Trip Report St Thomas, Secret Harbor Beach Resort

[Corrinado]

Just returned from a week at Secret Harbor Beach Resort on the island of St Thomas in the USVI. Got 7 dives in over the course of the week with their attached dive shop (Aqua Action dive center), all were amazing.

First off the resort is great. I'm not exactly a veteran world traveler but I've been to about a half dozen Caribbean locations, Hawaii, various domestic (USA) beaches, and their "house" beach was really second to none for families. It sits in a little secluded cove with minimal surf, and has numerous coral deposits which are very easily accessible for swimming and snorkeling. Almost more like a pool, including a dive platform. Throughout the week there would be a resident turtle and numerous rays who would swim up close to the beach, literally between swimmers and frolicking kids. Snorkeling on the beach I saw a spotted eagle ray, the aforementioned resident turtle, lobsters and reef fish too numerous to count. The resort is pricy, but when you're on an island everything is imported and I certainly feel we got our money's worth. No question that the beach is what makes this resort.

We had arrived mid-day on Saturday so we just kinda settled in and hung out on the beach. Early Sunday my daughters and I had signed up for a guided shore dive, to kind of kick off the rust so to speak. Ashley was our guide and she was fantastic, knew the ins and outs of the house reef quite well and made us feel at ease while showing us the beauty of the reef. Nothing outstanding per se, just a good quality dive.
The next morning we headed out for a 2 tank boat dive, hit the sites Calf and then Ledges. Boat ride was max 10 minutes, minimal swell. Amazing reef diving, max depth was probably about 45'. Had a great group who were very tolerant of us, we're somewhat new and one of my daughters occasionally struggles with equalizing, but our DM's Ryan and TC were awesome. Got us down, around and back safely. Saw some beautiful fish, healthy hard corals, see grass etc.

Day 3 was for sure the highlight of the week. Headed back out with TC and Ryan to Stragglers and then Cow. Another short boat ride with minimal swell. Just blown away by these sites. Canyons, swim throughs, these sites had it all! Fans, elkhorn coral, pipefish, trumpetfish, and the closest encounter to a sea turtle I've ever had. Although I unfortunately didn't realize it at the time, had a supercool photo bomb by a black-tipped reef shark that I didn't notice till I got back on shore and looked at my photos. Conditions were perfect, water temps in the mid 80's (all week really). We had brought our 3mm suits but I didn't use mine once, just a rash guard. My daughter chills a little easier than me so she used her wetsuit, but she remarked that she could have gotten away without it.

The next day we headed over to St John on the ferry for some shopping and touristy stuff, definitely recommend if you have the time. The ferry only costs I think about $10 round trip and runs every hour on the hour till 11p.

One more boat trip out for a 2 tank dive the following day. Headed over to Buck Island to see the Wye reef and the Cartanza wreck. It was going to be hard to top our previous day's diving, but it was still fun nonetheless. Saw a real nice crab on the Cartanza, lots of fish of course. Although I didn't see it, one of the other divers saw a nurse shark. The wreck still has the engines in place and it was cool to see the wires still sticking out.

Overall it was an amazing trip and I'd highly recommend going, especially for beginner divers. I'm sure more experienced divers have seen most of what we saw, but it definitely reinforced my love of diving. The staff at Aqua Action were amazing, incredibly helpful, knowledgeable and friendly. All the attached photos are unedited from Day 3, taken on my iPhone 12 with the SeaLife housing, no lights.

 

[drrich2]

Thank you for posting a trip report for a St. Thomas stay. It's one of those destinations people often speak of diving when on a cruise ship stop (which is how I got 4 dives in there), but rarely do I see a dedicated dive trip report, even though it's got a reputation for quality beaches, is a popular Caribbean shopping port, and has many topside excursions on offer so there's a lot to do besides diving.

All that, but when people are considering where to spend a week diving in the Caribbean, seems like it's all about Cozumel, Bonaire, Roatan, Belize, the Caymans, Curacao...

Are unguided shore dives at the resort an option?

What were the max. depths on your other dives (you gave it for one), and were most or all of your dives over a flat bottom? I ask because relatively shallow diving over a flat bottom, as opposed to wall diving over an 'abyss,' may appeal to newer divers, or divers with recently certified youngsters along.

How many dives could you do per day, potentially? Two?

 

[Corrinado]

Thank you for posting a trip report for a St. Thomas stay. It's one of those destinations people often speak of diving when on a cruise ship stop (which is how I got 4 dives in there), but rarely do I see a dedicated dive trip report, even though it's got a reputation for quality beaches, is a popular Caribbean shopping port, and has many topside excursions on offer so there's a lot to do besides diving.

All that, but when people are considering where to spend a week diving in the Caribbean, seems like it's all about Cozumel, Bonaire, Roatan, Belize, the Caymans, Curacao...

Are unguided shore dives at the resort an option?

What were the max. depths on your other dives (you gave it for one), and were most or all of your dives over a flat bottom? I ask because relatively shallow diving over a flat bottom, as opposed to wall diving over an 'abyss,' may appeal to newer divers, or divers with recently certified youngsters along.

How many dives could you do per day, potentially? Two?

The dive staff seemed open to unguided shore dives although I didn't specifically inquire about that. We had asked about a night dive and while they weren't organizing one specifically they had said we could go on our own, so it would seem to be a viable option. We didn't only because the timing didn't work out.

The boat goes out both AM and PM depending on business, so 4 dives per day is doable if you have a sufficient group.

All of our dives were in the 30-45' range, with my max depth recorded on my Teric at 48' on the Cartanza. Not a single "abyss" to speak of, all of the dives were above flat ground, the canyons were probably about 20' high from base to top. No question this is a great place for beginner divers and those with kids (mine are 14 and 12, having been certified for 2y) Not once did I think "oh yeah this is too advanced". There was some mild current and some of the swim throughs and canyons had a slight pull to them, ie they pulled you through mildly but not out of control. It would also be very easy to stay shallower, for instance my girls never breached the 40' depth limit of their JOW cert, but still felt every bit involved and saw everything there was to see.

As a dad of young divers I'm very sensitive to their comfort and not pushing them. Not once did they express any discomfort or feel challenged by our dives, but at the same time were amazed at what they saw and could accomplish. My 14yo said specifically "I became a diver on this trip" What else could you ask for?

 

[jonhall]

Thanks for the report. Glad you had a great time.

 

[Jaan]

The dive staff seemed open to unguided shore dives although I didn't specifically inquire about that.

Yes you can get tanks from Aqua Action and do the local reefs yourself. We did that many times, lots to see in that small secluded bay they are in. You can negotiate an 'unlimited shore dives' option with your dive package too. We stayed last year and enjoyed ourselves. See my wife's write up here: Scuba Diving Vacation at Secret Harbour Beach Resort in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands

Great report @Corrinado brought back some good memories for us and great pics.

 

[Jersey]

Great timing @Corrinado! Thank you. I'm StT bound end of the month with my mom, stepdad and nephew who hasn't been diving in about 3 years. Was hoping to get a shore refresher in before boat diving. And I'm not a Coki fan. They feed the fish dog biscuits and the fish bite you, even if you don't have a dog biscuit, your hands look like Milk Bones! Plus it's easy to get swept around the point and the current can be wicked. Staying just a bit up the road at Sapphire, so Secret Harbor is close drive. I haven't been down since 2016, pre-hurricanes and most of my friends have moved off.

@drrich2 - having worked on the island for a year, there is a community of local divers and a handful of shops, but nothing like more dive centric islands. Nor is diving usually the reason people visit StT. I think people go for the beaches/island hopping/day drinking/snorkel trips, which was super easy pre-CoVid, or sail chartering - either bareboat or captain'ed. There is also a thriving yacht-y (super) community and provisioning going on. We'd see yacht staff show up in the Hospital ED with the normal emergencies.

I will say I saw more sharks diving there for a year than in the other 20-plus years combined. Almost every dive. From sleepy nurse to black tips and carib reef sharks. Sometimes more than 1. The marina at a my condo had a resident nurse shark living under one of the fishing charter boats. Friends got to see a hammerhead. Hoping my nephew gets to see at least 1.

Diving isn't bad, shallow, as OP stated, hard bottom, no great wall diving. No steep drops like North Bonaire sites (Carels Vision or Karpata). Swim throughs, canyons, shoals, pinnacles, some just below the surface. It sure beat going to work on a Saturday and Sunday morning! Cow, Calf, Ledges of Little St James (former home of one Jeffrey Epstein), Stragglers, Dog, Mingo and Congo are all in the 35 - 55 foot range, and common sites. The great thing is if one site is blown out, you can usually find a sheltered site within 5 minute boat ride. The exception> French Cap is about an hour boat ride, but well worth it when conditions are agreeable. Pinnacle down to about 85 - 90 foot. Usual reef critters abound all over, some sites fishier than others.

 

[ScubaJoy65]

Yes you can get tanks from Aqua Action and do the local reefs yourself. We did that many times, lots to see in that small secluded bay they are in. You can negotiate an 'unlimited shore dives' option with your dive package too. We stayed last year and enjoyed ourselves. See my wife's write up here: Scuba Diving Vacation at Secret Harbour Beach Resort in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands

Great report @Corrinado brought back some good memories for us and great pics.

Love your wife’s blog. Thank you for sharing it.

 

[Kimela]

Great timing @Corrinado! Thank you. I'm StT bound end of the month with my mom, stepdad and nephew who hasn't been diving in about 3 years. Was hoping to get a shore refresher in before boat diving. And I'm not a Coki fan. They feed the fish dog biscuits and the fish bite you, even if you don't have a dog biscuit, your hands look like Milk Bones! Plus it's easy to get swept around the point and the current can be wicked. Staying just a bit up the road at Sapphire, so Secret Harbor is close drive. I haven't been down since 2016, pre-hurricanes and most of my friends have moved off.

@drrich2 - having worked on the island for a year, there is a community of local divers and a handful of shops, but nothing like more dive centric islands. Nor is diving usually the reason people visit StT. I think people go for the beaches/island hopping/day drinking/snorkel trips, which was super easy pre-CoVid, or sail chartering - either bareboat or captain'ed. There is also a thriving yacht-y (super) community and provisioning going on. We'd see yacht staff show up in the Hospital ED with the normal emergencies.

I will say I saw more sharks diving there for a year than in the other 20-plus years combined. Almost every dive. From sleepy nurse to black tips and carib reef sharks. Sometimes more than 1. The marina at a my condo had a resident nurse shark living under one of the fishing charter boats. Friends got to see a hammerhead. Hoping my nephew gets to see at least 1.

Diving isn't bad, shallow, as OP stated, hard bottom, no great wall diving. No steep drops like North Bonaire sites (Carels Vision or Karpata). Swim throughs, canyons, shoals, pinnacles, some just below the surface. It sure beat going to work on a Saturday and Sunday morning! Cow, Calf, Ledges of Little St James (former home of one Jeffrey Epstein), Stragglers, Dog, Mingo and Congo are all in the 35 - 55 foot range, and common sites. The great thing is if one site is blown out, you can usually find a sheltered site within 5 minute boat ride. The exception> French Cap is about an hour boat ride, but well worth it when conditions are agreeable. Pinnacle down to about 85 - 90 foot. Usual reef critters abound all over, some sites fishier than others.

@Jersey, we don't mind staying shallow, but it's because we want to spend a long dive looking for macro. How's the macro stuff there? Any chance there are frogfish???

 

[Jersey]

@Jersey, we don't mind staying shallow, but it's because we want to spend a long dive looking for macro. How's the macro stuff there? Any chance there are frogfish???

Kimela - no froggies, that I saw or heard about, not a lot of cool macro (no nudi's, couple shrimp). We did a gear check dive off Secret Harbor, max 18 foot to the sand. Just perfect to ensure weighting dialed in, gear worked (Oceanic ProPlus battery died, thanks Red Hook for having replacement). Scant population of reef fish, some rocks. Did 2 tank boat with Red Hook out to Cartanza Wreck and Stragglers. Cluster of boats because conditions on that side included 7 foot waves. Good dives, 50 foot max, 50 foot viz, BUT as guided dives they were hustling us around. We had a great group of 6, everyone knew how to dive, all personal gear, can't remember a dive where 6 strangers melded so well. No time to stop and hang out with large and inquisitive yellow headed jaw fish who let us get right up on them. No time to stop and wait to see if the bowling bowl sized octopus came out of his hidey hole. (Biggest I've seen) Move on! 55 minute dives, plenty of air, group 3 minute safety stop. No real currents, second dive was through a rock formation and a bit surgy, the kind that makes me fall asleep. More a dive for topography than fish. We decided we weren't keen on the rush-rush and were seeing more/better fish snorkeling, stopped after 3 dives. This was more of a 'vacation trip' where we threw a couple dives in than a 'dive trip'. Had my 80+ yr old mom and stepdad along, so mostly played tour guide, went to the famous beaches and made sure the adults had fun.

 

[Kimela]

Kimela - no froggies, that I saw or heard about, not a lot of cool macro (no nudi's, couple shrimp). We did a gear check dive off Secret Harbor, max 18 foot to the sand. Just perfect to ensure weighting dialed in, gear worked (Oceanic ProPlus battery died, thanks Red Hook for having replacement). Scant population of reef fish, some rocks. Did 2 tank boat with Red Hook out to Cartanza Wreck and Stragglers. Cluster of boats because conditions on that side included 7 foot waves. Good dives, 50 foot max, 50 foot viz, BUT as guided dives they were hustling us around. We had a great group of 6, everyone knew how to dive, all personal gear, can't remember a dive where 6 strangers melded so well. No time to stop and hang out with large and inquisitive yellow headed jaw fish who let us get right up on them. No time to stop and wait to see if the bowling bowl sized octopus came out of his hidey hole. (Biggest I've seen) Move on! 55 minute dives, plenty of air, group 3 minute safety stop. No real currents, second dive was through a rock formation and a bit surgy, the kind that makes me fall asleep. More a dive for topography than fish. We decided we weren't keen on the rush-rush and were seeing more/better fish snorkeling, stopped after 3 dives. This was more of a 'vacation trip' where we threw a couple dives in than a 'dive trip'. Had my 80+ yr old mom and stepdad along, so mostly played tour guide, went to the famous beaches and made sure the adults had fun.

Sounds like it would be a great place for newer divers - though it's too bad there wasn't more to see. I keep hoping I'll find some yellow head jawfish that will let me get close - but no, they pop down in their holes. I understand that dive shops have to keep to a schedule. Sounds like a nice trip but maybe not if it's truly a dive-dedicated vacation.