Sunscreen - buying it on the island

[alw1977]

We're going to try and do carry-ons only for our upcoming weeklong trip. Due to TSA restrictions, this pretty much prevents us from bringing any sunscreen. Is it readily available on St. John or are we best to pick it up on St. Thomas before heading over? Can anyone give me an idea of price and where a good selection might be? We're staying at Coconut Coast and the Westin. Thanks.

[Diane]

We found a great selection of sunscreen at Chelsea Drugstore in Marketplace and at Dolphin Market. An 8 oz tube of SPF 50 Banana Boat was $13.00 at the drugstore. We did carry-on only and decided that paying more for sunscreen and lotion on STJ was worth it in order to avoid waiting on luggage that may or may not make it either direction (we had tight connections both ways).
We also packed OFF towelettes and they worked great. I did see lots of aerosol mosquito repellent at the drugstore and all grocery stores.
Have fun,
Diane

[RickG]

Yes, Chelsea Drugstore has a good selection. I'll stock up there on arrival in the future. We checked one bag on the way last trip just for sunscreen.

Cheers, RickG

[alw1977]

Thanks! I'm definitely showing my newbie status here, but where's the "marketplace" where this Chelsea drugstore is located?

[lark22]

It's in the same building as Starfish market, upstairs.

I'm a carry-on only person, too, so this was an issue for us -- I found some sunscreen in 3 ounce tubes at either CVS or Walgreens. I packed four of them into our TSA-required 1 quart bag and we were set for sunscreen for at least a few days (to tide us over till we got to the marketplace).

[Steve S]

Every Ting at Gallows is on the way from Coconut Coast if your walking to town. They have a enough of a selection to get you started and the price isn't that bad. We tried packing the 3oz tubes in TSA bags and won't do it again.