Personally I would not call either Bluebeard or Blackbeards castles as an attraction. Try time share pitch!

Depending on the teenagers love of the water, I might suggest BOB which is short for Breathing Observation Bubble and allows an none certified or experienced underwater diver to journey 9 feet under the surface wearing a helmet filled with water, riding on kind of like a water/motor scooter!

Hello Marie,

The two "castles" - they are actually watchtowers from the Danish period and won't take long to visit. You can not climb up Bluebeards you can only walk around it and walk around the hotel - there are great views of Charlotte Amalie and Havensight from this area and that is more of the attraction in my opionion. Blackbeards can be climbed up if its open; I was told that they charge a fee but I have not experienced this ever so I am not sure. In any case Blackbeards is nice to visit and look at, particularly if historical sites interest you, the view for Blackbeards is wonderful. Neither place would take more then 10 minutes to just walk around, snap a few photos, take in the view. Neither is far from the shops but Blackbeards is closer. You can walk down the 99 steps (another historic attraction) from Blackbeards and into Charlotte Amalie shopping area - at the bottom of the steps turn right and you will see the Post Office and Main Street's shopping area.

Teenager can be 13 or 19 - and their interest would be vastly different?? How old and girl/boy?

Paradise Point is fun; depending on the age of you child you might do this on Wednesday during Happy Hour so you can enjoy the view, music, food/drinks; the ride is free during Happy Hour.

Also plan on taking the ferry to St. John.

--Islander

Thank you for the helpful info. My teenager is a 14 year old boy. We had done St John's on our own on a cruise ship stop last year but this time we will do a catamaran excursion there. We are undecided about Coral World as we have done helmet diving several times on another island. Since we will be in St. Thomas several days and are staying at a beach hotel, we wanted to take a taxi tour for 1/2 day to see the various attractions. Are there any mini golf or arcade places in case we need a break from sightseeing?

There is also a very cool guided kayak tour of the mangroves - ecology, etc. - out ont he east end. There is a walking tour with guide which will take you around the places that the above posts were talking about as well as Ft. Christian which is nice. You might also want to see the synagouge (sp?) as it one of the oldest around, sand floor, etc. Sunday afternoon at Sapphire is fun as well.
Enjoy your stay.
Pamela

Hello,

Your son might enjoy parasailing, maybe some windsurfing lessons, kayaking with mom or dad, jet ski rental, maybe a Caribbean show (mocko jumbies, buffet, steel pan music).

No mini golf or arcades. You can go bowling if your son enjoys that or perhaps to the movies one night.

--Islander