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Hello,
I'm going to be camping on St John for a week (Cinnamon Bay) and am trying to figure out whether I need to rent a car. I would indeed like to venture off to other beaches on the island, and can't tell whether it is reasonable to do so with walking? Taxis? Buses? I'd imagine it would be easy enough to get a taxi FROM Cinnamon bay, but how possible is it to get a taxi TO Cinnamon bay from the various beaches on the island?
Does anybody have any car rental agency recomendations? We'll be arriving at Cruz Bay and it would be great to be able to walk to the car rental agency to pick up the car.
I've never been to St John and am trying to get a sense of the scope of the island... I've read that most of the island is a national park crossed with lots of hiking trails... is it possible to use the hiking trails as a means to get around the island?
Any insight/recommendations is appreciated!!
Thank you!
Try Courtesy Car Rental, www.courtesycarrental.com, for pleasant service.
If you plan to visit the other beaches, you are doing the right thing by getting a rental car. Taxis go to a few of the closest and main beaches, the others would be diffcult to get back by taxi.
Most all rental car companies are in Cruz Bay. Most will meet you or give you instructions to get your car.
RL
Getting around St. John without a vehicle is definately possible however depending on your time frames you may find it rather difficult to get to certain places if you are in a hurry, or need to get somewhere fast. The safari taxis typically run all over St. John, I've seen them out by Salt Pond, I've seen them at all the busy places, I've seen them at the main beaches, however it's hit or miss. If they happen to be where you are then you can catch one, but if not it may be hours before you see the next one. The taxis pretty much seem to travel and wait at the more well known beaches like Cinnamon, Trunk, Hawksnest, etc. If you want to explore at your own pace, and if you really want to explore out of the way places then I'd highly recommend a car/jeep rental that way you can go at your own pace, go to the far-away places on the island and enjoy the island on your schedule. We've always rented from Courtesy they are great but they book fast, we tried in September to get a rental for Feb. and they are sold out. Conrad Sutton is another great one. Most of the car rental agencies are within walking distance (5 minutes or so) from the ferry.
As for using the hiking trails to get from point a to point b, there is definately the possibility of getting all around the island on the trails however it would mean getting to the ending point of one trail walking the main roads to get to the next and then venturing out again into the forest. This would take quite some time but it's do-able!
Hope this helps!
There are so many great palces on the island to explore, it is worth it to get a car
Thanks for all the good advice. I decided to go ahead and rent a car, but it appears all of the rental agencies on St. John are either entirely booked, or only have large vehicles or jeeps, and I'd like a small car with a real (locking) trunk.
So this brings up the idea of renting a car on St Thomas (seems there are plenty of rental agencies there... cheaper too) and taking the "car barge" over to St John. Is this a reasonable thing to do?
Thanks again, you all are a wonderful resource!
I do believe that as long as you don't rent from Hertz, you can bring cars from STT to STJ. Dependable is highly recommended for STT rentals.
The reason rental agencies only have 4WD on St John is because you will probably need it at some point on your trip if you plan to really explore the island. I know it's pricier to get a Jeep than it is to get a compact car from budget, but I don't know if I'd want to try to maneuver the island in a little car.
Ther are times on paved roads you need 4wd a jeep wrangler would be great for the 2 of you
I was going to say that about needing 4WD on the paved roads, WG, but I thought maybe my group just had bad drivers in it and we overreacted!
Rent a jeep and see as much as you can. Go to east end and hike from salt pond to rams head. You will not regret it.
Ric
We always want 4WD on STJ. It's not a place where I'd cut corners and try to save a few bucks. The roads can become quite slick if it rains (and it doesn't take much rain). Here's a link to a video that makes it a little clearer:
If you are still considering a car rental on St. John, try Penn's Jeep Rental. He has all Jeep Liberties that are practically brand new and in good shape, and all are 4WD and lock completely. I was able to secure one at the last minute for a surprise b-day trip for my girlfriend less then a month before we arrived. Also, they are EXTREMELY professional, and have a huge lot in a kind of warehouse courtyard right smack in the middle of Cruz Bay you can always park in for free. We stayed at Cinammon Bay as well and found it was really great to have our own jeep.
Penn's Jeep Rental, Inc.
Cruz Bay
340/ 776-6530
I'm headed back in February to run the 8 tough miles race on the island w/ a couple buddies. The only reason we aren't using Penn's again is they are a bit pricey and don't offer a weekly rate (I think it's just like $90 a day or so) - but if you want a car for maybe half your trip and all the other agencies are sold out - try Penn's you won't be disappointed.
T.J.
