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We are two early twenties couples travelling to St. Thomas for the first time. I have been to other parts of the Caribbean before, but never to the Virgin Islands.
My first question is about the weather... what kind of weather can we expect January 15-21st? Everytime I check weather.com it says it is rainy. Is it going to rain the whole time we are there? It seems like a lot of the photos I have found online are dark and cloudy. Is this common in the Virgin Islands?
My second question is about accomodations... We are booked that the Best Western Carib Beach Hotel. We are also on a waiting list for a Time Share (my friends family time share through RCI was booked, but we are on the top of the waiting list). I read dreadful things about the Best Western Carib Beach.. does anybody know anything about it? Is Emerald Beach too far to walk? Should we rent a car so we can venture to other beaches around the island?
Also, how difficult is it to eat on a budget? Where do the locals eat? Are the roadside food stands any good? Is it hard to find stuff like that? We aren't broke, but we are college students travelling on moderate budgets.
What about day trips to St. John... is this a must? What kind of things should we do on St. John that we can't do on St. Thomas? Are there any other day trips we should consider besides St. John?
Also, I read some of the breakdowns on bars, etc. How late do bars stay open? Can you find taxi's home or do we need a designated driver?
Is there gambling on the island? I am not a gambler but I wondered if we will encounter casinos.
Whatever info you can pass along would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Ok, so everybody wants to learn about the airfare... I posted this above, but I wanted you all to see it so I changed the message topic.
Check out [www.bestfares.com]
The whole website is great, however, if you click on the left side where it says, "Snooze You Lose" you can select your city and some fares will come up. I live in Missoula, MT and the only fare listed was to STT. I bought it December 10th.
I found the fare code on the website and called Continental directly to book it. The first person I spoke with was not helpful and after 30 minutes on the phone told me she couldn't book the fare.
I didn't give up... I called back right away and got somebody else who was extremely friendly. I used the charm my Mom has always said I have, and after another 45 minutes on the phone we got the fare code to work.
Our flight has us leaving Missoula, MT Saturday, January 14th on a Northwest flight to Minneapolis. Then on to Newark where we must overnight. (This is common flying from Montana to the Caribbean as I have done it twice before) We leave early Sunday morning from Newark directly to STT. I have several friends in Manhattan so fortunately we have a free place to stay.
The trip home is the same thing about a week later.
I should also mention... Last time I flew from Montana to the Caribbean (St. Lucia) I paid $1400 per ticket, round trip. The ticket agent with Continental told me my $177 fare (with tax $243) was the cheapest fare she had ever seen. If I were to change my flights by one day I would be paying $1,200.
You are truly blessed my son.
Have agreat time...you deserve it.
MT. John,
That's a great price but I bet I can beat it...
I'm from your neck of the woods, Arlee, and I got tickets to the Virgin Islands for $73 plus 4 rabbit furs! It was in the mid 80's around Valentines Day. I was driving up I-90 when I saw this family running down the side of the street. They franticly waved me down and told me that the wife was going into labor and she was in the car about a mile back. Being the car salesman I was I told them I would help them out but I'd need something in return. They told me they had a trip to St. Croix booked (their oldest daughter wanted to go to Peru) but they wouldn't be able to go due to the soon to be birth of their fourth child. I told them I only had $73 on me (I lied I had $75) and they said they would take it. However, their young son noticed I had a stack of rabbit furs in the back of my pick-up and he really wanted some. He looked like the outdoorsy type who would appreciate some wild furs so I let him have all he could carry, which ended up only being four. The funny thing is, most of those furs were actually gopher furs from which I picked off a whole heap of 'em up Grant Creek earlier that day!
So, that was how I flew to the Virgin Islands on the best deal possible. Find that deal on a website.
That's quite a story! I can't say I have ever heard anything like it.
Perhaps you and your friends would like to try a daysail? Max passengers are 6 and you're taken snorkling around St John. It isn't exactly cheap, but it's a good value if you stop to consider all it entails. You'll leave around 9:30 in the morning and sail to St John. Snorkel/swim for a couple of hours. Snorkel gear is on the boat and included in the price. You get lunch as well as an open bar all day long. You'll go back to St Thomas around 3:30 in the afternoon which is just in time to go up to Sopchoppy's for a delicious and inexpensive pizza and bucket of beers. The daysail, including tip, will probably run around $120-$130 per person, but it's a very private and individualized day on the water.
