I recommend Caneel Bay resort at St. John. It's a good getaway from the "Big City" and there's tons of things to do. Plus it costs next to nothing to take a boat ride to see St. Thomas.

If you want to go "middle of the road" on spending, that's not Caneel. It's gorgeous but very high end and no kitchen facilities.
On St Thomas, you could try Secret Harbour, Sapphire Beach Resort, Bolongo Bay Resort, Blazing and/or Amazing Villas on the grounds of the Renaissance. All of these have kitchen facilities and units with a couple of bedrooms. All also have websites that you can find easily with a google search.
On St John, you could try, Lavender Hill Condo's, Gallows Point Resorts, Cruz Views Condo's or one of the dozen's and dozen's of villas.
There are tons of options on either island and you can feel perfectly comfortable taking your family to any of the USVI. Crime is PRIMARILY a local on local phenomonon and mostly drug or domestic violence related. I've taken my kids to all three of the islands for years and have never felt uncomfortable or unsafe.
Have fun!

As a single woman who travels with her sister, we go to St. Croix all the time and feel perfectly safe. St. Thomas actually has more crime than St. Croix, which wouldn't deter me from that destination either. Your likelihood of encountering crime is extremely small - just keep your head about you and don't do anything you wouldn't do at home.

As far as hotels, assuming you want to be on or very near the beach, look at Cane Bay Reef Club, The Waves at Cane Bay (very short walk to a gorgeous beach), Hotel on the Cay, Cottages by the Sea or (a more costly alternative unless there's a deal) The Divi Carina Bay. I'd probably go to Hotel on the Cay as it is very safe (tiny island in the harbor), has a nice beach with pretty good snorkeling off the back side of the island, and is just moments from town (less than 5 minutes) via the ferry that runs constantly during the day. That gives you easy access to all the activities and restaurants in town, still keeping you on the beach.

I will keep up with the trend of the repies from the "J" crowd. My recommendation would be to go to St. John. While I am not sure what resorts/rentals are on the beach, there is plenty to do on StJ. There are lots of hiking trails from easy, (Cinnamon nature hike) to the Reef Bay Hike, (you go down first, then back UP!) You can get away from it all in Coral Bay, or take in the shopping in Cruz Bay. STJ offers horseback riding, lots of snorkeling, (Waterlemon is my recommendation), beaches from quiet and calm, (Francis) to busy and a little rough (Cinnamon). Each has some unique snorkeling features. If you are willing to forgo staying on the beach, there are lots of cottages with full kitchens to rent for not too horrible prices, some with beautiful views of the east end and BVI's. Only a few minutes to at least a few beaches. And you have to experience driving on STJ. An experience in itself. Also, try Skinny Legs in Coral Bay, & Pickles, for deli stuff. This past March was our seventh trip to STJ and we still don't get bored. Wherever you go have a great time. Say hi to the fishes for me until next March.

For what you are asking I think any of the three would work well.

If you stayed on St. Thomas (Sapphire Beach, Bolongo Bay, Secret Harbor - as mentioned are good choices - beach front, middle road...) you can visit around St. Thomas, historical sties, snorkeling, beaches... head over to St. John by ferry (only $6 round trip and takes about 20 minutes from Red Hook) and you can hike over there in the National Park and visit the beaches there as well. And vice versa if you stay on St. John you can hop over to St. Thomas to enjoy the things it offers. From St. Thomas you can also go over to Water Island for the day and picnic and hike around.

On St. Croix lots of outdoor things, horseback, snorkeling, charter, beach hop, hiking... its harder to island hop from there, but there is a ferry and seaplane just a bit pricier to visit the other islands then its it is from St. Thomas - St. John.

On St. Croix Protestant Cay is lovely - great view from the beach of Christiansted. Cane Bay is great also. Divi is more pricey - its a Casino Resort - lots of fun, Ok beach.

St. John, the beach resorts are pricey - the villas are great if you want to go that route.

--Islander

Thank you all for taking the time to help a new comer out! Your information was most helpful. We ended up booking a place on St. Thomas. Most of the places we wanted on St. John weren't available. We plan to rent a car , so we can ferry over to St. John and check out all the great places you told us about. It all sounds beautiful. Thanks again!

Janelle

Have a great vacation - if you have any questions about beaches, restaurants, and the island let us know. 🙂

--Islander