Taxis charge per person. For four of you a rental car is the way to go.

Here's this site's link on taxi rates:

www.vinow.com/stthomas/getting_around_stt/taxi_stt

As you'll see, just to go into town from Emerald Beach will cost you $6 per person each way and if you really want to explore some of the beautiful East end beaches the cost will quickly add up. Depending on how long you're staying, I'd rent a car for a couple of days so you can have fun exploring. If you rent from anyone but Hertz you can also take your car over to St John on the car barge and have fun exploring that beautiful island for a day. Enjoy a couple of days unwinding at Emerald Beach and then decide what else you'd like to do. Have fun!

HI, You will find a $2 shuttle bus that leaves the corner at the end of the runway every 5 minutes or so going into town or even to Red Hook for the St John Ferry. The beach where you are is great. There are restaurants. Ask the desk about the $2 ride...They will give you clues.. You board, get off where you see you want to and then pay the driver...Have change ready..It really works good.

Thank you to everyone but especially to STTDeb who said what I really wanted to hear! And your words about the beach at Emerald were terrific to hear. It's hard to chose a place to stay based on others' reviews without seeing the place but a great beach was really my daughter's only request. Here in NH it will be below 0 again tonight so beach sounds pretty good to me too

With all due respect I'd question STTDeb's assertion that the "$2 shuttle bus (that) leaves the corner at the end of the runway every 5 minutes or so going into town or even to Red Hook for the St John Ferry". She registered on this site just today.

Others who are more familiar with the safari buses are better equipped to address their town route. I'm more familiar with their country routes but it's pretty standard that we simply don't recommend visitors to use them. It's nothing personal against them but they're primarily used by locals who have time to spare to get back and forth.

Most visitors prefer not to stand on the side of the road in the hot sun waiting for a safari bus to pull up and THEN figure out (which STTDeb failed to mention) whether that safari is a regular taxi or a hop skip and jump $2 bus. The "end of the runway" to which she refers is on the waterfront road which is a 5 minute walk from Emerald Beach and I very much doubt that a local safari comes by "every five minutes or so" en route to town or Red Hook. Sorry, STTDeb, but you really need to be very careful about giving advice. Cheers!

With all do respect to STT Resident I think the safari buses are a great way to get around. If you are in a hurry,get a taxi or rent a car(both are costly) if you want to take your time and save a lot take the safari. People on vacation tend to wear themselves out trying to get "somewhere" in St Thomas and a lot of other Islands you can't get "there" very fast anyway so why spend the money? STTDeb is OK.

The OP is short on money, and long on time. They are all adults, and if willing to have a little adventure the $2.00 safari is a great way to see the island and visit other locations during the day. They can get to the Sapphire Beach entrance; all of the Red Hook attractions; Kmart and other supermarkets; and get a senic ride from one end of the island to the other. Sure, if they are on a vacation that requires them to hit every "hot" spot in a limited number of days/hours then they could spend the $70 a day for a rental car, pay for the limited available parking, or illegal parking tickets etc. and be able to tell everyone at home that they saw everything that St Thomas had to offer.

The eastward safari route starts from the UVI campus which is just past the airport, near the west end of St Thomas, and contiunes along the waterfront road through Charlotte Amalie then to the center of the island where there is a large shopping mall, and then out to the east end where the Red Hook ferry terminal and American Yacht Harbor marina complex are located with all the shops and restaurants. It is not a complicated system at all. It is a one way/direction circle trip, so if you miss your stop, then just stay on the safari and continue on to some other adventure along the one-way route. Cost is $2.00 per person from west to east or visa versa.

The intersection at Harwood Hwy and the airport entrance road is just a short flat walk from the Emerald Beach Hotel, and since it is very close to where the Safari begins its eastward run, the safari will be empty and the drive will have time to stop and answer a riders question (Are you going to the country?; Is the fare $2.00 per person?; Can you let me know when we arrive at: Sapphire Beach/Red Hook ferry/Duffy's Love Shack, etc). True, not every 5 minutes. Sometimes three within 5 minutes, or at other times maybe 20 minutes before one comes along. Once the safari reaches downtown it begins to fill up and the driver usually doesn't have the time to answer questions, but the other riders on the safari will usually answer your questions and give you advice on when to push the buzzer button to stop the safari to get off for a particular location. I say go for it!

This is certainly a matter of personal taste, time and money. But I don't think it's fair to let the OP think using the dollar taxis is an easy or convenient way to get around on the island. I would suggest trying them, but also being prepared financially to go another route, if necessary.

It would ge great if you post after your trip and tell us how it went.

Also they stop at dusk - only useful daylight info.
Getting to anywhere OFF the safari route, if you are using safaris, will require some good local knowledge or excellent planning and conceivably a lot of walking.

Ah ha; I see and it is a lot more complicated than I wish. We most assuredly are all adults and have all done some traveling before, although not to STT. We really aren't looking to "do" St Thomas and deliberately chose a place to stay that was on the beach...my daughter's only request.....and seems pretty laid back and low key. We might go to Red Hook, we will probably go into Charlotte Amelie but in a general way we are hoping for sun, sand, family bonding and celebration. I so appreciate the time everyone has taken to answer my question even though the responses are pretty mixed. I have saved the info about the route the Safari bus takes and we will certainly give it a shot.

One further question....do those buses all share a common appearance, perhaps to help us distinguish what is the bus we want and what is something else entirely.

Saipan, you're only here for a few days, and the hotel might offer enough excursions to satisfy you without having to travel on your own. There are several casual restaurants within walking distance, and they used to have live entertainment a few times a week. It's very easy to get to town, and to Water Island. The Danes love that area, so you may never need daily transport.