St Thomas AGAIN...running out of new things

[mitsugirly]

17 hours ago, vinotinto said:

@mitsugirly I see on your awesome site that you’ve had many land vacations in STT. If you were spending a port day via NCL, which beach would you choose? They all look great! Looking for calm, clear water, a little snorkeling, chair rentals, a beach restaurant for sustenance. There is another large ship in port that day (RCCL). Megans, Sapphire, Coki, Secret, Brewster or something else?

 

If I wanted to go somewhere with all of those requirements, just knowing what they are like when we were there several times, I would probably pick Secret Harbor. It's really pretty, has crystal clear calm water and great snorkeling along the right side in front of the dive shop. There are shade trees on the beach as well. It has a restaurant. The only thing I have read is that in order to get chairs, you need to either reserve them from the dive shop or get there early enough to get them because there's not many. This is a resort, so most of the chairs are reserved for the guests there. However, we have never rented chairs when we went because we would just sit in the shade under the tree either on a beach towel or (when staying on the island) we had small beach chairs we took. HERE and HERE.

 

Magens is not really known for it's snorkeling...although I will snorkel ANYWHERE I go no matter what. The most to see there are some turtles and small fish in the water along the side in about 1-2' deep water.

 

Sapphire beach is a nice beach (and we have stayed at the resort before) but the water can get rough at times. Good snorkeling. You would have to rent chairs from there around the restuarant.

 

Coki beach has good snorkeling along the side, smaller beach, water is a little calmer than Sapphire to me. There's a shack there that you can buy food or order from the waiters. (People complain about the smell of weed there...so if that bothers you, this is not the place for you). 

 

We do like Brewers because the water has been calm every time we went there and there's plenty of shade. We have ALWAYS seen turtles there and there's plenty of reports of everyone going there has seen turtles. However, there's no chair rental there so you'd have to put your towels down under the trees. They do have restrooms and showers though. There's also no restaurant or anything there. Once we did find a vendor on the street in front of it to purchase food. But, I'm not sure they are always there. Also, it's not your "normal" tourist area (located right by the college) and you'd probably have to arrange for a cab to come back to get you.

 

But based on your requirements, my pick would be Secret Harbor. Others probably have different opinions idk. 

[vinotinto]

8 hours ago, mitsugirly said:

 

If I wanted to go somewhere with all of those requirements, just knowing what they are like when we were there several times, I would probably pick Secret Harbor. It's really pretty, has crystal clear calm water and great snorkeling along the right side in front of the dive shop. There are shade trees on the beach as well. It has a restaurant. The only thing I have read is that in order to get chairs, you need to either reserve them from the dive shop or get there early enough to get them because there's not many. This is a resort, so most of the chairs are reserved for the guests there. However, we have never rented chairs when we went because we would just sit in the shade under the tree either on a beach towel or (when staying on the island) we had small beach chairs we took. HERE and HERE.

 

Magens is not really known for it's snorkeling...although I will snorkel ANYWHERE I go no matter what. The most to see there are some turtles and small fish in the water along the side in about 1-2' deep water.

 

Sapphire beach is a nice beach (and we have stayed at the resort before) but the water can get rough at times. Good snorkeling. You would have to rent chairs from there around the restuarant.

 

Coki beach has good snorkeling along the side, smaller beach, water is a little calmer than Sapphire to me. There's a shack there that you can buy food or order from the waiters. (People complain about the smell of weed there...so if that bothers you, this is not the place for you). 

 

We do like Brewers because the water has been calm every time we went there and there's plenty of shade. We have ALWAYS seen turtles there and there's plenty of reports of everyone going there has seen turtles. However, there's no chair rental there so you'd have to put your towels down under the trees. They do have restrooms and showers though. There's also no restaurant or anything there. Once we did find a vendor on the street in front of it to purchase food. But, I'm not sure they are always there. Also, it's not your "normal" tourist area (located right by the college) and you'd probably have to arrange for a cab to come back to get you.

 

But based on your requirements, my pick would be Secret Harbor. Others probably have different opinions idk. 

Thank you! 🙏🏽 that’s what I was leaning towards! Have a lovely trip.

[mitsugirly]

9 hours ago, vinotinto said:

Thank you! 🙏🏽 that’s what I was leaning towards! Have a lovely trip.

 

You're welcome and you have a wonderful trip too!

[blue_water]

I would definitely avoid Water Island just because it can get so crowded there, and we’ve seen many folks get stuck waiting for the next (small) ferry.

 

We enjoyed the New Horizons sloop daysail to the cays off STJ and St James, but I believe they depart at 10AM…

 

Going out on a daysail is a great option in heavy cruise ports like STT, SXM, and Coz, but your 11 - 7 makes it hard for shared sails, and I think you mentioned you don’t want to pay for a private sail?

 

thinking still…

 

 

[blue_water]

On 2/9/2024 at 9:25 PM, vinotinto said:

@mitsugirly I see on your awesome site that you’ve had many land vacations in STT. If you were spending a port day via NCL, which beach would you choose? They all look great! Looking for calm, clear water, a little snorkeling, chair rentals, a beach restaurant for sustenance. There is another large ship in port that day (RCCL). Megans, Sapphire, Coki, Secret, Brewster or something else?

Just to chime in with another humble opinion, we would choose Sapphire with what you are looking for. The water is often calm, but with heavy wind or storms at sea it can be rougher. There is some coral and a seagrass area, lounge and other rentals, a beach bar and restaurant, and space to get away from the main sitting area. We’ve also stayed there a few times and plan on returning later this year after our time on Tortola. Sapphire is one our favorite beaches over 25 years of cruising and “landlubbering” the Carib; Just a beautiful beach with the island views we love…
 

Secret Harbor is an alternate, and being more protected it is typically dead calm. If that is most important then SH is a safer choice, and there is a restaurant and lounge/umbrella rentals. We’re just not fans of the overcrowded situation and lackluster views…I would definitely reserve your lounges in advance through AADivers. Their cancellation policy is very reasonable…

 

When we’re ok with just restroom access and bringing our lunch and drinks from Moe’s, Smith Bay Park is arguably the nicest beach on the island. Not sure about the snorkeling there, but very nice!

 

Enjoy whatever beach you choose!