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My husband and I just returned from our trip to St. Thomas. We had a wonderful time there. Stayed at Secret Harbour and it was the perfect place for us. Very quiet and low-key. Our room was just steps from the sand and we snorkeled every day. Rented a car and went all over the island. Driving on the left isn't that hard at all. Did a day trip to St. John too. The people were all nice and friendly and there was no attitude from anyone. About the only even slightly negative thing to say is that eating out is pretty expensive. We saved money there by cooking breakfast in our apartment unit. We just snacked midday and then went out for dinner in the evenings. We went into Charlotte Amalie on a day when there was only one cruise ship in and it wasn't too crowded. I don't get those cruise ship people at all. It seems like they just dash off the boat, run around, buy souveniers and say that they have "been to St. Thomas". They haven't seen anything of the island at all! One final question in order to plan our next trip there - does the temperature ever cool off slightly? Locals kept saying it was pretty warm and it had usually cooled off by now. By the same token, what about the water temperature? Does it ever get too cool to snorkel? All in all, we had a great time and can't wait to come back.
Ughh...cruise ships.
Ships pull into harbor in the morning and you only usually get about 8 or 9 hours in port before you depart the island. That was the only thing I didn't like about my cruise back in 99. You feel like you're always rushing because you're always looking at your watch to make sure you make it back to the ship on time. Plus, to get back on time you have to leave town at least an hour early so you can get through traffic and wait in line to reboard. I felt so short changed on my STT experience that I had to take a 4 day trip there last month to soak more of it in...and I plan on more trips in the future. 🙂
As far as the weather, from what I've heard there's only a couple of degrees difference in the highs and lows all year. I have a good friend who lives on STX who says a hotel or two will give you a free night's stay if the temps go below 75...heh.
Just a few more thoughts on the subject of cruise passengers ...
and there are thousands of them, by the way !!
A lot of us love to cruise mainly because the ships are floating resorts ! We enjoy
all the ship amenities, the activites, the dining options, entertainment, etc.
The fact that St Thomas is a port of call is a * plus ~ as well as the other ports we
visit - Some passengers are not concerned about where they go - others are !
Every travel mode has its pro & con and/ or reasons to travel in that fashion.
It's great to stay on the island and take your time enjoying the island... But, its also great to cruise ....
And most cruise ship passengers do return for overnight stays!
The water gets much cooler in the winter, locals and acclimated transplants find it too cold in the winter, but it's no problem to tourists coming in from the cold!
.
Ronnie
Hello Beachdog - glad you had a good time. You can find wheather information, air temps, water temps, rain fall details at
https://www.vinow.com/usvi/weather.php
--Islander
it gets cooler in dec jan and feb but of course you will be in high season so rates will go way up. of course it never gets cold - just a little more comfortable for those of us who can't handle the heat and humidity
