I'm visiting St. John in November and had faxed/emailed a few of the local car rental providers for more information. I was impressed that Felix at Cool Breeze Car Rentals took the initiative to actually pick up the telephone and call me. Of course, I won't pick up the car until Novemeber, so we'll see what Paul Harvey calls "The rest of the story"

On my visit in June 2002 I rented from Dependable an off airport rental company, and was very happy with the service. The car was average, but I paid a below average price for it. So, I felt I got a good deal. With my visit in August I will be renting from Hertz (because I have free points). I will let everyone know how I liked them.

As for renting one car for the whole week you will have to weigh your options. Some of the rental companies do not cover you if you take the car over to St John. It is also a hectic process to take a car over on the ferry. If I had it to do over again, I would have rented a car on STT for just the days I planned on being on that island. We also visited Tortola and paid for a rental car when we were on that island. So between island hopping we only really needed a car on St Thomas for about 4 days.

With all that said if you plan on being on STJ for several days it may be worth it take the car ferry. Just be prepared for what seems like (at least to many mainlanders) as a confusing mess. Be prepared for the operators to give special cutting privelges to commerical vehicles, friends, etc.

Dear Chris Pastos:

If you are going to stay at a hotel and don't plan to move around to go shopping or exploring, you may not need a rental car, just a taxi to take you and your group to and from the hotel(s) and transfer point(s).

Ferries leave every hour on the hour to St. John beginning early in the AM and ending at 11pm (from Red Hook), so you should not have a problem getting to St. John on your appointed day. You could also take the ferry from downtown (Charlotte Amalie), it costs a little more and it's a longer trip. There is a Ferry Schedules link way at the top of this web site.

The links for each island at the top of this web site contain further links to Taxi Rates so you can get an idea of how much this will cost you.

Keep in mind that due to heightened security, picture IDs are required to board St. John ferries now. And, due to increased fuel prices here, the ferry carriers charge $2/bag for luggage. AND... there is ongoing parking lot construction at the Red Hook ferry dock so leave a few moments extra.

Oh, and if you rent a car on St. Thomas and take it to St. John, make yourself aware of how this may affect any roadside assistance or services offered by the rental company. It's like a cattle call on the car ferries (picture ID needed there, too!), so come early enough to miss a barge. The barge schedule is included in the Ferry Schedules link, plus phone numbers to call to verify rates and times.

I'll leave the suggestions for where to eat and beaches to others, as I likes them all no matter where I fall!

Hello,

On St. Thomas for a great meal, wonderful view - Banana Tree Grill. For a casual lunch Hook, Line & Sinker. Local food, Cuzzins. Beach front - Blue Moon Cafe at Secret Harbor. The beach at Secret Harbor is nice and usually quieter then other popular beaches, you could do beach & lunch there.

--Islander

My opinion:

Rent your car on STT (Dependable, Avis, Budget) upon arrival and go explore! When you go to STJ, hop on whatever car barge is available (no reservations) at Red Hook and go over (I have never encountered the confusion others have mentioned, but I'm sure it exists if they have experienced it) - and get a one-way ticket. Use your car on STJ and car-barge back on the first available car barge when you are ready to leave. This is why I suggest no round-trip ticket - just hop on whichever barge is ready and go.

Taxis, in my opinion, are too expensive and too restrictive. The name of the game is flexibility and freedom - and savings.

Driving on the left seems easy to adjust to since you're always conscious of it. It's the getting back to the right side when you return home that can be an issue.....WHOOPS!

When you compare rental car rates, include the taxes in the comparison. And, assume that Budget and Avis might not have a larger car once you arrive at the airport, even if you reserved a midsize or full. Two of you? Get the cheapest car available and shop the price. Dependable is off-site, but it's not a hassle.

Gas is expensive down there.....and you use it up on the pedal-to-the-floor boosts needed to get up those hills....so watch the A/C use if you're on a budget. You can easily spend $45/ wk on gas - and, hey, that's a lunch somewhere!

Thanks for the info. on the gas! It never even entered my mind! Last year on our honeymoon we only had a jeep for a day, taxied one day, and stayed at Gallows point the last (then we went to St.Croix) Now we are coming for a whole week on 8/13 --we love St.John more than any other island!! 🙂 So i guess we're going to use a lot of gas! Also, do you know if the gas prices are any cheaper in the summer, like the hotels are?? Thanks! -lisa

We have been visiting St. John for years and just recently decided the best/cheapest option is to rent a car at the airport, drive to redhook and take the ferry. First of all, you get into a vehicle faster with a rental than a taxi - the taxis wait to fill up and you usually stop and unload a few passengers before getting to the ferry - and there is no discount for being on a bus, not a real taxi in the US sense! If you are early for the car ferry, you can stop by Cost-u-less and get your villa supplies (eggs, milk, etc,). I have found that the car rental web sites are usually cheaper than calling the agencies in STT directly. Hertz is the only one at the airport that does NOT allow their cars to be taken to St. John - one wonders if it is a franchise issue.....

The last 3 or 4 visits, it has taken 2 minutes to get the key - the car is in the parking lot - and off we went.

Hello Lisa,

On St. Thomas the prices as of late were between $2.70-$2.96. Gas prices on St. John are usually a few cents per gallon more than St. Thomas.

--Islander

The station in Nadir had $2.92 for regular and $3.01 for premium this afternoon! Yikes!

As I said in my report we rented from Hertz and had the option of paying for a full tank of gas up-front or returning it full, we paid up-front and it ended up being cheaper to do it that way. When we went to STJ we booked a car the day before, it was less to rent a car than to take taxis to beach hop. On STJ we rented from Varlack and had a good car and service. I called our car insurance guy here before we left and State Farm covered us down there. We really lucked out in parking for the ferry, both times we went over we found a parking place on the main road near the ferry. Hope this helps.