US waters- St Thomas or Puerto Rico

[munkispank]

Alrighty- looking for another trip without using a passport- would love to do Hawaii again, but my buddy doen't want to travel that far for 5 days
SO gurus, which would you recommend between st Thomas and Puerto Rico?

Of course I haven't ruled out a trip back to the keys- which is always great.

 

[HammerNoMore]

Alrighty- looking for another trip without using a passport- would love to do Hawaii again, but my buddy doen't want to travel that far for 5 days
SO gurus, which would you recommend between st Thomas and Puerto Rico?

Of course I haven't ruled out a trip back to the keys- which is always great.

Just a warning, traveling to USVI or PR is not the same as crossing a state line. While a passport is not required, it is recomended. At the very least you will need proof of citizenship for both of these, i.e. Drivers License and Birth Certificate. Since your avatar is GB, you may not be a citizen? If not, I would check closely with the state department to make sure you have all the documentation you need.

James

 

[scubachris]

James is right. They are considered point of entry to the USA so if you don't have passport you need a govt/state issued ID and birth certificate. You'll also be filling out customs paperwork and clearing through customs and immigration on your way back. I think you can get by on just a drivers licence, don't quote me but it's a big hassel

Between the two I'd recommend St. Thomas. Why.1) You can dive the USVI and the BVI. If you dive the BVI you'll need the same ID mentioned above. 2) If you're also on holiday and enjoy a drink it's much cheaper on St. Thomas than PR. In fact their are 3 day cruises from San Juan, PR which you'll see the PR people coming over and filling up shopping carts of booze to take back.
3) It's a fun island with lot's to do, duty free shopping (true duty free not like in PR)
4) did I mention the diving. Check out Chris Sawyer or Blue Island divers.
http://sawyerdive.vi/
http://www.blueislanddivers.com/

Ask for Pat at Chris Sawyer if you call. She'll tell you all abou the island, things to do, diving, etc.

Also might consider some diving in St. Croix as there is some great wall diving there.

Chris

 

[HammerNoMore]

I think you can get by on just a drivers licence, don't quote me but it's a big hassel.

No, you can't. Believe me I found out the hard way. When my wife and I went to St. Thomas, nobody mentiond the passport/birth certificate thing. We figured we didn't need anything to go to a US territory.

1) We couldn't go to Tortola.
2) Coming back we got serious hassle in customs. (no problems going, just coming). The Agent basicly made it pretty clear that if we were not caucasian or had an accent, we would have been stuck for a while until proper documentation arrived.

James

 

[scubachris]

Good to know, I'd heard that it didn't work or was almost impossible. I always got use to taking my passport so wasn't sure.

The BVI thing is in stone, I know from experience When I worked in the USVI we'd have to turn people away on the Rhone trip (to the BVI) if they didn't have the right paperwork.

And the Rhone trip is a must dive if you are there. It's a real wreck with lots of history and still relatively intact for being down for over a century.

There's lots of posts on the board about the VI for more info.

chris

 

[munkispank]

thanks for the advice guys- I am not a citizen and due to my current status re: my Green card, I cannot leave US soil. However, I visited St Croix in July and am aware of the passport issue. FYI for those interested, as a non-citizen (can't answer for others) you have to carry proof of legal status in the US and Passport- for me this was my passport, Visa and work authorization paperwork. You pass through a pre-screening prior to departing the USVI's, but it is not considered an immigration point (ie, no surrender of I-94 and no stamp in your passport) I had to talk at length with the immigration office and department of State to confirm the status of non-citizens and trips to the islands.

unfortunately for me, that means I will not be able to do the Rhone despite being a British Citizen, the british Virgin islands are considered an out of country trip!!!

so- that all being said, thanks for the advice, I am trying to weigh up the pros and cons of each destination and find out where I can get frequent flyer tickets to.

thanks again for info.

 

[Mandy3206]

As a Puertorican, I can asure you that if you're a US citizen, you just need a driving license and that's it, I've been traveling to the mainland all my life at least 1 or 2 times a yr, I got family in NY an Miami.

As a green card holder, you just present your papers and that's it. comming to PR is like going to Florida or NY, you don't leave US territory.

Also if you're expecting to dive, here are many world class sites that will impress anyone, I can hook you up with some class A service operators around the island.

PM and I'll gladly help you out.

I've been to St Thommas like 25 times (3hr boat ride or 1/2hr airplane ride) for duty free, can't be beat, but you can see the whole island in a few hrs, for a day or 2, it's ok, for a more prolonged stay, I recomend my beautifu Island.