p mooneyham, i agree, if your not into boating, snorkeling, and into the all around beach scene. you might think twice. as for the shopping, i always look for the deals or don't buy. and i did find alot of good deals. the taxis are high,and do think they should rethink their rates. but thats how they make their living i guess, but you can get around that buy renting a car, we did both, when we new we were going to be drinking[hubbys birthday] we took a taxi. otherwise renting a car was like renting one in the states. and tipping is just like the states also, no different. i never really felt like a tourist because there is such a diversity of people. i just tried to show respect with the good morning ,good afternoon, and i received it back. so all was good.
hope you can just remember what great beaches you saw and ways to do things different/maybe cheaper the next trip. where ever it may be. as a avid traveler myself, we know there's alot cheaper places to go, but i don't see how anyone could ever forget the usvi's.
it's truely a once in a lifetime thing. if were lucky more than once in a lifetime. i hope i get to see them more than once!
scooby

what does arnie say? I'LL BE BACK LOL

p-

So sorry you didn't find this experience enjoyable or affordable enough to return.

As Scooby points out, you have to figure out how to do it for less.

Westin - toooooo expensive. What do you spend for a night at that place? High season - $300 - $400 or more? No way, Jose'!

Taxis - Another pocket buster. Rent cars if you can.

Shopping - Yes, the shops on STT and STJ are looking for the people who might have wanted to buy that high end item and decided to save a few dollars by buying it in the VI. You won't save on T Shirts, sandals, swimsuits, sundresses, etc...you will save on gemstones, watches, liquor, designer bags/accessories (Chanel, Coach, etc), crystal, china...and even of Tiffany becuase there is no tax...but other than the tax savings, Tiffany in the VI is the same price as in the states. So, shopping is not a money saving experience unless, as you said, someone would buy Tiffany or Chanel at home anyway.

STJ is best enjoyed, IMO, as a self-catering destination. Rent a car, rent a villa.....and settle in like you live there.

It really doesn't have to be too expensive. There are many MUCH more expensive Caribbean islands. STJ is on the low end. I'm currenlty planning a trip to the Caribbean island of Mustique - so STJ looks like a drop in the bucket in terms of expense.

I think you just did it a little expensively. I hope you'll try again.

I think your posting is a good example of why boards such as this exist - to help visitors get what they want from their vacation.

The taxi rates in the VI are always a hot topic, because even residents acknowledge that the price structure can be a sticker shock. Every message board, including this one, that advises visitors planning a visit to the Virgin Islands, recommends renting a car. You would have found out the exact cost of your taxi fare if you had asked on a message/forum board, and then you would have known what to expect, and maybe someone would have suggested a less expensive option.

I'm sure if you had asked for an opinion on the Westin, someone would have said it is not known for its beach (I don't think I've ever seen it mentioned that it's manmade, though). Since St John has so few hotels, th Westin can charge a premium. Again, most people don't bother to go online and see what other options may be available. The Westin sure isn't going to tell you.

Regarding duty-free shopping. Every duty-free store or destination I've ever seen has always been a luxury-goods emporium. Since duty is calculated as a percentage of the goods' value, the more expensive the item, the larger the duty savings. Lower-priced goods have very low, if any,duty, so there's very little to cut in order to trim the price.

When I travel, I'm always looking for something unusual that I can't get at home, so comparing prices isn't possible. If you look past the jewelry, etc, there are lovely, creative gifts of all prices that make excellent mementos of your trip.

So I suggest that whatever your next destination may be, please do yourself AND the destination a favor by soliciting recommendations BEFORE you go. I think you'll have a much more enjoyable vacation.

i guess if you are not a "boater, snorkeler, diver, kamikaze driver or a shopaholic " you shouldn't book a vacation to an island where that is what there is to do.
better luck next time on choice of destination

I guess I just didn't give a clear enough picture. Little, old, widow lady, pushin 60 dragging her youngest (22) daughter to see the beautiful beaches & the places her father & I camped on St John. No way am I brave enough to either drive those roads (Come on! The roads are horrible!) or let my wild child attempt it. Yikes! I promise you I went through an ink cartridge researching the trip (including reading for literally hours on this site) & yes, I remembered & confirmed the taxi & ferry rates. Maps, books, everything. No, I don't think tipping is "like in the states" because when you ask the taxi driver how much you owe him & he says you owe him $12.00 when you know the fare is $8.00 - he's just plain ripping you off - what could I have done (I guess we could have rumbled in the street.)? I can calculate 15% in my head & always gave it or more everywhere even when the service was marginal (i.e. really bad); was careful to say good morning, etc. (i.e. am not a cranky, demanding, little, old etc) Love the diversity, local color, & beach though happy to sit in the shade w/a pina colada remembering now. Yes, the Westin was very expensive. Not a personal problem except, as I said, usually oceanfront rooms have a view of the ocean etc..& travelers should be warned about the very high prices there over & above the room. I agree about shopping & finding unusual mementos - enjoyed the art galleries in St Thomas very much & bought a lovely painting of Trunk Bay. Also bought an adorable 'Rasta Raggedy Ann' for my granddaughter. I'm pretty laid back & easy to please, but I do like to get what I pay for, tip as an option for good service, & be treated politely myself. I perhaps have not done myself or the destination a favor w/this 'trip report', but hopefully some tenderfoot, future tourists will at least be on guard.

P Mooneyham, Virgin Islands taxi prices are regulated, and most drivers have them posted in their cabs. The fare from airport to "town" (regardless of where in town you get on/off) is a set rate. If a driver quotes you anything other than the regulated fare, you are under no obligation to pay over and beyond, and you have the right to report that driver to the Taxi Commission. We all hate drivers like that, and the Virgin Islands govt is trying very hard to standardize rates so there's no question, and people know what to expect before they get in. Drivers like that discourage visitors from returning.

All the resorts are pricey, especially for services beyond the price of your room. One thing about St John is it has accommodations in every price range (from camping to very high-end luxurious). Maybe it would have been better for you to have stayed in one of the smaller in-town inns/guest houses. You could have walked to local restaurants, docks, and taxis.

Hopefully your daughter had a good time.

P mooneyham-

Your trip report will help others. It is always good for someone to post their view since it sparks interesting board conversation about things most of us "repeat visitors" take for granted. And, yes, you should be able to VIEW the ocean from the oceanVIEW room....and the taxi driver should have charged you the appropriate fare. So, I hear ya. You seem to be saying that you knew it was going to be an expensive trip and you're just griping about the insult added to your pocketbook injury......fair enough.

By the way, "little old lady pushing 60"??? HA! So you are not yet 60 and you are calling yourself a little old lady? I guess you wouldn't want to travel with my parents (late 60s) who are planning to tour the Grenadine Islands by hopping mailboats. ha ha

I hope you enjoyed your time with your daughter!! And, I hope she enjoyed STJ enough to return. Did she get to visit Cruz Bay at night?

P. mooneyham,

Sorry for your disappointment in your trip and how you feel you were treated.

For almost 30 years of coming to STJ I have observed at least once on every trip someone who should not have come to this "little piece of heaven",for them it was hell.

I think mostly it is because they thought it was going to be something it was not, and they could not seem to accept it for what it is.

Many who come here, and if you take a moment to watch you can pick them out on every ferry boat that arrives at the public square, incorrectly assume they can behave the way they do in the states. Life here is not in the states, one should not attempt to make it that way.

We normaly spend a month here, for us that usually is just the right amount of island time, I too begin to become impatient with the flow here. When that happens I know it is time to leave and return to our other life.

I have said many times on this site, it is not cheap to spend time in the islands, no matter which one you go to. There are ways of making it less expensive, however it is still costly to be here.

Hopefully, you have taken many pics. that in a few weeks you can look at and find that it was not as bad as you feel right now.

RM

Blu - Thanks. I do feel I've been heard & hope report will help especially younger/first timers. I know when my husband & I went 20 yrs ago, we had no idea what 'duty free' really meant & spent ourselves silly. Yes, 'little, old, etc' is a slight exaggeration. Will think about your brave folks & smile. Daughter & I greatly enjoyed our time together, her having just come off deployment & now a full time college student. I felt bad that she didn't get into Cruz Bay at night. She was an angel to hang w/me the whole time. I was also careful not to grouse about things thinking someday she might want to get back there & do the young crowd thing - a whole different perspective I know. Enjoy.

p mooneyham,

Just curious, where have you traveled that you enjoyed and/or had a better experience?
This might give us a better idea of what you expect from a trip.

nsalphadog

Have lived in Europe, Asia; traveled to Hawaii, Phillipines, the usual stateside places. Naw, my expectations weren't too high - you just got jumbies there & people should know.

p mooneyham: While I agree that there are a good number of changes in the Virgin Islands over the last 20 years, I dare say there are that many changes in your home town, also. There are many more people around now, for one thing. One of my favorite statistical tables about world population change from the 2003 New York Times Almanac:

YEARS TO REACH POPULATION MILESTONES:
milestone - year reached - years to reach
1 billion - 1804 - N.A.
2 billion - 1927 - 123
3 billion - 1960 - 33
4 billion - 1974 - 14
5 billion - 1987 - 13
6 billion - 1999 - 12
7 billion - 2012 (est)- 13

(Hmm, table doesn't print in columns, but you get the drift?)

I am not going to defend the taxi association; most complaints about the VI seem to be related to these ambassadors. If you look at the taxi rates on this website (above on the navigation bar under St Thomas), you will see that the fare from the airport to town is listed as $6 each for 2+ passengers traveling together. The fares were recently increased along with standardized fees for luggage. I wish they would go to a metered system, but not much chance of that.

BTW, I am not familiar with "Tag Bags." What is it? One CAN find bargains in high end merchandise, but you must do your homework and know quality and cost comparisons. The listed price in the jewelry stores is rarely the sale price!

Again, I am sorry you had a bad experience. I wish you would contact the Taxi Association or even write a letter to the editor of the Virgin Islands Daily News or the Source (onepaper.com) I don't think there are many taxi drivers who monitor this board, although I could be wrong.

Hi, East Ender. Tag Bags are purses made out of license plates (tags!). They're sold at the infrequently open store in International Plaza called, believe it or not, Tag Bags. They're the rage with teens and twenty-somethings. I think the prices start at around $35. He's also got belts made out of old rubber tires with bottle caps on them, etc. Most items sold in the store are made from recycled materials.

East Ender, you need to get out more 😉

Sheesh! If I could ever find a parking place, I would go downtown! It is funny what you can learn on-line! Thanks! 😉