USVI-On-Line

Margy Z wrote:First morning at breakfast we have the ceremonial putting away of the watches...

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I appreciate the concept of putting the watches way, but we need them to know when to reapply the sun screen. In the old days at the Jersey shore we could count on Big Dan Ingram to tell us when it was time to turn over.

JIM

Margy Z wrote:Great thread! Lots of great tips here!
…I turned six shades of crimson when my battery operated toothbrush went off in my carry-on while going through TSA :oops.

Battery powered "toothbrush"...you expect us to believe that?

Yep, I do, cuz' it's the plain old BORING truth!

Pete (Mr. Marcia) wrote:

Margy Z wrote:Great thread! Lots of great tips here!
…I turned six shades of crimson when my battery operated toothbrush went off in my carry-on while going through TSA :oops.

Battery powered "toothbrush"...you expect us to believe that?

Works well with hot tub lube.

Cheers, RickG

Tips, but not in any order:
* Sunscreen - put it on early and often. We're in the pool, ocean, and hot tub all the time so we don't really scrub-up with a lot of soap in the shower. Bring gentle shampoo.
* Get a map from The Trail Bandit. That and the USVI map are all you need.
* Get up early, sit by the pool and read, watch the sun come up. Then plan on beaches or destinations by 9:00am.
* Always bring snorkle gear, chairs, blue-floaty-things, and water to the beach. We don't bring food, preferring to go east for lunch then off to another beach in the afternoon. You will find your own "favorite" beach. It may not be the favorite of others (significant?). Be flexible.
* I'm an early riser and on our first 5 or 6 trips I'd get in the jeep and drive to different places, roads, trails. Get very familiar with the roads and communities.
* Hike the trail from Europa to Reef Bay - stop to see the ruins on the way. Spend half a day hiking. One of my favorites is the hike to Brown Bay.
* Don't over-schedule. Build in lots of down time. Float in the pool, float in the ocean, float from bar to bar in Coral Bay, wander around Cruz bay. If you're hungry, stop and eat. Most places are good.
* Walk through Mongoose Junction - window shop, stop and buy.
* Go see Ruth.
* Load up the ipod - call your agent and ask about the stero. (Sol Inclination has major indoor and outdoor speakers everywhere...great for blasting Kassav).
* Pack light - I wear board shorts and a t-shirt all the time. One pair of dress shirts and tropical shirt for formal nights out. Crocs and tevas. Bring something like Keens for hiking.
* Always wear your seat belt.
* Lunch at the villa and afternoon villa gravity is a good thing.
* If you travel with a group, not everyone will have the same agenda. Rent multiple vehicles, do whatever makes you happy.
* Chill

We'll add in a few of ours that we didn't see covered elsewhere:

Tip 1: We found staying one night on STT before and/or after STJ is a great way to extent the trip and eliminate a lot of travel stress. This completely eliminates ferry/car barge stress since travel days from STT to STJ or from STJ to STT is disconnected from the plane flight days. We slowly evolved to this plan over a few trips.
Tip 2: We buy most of our food on STT before heading over to STJ, but we rent our car on STT which makes this easier, as well as Tip 1. (There are different schools of thought about renting your car on STT or STJ but we won't get into that in this post).
Tip 3: We always buy the "sample" box of little Cruzan Rum bottles at the Duty Free store at STT airport. These travel nicely to the beaches since they are little plastic bottles (Bob calls them "beach soldiers) and are easily refilled back at the villa:

Tip 4: A backpack cooler is awesome since many of the beaches require some sort of hike. We typically head to the beach in the AM and bring a lunch and drinks (see above) so we can hang out until whenever we feel like leaving.
Tip 5: Pack all your clothes in large Ziploc bags. Your clothes will not get messed up from the secruity search (and they will be searched). The bags always seem to come in handy during the week too.
Tip 6: Pretend there is no cell phone or internet service on the island. Turn-off your phone when boarding your plane and turn it back on when you arrive back on the mainland.
Tip 7: Did anyone mention handcuffs?

"Beach Soldiers" I like that.

We like to mix our beach beverage ahead of time and bring it in a two liter, plastic bottle. More like a "Beach B-52 Bomber."

yes, beach soldiers!...problem is my beach soldiers are sam adams' boys...anyone know the best way to transport the nectar of the gods on a tropical island...or is it stupid- just bring rum?

theoverman wrote:anyone know the best way to transport the nectar of the gods on a tropical island

This is where a backpack cooler comes in handy, along with those neoprene wraps. While glass on the beach is no-no, that has never stopped Bob from being careful and sneaky from time-to-time. There is nothing like enjoying the beach with a properly limed Carib or Corona ("Beach Dogs").

We've used this web site a couple of times to buy coolers, including our backpack cooler: http://www.keepyourcooler.com/

I love this forum! great ideas! Thanks for sharing! I love the "beach soldiers"! a great idea for making refreshing beverages in my "special cup" at the beach!

nice, anita thanks for the link, i'll be totin' my 'beach dogs' in style...cheers.

Try Baby Powder for the sand removal before entering a car. It really works great for sand removal and you don't have to worry about filling up with more space consuming water.

Rashguard shirts,night snorkeling!Don't miss out on the reef at night,you may get to see a turtle sleeping like I did! Parafins

I just bought a backpack cooler at target. I think it was $24.99. Also picked up a 4-pack of those ice-pak things.
Thanks for the advice!!

melwill,
That sounds interesting using baby powder. Can you describe a little more how this works? Do your feet need to be completely dry first?

I can imagine the dynamics of it. How did you discover this?

Hope to be trying it out soon.

Suds