Cruz Bay vs. Coral Bay

[neisy]

Having only stayed on St. John once at Rendevous Bay, just wondering what the biggest advantage/disadvantage is in Cruz Bay vs Coral Bay.

The prices in Coral Bay are so much more affordable (2 bedroom/bath 4 adults in June) but from the one time we were there, it seems so far out.

HELP!

Denise

[Kentuckygirl]

We stayed on the Coral Bay side in May and loved it. It is convenient to many good places to eat or have a drink, and only about a 10-15 minute drive to great beaches. It takes about 20-25 minutes to get to Cruz Bay, but we spent most of our time on other parts of the island. I think some of the best views are from villas above Coral Bay too.

[susan & herb]

We have also stayed in Rendezvous bay twice and next May we are staying "on the other side" of the island at Villa Carolina.
We found Coral Bay to be "real lay back" which is what we like and not a real touristy feel and we were spending a lot of our time last year on that side, at least during the day.
I found in our search the only drawback was that a lot of the houses were not as new as on the Cruz Bay side and a lot of them did not have a/c which we wanted as we have experienced some very humid trips in May. I guess we will do a big shopping trip at Starfish when we arrive so we don't have to make the trip to Cruz Bay that often. For us it's going to be like a vacation on another island!

[Maryanne]

We have stayed all over the island, including way out near Lameshur, where even a drive to Coral Bay seemed far, especially if you wanted to have a couple of drinks.

If you think you want to be going to Cruz Bay all the time--especially at night, then Coral Bay is probably not a great place to stay.

Upper Carolina is a pretty good in/between choice. There are quite a few houses there, with nice views. Close to Coral Bay and the North Shore beaches, and not too too far from Cruz Bay.

[Gromit]

We have historically rented in Choc Hole on the Cruz Bay side of the island. We've been going down for more than a decade now and this year we decided to stay further afield just above Cinnamon Bay. I just couldn't decide whether to stay in Coral Bay or Cruz Bay this year so we split the difference and agreed staying somewhere in the middle.

Here' my thing though: if you've got newbies coming along I wouldn't necessarily reccommend Coral Bay. I think Cruz Bay is a little closer to all the amenities most mainlanders expect. That being said, Coral Bay is catching up. I especially like the growing restaurant and shopping selections out in Coral Bay. In fact we found ourselves, more often than not, heading out to Coral Bay for dinners and lunches.

I have also found Cruz bay to be increasingly frustrating with all the nearby construction and added people. I love the convenience of Starfish and shopping but for our vacation this year we opted for a little less busy busy, and more emphasis on peace peace. Plus this is the first year since our honeymoon in 1998 that we are going back without another couple, additional guests, family or friends. That way if it's more trouble than it's worth, then we are the only ones affected.

IMHO the fact that you're on STJ means you're already ahead of the game, but ask yourself what means the most to you: 1) Having access to amenities similar to what you expect at home 2) or a quieter more local experience that doesn't require you to drive through town.

Either way, it's a win win.

[designbyroe]

I love Coral Bay and when I get to head back to live, I want to live in Coral Bay.
I have lived in town and of Gifft Hill.
I do agree that so much building going on has changed the lay of the land shall we say.
I recommend people who want both to stay nearer the N. shore or up on Gifft Hill. With Gifft hill you can take S. shore or Centerline down.
I think of Coral Bay as a the way St. John was 20 yrs ago.
If you have newbies coming stay inbetween

[naturegirl]

Being a first timer, I hope I didn't make the wrong decision choosing Cruz Bay instead of Coral Bay. I really like the quiet and serene island places but also wanted to be close to the north shore beaches. Can I hear from people who may like cruz bay somewhat more than coral bay. I'm sure they are both beautiful, I just hope it won't be too busy and touristy there.

[waterguy]

I love the choclate hole area which is close to cruz bay but far enough out to be quiet no matter where you stay you will love it I think cruz bay is the way to go for first timers. You can venture off and find some thing else for the next time who knows you might just come back and stay in the same area.
Tom

[St. John Lover]

We've been going to St. John for many, many years. Have stayed all over the island. Still prefer Cruz Bay side.

We love the sunset views. Love seeing the twinkling lights of St. Thomas at night. Love being in a very private quiet area but able to sit up high on our 'perch window' to the world, watching it's activity--white sails skimming across Pillsbury Sound, ferries coming in, etc.

Love the jungly privacy you can find a couple minutes away from Cruz Bay coupled with the convenience of quick access to outstanding restaurants, quaint shops, beautiful North Shore beaches, and quick ferry run to C.A. if it's raining.

[jayseadee]

We've been several times and not only prefer the Cruz Bay side, but like to be walking distance to town.

Driving around the island during the day isn't a problem, but neither of us want to have to drive in the evening, especially after a couple of bushwackers. We do not don't cook dinners in at all, so we like being close to the restaurants/bars, even if it means a short taxi ride.

We also enjoy the views looking toward St. Thomas.

We also travel in the off-season (November), so Cruz Bay is not all that crowded. It might be a little different during high season.

It's all personal preference and I don't think you need to worry about being on the "wrong" side of the island.

[patr]

We have stayed both, Coral Bay and Cruz Bay. We like the Fish Bay area, close to town, yet far enough out of town that it is very quiet.

We stayed out at Coral Bay last year during season. We find Cruz Bay traffic too big of a headache during season. Coral Bay is definitely more laid back, yet where we stayed, we could drive to Maho in 10 minutes flat.

The island simply is not that big, you can drive practically anywhere in 30-40 minutes. So it doesn't really matter where you stay as long as you rent a jeep.

[naturegirl]

Thanks for all your wonderful insights! Although we usually choose vacation homes far from the maddening crowd, we do want to really relax and not have to drive too far to eat,etc. STL- watching the sailboats on Pilsbury sounds like a wonderful thing to wake up to. We rented a vitarra but think we will switch to a open-top wrangler 'cause it just looks like it would be more of a fun ride. We plan on going to the Coral Bay side a few days anyway to visit the beaches and Lucy's, Vies, Sweet Plaintains as well.

Once again, thank all of you on this forum. I hope to meet as many of you as I can in November at the beach bar!

[neisy]

Thanks to all. I still have not decided! I have looked at so many villas that I have to stop and simply make a decision. I probably will stay closer to Cruz Bay mostly because my 22 year-old son and a friend of his will be with us.

When I narrow down my choices, I will probably be asking for more of your expert opinions!

Thanks,

Denise