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What is everybodies opinion on rented a 4x4. I'm pretty sure that most people will say that it's necessary.
We rented 2 medium size cars for 8 people. Do you think that we'll be ok driving around? Or should we just bite the bullet and go for 2 4x 4's. it's not cheap to do that, but if everybody things that I should, then I'll do it.
I strongly recommend a 4x4 Jeep. The only time we didn't have 4WD was in May when we took the ferry over from Tortola for the day and found a Jeep Liberty to rent for the day. It had rained most of the night before and the morning that we got to STJ and all the roads were wet. We nearly didn't make it up 2 hills because of the slippery pavement. We'll NEVER be without 4WD again!! Some villa driveways are nearly impossible to get up without a 4x4. Better to be safe than sorry, that's my motto.
4x4.
You may not need one, but - if you do, you'll have it... better safe, than sorry 😉
We definitely rent a 4 wd for STJ. I'm always glad to save a buck, but that's not a place where I'd cut corners.
If you're still undecided, have a look at this video, then imagine if it was raining.
If you are going to STJ, a 4x4 is advisable. Some out of the way beaches, particularly on the Lamestur Bay road are only accessible with a 4x4. If you know where you are staying and know that you can get in and out without a 4x4 (check with whom you are renting from), then you could get by without a 4x4. But......it won't be as much fun!
Ok, everybody knows that it rains a lot here in the Seattle Area. This year, it's been unbelievable! It's so bad right now, that the ground is saturated and they are warning of possibility of huge mudslides on the news.
So the last time I went to St. John, I rented a 2WD car, and I can tell you it can be done, but not easily.
St. John is HILLY, with a lot of tight switchbacks that look more like streams and waterfalls than roads during a heavy rainfall. (No exageration, sometimes it rains so hard that the road is covered with running water.) It can be very tough to maintain traction on the hills of St. John when it rains, even for those of us that drive in heavy rain on a continual basis.
And what makes St. John sort of dangerous to drive on is that the shoulder of the road is dirt, or shall we say mud. Because it's the tropics, the ground is always muddy, and during a rainstorm, this mud has NO traction at all. So if you get off the road, even a little bit, it's highly treacherous.
Another thing to consider is that the roads can be narrow, curvy, and on the edge of a cliff.
Oh, and I forgot to mention that Taxi's and Cement Trucks have an annoying habit of driving down the center of the road during the rain, which might call for evassive manuevers.
So my recommendation. Rent a 4WD. It's cheap insurance.
JFP
PS This is in no way meant to dissuade you from driving on St. John. Driving is easy in St. John. I truly believe the biggest challenge that a driver from the States faces is the fact that you drive on the left hand side of the road.
Emphatically! 4x4. We just got winched off the side of the road (our two back wheels hanging over the edge, with an almost straight drop down!) last night. We are staying on one of the back roads (steep) and it was something that happened even though we are extremely cautious. It was scary, but we came out ok (although my girls who were in the backseat are a little leery right now!) Definitely 4x4
