Sprockett, I am going in two weeks on a similar "low budget" trip. I'm camping at the Cinnamon Bay campground. I'll be sure to give you (and all others on this board) a full trip report upon my return.

We (myself and 3 buddies) are going to rent a jeep for a day or two. Split 4-ways, we figure that will be cheap enough. Another budget excursion we are planning is renting a 14' dingy with a 35 HP outboard motor. I've been told (by folks on this board and others) that renting a small motor boat is a good way to get to some of the out-of-the-way beaches and off-shore cays. The cost on that is roughly $180 for a day. Again, split 4-ways makes it within reach for this budget traveller. We've been advised to rent from a place called "Noah's Little Arks" in Cruz Bay.

I'll give a full report in 3 weeks or so.

In response to your post about St John on a budget, here are my suggestions. I just spent almost 3 weeks there on the budget plan- camped in my own tent at Cinnamon and bought groceries at the Starfish Market in Cruz Bay.

If you are really on a budget, consider bagging Maho Campground, bringing your own tent and camping at Cinnamon Bay- cost 27 dollars a night and no tax!! You can rent a stove, propane, and a lantern for $3 a day.

Second, a rental car is really NOT necessary- unless you have a large group. It is expensive, and you can get around easily with taxis and hitching for less than the cost of a car- plus you meet all sorts of folks that way. In three visits there I have never rented a car. Maho (whether you stay there or not) and Cinnamon both have organized taxi excursions to get you all around the island if you want to go that way. There is a bus from Cruz Bay to Salt Pond for 1 dollar, etc. etc

The weather in March should be great- less rainy- Bugs, in my opinion, are always there- bring turbo misquito repellant.

You should absolutely check out Cinnamon Bay Beach and a close 2nd is Hawksnest. Trunk Bay tends to be very crowded.

If you really want to splurge on a great snorkel/sail trip- call Clark Beam on White Wing- he runs out of Coral Bay. You can reserve with him via Connections ( http://www.connectionsstjohn.com/ ) or for more detail see http://www.connectionsstjohn.com/Whitewing-info.htm - click on whats to do- then scroll down to charters, and click on White WIng.
He is really the best- The BVIs are an idea, but much more crowded. Snorkling out of St. John means almost no other boats around you- I highly recommend it.

Enjoy-

I just got back from camping at Cinnamon Bay a few weeks ago.

We rented a car from St. Thomas. Much cheaper than a jeep and it got us everywhere. About $25 a day. It cheaper than the taxis. Round trip for 2 people from Cinnimon Bay to Cruz is $22 dollars. For 3 more bucks we had our car to beach hop each day. Also stopped at the Pueble grocery store on St. Thomas and stocked up on food. Much cheaper there than in town on St. John.

Our favorite beaches were Salt pond, Hawknest, and Honeymoon. Good snorkeling at Waterlemon Cay and Salt Pond. Just a swim off the beach. No need for a boat.

FYI. Most places have happy hour around 4:30-6ish. Half price drinks always taste better on a budget.

Enjoy
Heidi

thanks for the awesome reply!!

is snorkelling gear rental expensive? would it be worthwhile for me to get a cheap set on ebay and bring my own?

awesome tip about the car rental in st thomas! any names of which car rental agency to go to? or is 25$ about the standard price?

billion thanks in advance!!

Forgive me if this is a dumb question- how do you get the car from STT to STJ?

Don't buy on ebay. Either go to a dive shop to make sure you get a propper fit or rent. If you are going to rent for an entire week it would be worth it to buy your own. There is nothing more miserable than a leaky, ill fitting mask.

You take the car ferry in Redhook

Hello,

Weather in March is great. Expect nice sunshine. February-March are our driest months. Scroll to the very top of this page and click on Weather on the right side. You can find today's forcast, a 5 day forcast, avg. temperatures by month, avg. rainfall by month, water temps... lots of weather info. 🙂 Mosquitos should be less, but still bring or buy repellent... less but not non-existant! We have them all year round to some degree.

You can definately find things to do on St. John on a budget... Beach hop, snorkel, hike, consider maybe kayaking or windsurfing.

Check out as many beaches as you can! Under St. John at the top of this page there is a beach guide. Some favorites; Hawksnest, Caneel Bay, Trunk Bay, Cinnamon Bay, Maho Bay, Salt Pond Bay, Honeymoon Bay.

Renting snorkel by day will run you about $5-$7 plus a deposit of $25. If you aren't going to buy a set you can rent for the week from dive shop in Cruz Bay. Most of the beaches don't have gear rental, exceptions are Trunk Bay & Cinnamon Bay and then the resort's Caneel & Westin have a watersports booth by their respective beaches with different "watertoys". Cinnamon Bay besides the snorkel gear has windsurfing and some other stuff, I don't know the costs.

Have a great time.

--Islander