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Alright, I'm stumped. I've read (on this website) that cars rented on St. John are "not allowed" to go off-island to St. Thomas. I'm making plans to stay on St. John (Caneel) and renting a car there for getting around, but of course I plan on going to St.Thomas for shopping, sight-seeing etc. It seems to me that the smart move is renting the car from St. Thomas (since I fly into STT, cars from St. Thomas CAN be ferried back and forth between the two islands, and I have to return to St. Thomas to fly out anyway). Is this how it's normally done to avoid the hassle?
Thanks for any feedback.
In a nutshell, yes. That would be the best plan for what you're planning on doing. Just don't rent from Hertz as they don't allow their vehicles to go to St John. The agencies which seem to garner the most favorable reviews are Dependable, Amalie and Discount while the only one which unfortunately gets consistently poor reviews because of mess-ups with reservations and bad attitude is Budget.
Or just keep your car at Caneel and take the passenger passenger ferry from Cruz Bay to Charlotte Am? You don't need a car to shop downtown. In fact, your are better off with out one. Where on St thomas do you want to sight see? Mostly everwhere is accessable by taxi.
And I think Caneel has a private ferry. You should ask Caneel--not sure of the schedule or costs. But I believe they offer one price for unlimited trips.
The car ferry leaves from red hook, costs $50+ and takes one hour each way (load and tranisit). The ferry does not run afterdark (6:30). The rush hour ferries are the most popular so you have to arrive well ahead of time.
I were staying at caneel and had a "caneel budget", I'd take advantage of their private transportation!
Thanks for the info. I would like a car on St. Thomas because I'd like to see more than just downtown, and I'd like to be able to be on my own schedule. Thanks for the tip on Hertz, too, and I will check on a "Caneel ferry". We've changed our plans from an all-St. John stay to staying two nights in St. Thomas, then 4 nights at Caneel. If we want to go back to Charlotte Amalie or somewhere else on St. Thomas before we leave, we'll take a passenger ferry and either walk or take taxis.
Thanks again for the responses.
Not sure your exact plans but what time does your flight leave on the last day and will you be staying on STJ the night before? Make sure you have enough time and an early enough ferry to get back to STT and get to the airport otherwise make your last night a stay in STT.
