USVI-On-Line

Just a few things that have come up while we are putting things together...

1. If everything is on time our flight arrives at about 2:00pm. Can we make the 3:00 ferry out of CA? If not then I'm guessing we'll have to take the 4:00 out of RH.

2. Moonsong villa is in the Chocolate Hole area. What's the best route to the North Shore beaches from there?

3. Where's the best place to buy rum to take home? Our return flight leaves at 1:00PM so I doubt we'd have time on STT to get to K-Mart. Should we just buy at the airport?

4. Has anyone flown United to Chicago through SJU? It looks like a short stop. Do you actually get off the plane?

5. For those of you who have gone out with Captain Phil on the Wayward Sailor... What is it like getting off and on the boat for snorkeling? I saw a picture of a different sailing charter and the ladder on that boat looked flimsy. I'm a big guy (as my pictures show) and I'd hate to get out there and have problems.

I think that's it.

Oh! If anyone want to share their top secret snorkeling spots, send me a PM!

Ron, I can only help you with your first question.
You should have no problem getting to the downtown ferry if your flight is on time. Just walk out the door to the taxi stand and say you want the CA ferry.There will be lots of taxis. It's 15 minutes tops from the airport. I'm sure you're gonna have a blast!

Ron,
We flew through SJU on United; we did not have to deplane...we did get off, but I distinctly remember that it was our choice. Have a safe trip and a great time ....mia

1. All depends on the luggage but I'd guess yes you can make it. If you get out of the airport by 2:30 the 3pm ferry is no problem. Its only about 15 minutes from the airport.

2. The easiest way is to just go through town past Mongoose and up the north shore road. You'll pass all the great beaches you've heard so much about here. Most have signs indicating which ones they are.

3. We usually buy it in the touristy part of STT - more than K-Mart but more convenient as we never have a rental car on STT and still cheap!

4. Can't speak to SJU, never gone through there...by design.

5. We did a daysail w/ Capt. Phil and you will have no problems getting on and off his boat. No one in our group is PETITE and we were fine. The more challenging part is the dinghy ride from shore to the boat. Capt. Phil is SUPER anal about sand on his boat so be prepared for that and a TIGHT dinghy ride out esp. if you have 6 people on the boat as we did (that's not including Capt. Phil). Just do as he says and it is all fine. I just remember the 6 of us looking at the dinghy and then looking at each other and then gazing back at the dinghy like ... dude you are gonna need to take two trips

Have FUN!

Oh, and if for some reason you were up the night before drinking say 14 rum punches, at Miss Lucy's full moon party, between you and one other person and the next day you head out with Captain Phil I can offer two peices of advice:

1) If you have to hurl, do it over the side-- that's how he prefers it; and

2) Skip the nature hike he offers at Foxy's and score the hammock. Cause that's the best it's ever gonna get.

And yes, flip flop and I can speak from personal experience...

As I recall I did NO hurling Though I did offer up some spearmint gum for the ailing. And I DID go on the nature walk. Best damn part about it was the coconut sugar cookie concoction that Phil directed me to in a little tiny local market. YUMMMMMY. Best $1 spent on the entire trip.

Here is a synopsis of the Capt. Phil daytrip from my trip report on the old forum:

Mr. Flip-Flop’s Birthday, Day Sail to Jost Van Dyke & Cake

6:00 am – we awake and luckily I am not in too much pain from the rum punches the night prior. Today is the man’s 33rd birthday (explain to him that he should never forget how old he is as long as he can remember how old the mini F-F is and can add 30). In honor of him, I’ve arranged a day sail with the Wayward Sailor to celebrate and to continue our exploration of the VIs (Last trip included a day trip to the Baths & the Willy T).

Tip #16 - As much as you will be tempted to just STAY on STJ (or STT) explore - take a day trip.

Couple #1 (with the 1 year old) has accepted our proposition that if they watch mini Flip-Flop today, we’ll watch their little one later in the week. They jump at the trade so they can get out and explore alone. Mini Flip-Flop loves the water but 8 hours straight on a boat would not be fun! Of course, today, when mom and dad have to be up and out of the house by 7 - she SLEEPS until 8:30!

7 am - We're supposed to meet up outside JJ's in Cruz Bay at 7:15 - since I haven't seen the whites of the Gromit's eyes, I go knock. I took down at least 6 or 7 rum punches but she had outpaced me by at least 3 or 4, so I am wondering if she's still out cold! I'm thinking this could be a fun sail

I knock & Mr. Gromit appears, all is well, they are almost ready. By 7, we are off toward town.

7:20 am – We await Capt. Phil in front of JJ’s Texas Coast. Soon he appears along with another couple and the 6 of us are off to the dinghy. We head to the dinghy & collectively think no way our 7 butts are going to fit in there! But somehow we do, we load up and motor out to the Wayward Sailor. We are set to get out of the harbor.

We get to the boat and after a few more instuctions disembark & meet Tarn, aka the crew. We all settle in to head out on open water.

We hit the Pinnacles for a bit of snorkeling. Hubby and I hang back a little and two huge schools of fish swim right by us. We snorkel around for about 45 minutes or so & then its time to head back to the boat. Everyone seems to be holding up pretty well considering the previous evening. But, wait, I speak too soon. Back on the boat a few minutes and Gromit literally begins to turn green. Then, in true Gromit fashion, asks Captain Phil, "so if I need to hurl I do it over the side right?" He smiles, says "yep" and she contemplates. A few minutes later, after discreetly tossing her cookies, she looks much better.

Tip #17 - If you feel sick (hung over or motion sickness) just go ahead and toss 'em - you will feel much better and be able to enjoy the rest of your trip. And Flip-Flop always has spearmint gum!

We are all back on track and are off Jost Van Dyke & lunch at Foxy’s. Tarn calls in our order ahead of time. Thank goodness because we are all starving by the time we get there. We still have a bit of a wait though the place is not at all busy. You never know if you are going to see Foxy or not and today he’s not singing. There is another guy playing guitar and singing mellow tunes. He’s actually pretty good. After a yummy lunch of a flying fish sandwich & a spinach salad with feta we are off for a short nature walk around the island.

Jost Van Dyke is a tiny island with about 150 or so residents. If you think St. John is quiet, Jost is practically comatose.

Tip #18 - If you think St. John's gotten too busy for you, try Jost, I promise you it's as laid back as I've seen and I've island hopped a bit.

Foxy’s does gets rocking on special events like New Year’s Eve. A co-worker of mine spent NYE there some 15+ years ago and said the harbor was literally wall to wall boats. He walked from one boat to another to get to shore, which is littered with passed out people! Sounds like quite the party.

Back to the nature walk, the Gromits have bailed on us and are chilling in a hammock while Captain Phil takes the rest of us on a little tour behind Foxy’s – we see Foxy’s brewery, the house where Foxy was born and still lives, a bunch of trees one of which produces cotton (ok a cotton like substance) and whatnot. Sorry, but it was HOT & though Captain Phil seemed comfortable the non-natives were melting. Then we walk up a street and I realize this is "town”. Capt. Phil goes in a small grocery & I gratefully follow his lead picking up a much needed bottle of water and doing what the Capt. does - selecting a coconut cookie – which is essentially caramelized sugar and coconut. Huge & only $1. Very tasty! I have to beat Mr. Flip-Flop off the bag before he eats it all!

Tip #19 - If you ever find yourself on Jost, find this market and get the cookie. Trust me on this one.

Back around to Foxy’s and I pick up a T-shirt for myself & a surprise for the little ones back at the house.

We find Gromit exactly where we'd left her - playing poster child for Foxy's - in her tie die shirt laid out in the hammock. I think her recovery is almost complete. While we were on our walk, she apparently was photographed by another tourist. Look for that to turn up on the grateful dead tribute site.

We reconvene & head back to the boat. On the way, we spot Foxy coming down the dock and get to meet him ever so briefly. We leisurely sail & sun our way back to St. John. Tarn offers up a snack of brownies and fresh pineapple. Hits the spot! Along the way we see Trunk, Caneel, and Honeymoon beaches from the water before heading back into Cruz Bay harbor. Caneel is not at all what I expected it to look like from the water. To be honest it looks very rustic and a bit rundown, but I haven’t set foot inside there so I can’t judge!

4:00 pm – Back on the dinghy, to the dock and the day sail is over. We get through customs with no problems & bid farewell to Capt. Phil and Tarn. All in all it was a fun trip but a little slow for our typical pace. We decide we preferred the powerboat trip we took with Pirate’s Penny to the Baths on the last trip, but again we were happy to see something different. We were also happy we did a small boat with only 6 people vs. the party boat route.

Tip #20 - Customs can be awful or a breeze. We lucked out and it was smooth and quick. Personally, I always take off my hat & sunglasses and am polite and professional. It doesn't always go as quickly for those coming off the party boats.

4:30 pm – Return home to rescue Couple #1 from the kids! We find that their day was good. Lazy and easy, just as it should be.

Tip #21 - Don't ever worry about leaving your child with other people. They will always behave 100 times better for them than for you!

Guess what? That's right we head back to the pool and relax a bit. We had originally planned on Lime Inn for the birthday dinner but everyone’s feeling kind of worn out & a little icky (Gromit). We decide we aren’t up for dragging the kids out, so we call and reschedule the Lime Inn to Saturday night, settling on Mr. F-F favorite Uncle Joe’s BBQ.


Have a good one,

F-F

Ha ha!
I remember the sand part. And we (6) thought the same thing about the dingy! At Jost I wanted to go to White bay...the others voted for the nature walk...so I scored the hammock on the beach, turned out to be the only one who met Foxy, and had a fabulous time with his home brew.
A great sail for serious snorkelers, if a bit cramped for 6...

Ron L,
We've always flown United ORD to STT, always arrived at 2:03pm on time, but due to baggage delays(not lost luggage), always opted to cab it privately to Red Hook for the 4:00pm ferry. Twice have used Thomas, works for East End Taxi Assc., for airport-Red Hook drive both ways. Thomas is car #65. Black Cadillac, seats four. A/C, leather seats, good driver. He is pleasant and reliable. East End Taxi is phone # is 340-775-6974. Thomas's phone #'s are 340-473-6841(cell) and 340-775-0571(home). We've always called a few days in advance to arrange p/u upon arrival at STT, and from St John to confirm p/u at Redhook to get back to airport on day of return. He has come through every time.
Only been to St John 3 times, but every time have flown home via United, STT-SJU-ORD, never changing planes or Flt. #'s. During 1 1/2 layover in SJU, twice we could get off plane to stretch our legs, once it wasn't permitted. Don't know that rationale for the difference. Either way, never had any problem at SJU. Hope this helps.
Have a great trip!!
Dave
PS--Are you Cubs fans?

Thanks, everyone!

F-F, great story! That sounds like a day that Gromit may want to forget

Dave... Yeah, I am a Cubs fan and have been for as long as I can remember. I grew up in Skokie and used to take the Howard El to Wrigley during the summer. Thanks for the info on Thomas. The luggage is always the wild card, isn't it.

Ron_L wrote:Where's the best place to buy rum to take home? Our return flight leaves at 1:00PM so I doubt we'd have time on STT to get to K-Mart. Should we just buy at the airport?

The duty free shop at the airport is very convenient. Their price and selection may not be as good as other spots on the island. I opted for the airport shop 'cause I wasn't shopping for anything hard to find and didn't want to make a special trip. Be sure to go in and buy your booze before heading to the ticket counter to check in.