Overview
** US VIRGIN ISLANDS **
Read travel tips for US Virgin Islands from our amazing community of BLACK AND BROWN TRAVELERS that will help you find some of the best places to visit US Virgin Islands. Our variety of travel tips will definitely help you plan your next trip. Our tips range from best places to visit in US Virgin Islands, affordability, nightlife, local food, where to stay and even what it is like Traveling While Black. Lastly, we are working diligently to create a comprehensive city guide for US Virgin Islands. Stay tuned! But in the meantime, scroll down to read tips below!
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When you are visiting St. Thomas it is a MUST that you visit Coki Beach. On Sunday’s the locals have a day party on the beach that is absolutely vibes. You can rent a beach chair and enjoy the local food and drinks that will definitely have you feeling great. I always recommend getting the snapper you won’t regret it. The water is some of the prettiest water I have seen to date. Coki has water activities and it’s also a beautiful place to just relax and enjoy the vibes. Put Coki beach on your list!
Prime at Paradis Point, St. Thomas is a must to have a nice dinner with a significant other. Staff was great, food was delicious & VIEW ! was AMAZING at night.
I think the best way to visit the US Virgin Islands is to visit via cruise ship. My brother and I had about 8 hours to explore. We spent the morning scuba diving in St. John. It was an incredible time especially having the dive off the boat in the middle of the water! Afterwards, we made our way to St. Croix and asked a Taxi driver to take us around the city (highly recommended). I recall it being pretty affordable and we went everywhere. He even took us to a local restaurant for some roti! So I was happy. Didn’t spend time in St. Thomas besides getting off and on the ship.
The Virgin Islands are absolutely STUNNING!!! You can visit the USVI without a passport as an American citizen, which is really nice.
Speaking specifically about St. Thomas. One of my favorite things about this island are: the taxi and safari system. Opposed to other vacations I’ve gone on, I didn’t have to arrange transportation ahead of time when visiting. Once you arrive to the airport, there is a taxi stand that lists all of the pricing to/from a place when taking a taxi. I stayed on Sapphire Beach which was about a $16 taxi ride from the airport. It helps that it is a US territory so you don’t have to worry about a money conversion. The safari’s that they have available is the best way to get around!! A safari will circle majority of the whole island like a bus system. It only cost $1 to $2 depending on where you are going to/from.
The USVI is an expensive island due to high traffic of cruise ships that come through on the weekly basis. When it comes to deciding where you are going to stay, I would recommend staying at an Airbnb opposed to the resorts. I stayed at Airbnb right on the beach for $80/night.
I love how close St. Thomas is to other islands! You can go to Red Hook and take a day trip to another island to experience more of the Caribbean. It only cost about $16 round trip to go to St. John via ferry (another USVI island that is only 15 minutes away). St. John is perfect for hiking and snorkeling.
To experience local food on St. Thomas, ask your taxi drivers where they would recommend. It is hard to spot the local street spots on the island. Some are tucked away and are not easy to find. Charlotte Amalie is a great place to visit if you want to shop, bar hop, or experience restaurants that are owned by locals.
The food in general is overpriced on the whole island. You’ll come across restaurants that charge almost $20 for a burger or even pizza. Find all of the local gems that you can like Gladys’ Cafe. The portions of the food make it worth the price.
Nevertheless, the VI as a whole is amazing! The clear waters are unforgettable. Highly recommended!
I love visiting the U.S Virgin Islands, first and foremost it’s U.S territory so you don’t even need a passport to get there. The people are very nice and welcoming, though I heard it’s wise to use common sense (just like anywhere else). I stayed at the Marriott which was a little pricey because it was not all inclusive, but we were right on the beach. Plenty of shopping, and local restaurants to eat from. Though advised not to go out into the night life we definitely did, and we had a really good time. They also offer Ferris to other islands, but I didn’t get a chance to take that ride. You’ll find everything your looking for on this island. Lots of fun
When i visited the Virgin Islands I stayed in St Thomas in a villa right on the beach. It was part of the Sapphire Beach Resort. We stayed for 3 nights and paid ~$500. There wasn’t many people at the resort so it was a very private relaxing location. We ate a couple restaurants but I was unimpressed by most of them. A lot of the restaurants we were near were run by Americans that had moved there after they retired. We did end up finding one authentic Caribbean restaurant in the dowtown area called Glady’s Cafe that was pretty good.
This is my second time visiting St. Thomas via a Cruise Company and I love it there. The people are friendly. Coki Beach is one of the well known beach which has activities such as snorkeling and diving or you can just rent a beach chair and umbrella to relax. There are food spots available close by. Ooh and there were chickens on the beach! LOL. Where else would you see this?
ST.JOHN
St. John is approximately a 30 minute ferry ride from St. Thomas. The ferry is ride is affordable and the views coming on to the island are breathtaking. Once we got off the ferry there were free samples of Cruzan rum (yum). There are lots of vendors and great places to eat. There are also many beautiful beaches and natural sights to see. We spent hours laying and snorkeling at one of the top ranking beaches in the world Cruz Bay, enjoying the beautiful turquoise waters. You’ll surely love your time on this island. You can enjoy St.John as a day trip or overnight at a hotel or airbnb.
Highly recommended when visiting the St. Thomas or St. Croix.
Not a huge fan of St. Thomas in particular being that it only has beauty to offer. The local cuisine is beans and rice and just American food. $17 usd for a burger and fries because your are in the Virgin Islands does not go over well with me so it left a bad taste in my mouth. I think there are surrounding islands with much more to offer for more of a fair price.
I love the US Virgin Islands. I’ve traveled to all three islands including the BVI. St Thomas is usually where you land and the majority of tourists stay there. St Thomas is fun but there isn’t much nightlife. I strongly suggest spending a day at coki dive center where you can dive, parasail, jet ski etc! St. John is absolutely breathtaking. The next time I travel to the USVI I plan on spending the majority of my time there. St, john is a lot smaller then St Thomas but very cultured, monrainois and there’s so many things to do. The beaches are gorgeous. Trunk bay is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. If you like local food you can try p&p Caribean cafe for some oxtail, curry chicken, salt fish etc! The USVI is a lot more expensive then other places I have been but all around a great place to travel + doesn’t require a passport :)
The U S Virgin Islands consits of three Islands. St.Croix, St.Thomas and St.John. St.croix is relaxing with lots of really really nice beaches however there was almost no nightlife. It’s slow pace but very relaxed. I took the ferry to the Cay. Its about 3 minute ride, the cay is another little island swimably ( if the authorities would let u) close to the mainland. If you looking for some intense relaxation St.Croix is it.
Then there is St.Thomas. Arguably the most lively of all three islands. The drive here was scary becusee its soooooo mountainous. I spent most my time in St. John however. This is the island I hold dearest to my heart. It’s small,I took a tour around the island for about 20 USD while drinking a cold Guinness. IT. IS. ABSOLUTELY. BREATHTAKING. Very mountainous and there’s was tons of lovely lovely white sand beaches. I made it to about three of them. If you like snorkeling St. John’s is for u. My only complaint about the three island I didn’t get access to slot of local food.
Clear blue waters
I’ve heard so many times how Turks and Caicos is an expensive island but it was one of the cheapest for me. I found a great deal for my friends and I at the Oasis at Grace Bay. It’s a nice 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo style hotel with a pool and walking distance from the beach. It also has a grill if you want to cookout which we did and saved money on food. The restaurants are expensive which is why we only went to the local restaurants. Make friends with the locals, avoid the touristy areas and you’ll get better food along with a true island experience. I can’t wait to go back!
This destination was a fun experience for families. Beautiful clear blue water beaches, nice people and good food. Try the zipline excusion and dolphin encounters!!