About St. John USVI

St. John, US Virgin Islands, About Our Paradise


St. John, located in the United States Virgin Islands, has the reputation of being the most beautiful, friendly, and tranquil island in the Caribbean. St. John is less than 21 square miles, seven miles long and three miles wide.  Local population is 4,000.  St. John is the ideal vacation spot with a laid back atmosphere, pristine beaches and much more.

Languages:
Our  official language is English. You will encounter various West Indian dialects spoken by Virgin Island native peoples and residents from other  Caribbean islands. In general, these dialects are easy to understand,  however if you have trouble, just politely ask the person to repeat themselves.  Remember to greet everyone with: Good morning, good evening and good night.  It is considered rude not to do so.

Other languages spoken on island are Spanish (spoken by natives of Puerto Rico and Santo Domingo), Patois (spoken as a second language by people from St. Lucia and Dominica), and Creole (spoken by people from Haiti).

Virgin Islands National Park:
Three quarters of the island of St. John, USVI is protected Virgin Islands National Park. In 1950, Mr. Laurence Rockefeller donated his private property on St. John including his private residence, now Caneel Bay Resort and  to the U.S. Government as public parkland and Congress formed the VI National Park.  The park offers the finest beaches in the world, our coral reefs are a national monument and there are an array of great hiking trails, archeological sites, ranger guided tours, a natural history museum and a visitor’s center that offers well informed park employees to educate and protect the park.

Weather
Weather on St. John ranges from perfect to excellent, with near-ideal temperatures and gentle trade wind breezes. Sunshine daily with a that perfect cooling breeze and you have landed in paradise. The average temperature year around is between 70-86 Degrees.

A tale of two cities:
Cruz Bay
Cruz Bay is St. John's main town. When arriving on St John, you will enter via Cruz Bay. Cruz Bay is the location of our main businesses, island shopping, snorkel and paddle board rentals, car rentals  and many open air island restaurants.  Our office is located just across from the National Park Visitor’s Center.  Please stop in if you need assistance getting around!

Coral Bay
Coral bay is the slower side of island life (you mind wonder how it could be any more chill than Cruz Bay but it is).  A must see.  There are a few restaurants, it's home to Skinny Legs, and you’ll most likely see a donkey or two and a heard of goats crossing the road.  Salt Pond is a great beach to explore.

Local Time
The Caribbean is Atlantic Standard Time zone. This is the same as Eastern Standard Time, however Atlantic Standard Time does not observe daylight savings.  We do not spring forward or call back!

Taxes and Customs 
There are no sales tax in the United States Virgin islands
Each visitor to the Virgin Islands enjoys a $1600 Duty Free Allowance upon returning to the United States. In addition, you may bring back five bottles of liquor duty free or six if one is locally produced (example: Cruzan rum). 10 cartons of cigarettes or 100 cigars of duty fee cigarettes.

Travel Documents
You may travel with your US Driver’s License, Passport or US Government issued ID.  If you plan on traveling to the British Virgin Islands from the US. Virgin Islands you will need your passport.