The Beach Bar and Woody's are natural as they are ground floor. I n my opinion, Woody's out front on the street is the best location. You get to see everything and enjoy the crowd. Restaurants in Cruz Bay I suggest Rhumblines. Many of the restaurants on STJ are at ground level although I must admit I have no experience as to wheelchair access.

(here is a copy/paste from the reply I put up on TripAdvisor)

Unfortunately, St. John is not a very wheelchair friendly place. To make it more complicated for you, several places will still be closed when you are here. La Plancha will be perfect. They are located in the Marketplace, second level. Park in the 'back' lot. If you have your handicap parking permit, you can park in one of 2 (maybe 3?) spots in the back lot and the surface is flat, with no steps. La Plancha will be moving to a new location in November. They will be located in Mongoose Junction in the old Paradiso spot.

On the 3rd level of the Marketplace there is Baked in the Sun. They serve breakfast and lunch. To get to the thrid level, park in the back lot of the Marketplace and take the elevator up.

High Tide in Wharfside Village. And yes, street side is wheelchair accessible.

Fish Trap in Rain Tree Court.... I keep thinking there is a stair or two to contend with there, but I am going to have to go check it out to see if I am remembering something that isn't there 😉

Sun Dog Cafe in Mongoose Junction. To get to them, you will have to park in the back of the complex. You turn into their lot and drive around the complex to get to the best spot to access Sun Dog. Basically, drive through the lot until you get to the end....park, and Sun Dog is right there. They have seating on two different levels, so the upper level is where you will want to be. This complex has a lot of stairs, but you can get to Sun Dog without having to deal with any stairs.

The G Spot at Larry's Landing (across from Wharfside). This isn't a 'fancy' place, but they have great food and it's a super value. Larry's is a 'pour your own' bar, and they have a dart board and pool tables if you want to hang out there for awhile and play some games.

You can get to the Beach Bar, but they don't have any tables where you can get to them. They are either on the beach or up a couple of steps. The bar is on the main level and it is at bar height. I would still suggest you check it out though and see if you can make it work. It's a great place to hang out and have a couple of drinks, a bite to eat, and meet some people.

Buddy's Hurricane Hole (formerly Love City Cantina/Surly Cantina/Paradise Cafe) in Wharfside Village. It's Mexican food. They have about 4 tables, and can be accessed via wheelchair. Probably the quickest way to get to it is to drive into the Wharside Village parking lot, stop right when you turn in, and take the ramp right there. They will be straight ahead.

I would LOVE to hear your feedback once you return home. We have this type of question on the forum, but I haven't really heard any feedback from someone who has to deal with our not so wheelchair friendly island. If you have the time, could you do a St. John Wheelchair Trip Report when you get home?

Safe travels and hope you have a fantastic vacation!!!!

Julie - It was very kind of you to write that up! 🙂

*blush* Thanks for saying so dntw8up! We don't see to many visitors in wheelchairs on St. John. I would be very interested in hearing from someone who has been to St. John that is in a wheelchair. I know that disabled Vets come to the island sometimes as group and I bet they have some really useful advice!

In 1995 I traveled to Europe with my father-in-law for the 50th anniversary of the landing at Anzio. We were part of a group of vets and he used a wheelchair, altho he could get up and take a few steps. Small, almost unnoticed barriers for me were a huge challenge for him. It was a real eye-opener. Hope we can get some first hand experience from someone.

Thanks so much for the detailed report. I will give you all an up date when we return.

Great! I'm looking forward to it!