wheretogo Archives - St. John Escape at Grande Bay

Day 2 of Your Perfect Week on St. John

Peter Langer St. John 01/24/201802/07/2018beach, Caribbean, CinnamonBay, CruzBay, GrandeBay, HolidayOnStJohn, StJohn, USVI, VacationOnStJohn, VacationSoup, whattosee, wheretogo 1 Comment

If you’re the active type, why not start the day by working up a sweat on the Cinnamon Bay trail, followed by cooling off and relaxing at Cinnamon Bay beach. Head a few minutes past Trunk Bay down the North Shore road until you reach Cinnamon Bay, either in your own jeep or take one of St. John’s open air taxis.

Cinnamon beach is the National Park’s longest beach. It’s almost a mile long and is perfect for walking, snorkeling, water sports, and of course, lounging. Right now Cinnamon is still recovering from Hurricane Irma, so the water sports concession is closed as is the campground. The beach however, is open and still beautiful.

Ah, now for the working up a sweat part. Before you head to the beach you can take an uphill hike that begins right after the Cinnamon Bay Campground entrance off of the North Shore Road. The moderately strenuous trail follows an old Danish plantation road and provides breathtaking views down onto Cinnamon Bay and the British Virgins Islands in the distance. Those that make it to the top will see the ruins of an old plantation that happens to be one of my favorite photo ops.

Travel Tip created by Leslie and Peter in association with Vacation Soup

Day 1 of Your Perfect Week on St. John

Peter Langer St. John 01/20/201802/07/2018beach, Caribbean, CruzBay, HolidayOnStJohn, snorkelling, StJohn, TrunkBay, USVI, VacationOnStJohn, VacationSoup, whattodo, wheretogo 0 Comment

It’s hard to argue that going to Trunk Bay on your first day is a bad idea. Sure some consider it to be the most touristy beach, but once you visit it’s easy to see why its so popular. It is often rated as one of the best beaches in the Caribbean and it is certainly the most photographed. Make sure you stop for a great photo op at the overlook along the North Shore road.

We would recommend not going on days when there are lots of cruise ships visiting St. Thomas, because Trunk can get crowded. If you visit at off peak times like early in the morning or late in the afternoon, this top rated beach might only have a few people on it. Once you walk on the powder white sand and take a dip in the clear water, it might be hard to leave the beach, let alone St. John.

Trunk Bay is the only beach on St. John where you have to pay an admission fee. It’s worth it though because you get lifeguards, bathrooms, showers, a snack bar, snorkel rentals and an underwater snorkel trail. Even though there is better snorkeling elsewhere on St. John, Trunk Bay is a good place to start because of the underwater signage along the self guided trail. As we right this, Trunk Bay is open to visitors but is not yet charging admission because all of the facilities are not yet up and running.

Travel Tip created by Leslie and Peter in association with Vacation Soup

Unique Benefits of Our Property

We couldn't find a better location on St. John that would give us both spectacular views and the convenience of being so close to town. Being able to walk everywhere means a lot to us. We don't always feel like we need to rent a jeep which is a plus. It is also nice not to have to worry about driving if you happen to have maybe one too many Painkillers:) Having a reserved parking space in the covered garage is a great benefit. No more parking hassles driving into Cruz Bay. We love that we have a view of the water from every living area. We have sweeping views that we never tire of from the terrace. The terrace is furnished for outdoor dining and it is the perfect spot for sipping morning coffee and checking out all that is going on in the harbor. Cocktails while watching the unbelievable St. John sunsets are always a highlight of the day. We can't get over how easy it is to do everything we want on St. John starting right from our condo. It is so easy to get to all the shops, restaurants and bars. There are also hikes into the National Park we can take starting right from our place.