US Virgin Islands Archives | Page 4 of 6

February 14, 2014June 5, 2019

What to See and Do in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

Ah, Charlotte Amalie. The capital and largest city of the US Virgin Islands receives millions of visitors every year, many from the cruise ships that dock in the deep water bay that Charlotte Amalie surrounds.

With all of those visitors, Charlotte Amalie was bound to grow and develop with services of interest to tourists. So, what are some of the fun things to see and do if you have time to explore this bustling island city?

Aerial view of Charlotte Amalie

The following are a few of the things that we’ve experienced and enjoyed while visiting Charlotte Amalie. Feel free to add highlights from your visits in a comment at the end of the post.

Duty Free Shopping

Duty free shops line many of the streets in the Waterfront area of Charlotte Amalie as well as Yacht Haven Grande and Havensight (right next to the cruise ship dock). St. Thomas offers one of the largest duty free quotas to US citizens in the Caribbean, so if you’re in the market for great bargains on items such as china, perfume, watches, cameras, fine jewelry, liquors and other spirits, island goods, and arts and crafts, this may be the place to get them.

You can walk from Havensight to Yacht Haven Grande easily. There is also a pathway from Yacht Haven Grande all the way around to the Waterfront shops, but it is a pretty good walk. If it’s very hot or you are short on time, you might consider getting a taxi.

Havensight
Havensight is a large area just off of the cruise ship dock that consists of shops, bars and restaurants. Many of the shops here contain souvenir type items, although there are also some high-end jewelry shops.

Yacht Haven Grande
Yacht Haven Grande is an area just north of Havensight that houses some luxury shops such as Gucci and Louis Vitton. There are also a couple of nicer restaurants and yacht services. It’s areat place to grab a cold drink and check out the large yachts that dock here.

Charlotte Amalie Waterfront
North and west of Yacht Haven Grande is the Waterfront area of Charlotte Amalie. This area consists of several streets, Waterfront (Veterans), Front Street and Back Street and are all lined with a variety of shops, restaurants and bars. Check out the Vendor’s Plaza (west of Ft. Christian) Monday – Saturday for a variety of souvenirs, hair braiding and local food.

Food and Drink

You can find everything from fast food to fine dining and everything in-between in Charlotte Amalie. Although we have yet to sample some of the higher end restaurants, here are a few places we’ve stopped at and enjoyed. Be sure to check our interactive St. Thomas Map to find the locations of the places listed here.

Big Kahuna Rum Shack on the Waterfront.
Great place to grab a sandwich, salad, wrap or flatbread and a cold drink and sit on the patio which overlooks the harbor.

Bones Rum, also on the Waterfront.
Order one of their tasty offerings, such as a Bones on the Beach, Kiss of Passion or Twist of Luck and add as much – or as little Bones Rum as you’d like! Be sure to purchase a bottle and bring it home. Right now the only place to purchase Bones Rum is at the shop in Charlotte Amalie.

Fat Turtle in Yacht Haven Grande.
We enjoyed a tasty salad and beverages while sitting on the deck overlooking the yachts.

da Lime in da Coconut
Great “smoothie” place in Yacht Haven Grande. Leave the rum out for the little ones, or add the rum for a really tasty frozen concoction. We ordered their signature smoothie da Lime in da Coconut, which consisted of pineapple and coconut with a hint of lime…and a shot of Cruzan rum. Very tasty and cold on a hot day.

Mojo’s in Havensight
A fun little bar that manages to feel a bit tropical, despite the fact it’s in the parking lot at Havensight. Swings for chairs and some tasty Cruzan rum drinks. We enjoyed a Mojo Wacker.

Other Things To Do

Hot and tired after a day of shopping in the Waterfront area? Magic Ice on the Waterfront will give you a temporary “body freeze” after entering an ice palace with sculptures, lighting, an ice slide for the little ones and an ice cold shot of Cruzan for the big kids.

Paradise Point Skyride
Want to see a spectacular view of Charlotte Amalie while enjoying the best Bushwacker’s around? Head to Havensight to board the skyride to the top of Paradise Point. You’ll be treated to a spectacular view, some shopping and really great Bushwacker’s. Just be careful. They’re potent!

The Closest Beaches

There aren’t any good sandy beaches in Charlotte Amalie but if you just have to get your toes in the sand and only have a short amount of time, there are several options. A 5 minute water ferry from Crown Bay (just north of Water Island) can get you over to Water Island where you can spend time on beautiful Honeymoon Beach.

Lindbergh Bay or Bolongo Bay on St. Thomas are two other options, but are farther away (see our interactive map). Both have beach bars and would be a nice place to hang out for several hours.

What else have you experienced and enjoyed in Charlotte Amalie?

Find these attractions on our St. Thomas Map

To see more posts on St. Thomas and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

Copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2014
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

October 22, 2013June 6, 2019

Crab Races in St. Croix

A bucket full of crabs = a whole lotta fun? In St. Croix the answer would be yes!

Crab Races in St. Croix take place in several different locations, several times a week. We experienced our first Crab Races at the Divi Resort on the SE side of St. Croix.

Tito and Sue run Crab Races at the Divi once a week and it’s a surprisingly good time!

We arrived that evening and paid $2 each for a crab, assigning them a winning (or so we thought) name for the event. Michael Johnson, Crab-tastrophe, Send Momma Home (don’t ask…) and Pinch Me all seemed strong and ready for the race.

Once all bets were placed, Tito began to whip the crowd into a frenzy. Well, not really a frenzy, but we were certainly excited to see how our crabby athletes could perform.

They turned the bucket of crabs over in the middle circle and watched as they began to scurry.

Within a minute or two, we had our first winner. There were several heats, and the winner of each heat then competed for the Grand Prize. Unfortunately Michael Johnson, Crab-tastrophe, Send Momma Home (don’t ask…) and Pinch Me did not win, or actually even place, so we didn’t win any of the great prizes offered from local establishments such as locally made jewelry, dinner or a trip for two to Buck Island, but we had a great time anyway.

And, while enjoying the races, enjoyed a number of delicious Cruzan Confusions masterfully concocted by the crew at the Divi Resort. Mmmm. good.

Have you enjoyed the Crab Races in St. Croix yet?

To see more posts on St. Croix and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

August 21, 2013May 29, 2019

Cinnamon Bay, St. John

We’ve been asked if we have a favorite beach on St. John, and we’d have to answer the same way that our friend Dwayne Allen of the Rum Bar in Phoenix answered when we asked him if he had a favorite rum. He said “They’re all like my children – I love them equally, it’s just that some days I prefer one over the other!”

Map of St. John north side beaches. The umbrellas indicate beaches. For and interactive version of this map, click here.

With so many outstanding beaches to visit on St. John, it’s hard to pick a favorite, but Cinnamon Bay will always hold a special place in our heart. When we first visited St. John some 17 years ago, we were on a cruise and had only one day to explore St. Thomas and St. John. We asked a good friend of ours who had spent time on both islands for his advise on what to do and see. This is the same friend that told us we must sample a Painkiller while in St. John…which, of course, we did, and have been sampling them ever since!

So what was his advice? Take the ferry to St. John and spend the entire day on Cinnamon Bay. That’s exactly what we did, and spent an entire, beautiful day on one of the prettiest beaches we’d ever seen, sharing it with only a family of donkeys. That’s right – aside from a couple way on the other end of the beach – and the donkey’s – we had it all to ourselves.

Fast forward 17 years and Cinnamon Bay is now one of the most popular beaches on the island and for good reason. It not only has a mile long expanse of gorgeous white sand, good swimming and snorkeling, it now has a ton of amenities as well.

Cinnamon Bay has a General Store, a Beach Shop, Watersports Activity Center, Restaurant, Restroom and Showers, Camping and Cottages, plenty of parking and regular taxi service.

The only bad thing about all of this? You most likely won’t be the only ones on the beach with a family of donkey’s anymore. But with a mile of beautiful beach to enjoy, you should still be able to find a great spot in the sun as you can see from a picture of a more recent visit above.

One of the Cinnamon Bay Cottages

View to the left from the beach

Looking down Cinnamon Bay Beach to the right

Cinnamon Bay – still one of our favorite places to get our toes in the sand on St. John. Can you see why?

For more information on camping and other amenities on Cinnamon Bay, check out the
Cinnamon Bay Campground Website

Find Cinnamon Bay on our St. John Island Map

To see more posts on St. John and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

Copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

July 18, 2013May 29, 2019

Drunk Bay, St. John

Ever go to the beach to check out the….flotsam art? We didn’t take the short hike to Drunk Bay in St. John specifically for the art, but we ended up finding it to be, well, quite entertaining, actually.

Drunk Bay does not have one of the typically gorgeous St. John beaches, such as any of the north side beaches, but we found it worth a visit nonetheless. Walk down to the pretty Saltpond Bay Beach and look for a trail that takes you to Salt Pond (you can find Saltpond Bay and Drunk Bay on our St. John Map). Walk past the Salt Pond, (which we are told is a good place to collect useable St. John sea salt) and towards the rocky shoreline of Drunk Bay.

As you near the shoreline, you will begin to see some rather unusual man-made coral and rock formations scattered about.

Decorated with pieces of coconut husks, driftwood and other items washed up from the sea, some of them are quite unusual and perhaps even artistic? It appeared to be a virtual outdoor art gallery!

A few were even anatomically ~~correct~~ similar.

Apparently the collection is continually changing with the tide, the weather and the anonymous artists that come to create their own Drunk Bay masterpieces.

An easy hike and something quite different. Glad we went.
Is some of your artwork on display at Drunk Bay?

To see more posts on St. John and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

Copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

July 8, 2013June 6, 2019

Magic Ice, St. Thomas

We don’t usually associate freezing temperatures with a tropical vacation, but on our recent trip to St. Thomas we experienced just that – and enjoyed it!

Located on the Waterfront in downtown Charlotte Amalie (just down from Bones Rum and Big Kahuna Rum Shack), Magic Ice might be a fun way to escape the tropical heat while checking out some intricate ice sculptures and an ice bar!

Once you enter the lobby of Magic Ice, you are given a huge parka with a fur rimmed hood, velcro leg warmers in case you show up in shorts and mittens.

After suiting up in our arctic gear, our guide led us into the “cold room” filled with magical ice sculptures backlit with a variety of beautiful colors.

When we visited, the sculptures included a myriad of sea creatures, an ice throne that you could sit in, an ice slide for the young or young at heart and various island and pirate themed pieces, such as this skull and crossbones.

New ice sculptures are created every six months, when ice artists from all over the globe are flown in to create a new gallery of ice art.

At the end of the ice room we came across the ice bar complete with a great variety of Cruzan Rums and were treated to our choice of a VERY COLD shot of rum…yum…

After about 20 minutes, we exited the ice room, got back in to our tropical attire and left cooler and refreshed to go explore more of the waterfront in Charlotte Amalie.

Visit their website to find out more about Magic Ice, St. Thomas

Find Magic Ice on our St. Thomas Map

To see more posts on St. Thomas and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

Copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

June 20, 2013May 29, 2019

Hawksnest Bay, St. John

It’s hard to pick a favorite beach on St. John – there are just so many gorgeous ones. There’s one after another on St. John’s north shore and one of the closer ones to Cruz Bay is Hawksnest Bay.

Hawksnest is easy to get to, has parking close to the beach, has good amenities such as BBQ grills, restrooms and covered pavilions, and because of these conveniences – can get busy. What we like the most about Hawksnest is that it’s a great place to have a picnic, is great for swimming and snorkeling (unless there’s a north swell) and has some terrific shady areas and a little privacy in and amongst the lush foliage.

Walk along the beach to the west then on a trail through the woods next to the water to get to Little Hawksnest Beach for a little more seclusion, or drive .3 miles past the Hawksnest Beach parking lot to park and enter Gibney Beach, which is actually part of Hawksnest Bay. Gibney has very limited parking but is beautiful and usually quite secluded.

Looking towards Little Hawksnest Beach

View of Gibney Beach

The clear water makes for great snorkeling in areas

One of the paths to Hawksnest Beach

Find Hawksnest Bay on our ST. JOHN MAP

To see more posts on St. John and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

June 5, 2013June 6, 2019

Big Kahuna Rum Shack

Big Kahuna Rum Shack, a bar with funky beach and surf decor is located right on the downtown waterfront in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas.

Big Kahuna is a great place to stop and cool off after a day of shopping or exploring Charlotte Amalie.

Choose from a selection of a rums,

Ice cold beer,

or a variety of cold or frozen island drinks.

We tried a Frozen Rum Runner with a Float the Boat – an extra shot of rum for a buck.

In addition, Big Kahuna offers a good selection of eats as well as their exclusive and homemade Love Juice – an infusion of blueberries, strawberries and pineapple in vodka, that they “promise” will be the best shot or drink you’ve ever tried.

Order a cold one and sit on the patio under an umbrella while watching the activity in beautiful Charlotte Amalie Harbor. We’ll be back Big Kahuna and next time we’ll have to give that Love Juice a try…

Find Big Kahuna Rum Shack on our St. Thomas Map

To see more posts on St. Thomas and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

Copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

June 3, 2013June 5, 2019

Rum Therapy On St. John

Although the smallest of the three US Virgin Islands, St. John has a tremendous amount of things to do and see, or plenty of space to stretch out and do nothing at all, if that’s what you’re looking for!

During a recent visit, we took an early morning car ferry from Red Hook, St. Thomas to St. John. The car ferry is a good option if you’ve rented a car on St. Thomas and have plenty of time – just check with your car rental company to make sure they allow it.

Car Ferry from Red Hook, St. Thomas to St. John

Lovely Cruz Bay, St. John. Cruz Bay is where the ferries arrive and depart.

Right off of the passenger ferry dock you’ll find a number of great beach bars and fun stores. During this trip, we made a stop at St. John Spice (upper level) and Bones Rum (1st level).

Take a hike down the beach and stop for a drink at:

High Tide

Joe’s Rum Hut, or

The Beach Bar.

Cruz Bay has a lot of other great restaurant, bar and shopping options – there’s literally something for everyone. We headed up the hill on 20 toward the north side beaches and stopped at the Cruz Bay overlook for a pic.

Then took a hike down through the forest to check out Salomon (Solomon) Bay and Honeymoon Beach.

Salomon (Solomon) Bay

Honeymoon Beach

We continued on 20 past Caneel Bay

And stopped at Hawksnest Bay Beach to lounge in the water for a while

Climbed Peace Hill to check out the ruins and the gorgeous views…

Then lingered for a while at the popular Trunk Bay Overlook for a picture of the spectacular bay.

Trunk Bay

And snorkeled at the Trunk Bay Underwater Snorkel Trail

Stopped at Cinnamon Bay to put our toes in the sand

Checked out beautiful Maho Bay for the first time

And peaceful Francis Bay.

We took our time looking around Coral Bay.

Enjoying a very tasty Jazz Brunch at Miss Lucy’s

and later an extremely tasty hamburger and rum drinks at Skinny Legs.

We hiked the Salt Pond Trail to Drunk Bay

to check out some interesting coral sculptures that other visitors have created…

And took one last chance to wade in the clear, blue water of Salt Pond Bay. Reluctantly, we headed back to the ferry, a bit more tan and a lot more relaxed…

There you have it. A few of our favorite experiences from our last (much too short) visit to St. John. We’ll most certainly be going back, so, what have we missed? What are your favorite things to see and do on St. John?

To see other posts on St. John and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

May 29, 2013May 29, 2019

Mt. Pellier Domino Club, St. Croix

Well, the name certainly doesn’t even hint as to the interesting things you will encounter at this bar/attraction tucked into the rain forest on the northwestern side of St. Croix. In fact, the only thing we knew about it prior to visiting was that they have beer drinking pigs (non-alcoholic) and we should definitely order some Mama Wanna (a homemade liquor made with rum, honey, and secret roots and spices). So, we set off to find the place. Finding it is a bit of a challenge – the road is windy and there are not a lot of street signs, but we thought it was well worth a bumpy drive through the lush rainforest.

Thank goodness for a good sign! We pulled in and headed for the bar.

It was mid afternoon and there we just a few others throwing back a cold one in the bar, although we hear this place can get hopping at times.

We were served by Norma, the owner and chef who happily told us about the Domino Club…and her beer drinking pigs.

After sampling a Mama Wanna Shooter (mmm…), we headed over to see the current pigs named Hurricane and Grunt. There was a small admission fee per person and $2 per non-alcoholic beer to feed those thirsty pigs.

We love to explore while on any island and this place was definitely one of those interesting finds. We didn’t have a chance to sample the food (which we hear is tasty), but the rum and conversation were good, we enjoyed exploring the St. Croix rainforest (a complete contrast to the islands eastern, more arid side) and beer drinking pigs? Yes, we’re easily amused, but really, where else do you get to experience that?

Have you been to Mt. Pellier Domino Club on St. Croix?

To see more posts on the St. Croix and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

Copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

April 4, 2013June 5, 2019

Maho Bay, St. John

When it comes to beautiful beaches, St. John, USVI sure has its share. The island is dotted with phenomenal white sand beaches with beautiful clear, turquoise water. Just past some of the most popular and sometimes quite crowded beaches, Trunk and Cinnamon, you come to the overlook of another St. John beauty – Maho Bay.

Overlook of Maho Bay

Access: Limited parking in parking spaces right on the road, close to the beach.

Beach: a nice stretch of soft sand with lined with palm trees and Maho trees. Gentle sandy access, great for swimming. Usually calm surf. Popular with the locals on weekends.

Amenities: A beach pavilion that can be reserved by permit through the Virgin Islands National Park Service.

Recommended for: swimming, some snorkeling, families, photography, anyone wanting a quiet beach with few amenities.

Tip: stop at Trunk Bay for snorkeling or Cinnamon Bay for full amenities, but continue to Maho if you want to escape the crowds and don’t need a lot of amenities.

Find Maho Bay on our St. John Map

To see more posts on St. John and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

copyright©Rum Therapy Beaches, Bars & More, Tropical Travel Guide, 2013, 2014
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC