Looking for an alternative to GC and Coz wall dives

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I will give my vote to St Croix and in being fully transparent, we now own a place on the island.

Very good dive variety is available, from the wall that runs along the North side to the Pier on the West end (it is a great, easy shore dive but) if you take a boat out to the end (too far to swim), you can find lots of sea horses, bat fish etc. that are not usually seen. In February, I have seen the whole ocean floor covered in cushion star fish.

Crime - there was an incident 20 years ago when a local gang attacked and killed several cruise ship tourists. Other than that, most crime is resident on resident in the two “projects” - one just west of Christiansted and the other east of Frederiksted. Stay to the main areas and you are fine. Just so you know, there is little night life on the island, pretty much roll up the streets by 10 pm. .

One thing to consider, this is a “foodie” island. Small unique restaurants with excellent, eclectic menus. But not inexpensive.

Actually, I ought to keep my mouth shut, don’t want this quiet slice of paradise overrun with tourists.

It's great to get specific information from someone that really knows, thanks!
 
Right now the West end of the island is still torn up - lots of “Blue Tarps” for roofs. A new little resort just opened on the West End along with a couple of new restaurants. Rainbow Beach, which was a great spot for swimming and snorkeling unfortunately lost lots of sand but there is a “new” beach on the NE side that is gorgeous - hurricanes take away and they give back. But Diving at the Pier is still good.

We just got cable and internet back yesterday and much of the island is still “unconnected “.
Give the island a month and a half and it wii be back. The foliage has come back, never been greener or more colorful.

If you do decide to come to our little rock, stay in a house, detached condo, or local hotel (if you need to be near town) and experience the “real” St Croix. And there is more than just Diving - we have 2 Middle Ages forts, 2 rum factories and more to see or just sit on the beach or boardwalk and watch the world go by.
 
Thanks to everyone for the great info. Sounds like I need to put a couple places on the list. I think we will definitely be traveling to both St. Croix and Grand Turk. I think I will let the airfare and lodging decide which one comes first. Thanks again
 
For those who have been to Bohio and Grand Turk, what is the impact on your stay, peace, tranquility etc with the cruise ship crowd? I thought I read somewhere that the cruisers are bused to Bohio and take over the restaurant and part of the beach. That would be deal breaker. Otherwise I thought Bohio looked like an ideal place to stay and dive.
I loved my trip to Grand Turk & Bohio. Yes, there can be a lot of what we affectionately referred to as "Boat people" around when the cruise ships are docked. They are kept on a certain part of the beach (hotel guests get the nicest part of the beach and the boat people are not allowed on the section reserved for guests). The pool area is also off limits to the boat people. On most days, they will be at the resort when you get back from your second dive just before lunch. (It seemed as though hotel guests got priority with lunch service.)

They present a double edged sword. Things that are free for resort guests are rented to the cruise ship people. Those charges add up. The net result is that Tom & Ginny, the owners of Bohio get a significant amount of their income from the charges that they levy on the boat people and that income then does not have to be made up by charges to the guests.

Yes, sometimes they were a minor annoyance, but their money helped to make my trip to Bohio affordable for me. I would go back to Bohio in a heartbeat.
 
Thanks for the reply and info. I'll have to give them a second look.
 
I loved my trip to Grand Turk & Bohio. Yes, there can be a lot of what we affectionately referred to as "Boat people" around when the cruise ships are docked. They are kept on a certain part of the beach (hotel guests get the nicest part of the beach and the boat people are not allowed on the section reserved for guests). The pool area is also off limits to the boat people. On most days, they will be at the resort when you get back from your second dive just before lunch. (It seemed as though hotel guests got priority with lunch service.)

They present a double edged sword. Things that are free for resort guests are rented to the cruise ship people. Those charges add up. The net result is that Tom & Ginny, the owners of Bohio get a significant amount of their income from the charges that they levy on the boat people and that income then does not have to be made up by charges to the guests.

Yes, sometimes they were a minor annoyance, but their money helped to make my trip to Bohio affordable for me. I would go back to Bohio in a heartbeat.

You're looking at a few hours around lunch time maybe 2-3 days of the week. You can walk 100 yards north and not see anyone on the beach for the whole day. Bohio also does not cater to cruise ship divers so you are guaranteed to be on a skiff with very few (sometimes just you and the dm) people. If you rent a golf cart or car, there is plenty of local flavor to take in around the island that has nothing to do with the cruise ship.

Most folks that stay at bohio never leave the resort, which is fine as they do the best job on the island. The GT that I know is very different. Hit a local up, explore, explore, explore. Its the safest place I've ever been. You won't beat the beach. Definitely not the place to go for nightlife. GT is mainly a happy hour type social scene which is fine with me.
 

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