St. Thomas, St. John or both?

[Barry Goode]

Hi,

I'm an Advanced Padi diver who has been to most good diving locales in the Caribbean. I've never been to the USVI. Those who have please let me know what you would suggest in terms of staying at just one of these islands or staying for a few days on each.
Which option would allow me to do all the best dives in the area?
What are the islands like topside?

Thanks a million!

Barry

 

[VGdiver]

Barry

You'll find more options for lodging on St. Thomas. There are numerous ferries that go to/from STT to St. John. I would recommend day tripping to St. John and checking it out for sure. Cruz Bay has some great bars and restaurants and it's close to the ferry dock so you can catch the 11 pm boat back to STT. The islands are very close to each other so all of the dive operators do the same sites for the most part.

Check out Red Hook on the east end of STT. Great bars and food there too. Molly Malone's, Sopchoppy's, and XO are great places. You can also arrange sport fishing charters from American Yacht Harbour as well.

 

[RICHinNC]

Agree with VG.....St John is soooooooo easy to drive around on that for that day trip you can rent a car and get around very easily. Lots of deserted beaches.

St Thomas is a death wish to drive on but if very careful....you can do it. You might contact Chris Sawyer dive ops. Most have had good experiences with them. If you do the Rhone you will need your passport as it is in Brit territory.

Also, you might check out Coki Park. There is a shore dive there.

 

[ippy01]

I'm a huge St. John fan. I find St. Thomas to be very crowded, chaotic, and a bit run down in parts. And, when there are 4 or 5 cruise shops docked in Port Charlotte Amalia -- the town is unbearably crowded. There are certainly some lovely properties on St. Thomas, but in my humble opinion, St. John is far better.

St. John is far more idyllc and "high-end" than St. Thomas.

The Westin on St. John is terrific (but usually booked). Caneel Bay is a great, old resort -- although quite pricey.

Diving on St. John is great (Caravelle Rock is a high point) and you are minutes away from all the great BVI diving.

 

[mike_s]

I agree with all the above. Especially about dirving on St Thomas. Every car there is wrecked. that should be your first sign of how crazy they drive.\

I never plan on going back to St Thomas for the purpose of staying there. Only as a stopping off point for St John or BVI.

As for diving, you'll find that a lot of the St John diving is the same as St Thomas Red Hook diving. The two islands are only a couple miles apart and their harbors (Red Hook and st john) face each other.


Edited above to change referenced of West End to Red Hook.

 

[VGdiver]

The East end of St. Thomas is next to St. John, not the west end.

 

[mike_s]

The East end of St. Thomas is next to St. John, not the west end.

You're correct. I've edited the above and changed the reference to West End to the Red Hook area.

 

[Scuba Monster]

In my opinion, there is no comparison between the two ... St. John definitely gets my vote. There is plenty to do on St. John - we spent 17 days there and never got bored. One day on St. Thomas was plenty for me - it is too commercial for my taste. The north shore beaches of St. John are some of the most beautiful beaches in the Caribbean. We also did several excursions from St. John including sailing, snorkeling, touring the BVI's. We chose to dive with Cruz Bay Watersports (they also did my certification). I would definately dive with them again.

 

[Scuba Laura]

If you like "Advanced" dives including wrecks, St. Thomas has more to offer. Especially on the South side. Wrecks available are the Wit Shoal, Miss Opportunity, Kennedy, Wit Concrete, Chrysler and a few Navy Barges. Admiralty Dive Center is the middle of all of them and has 2 boats so they can cater to all level of experience. There are also many reefs. From Charlotte Amalie, there are over 60 available sites, so you'll never dive the same site twice.

 

[joekavalier]

Just returned from St. John.

IMHO - St. Thomas is a bit tooooo civilized. Shop on St. Thomas, stay on St. John or one of the BVIs.

If you're an advanced diver, you may want to call ahead and talk to the dive shops. I had a less than stellar experience with a dive leader from a shop mentioned above. Check out Cruz Bay Watersports and 6paq Scuba.

Consider diving the wreck of the Rhone as well as the Indians.