The first time I went to St. John I was living in Boston, and I thought the prices were pretty crazy in comparison (and I'd moved to Boston from central Illinois a year before that and cried the first time I went grocery shopping in Boston b/c the prices were so high).

My husband and I take meat and dry goods with us and then buy stuff that we wouldn’t take on the plane (like milk, eggs, bottled water) on St. Thomas. You can expect to spend nearly $6 on a gallon of milk, $5 on a carton of orange juice…fruit is pretty expensive too, I think I saw grapes for $6 a pound. Those are St. Thomas prices, so they’re a bit higher in St. John. Last month we spent $200 on groceries that would have cost us around $50 in Illinois. That’s the price of living in paradise 🙂

I spent $2.50 on a loaf of bread at Starfish, which isn’t horrible.

Hi New England.

If you opt to ship something here you should be aware that Priority Mail can arrive in a couple of weeks but over the last six months I have had seven Priority Mail packages that have take four to six months to arrive!

I was in St THOMAS in April and I surely don't know where TereseaRae was shopping. Those prices that she or he listed are outrageous prices. I live in Florida and I didn't find the prices in St Thomas to be that far off from here in Florida. Tropicana Oranges juice in the carton was 2 for $5.00 etc. This was at K mart and Plaza Extra.

I still have the receipt in my wallet from exactly a month ago tomorrow. The prices are correct. It was the big grocery store near Red Hook, on the north side of the road. We always stock up a cooler just before we board the ferry.

I have a teenager who slurps milk and orange juice day and night and unfortunately TeresaRae's price quotes are pretty accurate!

Talking about shipping food down.

I don't know exactly how it's done. Do you get a couple good coolers? Or cheap ones? Where do you get dry ice.

Should I put everything in a vacummed sealed pack?

We were thinking of taking chicken, hamburger, shrimp, bacon (especially). We'll get other provisions, but I just don't understand how it's done.

OK Guy's

I copied this from a "trip report" on another forum (thanks to Jorge, I know he won't mind 🙂 ) This was from his shopping back at (I believe) Starfish Market on St John in July 2006.

Green Giant 5 lb potatoes $4.19
Tost Chips $2.29
Kraft Amer. Singles $6.65
Kraft Sharp Cheddar $6.05
Shurfine Ketchup $1.79
Orig BBQ Sce $1.95
Vlas Bread&Butr Sand $3.99
Peach preserv $5.39
Smuckers Grape Jelly $2.75
Charles Chips Barbec $2.69
Frito Scoop $2.19
Newmans Fig Newmans $5.89
Muffins 3 @ $1.69 = $5.07
Kraft EZ SQZ Mircle $4.25
PNUT Butter Crun $3.95
SFine Mayo 16oz $2.19
Wheat thin $4.59
Onion - Vdlia $1.39/lb.
Oscar Mayer Variety $4.29
ShurfreshcGrade a eggs $2.59
Grimmay baby carrot $2.89
Bush BBQ Baked beans $1.69
Nab Ritz Crackers $4.89
Chips Ahoy 12oz $4.99
Mex Orgn Fajita 10ct $2.09
Lay's BBQ Chips $2:19
Mountain Dew 6 pak $3.59
Smirnoff Ice $10.59
Holsum 100% Whole WH $2.55
Trop PP Homstyl Orange Juice $8.05
French's SQZ Mustard $1.65
Lemons 2@ $1.39
Limes 2@ $1.00
Coors Lt Cans $12.99
Seagrams Tonic Water $1.69
Absolute Vodka $10.99
Lime Juice $6.99
Cuervo Gold 750 $13.99
Capt Morgan $12.29
Triple Sec Bols $7.99
Beefeater Dry Gin $12.69
Tequila $15.99
Island Pure Case Water $6.00
Bags of ice $2.00
Ground Beef $2.89 lb.

We went last January and took frozen meat down with us (checked it in a cooler) We are going g again in January and will take meats again and ship dry goods. Not because I don't want to pay the higher prices, but selection isn't what I would like. Will send ahead the kid's favorite foods and buy fruits and veggies in St. Thomas on the way over. We had very limited selection of fruits and veggies last trip. I want to spend my time at the beach or on the deck, not making frequent trips to the market to see if they have gotten a delivery!

Splasher, are you talking a small cooler or a large one? And do you tape it up or something, so it doesn't open up? Like I said we have 8 people so i think we would want to do a large cooler. Is that possible checking it in as baggage?

We have checked large and medium size ice chests as luggage before. I did, however, read before a trip a month or so ago that at least one airline had special "busy summer" restrictions on checked items and during this time would not allow checked baggage that was not approved luggage. Depending on your flight dates you might want to check with your airline specifically. We always used packing tape and wrapped the entire ice chest several times.

You also need to consider that currently checked luggage is frequently opened and examined by hand. If an ice chest isn't simple to repack and seal you may find items missing or loose outside the cooler in baggage claim.

As others have pointed out shipping items down is iffy at best. Since you don't want to take an extra suitcase, you could just buy groceries when you get to STJ. Or, if you are renting a vehicle on STT, go shopping on STT before heading to STJ. STT is cheaper.

Or, reconsider taking an additional bag, especially if the little ones go through a lot of cereal or are picky eaters.
We take two larger suitcases with the telescoping handles and some small duffel bags. The duffel bag handles slide right on top of the telescoping handles and sit on top of the suitcases. We put food inside the suitcases, including our small cooler and clothes in the duffel bags. This arrangement helps a great deal, and you really don't even notice the extra bag. Just a thought.

Have a great trip!

We took a larger cooler (packed with about 46 lbs of meat) and taped it shut with duct tape. We carried extra tape with us and were told that if they had to open it, they would tape it shut again. We had no problems and everything was still frozen when we arrived. We filled the cooler with laundry for the ride home. Worked out great!

Wow, 46 lbs of meat? Who were you feeding? lol

We had 8 adults and only had some chicken and a little ground beef left at the end of the week. So we planned pretty well. What can I say!

And we have 8 adults too. I'm getting kind of obsessive about this. Much different going with just my husband then going with 6 other people who haven't even been out of the states. This is going to be interesting.

Did get the airfare thought!! Big step.

It was our first time traveling with that many other couples and we had a great time. We figured out a per serving/adult amount for each meal and worked with the 50 lb weight limit for luggage. Worked well. Another thing we learned was travel light. We're only bringing half the clothes this time. You don't need alot with the washer and dryer there and the fact that we really spend all of our time in swim suits! Good luck.

After reading all of the above posts, I have to wonder...why? Why would you go thru the hassle just for the measly savings of a couple bucks? If the $15 you save by shipping things (Our prices minus your prices, minus gasoline for you to go to your store, minus the time you spend packing it all, minus the time you spend reading about it here on the board, minus gasoline going to the Post Office and back, minus time out of your vacation trying to find your packages here, etc. = approximately $15 in Total Savings) is that important to you, the VI may not be the right destination for your vacation. This is just my opinion, of course. It seems to me that buying anything you need while here on island, supporting our local economy and the people here that must thrive in it year-round, and saving all the hassles and worry for yourself would just make more sense. But, it takes all kinds to make the world go 'round, right? Have fun and enjoy your vacation!

Dear Marty: Though it was just my husband and I, I believe we saved at least $100 by bringing some groceries along with us. I do not know if it would be worth it to ship it or not, but with a large group of people it might. So far as your comment about supporting your local economy, I can guarantee you that we 'hemorrhaged' cash while we were there.
Also, just because we have a lot of money to spend does not mean we do not like to save some cash, that is partly the reason we have the money to spend there. I, myself, am obsessive in some ways about saving money, while not minding at all blowing a bunch on native crafts and souvenirs. Go figure. One of the main reasons to bring some food from home is the quality of the food there, at least on STJ. I saw a T-bone steak at Starfish Market that was grey in color, for $10.99/lb. I can buy a nice one here on sale for $4.99/lb. That is a savings of $6 for one steak, minus shipping or packing in a cooler.
The produce, for the most part, did not look appetizing. I am not trying to blame anyone for the poor quality of food
because I realize it has to be shipped in, but if you are used to nice,red, juicy steaks and beautiful produce, then by all means bring what you can. Also, we tend to be weirdos and have certain preferences in our foods. My husband, for instance, has to have Pace Picante Sauce on his eggs. No other brand will do. Another good reason to bring food with you. I hope this helps you to understand why we fret and worry about what/how to bring food over. No harm was intended.

Sharon