St. John

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Peaceful Week on St. John

A May 2003 trip to St. John by rstento

If you enjoy solitude and snorkeling, St. John will beat your expectations.

  • 4 reviews
  • 1 story/tip

Concordia EstatesBest of IgoUgo

Hotel

This resort was built with little impact to the environment on a hillside with a fantastic view. Our studio was spacious and the partial view from our deck was outstanding. The property is very quiet. We got a lot of exercise from navigating 3-5 flights of stairs to the room, office, and pool.

Our only complaint was about the lack of a nice non-stick cooking pan for eggs, and the old stove and refrigerator.

Nearby Coral Bay offers several good restaurants: Island Blues, Shipwreck Landing, and a new higher end establishment that looks like a plantation house.

  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by rstento on June 17, 2003

Concordia Estates
20-27 Estate Concordia St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands 00830
(340) 693-5855

Shipwreck LandingBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Good food, wide price range, from sandwiches to more expensive seafood and steak dinners. Reasonable drinks and happy hour. Excellent homemade desserts -- best peanut butter pie we've had!
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by rstento on June 17, 2003

Shipwreck Landing
Route 107 St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands 00830
+1 340 693 5640

Island Blues Seaside Bar and GrillBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Island Blues"

Highly recommend the quesadilla of the day. Didn't try more expensive dishes, but sandwiches were fine. Beautiful view of the bay, but hang on to your napkins!
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by rstento on June 17, 2003

Island Blues Seaside Bar and Grill
Route 107 St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands
(340) 776-6800

SnorkelingBest of IgoUgo

Attraction | "Multiple Locations"

Snorkeling on St. John far exceeded our experiences in Mexico. We had many bays to ourselves and found rocks and reefs very close to shore, populated with huge schools of fish. We also saw manta rays, squid, and turtles.

Although guide books say you can't drive to Great Lamshur and Little Lamshur bays, there is a new section of concrete road that allows you to go directly to them with a jeep. They were the best snorkeling of the beaches we tried: Salt Pond Bay, Maho, Francis Bay, and one on the east end.

  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by rstento on June 17, 2003

Snorkeling
Throughout St. John St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands

Off-seasonBest of IgoUgo

Story/Tip

We stayed in St. John in May and found it to be an island paradise. All of the beaches that we visted in the south were totally or nearly deserted. Even those that are popular with the day trip crowd from cruise ships or St. John had few people in the water and plenty of room on the beach.

The snorkeling was outstanding (see my activities post), the food was good (although expensive), and our accommodations were wonderfully rustic.

For those who love to explore and seek solitude, we highly recommend St. John in off-season.

About the Writer

rstento
rstento
Castro Valley, California

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