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rstento
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Snorkeling

  • January 21, 2007
  • Rated 4 of 5 by Kayla Robison from Greensboro, North Carolina
Snorkeling in St. John is amazing with all of its colorful marine life and crystal clear waters. You can go to any beach (and there are a lot of them to choose from!) and see something interesting. Rentals are all over the island, so they are not hard to come by.

From journal Marriage in Paradise...

Editor Pick

Snorkeling

Snorkeling

The largest underwater national park in the United States is in St. John. Almost half of the Virgin Islands National Park is submerged and boasts spectacular snorkeling and diving. Pack up your snorkel gear, towels, some fresh rinsing water, and head out. If you see a spot, pull over and jump in. Here is our tour of the beaches starting from the west side of the island.

Great Cruz Bay: The Westin is located here on the west side of the island. Because boats moor here outside the national park, the water is murky. However, kids love the water trampoline and climbing hill.

Cruz Bay: Downtown St. John where most of the boats and cruise ships moor is not a good place to snorkel but a terrific place to stroll and catch a sunset.

Hawksnest Bay: Some say Hawksnest Bay has the best snorkeling because of the reef. But the coral and the waves made for tough swimming. The coral grows in shallow water so be careful not to harm it or yourself. If you snorkel here, go during high tide so that you snorkel safely above the reef.

Maho Bay: This long stretch of powdery sand felt as if I was walking on velvet. The long beach contributed to the calm water. We saw fascinating animal life despite the monotonous sandy bottom. Fish congregate along the rocky left side of Maho. Rays and a sea turtle meandered by as we hovered over them. As an added surprise, a wild donkey stopped by to say hello as we were leaving.

Waterlemon Bay: If you snorkel here, be prepared. My husband called the only restroom here one of the scariest experiences of his life. He likened it to the Flukeman episode of The X-Files. The 15 minute walk is enough to deter someone. The hike is easy on flat ground but becomes unstable over the rocks. Note that brush and dense forest lies behind the beach, making a humid home to mosquitoes. Here I received most of the mosquito welts from our trip. The snorkeling was fair due to the boats moored in the bay. But we saw several turtles due to the abundance of sea grass, and spent two hours there.

Salt Pond Bay: We drove to Salt Pond Bay on the south side. This was the last stop on the paved road. We parked in the small lot at the top of the hill and walked 10 minutes down to the beach. The hike is easy but sloped so don’t carry too much equipment. Note there is little shade so have sun protection. The snorkeling here was eventful as there was a black tip shark sighting when we were in the water. We saw our first ray and followed it along the length of the bay. We found most of the fish at the rocky area on the left. Unfortunately, on the day that we went, the visibility was approximately 8 feet.

From journal A Prescription for Real Relaxation - St. John

Editor Pick

Beach/Snorkeling in St. John (Trunk Bay)

  • August 26, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by sixkristy6 from Cheektowaga, New York
While in St. Thomas, we took a day trip to St. John to Trunk Bay. What a gorgeous island! The place that we went to was in the Virgin Islands National Park. Aside from the attack seagulls (yes I said attack), it was amazing!

The blue water at the beach was a perfect blend of blue and green. I was truly amazed at how pure the water looked. We did wish that we had some chairs though. There is a snack bar and gift shop and amazing snorkeling. However, beware of the seagulls! They grab food from your hands and I swear they were close to drawing blood from me!

It was like paradise there and I'd love to go back!

From journal Southern Caribbean cruise

Snorkeling

  • May 14, 2005
  • Rated 5 of 5 by JH33194 from Roseville, Michigan
Snorkeling off the shores of St. John was wonderful! The pristine blue water and beautiful underwater creatures made this a memory to last forever. The tour was wonderful; they had drinks on the boat and included a fresh-water shower after you were out of the ocean. They were excellent to deal with and just really great.

From journal Five Days of Heaven

Editor Pick

Snorkeling around the U.S. Virgin Islands

  • October 14, 2003
  • Rated 5 of 5 by jim from Charlotte, North Carolina
Snorkeling around the U.S. Virgin Islands

I can’t imagine going to St. John and not going snorkeling and/or scuba diving. The water is so crystal clear and blue that it is irresistible. So we rented a twenty foot boat at the Westin Resort and headed out for the day. It proved to be one of the most relaxing, exhilarating, and enjoyable days I have ever spent on vacation.

The plan was to hit a few of the hot spots in the British Virgin Islands without having any set agenda. We left the Westin, rode around St. John, and stopped at Trunk Bay, which is usually on National Geographic’s Top 10 Beaches in the World list (I can see why). Hawksnest Beach is also a very nice place to do some easy snorkeling.

We then headed over to St. Thomas (where we had to make a quick stop in the immigration office to show our paperwork proving we were American citizens). From there, we rode about 15 minutes and started snorkeling on the far end of Tortola. There was a small little island off of Tortola that was a great place to get your feet wet so to speak and see some nice underwater sights. You will know you are coming to a snorkeling location when you see a bunch of boats anchored in a cluster.

From Tortola we went over to the Indians. The Indians are three giant red rocks that come out of the water. You swim around the Indians and see all kinds of underwater life and coral. It was very cool.

From the Indians we had lunch at the Willy Tea (a boat located in one of the nearby coves--see separate entry). After lunch, we went snorkeling in some nearby caves. The caves were particularly cool because it got very dark and spooky when you went all the way in to the end. We also saw some amazing groups of squid and very large schools of fish. Both the caves and the Indians are right off of Norman Island, which is part of the British Virgin Islands.

In summary, every place we stopped to snorkel was beautiful. The water was typically between 20-60 feet and the clarity was amazing. The water was full of sea life and the coral was breathtaking. It was easy to find the places to stop by locating the clusters of boats. Once at a prime location, there was usually a buoy to tie the boat to or some fairly shallow water to drop anchor. Definitely take the time to go snorkeling, and don’t be afraid to rent a boat and venture out on your own. The shallow water and reefs are pretty easy to see, so you shouldn’t run into any trouble if you keep your eyes open.

From journal St. John Caribbean Getaway

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