Captain's Corner has some very nice coconut candles with banan and pina colada scents for $4.99. It's a good idea to get the little wooden stand for an additional $1.99 -$2.99. These are actually made on the island by William Walker.

Have you seen the soaps by VI Soap (Mary Mercer makes these). They're about $6 a bar at the Native Arts and Crafts in town, and Dolphin Dreams sells them, too.

Hook bracelets are always a nice gift.

For guys, you might want to check out the jewelry made by Alton. He's always at the cultural events selling his unisex, black cord jewelry. If you go to the Carnival show at Iggie's he might also be there. I think his prices also start at around $5. He has little sheets describing the jewelry and its cultural significance so you get education with his jewelry.

Virgin Islands Spice has a huge selection of affordable spice mixes, but she's hard to find. She's even got a coconut chicken blend. Another lady doing spice mixes is Melanie at the Havensight post office. The advantage of spice mixes over hot sauces is you don't have to worry about the bottles breaking/leaking!

Hope that gives you some ideas.

Thank you, Karen. I'll check them out. 🙂 'Good point about the spices; I have had bottles open!

The 3 for $10 T-shirts are pretty good for rags... 😉
How about pottery from one of the local potters (Kilnworks or Tillett Gardens)?
Jason's candles (Tillett Gardens)
Art from Mango Tango -a Dahlke or a Thompson if you are generous, something on the lighter side if not! 😉
Cruzan Rum!
Zora's sandals.

How about pirate coins from the Pirate's Chest at Paradise Point?

I love to get spices from the the spice store in St. John just on the right side once you get off the ferry(I'm sure you know that). It is a wonderful place to pick up gifts. Quite a range of spices, teas, coffee etc. Also the Body Deli in St. Thomas has fabulous scrubs and soaps. I always get the island mints you know the 3 for 25 cents, place them in pouches(purchase in st. thomas at the linen stores) and give to friends. Of course more than 3 mints go in the pouches. The ginger, hot mints etc. Hope this helps..

Thanks for all of these great ideas! I forgot two others I've enjoyed giving in the past. Shirts designed by Paul Borghi (spelling?) and art with lizards on it from Kilnworks. 🙂

Roxanne, where do you get the shirts designed by Paul Borghi????? What are they like?

I give all of my family VI calenders every year! This way they get to see where I live on a daily basis (and hopefully will encourage them to come see me)! I have also picked up some bumper stickers for free from the tourist info center in Havensight! Since I have sooooo to cover in my gift giving, I find the calenders affordable at $5.50 a pc. at Cost U Less!

I think spices from St. Johns spice is a great gift and you can go to the website and see them all. People love them and they always ask for more. Can't wait to get some more1

I agree with Connie.....not only does St. John Spice have wonderful spices and unusual hot sauces, it also carries a great line of gifts. Last visit I picked up an adorable little dish which I use as a candle holder....best part being, it was made on St. John.

I think I got the t-shirts with Paul Borghi's designs at Captain's Corner or Purple Papaya. I loved the one with the iguana on it that hangs out of the pocket. It's very cute and very different. This guy's art is fantastic. I just searched on the internet and saw they have a mug he designed the art for at:

http://www.vitraders.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=23-1&Category_Code=Kit

VI Traders also had a coloring book he made too. It looked very cute for kids.

I think you will, but if you call or visit Captain's Corner and/or The Purple Papaya and they are sold out of his stuff, I wouldn't be surprised if you couldn't get a hold of him or his shirts via people working and/or hanging out at Tickles in Crown Bay.

i always bring back gifts for family/friends when i've been travelling...a must purchase for me on every trip is a shot glass from the area...my collection is building up (especially since returning from the VI's- once each from STT,STJ, JVD and Tortola lol)...i grab a few for friends as a token thing...Skinny Legs in Coral Bay sold 5 for $8 or so and i bought the mini flavoured rums (you fill a box for $11 i think it was) and put a wee bottle with each glass.....

I would reccomend gifting things that are handmade by an artisan in the VI's.

When I visit, I like to bring home works of art (not expensive ones), original photos, soaps and perfumes, hotsauces, rum, spices etc that are actualy made in the VI's.

I also really like the books that center around the history, lore and lives of perople in the VI's. Not the dusty boring ones but the sailing stories (past and current), the pirate lore, stories about the West Indian culture etc.

No offense, but for adults, touristy trinkets would never come back out of the drawer they were put them in. For kids, on the other hand, pirate trinkets and sea creature trinkets always go over well. I purhcased a hand puppet set with a pirate theme froma gift store at Skinny Legs on St John for my nephew and it went over really well!

Someone PM'ed me and asked me if the books "Restaurants and Recipes of the Virgin Islands" are in color, and I think I accidentally deleted their email. Sorry! 'But if you see this post, yes they are. If you have any more questions, please feel free to PM me again (and I promise not to accidentally delete) or telephone the author Karin Donaldson directly at 340-714-2450 or email her at [email protected]. The people I gave the books I bought told me about some of the restaurant recipes they tried at home. 🙂

I bought some flavored coffee (coconut, chocolate)at A.H. Riise, and it was delicious; wish I had brought back more for myself! The flavoring was very subtle, unlike the flavored coffees I find here at home.

If you don't know, I'm sure I can call or get myself down town, but do you recall if the coffee also came in decaf?

A.H. Riise will ship you some coffee! Just look for them on-line! If you have any problems, let us know and we can find out their 800 number for you!

I just started my new business manufacturing my own seasoning. I love to cook and over the years i have come up with some of my original recipes. I would love to have you sample them. The name of my business in KitchenWonder Seasonings. Island Traditions in mountain top, the Pirate's Loot on the waterfront, Perfect Jewels in International Plaza, Marina Market and the Fruit Bowl are a some of the places carrying my seasonings. Gourmet Gallery and the Purple Papaya will be carrying them soon. I have four flavors right now. I am in the process of developing my website. I'm also trying to set up on ebay.

Roxanne, I did not see any decaf, and I was looking for it since that's what I prefer.