Godfrey Tour or St. John

[Dlynn]

I can't decide if we should go to St. John or the Godfrey Tour. My kids will be 10 and 11. I have heard so many great things about Godfrey and St. John. I can't decide. Would we have enough time to do both? We will be in St Thomas from 7 to 6. Any information will be appreciated. Thank You. :)

[richtersl]

You won't go wrong with either choice. For beaches Godfrey offers you a choice ot Megan's, Coki, or Sapphire. On St. John you'd have your own choice of where to go and every beach I've caught a glimpse of there has been gorgeous!

 

If you decide to go to St. John it has an added bonus of a ferry ride, which your kids might get a real kick out of.

 

Just so you know: your ship will be in port from 7AM until 6PM. You won't get off the ship until around 9:00 because it will have to clear customs first. You will probably have to be back on board by 5:30 at the latest because 6 PM is the departure time. Your actual "island time" will be from about 9:00 AM until 5:30 PM.

[The Islander]

I think; ferry to St. John, taxi to Cinnamon Bay, do some hiking at the Cinnamon Bay ruins that are just a short walk accross the street from the beach, snorkel, swim, have lunch at the beach... thats a full, fun day! Taxi back to Cruz Bay and ferry back to St. Thomas.

 

--Islander

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[Dlynn]

Thanks for all the information. Why do most people prefer the beaches on St. John over St. Thomas? Why Cinnamon over Trunk Bay? Is Cinnamon good for kids who have never snorkeled? :confused:

[The Islander]

Hello Dlynn,

 

Not sure why people do... if you were asking me directly based on my comments I am going to backtrack a bit and explain my answer.

 

I choose St. John over Godfrey from your choices because of your kids... figured a 10 & 11 year old would prefer the "adventure" of the ferry over to St. John (they could sit up top or on the bow - depends on the ferry) and then it would be educational to visit the ruins/trails and then you have the beach... rather then them sitting on a safari tour for 1-2 hours. Simiarly I choose Cinnamon over Trunk because of the proxmity to the ruins so the day could involve a little hiking, visit ruins, beach time... all at the same spot.

 

Giving a shot at your question though; St. John is largely protected by the National Park so you have a lot of beaches without development, where as on St. Thomas most beaches have resorts just past the shoreline... if you are looking for nature vs. amenities your choice would differ. Attractive beaches can be found on both islands though. You might visit the beach guides at

 

http://www.*****/stthomas/beaches_stt/ and

 

http://www.*****/stjohn/beaches_stj/

 

--Islander

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[Dlynn]

Hi Islander,

 

Thanks for all your information. I have decided against Godfrey. We'll save that tour for whan the kids are older. I am going to visit the beach guides. I just want a pretty beach with calm waters and snorkeling and if possible not to crowded. What kind of shoes would we need for hiking?

[djheart007]

Hello - just wondering how far the ferry ride to St John is from the port in St Thomas where the Serenade of the Sea will be. We wanted to do some shopping in St Thomas first and we only have 6 hours.. not sure if we should just find a beach in St Thomas...thanks

[The Islander]

Hello,

 

Sneakers would work for the hiking on St. John. After you look at the beach guides, share which ones are of interest to you. The popular ones like Trunk Bay & Cinnamon Bay on St. John and Magens Bay, Coki and Sapphire on St. Thomas will have a bit of a crowd if there are numerous ships in port.

 

The ferry ride from Charlotte Amalie to St. John takes 45 minutes one way, cost $7 one way. Check the schedule at http://*****/general_usvi/interisland_ferry/

 

--Islander

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[Dlynn]

Hi Islander, Thank you for the guide info. There are a few beaches i'm interested in. If we were to say on St. Thomas I like Coki and Sapphire. On St. John I like Trunk Bay and Cinnamon. What beach do you think woud be best for kids who aren't strong swimmers? Can you rent something to float on? If we go to St. John we are going to go to the ruins. :)

[The Islander]

Of your two choices; Coki is usually calm - Sapphire often has a few small waves. Sapphire deepens more quickly then Coki... so based on those two factors Coki would seem better for weak swimmers. You could rent a life vest at Coki and Sapphire, but I don't know about actual floats. Sapphire has kayaks - your kids might like that.

 

--Islander

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[cruisinfirst]

We're planning on taking Godfrey's Tour on this visit and leaning toward Coki Beach. Has anyone visited Coral World? I think it is at Coki.

 

Thanks!