St. Thomas has some interesting excursions you can book on your own - by the way, forget the moped. You can do a half day sail, take a trip to St. John and snorkel, take an island tour, go hiking, do some great shopping, horse back riding - what do you want to do?

Hello Dawn,

You can rent mopeds or a car (around the same price $55-60) and drive around, beach hop, see some attractions, do some shopping. Or you can do an excursion on your own like a charter sailing/snorkeling trip, fishing or diving. You can do an island tour and spend a few hours at the beach.

What types of things do you enjoy... and then we can make suggestions based on that.

--Islander

Hi ! I'll be there on a cruise ship in February and I was looking for excursions that are family oriented. We'll be taking our two daughters (5 & 11) with us. I think the kids would love to snorkle so a quiet beach with quite a bit of colorful marine life would be ideal. We've purchased snorkeling equipment to get them used to it pre cruise but neither of the girls are strong swimmers, so that's a concern. My husband would probably enjoy the sailing and fishing quite a bit. The one thing we are not interested in is shopping. any other suggestions for things to do and where to go would be welcomed!

Regards,
Jennifer

Hello Jennifer,

I would recommend Coral World and snorkeling at Coki Beach (easy snorkeling and its good, right off the shoreline).

www.coralworldvi.com

You might also consider a day sail... book a 6 pack (small sailboats that take max of 6 people), the girls can wear lifevest and use floats to help them along while snorkeling. Also ask the captain if taking the girls up to the beach in a dinghy is possible when at the snorkel stops so they could play a little on the beach while dad snorkels... and then maybe switch with you.

Check out some of your options at

https://www.vinow.com/stthomas/SandL/

--Islander

Jennifer,

Islander hit the nail on the head with the suggestion of Coral World and Coki Beach. My spouse and I did that when we took our first trip down here last year and had a fabulous day. Coral World has an astonishing array of attractions for a marine park of its size --it's just enough to do with kids without anyone getting too tired. Be sure to catch their most interesting unplanned exhibit, Iguana Alley. It's a small stretch of sidewalk just up from the sea turtles pool where dozens of iguanas congregate in the trees and occasionally roam the sidewalk. There's also a touch pool where the kids (even big ones like me) can touch star fish, sea cucumbers, urchins and such. Pretty neat stuff.

We weren't able to take the walking tour of the reef they offered for an additional fee (yes, you read that right) because of my paraplegia, but it looks amazing. It involves wearing a weighted dive helmet that is attached to an air supply and has a microphone sound system, then climbing down a ladder. Once you are standing on the bottom, you follow a guide who leads your group around the reef that has been cordoned off from the public. You'll get to see quite a few reff dwelling species as you follow the guide chain around the tour path. The helmets are pretty heavy and large, so I'm not sure that your girls would be able to wear them comfortably, or if your youngest would even be allowed to try.

After seeing the fish in tanks, you can walk right down to Coki Beach and see them in their natural habitat. Coral World has lockers and a changing room that I believe also has showers (can anyone confirm?), so you can stowe your beach gear while touring the aquarium area, then lock up your street clothes for your afternoon at the beach.

It's a perfect way to spend a fun, stress free day.

HC

Thanks for the information Islander & HipCrip ! I am so excited to visit the island, from everything I've read on these boards it sounds just wonderful and we may have to come back for a week just to take it all in!

I noticed that Coral World is listed as an excursion from the boat, does it and Coki beach get pretty congested with tourist?

I'm off now to check out the websites!

Once again , Thank You!
Jennifer

We have taken two cruises with stops in St. Thomas and fell in love with the USVI. My hubby and I don't like crowds, so we head over to St. John. The beach at Cinnamon Bay is beautiful and has a small restaurant, lockers, rest rooms and showers. They also rent snorkel equipment.

The St. John excursion is very easy to do on your own. Take a taxi to Red Hook, then the ferry over to St. John and taxis are waiting at the dock to bring you to the popular beaches. Taxis are always available at Cinnamon Bay and Trunk Bay for the trip back. It might sound complicated, but it is very easy.