We have a group of friends, Sharon and Greg from Ohio, and Mike and Karen from Atlanta, that we have known for years. In fact, Lynn went to high school in Ohio with Sharon and Karen. All 6 of us were having the same milestone birthday in 2023 and we were discussing how to celebrate.
Lynn and I had been to St. John in 2022 with Doug and Angie, and based on our feed back from that trip the group decided that going there would be a great way to celebrate. Doug and Angie would be out as they already had other travel plans, but Sharon and Greg as well as Mike and Karen were all in.
The plan was to stay at Seashore Allure where we had gone the year before and share a 3 bedroom condo. Seashore Allure is a wonderful place to stay within walking distance of Cruz Bay. The 3 bedroom units offer complete privacy with 3 individual suites with a common kitchen and living area. This would suit our group perfectly!
We set the dates for Saturday, May 6th through Saturday, May 13th. Greg and Sharon would come down from Ohio and stay with us the night before, with the 4 of us being on the same flight. Mike and Karen would arrive from Atlanta a couple of hours behind us.
We arrived at the St. Thomas airport about 1:00pm on Saturday. From there it is about a 30 taxi ride to the Red Hook Ferry, and a 20 minute ferry ride to St. John.
Lynn had a rather interesting dance partner at the St. Thomas airport...
It was about 2:30pm when we got to Cruz Bay. Since there would be 6 of us we had reserved 2 Jeeps. We picked those up and got checked in at Seashore Allure.
When we got to the condo we found this waiting for us! The owners, Delbert and Delreese, knew that we all had the same milestone birthday around the same time. They really know how to make their guests feel welcomed!
The accommodations at Seashore Allure are fantastic. There is a patio grill for each condo, chairs and coolers provided, a hot tub on the upper level terrace, a full outdoor kitchen in the cabana by the pool that is stocked with beer. Awesome place!
After we got unloaded and settled in it was about time for Mike and Karen to arrive. I drove down to the ferry dock to pick them up. After that we hung out at the condo for the rest of the night. Greg grilled up some burgers on the grill, we hung out by the pool, and we celebrated our mutual birthdays!
The plan for the next day was beach time. We would spend the morning at Hawksnest and the afternoon at Maho Bay. Both beaches are excellent so you really can't go wrong. Maho does have a bar and a food truck, however.
Hawsnest:
After enjoying the beaches for the day we stopped in at Greengos Caribbean Grill in Cruz Bay for dinner, then chilled at the condo for the rest of the night.
The plan for the next day was a sailing excursion. Greg has been sailing all of his life wanted to get out on ocean here in St. John. We had reserved a 47' sail boat for the occasion. We would depart from Cruz Bay that morning with Captain Jason and First Mate Romany aboard Cloud 9.
Lynn and I walked to the bay early and while we were waiting for the others to join us we met this guy, Pirate Dan (aka Daniel Benson). He was untangling this huge ball of rigging that he had found floating at sea. He would repurpose it for another use. Apparently he does this a lot, taking things found in the sea and repurposing them, helping to keep the USVI waters clean. As it turns out he owns 3 businesses on the island, 2 of which are charter vessels. Might have to look him up next time.
We all met up on at the ferry dock where Captain Jason took us over the boat via dinghy.
With Greg being an experienced sailor the Captain had no issues letting him take the helm. He was loving it!
Our first stop was for snorkeling. This is popular spot for snorkeling located on west side of Little Saint James, the infamous island formerly owned by Jeffrey Epstein. After snorkeling we had lunch on board.
Sharon was able to get a good photo of a turtle while snorkeling!
And a selfie with Lynn also!
After lunch we just toured around the islands. We went around west side of Great Saint James, then circled back through Saint James Cut. From there we headed North past Steven Cay and Cruz Bay, then circled around Lovango.
Captain Jason and First mate Romany:
For the following day we had another excursion planned. This one also involved boating, but with a motor. Much more in my realm of experience. We had reserved a 20' Zodiac from Wharfside Watersports in Cruz Bay. Our plan was to hop from cove to cove along the west and north sides of the island.
When we arrived that morning the folks at Wharfside were extremely friendly and helpful. This rental did not have any restrictions that a lot of the rentals have. We were free to go wherever we wanted, not just a certain distance. They would even provide the paperwork for going over the British Virgin Islands if we were inclined. Since our plan was mainly bay hopping we did not go for that option.
Once we got loaded up and got the safety talk we headed out of Cruz Bay.
These Zodiacs are rather amazing vessels. They are comfortable, light weight, and virtually indestructable. For the size they are also surprisingly sea worthy. This thing handled conditions that I would not have been comfortable with in my own 25' bow rider.
So we cruised around a bit and then moored at Cinnamon Bay. From there we went up to Maho Bay, then back down to Honeymoon Beach. We also did a loop around Lovango but the conditions out there were pretty rough so stuck to closer to shore after that. You can see the British Virgin Islands from that area and the scenery in general is fantastic.
We really liked Honeymoon Beach. We moored there and swam to shore to spend some time on the beach. There are no publicly accessible roads to Honeymoon beach so the only way to get there is by boat, a shuttle from Caneel Bay parking lot, or a 1 mile hike from Cruz Bay. One of the guys from Wharfside Watersports was in the bay proving water taxi service to some of the larger boats in the bay. If you call them up they will come out in a 22' luxury Zodiac, pick you up at your boat and then drop you off on the beach. Same thing for the return. He stopped along beside us to check that everything was good and to see if we needed anything. Great folks at Wharfside!
From Honeymoon Beach we went south past Cruz Bay. Our goal was to go around the southern tip of the island then north into Coral Bay. It is a shorter route than circumnavigating the northern side. Once we got past Cruz Bay, however, the conditions became too rough for us so we turned back. With winds from the east the seas to the north and to the south were rougher due to not being shielded by the island mass.
We got back into Cruz Bay a little after 4:00pm. We had a great time out on the water and in the bays. This is a really great way to experience the island. We enjoyed Honeymoon Beach so much we made a plan to hike there and make a day of it before we leave.
The next day was a busy day! We were planning to explore more of the island by Jeep and several spots we wanted to see. We wanted to lunch at Lime Out VI, which is a floating restaurant out in the middle of Coral Bay. You have to take a water taxi out and back, and you are served on inflatable floating seating.
Our first stop was Dockside Dinghy to reserve our water taxi. We reserved and 11:30am spot and since it only a little after 9:00am at this point we had some time to kill. We drove over to Hansen Beach on the other side of the bay. This is the only privately owned beach on the island and has been owned by the same family for generations. They rely on donations to maintain the beach and during busy times they have food trucks providing refreshments. You can also rent kayaks or paddle boards.
After spending some time there we headed back over to catch our water taxi for lunch. It is a quick 5 minute ride from shore out to Lime Out.
The specialty cocktails are awesome! The food is fantastic. They have anything you want as long as you want tacos. And let me tell you, these tacos are off the hook good. Local ingredients, and a Caribbean flair.
From there we headed down to Salt Pond Bay on the southern tip of the island. Parking is just off of Coral Bay Road and then a .25 mile trail down to the beach. There we set up chairs and chilled on the beach for the afternoon. Salt Pond Bay is one of the more secluded beaches on the island and therefore less crowded.
One of the places we wanted to stop in at was the Windmill Bar. This is located off if Centerline Road, which runs on the ridge in the interior of the island. The bar overlooks Hawksnest Beach, and is quite literally right beside Kenny Chesney's house. He did not stop by the bar while we were there, however. I guess he didn't get the note that we were in town...
The next day we spent pretty much the whole day at Trunk Bay. This beach is protected from the wind so the water is mostly always calm and has excellent snorkeling right off of the beach. We saw several snorkeling tour groups stop while we were there. We brought our snorkeling gear as well and spent day swimming, snorkeling, and just chilling on the beach.
That evening the rest of the group wanted water front dining so they were off to The Beach Bar & Grill on the water in Cruz Bay. Lynn and I opted for The Longboard as this is one of our favorites. We met up with them at The Beach Bar for sunset.
The next day was the day we would hike over to Honeymoon Beach. So we parked at the trail head for Lind Point Trail that takes you to Honeymoon Beach about 8:30am. We had the pick of spots when we got there as were a bit early compared to most folks. There is a bar and food truck there so that was awesome. Pain killers are the island favorite everywhere you go. Good Stuff!
Sharon got a good photo of a ray that came up to the beach.
We started the hike back about 4:30 and spent the rest of the evening at the condo. There was some craziness going on there. Lynn and Mike put on a synchronized swimming show that was hilarious.
The next morning we were aiming for the 12:00pm ferry back to St. Thomas. Mike and Karen had an earlier flight back to Atlanta so they had to bug out early. We teased them that we were actually going to stay another week. As they were leaving we put beach attire on and waved bye from the terrace. They were amused, but not really...
After packing up we dropped the Jeeps. They were kind enough to let us leave our luggage at their office so we could walk around. We stopped in at High Tide for a water front brunch. Got to love High Tide! On the water right beside the ferry dock. First and last stop usually.
Another wonderful trip comes to an end. It was so good to spend time with friends and celebrate our birthdays together. Highlights for us would be the Windmill Bar, sailing, and Honeymoon Beach. We of course recommend Sea Shore Allure if you ever are looking for a place to stay in St. John.
We are planning another St. John trip in March 2024. This time there will be 8 of us. Whew! Be sure to check keep an eye out for that one.
"TRAVELING - it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller." lbn Batutta
Please feel free to leave a comment in the comment section below. Also, I can be reached at Rocky@Rocklyns.com should you feel the need to reach out.
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