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Today we’re talking about St John time change. We don’t do it here in the US Virgin Islands. End of today’s post.
Kidding! 🙂
But seriously, the US Virgin Islands, as well as our neighbors over in the British Virgin Island and Puerto Rico, do not observe daylight savings. We are on Atlantic Standard Time, which remains the same year-round. To simplify this, we are an hour ahead of New York City (and the rest of the EST states) from Nov. 6, 2022 through March 12, 2023. When mostly everyone springs ahead in March 2023, we will, once again, be on the same time as New York and the rest of the EST states.
One downside of being an hour ahead of EST is that all of our television shows start an hour late. For example, Good Morning America will now start at 8 a.m. instead of 7 a.m. Another random tidbit right there!
Now this may lead many of you to wonder when the sun will set on St. John. Tonight’s sunset time is 5:44 p.m. The earliest the sun sets on St. John is 5:41 p.m. this year. That will happen between November 15th and December 3rd. We will gain a minute or so of light every day beginning on December 4th.
Curious when the sun will rise and set when you’re on St. John. Check out our sunset page at www.IslandTidbits.com/sunset
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Hello everyone, and happy Friday! Let’s keep it light and easy today. Today we’re talking stop lights and chain restaurants.
One thing that makes St John so magical is the lack of any sort of chain restaurants. But did you know that we used to have not one, but two American chains on St John? It’s true!
Imagine wandering through Wharfside Village, gazing out toward the beautiful turquoise waters of Cruz Bay and passing by a Wendy’s fast food restaurant. Sounds terrible, right?! Well back in the early 90s, this is exactly what would have happened! Wendy’s was located in the section of Wharfside Village where La Tapa is today. It closed in 1992 after a fire caused extensive damage to the restaurant.
Subway was the second and only other fast food chain to operate on St. John. (To my knowledge… Correct me if I’m wrong about this, folks.) It was located in a trailer across from Woody’s where Tap & Still is today. Subway closed in 2008, and then was transformed briefly into a campaign office. Since then, numerous restaurants have been in that spot including Iguana Grill, Across the Street, Umami and currently Tap & Still.
Now let’s talk stop lights. St. John does not have any… most of the time. 🙂 The only time we have a stoplight on St. John is when we have some roadwork going on. There are currently some out in Coral Bay where there is some roadwork happening. Once the roadwork is complete, we’ll return to being a stoplight-free island once again.
I don’t know about you, but I always love a random tidbit like these. And I hope you all do too!
Curious which restaurants are currently on island? I promise there aren’t any fast food ones! Check out our searchable restaurant map at IslandTidbits.com/restaurantmap
Lastly, you still have time to enter to win a St. John vacation for just $25! Proceeds will support the Animal Care Center of St. John. Get additional details on our prize package & purchase tickets securely at IslandTidbits.com/raffle
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Island Tidbits would like to introduce you all to our latest advertiser Southern Exposure vacation villa. Southern Exposure is a spacious three bedroom, three bath villa with panoramic ocean views. It is great for families, as well as couples. It has a great outdoor space too with a pool. Click this link to learn more.Â
This story was originally posted Nov. 3, 2022.Â
Let’s get straight to it, shall we? Today we’re talking about food and drink at the St. Thomas airport.
Leaving St. John is never easy. Hanging out at the St. Thomas airport isn’t super fun either. But I am happy to tell you that the US Virgin Islands has been making small improvements when it comes to the airport’s food and drink game, a much-welcomed change.
For starters, when you arrive inside the airport terminal (after going through Customs and security), you will see that there is not a single chain restaurant inside the Cyril E. King airport on St. Thomas. Instead we have just a handful of options, including one grab and go restaurant, a couple of bars and some kiosks. Check them out:
Hibiscus Cafe
Hibiscus Cafe is the main restaurant inside the St. Thomas airport. It’s a grab and go spot, although there are some made to order items. (There isn’t table service here or anywhere inside the St. Thomas airport.) Breakfast is particularly good, as you create your own omelette, and the portion size is huge. They also offer Johnny cakes, croissants and the like during breakfast. Lunch features great soup, burgers and fries, as well as some local dishes. You can also take advantage of the grab and go section that features yogurts, sandwiches and salads, among other things. The crispy chicken salad is particularly good, and is typically my go-to item when I’m flying out in the afternoon.
There is also a full bar inside Hibiscus Cafe. It opens at 11 a.m. daily. Looking for an adult beverage prior to that? You can grab a cold beer from the cooler earlier in the morning. And no judgement if you do! haha
Airport Bar & Rum Room
Speaking of bars, the new-ish Airport Bar & Rum Room is a great addition to the St. Thomas airport in my opinion. It’s located in the far right corner when you walk inside the terminal, beside the hallway to the Spirit Airlines departure gate.
This spot has a full bar, plus additional seating. You can sit and have a drink or two (or three…again, no judgement!), or you can grab some duty-free liquor to take back home with you.
Island Grind
Another newer spot that is a great addition to the airport is Island Grind, which is located somewhat in the center of the terminal, but closer to the American, Delta and JetBlue gates. This is a coffee and wine bar, but it also offers a variety of grab and go food options. And I have to say, they really look good, especially the morning pastries.
Rounding out our food options at the airport are two snack bar kiosks and a gift shop. The gift shop has sodas, snack items and a variety of souvenirs.
And for those of you who are curious, yes, there is free wifi at the St. Thomas airport.
That’s all I have for you today, folks! A few more tidbits to make your St. John vacation easier to navigate. Have a great day!
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Island Tidbits would like to welcome our newest advertiser! 340 Real Estate Co. is available to help you with all of your real estate needs, including houses, condos, commercial and land. On island since 1978. Check them out at www.340RealEstateCo.com
Take a ride with me today from Round Bay, on St John’s East End, out to the end of Centerline Road (Route 10 0n the map). Pass Hansen Bay beach, Saltwell Bottom beach and more.
This video was created using a GoPro, so it appears I am driver faster than I was. I promise I always keep it well under the speed limit. 🙂 Enjoy!
Want to see what’s happening on St. John right now? Check out more than 20 live streaming webcams at explorestj.com/webcams
Looking to visit St. John’s East End and other interesting off the beaten path spots on St. John? Then please consider taking an Island Tour with me! Explore STJ is rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor. Learn more & reserve your day at explorestj.com/island-tours
You can see this and all of our videos at explorestj.com/videos
Well folks, the wait is over! Palm Tree Charters is the first St. John-based, private charter company to bring guests back to the British Virgin Islands! And they’re accepting reservations now, so act fast to reserve your spot!
It only took 956 days, but Palm Tree Charters returned to the British Virgin Islands with guests Sunday morning, marking an exciting return to normalcy, post-Covid. The last time they were able to bring guests to the BVI was March 18, 2020. The British Virgin Island closed their borders due to Covid the following day, and when they reopened to charter companies, their newly-imposed requirements made it prohibitive for most local companies to bring guests over into BVI waters.
Well Palm Tree Charters – a company that has been in business on St. John since 2005 – has fulfilled all of the BVI’s new licensing requirements, and they are currently approved to bring guests over on several of their boats – their Palma Bellas and Last Call, their luxury, 36-foot Aquila. They can literally take you over tomorrow if you’d like! Seriously, go book that trip!
I don’t know about you, but I absolutely love a BVI day. There is something so magical about island hopping to spots like the Soggy Dollar Bar, Seddy’s One Love and Foxy’s, snorkeling over in the Caves or at the Indians near Norman Island, or simply cruising up and down the Sir Francis Drake Channel.
Ready to grab some friends and head over to the BVI? I know I am! In fact, I am heading over with Palm Tree Charters for my birthday next week!
Full disclosure here: The price to take a private charter to the BVI has increased due to the cost associated with the approval process, including licensing fees, work permits, taxes, etc. Palm Tree Charters understands the cost is high. I understand the cost is high. But a day in the BVI is priceless, right?? 🙂 For those of you who’d rather stick to US waters, prices for these trips remain the same.
Ok, so the cost to charter the Palma Bellas to the BVI is $1,250 for up to eight guests. Customs is an additional $75 per person, and a passport is required for all BVI trips. (You must clear through Customs & Immigration when entering the British Virgin Island, and again when you return to St. John.) Trips to the Baths in Virgin Gorda and North Sound locations like Saba Rock, Bitter End and Oil Nut Bay will incur an additional $250 cost per trip. Fuel is not included and will cost roughly $170 to $350 depending on which island you decide to visit (and also based on the current cost of fuel). Simply want to visit Jost Van Dyke? Fuel will average about $170. Looking to jump off the Willy T? Gas to Norman Island will cost roughly $260.
The cost to charter Last Call, Palm Tree Charter’s luxury Aquila to the British Virgin Islands is $2,700 for up to 12 people. Customs is an additional $75 per person, and fuel in not included.
All trips depart at 8:30 a.m. from Cruz Bay and will return at approximately 4:30 p.m.
So as I mentioned, I am super excited to head over to the BVI with Palm Tree Charters next week. With so many amazing places to visit, I simply do not know where to go! A breakfast mimosa at Oil Nut Bay followed by lunch over at Saba Rock, perhaps? Maybe we will head straight to see our friends over at the Soggy Dollar Bar and Foxy’s followed by a Bushwacker at Pirate’s Bight. So many possibilities!
If you’d like to learn more about Palm Tree Charters USVI and BVI charters, please visit their website at www.PalmTreeCharters.com. Have a fantastic day everyone!
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