cohio:

Trust me.......Rent a car!

Try Hertz or Avis. Use your AAA discount (if you're a member of AAA) for Hertz.....or the Entertainment Book for Avis. Or if you're a member of any club (or corporate rate/discount) try that.

Don't take it over on the ferry for one day....too complicated.

F.I.

Absolutely rent a car. Cowpet is lovely but you're going to want to get out and about and taxi fares add up VERY fast.

If you decide to take the car over to STJ, check first to see if the rental company allows it as some don't. If you opt for the passenger ferry, parking in Red Hook is very difficult right now because of major construction. However, there is a $5/day lot which seems to have space in it. That's located just a short way up on the left as you turn right onto the Red Hook main road from Nazareth. There's a sign on the side of the road which is easy to spot.

Have a wonderful visit. Cheers!

Cohio...you have to rent a car. I promise you that you're going want to get and drive around to see the island. Even if you don't want to venture out alot, rent it for a few days and drive around. If you don't, you're missing alot of the island beauty.

We rented a car thru Hotwire.com for $200/week, and talked to a family who spent that in a DAY to go to downtown, then to eat etc. Definitely rent a car.

After the taxi drain on our wallet, renting was the best decision we made.

Save money rent a car. We were so disappointed with our first trip to St. Thomas partly because we didn't have a car. Driving is very easy. Waiting for a taxi in the hot sun was no fun. Spending $60 + a day for a taxi was worse.
We went over to St. John on both trips. We didn't take our car. This trip we hired a taxi to take us on an island tour. It was $25 a person. It was relaxing and educational. We were dropped off at Trunk Bay and took another taxi back to Cruz Bay around 4 PM. I think it cost $6 a person. It was a great day and everyone in our group loved it. During our last trip we just walked around Cruz Bay and missed all of the beauty to be found on St. John. I also recommend a boat trip. Then you can see even more. You might find places you would like to explore more. Good luck and have a great trip.

Thanks for the help!

Does anyone know which rental car agency lets you take the car from STT to STJ?

Teresa

Budget

cohio,
Glad you have made some plans!
It is obvious from above to rent a car! The ONLY rental agency that does NOT allow vehicles to STJ is Hertz! Stay away from Thrifty, they are a nightmare, I assure you!
Good luck and hope you will do a trip report!

We didn't think we'd need one (actually, my husband didn't think so), and we really did fine without one, but honestly, we'd have been able to see and do so much more with a car. Rent one if you can! 🙂

I'm pretty sure Dependable does - and they get GREAT reviews from all that rent from them

Pia

Most all the agencies allow you to do it with the exception of Hertz. I have the same beliefs about Thrift/Dollar. They, on two occasions, made a mess of some guests reservations. One, not letting them pick up the car after 5, even though they were there closing up and the guests plane was late, second, another late arrival and they made the guest pay for a more expensive car, as they had rented the one reserved! I did report them to their home office to which they were looking into it.

Two caveats about taking a car to St John.One, if the car breaks down, you are basically on your own.(most are new cars and chances are slim)second, if it's a day that one or two of the barges are not running, it could be hairy coming back in the late afternoon. The guy at the ticket booth at Red Hook could tell you the status. He has offered his opinion to me on more than one occasion as to not take it! If you choose to park, the students at the High School are raising funds during the summer and you can park at the school.
Have fun.

RL

Thanks for all the great advise!!!!! So much to do....so little time!
cohio

I just got back from STT on Wednesday. I rented from Dependable and they were great. They told me I could take the car over to STJ but they would not service it there if I experienced mechanical problems. The beaches are fantastic on STJ.

So, wino, you obviously experienced no auto problems. We didn't either. So glad you rented one and enjoyed the TOTAL experience.

Cohio,
I live in Cowpet Bay East and I would say definitely rent a car. The beach here at Cowpet is decent but you do not want to spend your entire vacation at our beach when there are so many nicer one's that are easy to get to by car and car ferry to St. John.
It is nice and convenient at Cowpet Bay East to be able to walk down to the beach and Roberts. Bonnie's is no longer open and Roberts is taking over that space. You can now get breakfast lunch and dinner at Roberts. The Ritz Carlton next door is walkable and Sails is a good spot for lunch but a little pricey. With a car you open up options to go to Secret Harbor just down the street to enjoy the beach and Blue Moon Cafe for lunch or dinner. Red Hook of course is right down the road and you can drive down for breakfast at Molly' Malone's or Burrito Bay Deli which has great breakfast burritos also if you like coffee Latte's in Paradise in Red Hook is great. The night time entertainment in Red Hook is easy to drive to from here and now with the High School closed for the summer they have parking for $5 for the whole day if you can't find free parking. Car also let's you drive to the Food Center and Marina Market for beer runs or if you want to have breakfast, lunch supply's of cook dinner. That car can also get you down to Latitude 18 in less then 5 minutes for food and nightly entertainment and a great local hang out.
The car ferry to St. John is easy to manage. If you feel uncomfortable with it then just drive your rental down to Red Hook look for free parking if you don't find it you have a new pay parking lot behind the Marina Market that is $10 for the day or Eudora Kean High School for $5. You can take the people ferry over grab a cab to a beach or go to happy hour and dinner on St. John. I do it all the time. Red Hook ferry is only 5 minutes from Cowpet East which makes it easy to go for the day just for happy or hour or dinner.
Your options are many so rent the car and have a great vacation.