snorkeling: trunk bay or sapphire beach

[aprilsp88]

Hi,

 

Is the underwater snorkeling trail in trunk bay better than sapphire beach? Do I see more coral, fish there? Does it worth the extra effort to get there?

 

How about beach and water color?

 

Thanks,

April

Edited April 5, 2016 by aprilsp88

[Payd]

Hi,

 

Is the underwater snorkeling trail in trunk bay better than sapphire beach? Do I see more coral, fish there? Does it worth the extra effort to get there?

 

How about beach and water color?

 

Thanks,

April

Yes to all of the above. The water is incredible. It is worth the effort. I have been three times.

 

Sapphire is lovely...Trunk Bay is simply incredible.

 

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

[Turtles06]

I've never been to Sapphire Beach, but we did a snorkeling excursion to Trunk Bay on a port call to St. Thomas in February. Totally loved the boat ride over to St. John, and Trunk Bay is just gorgeous, but... the snorkeling trail was a disappointment. Very few fish. Might just have been our bad luck that day, but I've since read from at least one person on here that it's no longer so great for snorkeling. Do a search and you'll find the thread.

 

We still had a great day, totally loved going over to St. John, and the beach itself was beautiful.

 

Enjoy whatever you decide!

 

 

(Trunk Bay, photo by turtles06)

[beautifulbill]

Trunk has been abused and at this point while the beach is nice the snorkeling is nothing special

Sapphire might be a bit better but it too has been damaged by people standing, walking, and touching the coral

I wish the ships and dive shops that rent equipment would tell people not to touch the coral in anyway

[blue_water]

If you want a nice day ferrying over to STJ, taking an island tour, and spending some time on a gorgeous beach like Trunk (or Cinammon Bay for less people) that is a great option. The North Shore beaches of STJ are stunning. But for snorkeling on STJ you'll want to look at Waterlemon Cay or Maho Bay and have a taxi return for you.

Roundtrip taxi to Red Hook, ferry to Cruz bay, and taxi to Trunk is about $48 - $50pp, if you opt for the island tour and less beach time the cost is about $66pp.

 

If you're looking for a gorgeous beach that offers snorkeling Sapphire is an excellent choice. 2 - 2.5 hours closer than Trunk and $28 less per person and you'd have more time to enjoy the beach and water.

 

As Bill said both areas have been affected by visitors, another option is a daysail that moors off the cays of STJ and Great St James. Different experience than off the beach snorkeling and you have a knowledgeable guide who knows the waters...just a thought. For operators High Pockets, Yacht Nightwind, and New Horizons come to mind, you can find many under day charters at the vinow dot com site which is a helpful site.

Edited April 6, 2016 by blue_water