We have been going down to STT for 15+ years for bareboat charters out of Benner Bay. And then, in November 2003, became landlubbers after purchasing a home on Water Island. In all cases, we pack our frozen meats in a large cooler just prior to leaving the house for the airport. We put the cooler on a bathroom scale to make sure it complies with weight restrictions. We duct tape the cooler, put it in an army duffel bag, and check it as luggage. Fly from Tampa, to San Juan to STT then stop at Pueblo for produce, dairy, etc., then arriving at the boat / house many hours later. The frozen foods remain perfectly frozen. Let's see.....estimating the timeline....frozen food is loaded in cooler @ 06:00 and unloaded into freezer at our destination around 16:00/16:30.

We've never had a problem. We don't pack it in ice - the frozen food keeps itself "frozen". TSA did open the cooler once (as per the note they left inside the cooler) but because we put it in a duffel bag, the cooler was able to remain shut and in tact upon arrival at our final destination. There are a lot of reasons for bringing frozen meat with us from Continental US. Reasons include (not in any order of priority): convenience, price, quality, meal planning.

We were recently down in STJ for 3 weeks and we try and eat in half of the time. We have done this for a number of years and have it down pretty good. It is about 10 hours door to door to give you a time frame.

Soft sided cooler has worked best for us.

I kid you not of what we brought down, it gets a heavy tag at the airport but will not charge you if you don't use your maximum allowance for bag alottment. You are allowed 2 bags to check and anything over 50 pounds is considered heavy. My wife and I share our clothing luggage which frees up another bag so you are not charged extra.

8 pounds chicken cutlets
10 pounds chicken burgers
20 pounds bacon cheeseburgers
2 pound pork chops
8 pounds cold cuts ( Don't freeze - put on top)
4 pounds bacon
4 pounds London Broil
4 pounds hot dogs

5 lbs cheese
2 sausage/pepperoni

It gets freezer wrapped at the butcher and then wrappend in news paper. Have it frozen for a day or so before you go so it's frozen solid. This is an important step to do before you go. You have to do a trial pack so it's a tight fit in the cooler. This will also give you an idea of how to pack efficiently. It is packed tightly in a cooler and is still frozen solid when you open it ten hours later.

In addition, we bring many dry items such as chips,(in a tube at the top of the suitcase) pretzels, crackers,etc.

It is a bit of a hassel but would not be able to afford to go as long if we didn't do it this way. We still hit the grocery store for our liquor, milk, beer, eggs, bread, and anything else we would need.

There is a grocery store for sale over there for 1.3 million. Maybe if I hit mega millions tonight, I'll stop bringing my food. I'll still need my bacon cheeseburgers though.

Good Luck and enjoy it all.

Couple of comments to add to all of the good info to date:
American Airlines indicated that they would allow dry ice to be checked only and they charge at least $40 for carrying dry ice due to the hazards so we just bought a freezer shoulder carry on bag at Wal Mart for about $9. We froze meats ourselves, froze juice/drinks/bottled water have in flight/at airports and several blue ice packs and carried it on. It really wasn't that heavy and we had the convenience of having drinks with us for the flight/layovers. We flew from DFW to Miami to STT, about an 8 hour trip. By the time we got to the villa, most all had started to slighty thaw (I'll probably try that professional flash freeze suggestion next time) so we grilled out for dinner the first half of our trip enjoying the views/villa etc and ate out the second half. It was a nice balance for us. Enjoy your trip.

Just a heads up for those of you looking for frozen meat keepers. I found some really nice stuff at Sam's Club. I got a super nice high efficient insulated and zippered bag that can be carried vertically or horizontally. Really nice quality thickly padded leakproof bag that folds and velcros to itself and it's pretty big and it only cost like 8 bucks. They also had colapsible coolers, rolling coolers, large, small etc. I plan on taking my bag on our trip in June. Can't wait!

I never dreamed a simple question about hauling meat would bring about such a wealth of information and opinion. This board is truely a wonderful thing!!!!!!!!!!

Dry Ice is not, I repeat not considered hazardous by the airlines. Most airlines will limit you to a maximum of 4-5 lbs., which is more than enough for a medium sized cooler. If your food, especially meat, is going to be in a cooler for more than 8 hrs. than I highly recommend dry ice.
Otherwise, freezing your goods, wrapping it liberally in freezer paper and then newspaper, and throwing some ice cubes or some plastic freezer packs in your cooler will be sufficient for up to a 6 hr. trip or so.
You might also want to wrap the dry ice in paper because it is so cold that if directly exposed to the inside of a soft-sided cooler it could easily cause a tear in the lining.

Not to be a stickler, but I just checked into this for our trip via American Airlines & thought the specifics would be helpful to others too. Here is the info from the AA website:

"Dry Ice (4.4 pounds/ 2 kilograms or less) for packing perishables, may be carried on board an aircraft in a hard plastic or heavy gauge Styrofoam container, provided the package is vented. Ticket or gate agent must be advised, and a $40 USD/$54 CAD fee (one-way) applies."

United Air Lines, which I always fly to STT requires no fee and allows soft, styrofoam, or hard sided coolers containing dry ice.

Hi, I have been taking meat to St Jhon for 17 years,and all over the carriabian...(Villa travler)8 I just freeze it and wrap all(usually 40-6o pounds) and put it in a ssuitcase,, I have had my suitcase lost 7 of the 17 time usually in San Juan ,,but the good news is even after the rush back to the airport on sst I have NEVER lost any product ,, even lobster and shrimp,, >>.I am a chef and the real trick is Very very frozen meat in large un-cut portions,,,,no ice it makes a mess ..hope this helps...sean

Large, un-cut portions...That's a great idea! I was really not digging the dry ice plan. (and I'm not sure how paying the airline $40 makes the "hazzardous material" less "hazardous.") 🙂

We were thinking of taking our really good quality soft-sided cooler as a carry-on. Plus, we're connecting thru San Juan and didn't want to risk the loss.

Do you wrap it all individually and then together again as a whole? With what? Thanks so much for your tips!!!

place everything as tightly together as possiable ..wrap with plastic wrap in a big ball or shape that will fit your bag or suitcase then line with news paper in case of a leak (blood ) and dont bother with a cooler use a bag or suitcase that you can toss away or pack with dirty clothes or gifts ect..on your trip home..you will have at least 36 hours in a suitcase or bag before anything starts to realy thaw. I have taken 47 pounds frozen to a small Island off Fiji 4 days later it was still frozen and in great shape ..good luck...sean

That totally sounds like the way to go...Thanks for your expert advice 🙂

Deb,
We come from Michigan. We always take our own meat and some other foods with us when we travel to St. John because we are always on a tight budget. My husband works in a grocery store and can get very good deals. A soft sided cooler is the only way to go in our opinion. Please check with your airline but the airline we traveled with did allow us to take dry ice in the cooler. You have to tell them that you have it as you are checking your luggage and they tag it saying it has dry ice in it. We freeze the meat then pack it very tightly in the cooler with some frozen bottles of water and the dry ice. It stays completly frozen! In fact last time we went we stayed at a park and fly motel and it was still froze when we got to St. John. Hope this helps.
Please check with your airline though.

Thanks for all the great advice. I thought this subject had died and gone away, but I see lots of you have the same interest and concerns as I do on this subject.

With all due respect for everyone's opinions, whether you be eating in or eating out, herewith my two cents.

East Ender, you didn't need to apologize, as IslandTimer duly noted!

There certainly are places here other than Marina Market on STT or Starfish on STJ where you can buy good meat. Many savvy travellers who are en route to St. John stop on their way through St. Thomas either at Cost-U-Less (on the Weymouth Rhymer Highway) or Plaza Extra (in the Tutu Park Mall) to pick up their meats. Both places have butchers on staff and have "fresh" meat on hand as well as frozen - and at most reasonable prices.

Notwithstanding the simple joy of "doing dinner at home" in one's vacation villa, sitting on the patio and watching the moon and the sun and the stars, etc.. there is certainly a plus in venturing out for dinner at least a few times during one's visit. The islands are a melting pot of different cultures and that melting pot is sometimes well-evidenced at several long-time restaurants that might not necessarily be advertised but to which locals will direct you - and don't you come here not only to absorb the sun but to know where you at?

Enjoy your visit!

Well said.