent on STT, but some of the STJ rentals can make arrangements for late vehicle pick-up.
5) You generally will have more time on the day you return to STT. This is because you have to allow for more time if you are taking the car barge.
As far a costs go, we believe the costs for two people are fairly equivalent whether you rent on STT or STJ. Renting on STJ you have the costs of 1) the taxi, with tip, from the airport to the dock and then back again, 2) ferry bag handling fees & tips, 3) passenger ferry fare, 4) possible taxi on STJ to the car rental company and 5) higher car rental rates on STJ. Renting on STT you have a 1) lower car rental rate, 2) higher ferry cost with the car barge, and 3) some possible savings if you purchase food/booze on STT. The cost of renting on STJ goes up with the more people in your party since the taxi, passenger ferry, baggage handling fees & associated tips will all be based on the number of people/bags. Renting on STT stays the same since the car barge is the same cost regardless of how many people are in the car.
We rented from Dependable, as mentioned above. They were very nice and helpful throughout the whole process – reservations, instructions, picking us up at the airport, rental paperwork, directions, maps, car return and taking us back to the airport. You avoid the airport tax with Dependable since they are just off of the airport property.
If you use the car barge you have the option of purchasing a one-way ticket or round-trip ticket. The one-way gives you flexibility on which car barge company to take back. A round-trip ticket will be less expensive, but will restrict which barge you can take. A two of the barge companies (3 in total) use to except each others tickets, they still may. The loading area and process is the same no matter which company you use – it’s just whichever one is at the dock and available to drive onto.
The renting a car on STJ versus STT is a question that gets asked quite a bit on this forum; in fact we were asking the same question ourselves a few years ago. There are opinions (sometimes strong) for both ways; our preference is for renting on STT for the following reasons:
1) A lot less baggage handling – the car rental company (Dependable) picked us up at the airport and loaded our bags into our rental car. The next time we touched the bags was unloading them at the villa,
2) Avoid the whole taxi thing and its associated costs,
3) Avoid the bag handlers/handling at the passenger ferry and the associate cost and tipping,
4) We buy most of our groceries for the week on STT on the way to Red Hook from the airport at lower cost then STJ; same with the booze,
5) When we drove off the barge, our villa rep was right there and we kept driving straight to the villa; we never stopped rolling,
6) Some STT car rental companies (such as Dependable) have no issues with the top being removed from the jeeps, unlike the STJ companies. If fact, Dependable evens boast it as one of their features, and
7) Flexibility when returning to St Thomas to drive around, find a lunch spot, etc, before returning the car and flying home.
Some of the positives on renting on STJ are:
1) Some companies will let you use their lots when parking in Cruz Bay (we never experienced a parking problem in Cruz when we went in June, but some note it as an issue during the high season),
2) It is easier to get your STJ based car fixed if you have an issue. We consider this possibility remote and willing take the risk. I’ve been driving for 35 years, have rented many cars and never had a breakdown while driving, although some of the island cars are a bit older.
3) Some people have noted the difficulty in dealing with car barges (lines, getting on), but we found the whole barge loading (backing on) and unloading to be very easy.
4) Passenger Ferries run later; so if you have a late flight or if your flight is delayed, then you might not be able to get your vehicle across if you rent on STT, but some of the STJ rentals can make arrangements for late vehicle pick-up.
5) You generally will have more time on the day you return to STT. This is because you have to allow for more time if you are taking the car barge.
As far a costs go, we believe the costs for two people are fairly equivalent whether you rent on STT or STJ. Renting on STJ you have the costs of 1) the taxi, with tip, from the airport to the dock and then back again, 2) ferry bag handling fees & tips, 3) passenger ferry fare, 4) possible taxi on STJ to the car rental company and 5) higher car rental rates on STJ. Renting on STT you have a 1) lower car rental rate, 2) higher ferry cost with the car barge, and 3) some possible savings if you purchase food/booze on STT. The cost of renting on STJ goes up with the more people in your party since the taxi, passenger ferry, baggage handling fees & associated tips will all be based on the number of people/bags. Renting on STT stays the same since the car barge is the same cost regardless of how many people are in the car.
We rented from Dependable, as mentioned above. They were very nice and helpful throughout the whole process – reservations, instructions, picking us up at the airport, rental paperwork, directions, maps, car return and taking us back to the airport. You avoid the airport tax with Dependable since they are just off of the airport property.
If you use the car barge you have the option of purchasing a one-way ticket or round-trip ticket. The one-way gives you flexibility on which car barge company to take back. A round-trip ticket will be less expensive, but will restrict which barge you can take. A two of the barge companies (3 in total) use to except each others tickets, they still may. The loading area and process is the same no matter which company you use – it’s just whichever one is at the dock and available to drive onto.
Bob & Anita