St. Croix

[DenbyS]

Yes, you can.

 

[jlevitt]

The description of the diving sounds delightful. Any recommendations on places to stay in St. Croix that are on/overlooking the beach? We don't need chain-hotel amenities.

 

[They call me Tater]

Try VRBO....

 

[DennisS]

I have a question about St. Croix. When we were on the Nekton in 2009 and visited the Fredricksted Pier, the Captain advised us "not to stray too far from the harbor" because there had been "robberies and acts of violence against visitors." He said that the "cruise ships were no longer visiting St. Croix because of the crime problem" and he told us "don't go any further than 3 streets in from the harbor!" We followed his advice and noticed many closed and vacant shops in the area. It was a little depressing. One merchant told us that many businesses had suffered because the cruise ships had stopped coming.

On that trip, during our second week on St. Croix, we rented a car and we did a lot of exploring, driving from Christiansted to Fredricksted and many other places around the island; but we remembered the Captain's warning and we never strayed too far "off the beaten path". We never felt in danger but we were very cautious. I remember thinking that it was a shame that Americans were afraid to visit an American territory.

What is the current situation regarding crime - and specifically crime against visitors? It is obvious that the cruise ships have returned so I am hopeful that the crime problem has decreased? That is one of the considerations that has held us back from returning to St. Croix.[/QUOTE

We were tied up to the pier on and off for about a month about 5 years ago. Two locals tried to rob our crazy assed drunk deck hand with a machete while he was coming on to the pier around 2-3am. He told us he took the machete away from one of them and proceeded to chase them down the street beating them with the dull edge of the machete. We thought it was BS until the police showed up looking to find out who injured the locals. The cops admitted they were criminals but said there was no reason to beat them that severely. I wonder what the reaction would have been to a chopped up non local deck hand. Tch Tch, he was out drinking too late

 

[jonhall]

Try VRBO....

Do a search for the pink condos (what most people call them) in St. Croix. You will get listings from VRBO and HomeAway. Has several names, but they are on Sunset Beach. There are studios up to 2 bedroom units, but can't tell you what is available to rent. It is like having your own private beach with good snorkeling right there. Have seen eagle ray, octopus, pufferfish, mating turtles, lobster, starfish, stingrays, and variety of fish, to name a few, snorkeling along the beach, and dolphins jumping from the shore.

Located in Frederiksted, the pier is visible from the condos and some beach bars a short walk. Also N2theBlue dive shop is a short walk from the pier. The diving is great and easy on this side of the island. Some nice sites.

Have been and stayed in the pink condos 5 times, both with my aunt-in-law who owns one and in another unit. Nice to get up and walk 50 feet and be in the ocean! Also being on the west side you get the beautiful sunsets.

We don't need chain-hotel amenities.

Don't think you would find those in St. Croix anyway!!

Hope you find a place and have a great time.