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The Rising Sun, 1st Megayacht of the Season, Arrives in St. John

Jenn Manes November 16, 2025

The Rising Sun passes behind Cruz Bay Saturday morning.

St. John saw its first megayacht of the 2025-2026 season arrive yesterday, and it was one that is very familiar to many of us.

The Rising Sun, the impressive 453 yacht owned by David Geffen, was seen passing by Cruz Bay yesterday morning. Its visit is right on schedule, as it visits the US Virgin Islands every Thanksgiving.

The yacht, which reportedly cost $400 million to build, typically arrives in the US Virgin Islands a week or two before Thanksgiving. It usually splits its time between the Cruz Bay/St. Thomas area and also St. John’s East End. After spending a few weeks here, The Rising Sun heads over to the British Virgin Islands before leaving the region.

The Rising Sun’s location on Sunday morning.

The Rising Sun was anchored south of Mingo and Lovango cays Sunday morning. You can find its location, as well as the location of thousands of other vessels, on the Marine Traffic app.

If you happened to be on island yesterday or perhaps you were watching one of our webcams, you may have noticed a large cruise ship anchored off of Cruz Bay. That was the Explora, and it carries up to 900 passengers. That is one of the largest ships that visits Cruz Bay. The Star Pride was the first cruise ship to visit us this season, It arrived on October 27th.

‘Tis the season everyone!

Want to learn more about St. John? Take an island tour with me!

Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour

See the island of St. John with a resident. See the nooks and crannies that many visitors miss. Explore the beaches, historical sites, perhaps a tiki bar or two, and much more. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

Click Here to Book Now.

Villas for the Park Auction Begins Tomorrow

Jenn Manes November 13, 2025

Friends of Virgin Islands National Park will launch its annual Villas for the Park auction tomorrow, one of its largest annual fundraising events.

Currently, there are 30 villas, condos and hotels available for bid. The auction begins on Friday, November 14th and continues through 3 p.m. EST on Friday, November 28th (4 p.m. St. John time). Here are the properties currently up for bid:

Bombalassy Villa
Catch ‘N’ Keep Cottage
Concordia Eco Resort
Coral Caribe Villa
Cruz Bay Boutique Hotel
Desert Rose Villa
Dream Come True
Dreamview
Estate Lindholm
Fish Tales Cottage
Gaia’s Pearl
Marketplace Suites
Mayan Sky Villa
On a Clear Day
Pebble Cove
Rebecca’s Fancy
St. John Inn
Samuel Cottages
Seaside at Grande Bay
Stonehouse
Sunnyside Villa
Sunset Ridge Villa
The Hills St. John
The Other World Villa
Villa Circe
Villa Tiffany
Wharfside Village Hotel
The Fred Boutique Resort & Spa (St. Croix)
The Green Iguana Hotel (St. Thomas)
The Mary Ann Boutique Hotel (St. Thomas)

Click here to view all of the properties and to register to bid. Good luck everyone, and thank you for supporting Friends of Virgin Islands National Park!

Friends of Virgin Islands National Park is a non-profit organization and is the official philanthropic partner of the Park. The Friends supports the National Park Service in assuring the Park’s unique terrestrial and marine resources are protected, the Virgin Islands’ cultural treasures in the Park are preserved, and visitors and community are connected to their Park through volunteerism and education.

Want to learn more about St. John? Take an island tour with me!

Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour

See the island of St. John with a resident. See the nooks and crannies that many visitors miss. Explore the beaches, historical sites, perhaps a tiki bar or two, and much more. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

Click Here to Book Now.

New Brunch and Movie Nights at Popular Spot!

Jenn Manes November 4, 2025

Concordia Eco Resort has reopened for the season, and they have a lot of great weekly events scheduled this season!

They plan to hold Sunday brunch every Sunday beginning on November 23rd. Brunch will begin at 9:30 a.m. and will continue until 1:30 p.m. I don’t know about you, but brunch with that view sounds pretty great to me! Bo will even be on hand to play music too!

There will be a movie night each Monday starting on December 1st. Bring a lawn chair and enjoy an evening out with friends and a movie under the stars. There will $3 off of appetizers and $2 off of all drinks. The movies will start at 6 p.m.

Check out Yoga with Thais every Thursday from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and again on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m.

Live music will resume every Saturday night starting on November 22nd. Check out the tunes between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Concordia is a great little eco resort located near Salt Pond on the island of St. John. It has beautiful views, breezes and simple, yet lovely accommodations. Be sure to check it out during your next St. John vacation.

Want to learn more about St. John? Take an island tour with me!

Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour

See the island of St. John with a resident. See the nooks and crannies that many visitors miss. Explore the beaches, historical sites, perhaps a tiki bar or two, and much more. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

Click Here to Book Now.

Island Update: Restaurant News & More!

Jenn Manes November 2, 2025

I have so much to update you on! There are a lot of small things happening here, so let’s get right to it!

Let’s start with the restaurants. Lots of our favorites reopened over the weekend. Drink and Skinny Legs reopened on Halloween with their annual costume parties. I came home after Trunk or Treat, so I wasn’t able to attend either in person, but from the pictures I’ve seen, it looked like both events were a tremendous success! The Windmill Bar and Johnny Lime each held haunted houses over the weekend, and both of those were awesome too!

Banana Deck reopened on Saturday and will be open for dinner seven nights a week this season. Such great news! The Caneel Bay Beach Club also reopened last week.

Pizza Pi reopened up over the weekend too. They’re the floating pizza boat that’s located in Christmas Cove, which is a beautiful turquoise bay located behind Great St. James. This is such a fun stop on a boat day. If you haven’t visited before, be sure to stop by the next time you’re on island.

It’s not quite high season yet, but the island is definitely starting to pick up. There was actually traffic today on North Shore Road, which I have not seen in several months. Parking at Maho and Trunk was also full when I drove past those beaches this afternoon. If you are visiting soon, you may want to head to the beaches by 9 a.m. or 9:30 a.m. to ensure you get a parking spot.

The government is still closed, as I am sure you are all aware. The Visitor Center in Cruz Bay remains closed, as do the restrooms beside it. The rest of the Virgin Islands National Park remains open, including the parking lot at Caneel Bay.

I was just looking at the upcoming cruise ship calendar, and that is picking up too. Next Wednesday, November 12th, has more than 22,000 people visiting St. Thomas via cruise ship. That’s a huge influx of visitors for one day! The first cruise ship of the season visited us here on the island last week. The ships that anchor off of Cruz Bay only carry a few thousand passengers, so we do not get affected too much.

If you are looking to book an island tour over the next few months, please do so sooner than later. My schedule is very full now through the end of February. It’s best to reserve your spot early. You can learn more about my island tours at www.explorestj.com/tour.

Have a great day, everyone!

Charlotte Amalie Ferry Resumes Today

Jenn Manes November 1, 2025

The Charlotte Amalie ferry leaves from the main dock in Cruz Bay.

The Charlotte Amalie ferry will resume operations today. There are now three ferry options for people traveling between Cruz Bay and St. Thomas. (This is in addition to a car barge that transports people with vehicles.)

The Charlotte Amalie ferry will run three times daily. This ferry leaves from and arrives at the main ferry dock in Cruz Bay. It will leave Cruz Bay at 8:45 a.m., 11:15 a.m. and 3:45 p.m. The Charlotte Amalie ferry will leave downtown St. Thomas daily at 10 a.m., 3 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Adults are $13 each way (non-residents) and children are $3.50 each way (ages two to 11, non-residents). Bags are $4 each.

The ferry between Charlotte Amalie and Cruz Bay is roughly a half hour. The airport is less than ten-minutes from the dock in St. Thomas. The ferry is located in downtown Charlotte Amalie, so there are lots of shops and restaurants within walking distance of it.

Click here to book tickets for the Charlotte Amalie ferry.

The ferry between Cruz Bay and Red Hook leaves hourly throughout the day. Here is that schedule in its entirety:

Click here to purchase tickets for that ferry.

The third option is Inter Island Boat Services. They run a ferry between Cruz Bay and Crown Bay, which is a quick, five-minute ride to the airport. This ferry leaves from the bulkhead dock, which is beside Uncle Joe’s BBQ and across the street from Cool Breeze Car Rental. Here is its schedule:

Click here to purchase those tickets.

Want to learn more about St. John? Take an island tour with me!

Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour

See the island of St. John with a resident. See the nooks and crannies that many visitors miss. Explore the beaches, historical sites, perhaps a tiki bar or two, and much more. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

Click Here to Book Now.

Halloween Festivities Begin Today!

Jenn Manes October 30, 2025

Halloween is not until tomorrow, but the festivities start today! Here is a quick rundown of what’s happening for Halloween in St. John this year.

The Tap Room – Thursday, October 30th

The Tap Room is holding its annual costume party tonight from 8 p.m. to midnight. There will be prizes for the best costumes and drink specials. The Tap Room is located on the second floor of Mongoose Junction in Cruz Bay.

The Windmill Bar – Thursday, October 30th & Halloween Night

The Windmill Bar is having a haunted house this year. In fact, they plan to have two separate haunted houses! This is happening tonight and tomorrow from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Donations will support the St. John Revolving Fund. The Windmill Bar is currently decked out with dozens of pumpkins, so stop by and check it out if you are able to.

HALLOWEEN DAY & NIGHT

Mongoose Junction

Mongoose Junction will host a trick-or-treat event on Halloween from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Trick-or-treaters can go business to business to collect delicious Halloween treats.

Trunk or Treat

There will be a large trunk or treat event at the gravel lot in Cruz Bay. This is a great family event. This event begins at 4:30 p.m. and continues until 7 p.m. The no see ums so come out around sunset, so bring your bug spray.

Skinny Legs, Coral Bay

Skinny Legs will reopen for the season Friday night with its annual Halloween party. The party and music starts at 7 p.m. The costume contest will begin at 9 p.m.

Cruz Bay Bars

Several Cruz Bay bars will have Halloween parties and costume contests Friday night, including Drink, Lovango Rum Bar, Upstairs, and more. The Beach Bar and Parrot Club typically get into the action too. Chances are, if you wander Cruz Bay Friday night, you will stumble on a Halloween party rather quickly.

Saturday, November 1st – Johnny Lime Haunted House

Johnny Lime will host a haunted house on Saturday, November 1st at 5:30 p.m. There will be a kid’s costume contest at 7 p.m. There will be live music and drink specials too.

Want to learn more about St. John? Take an island tour with me!

Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour

See the island of St. John with a resident. See the nooks and crannies that many visitors miss. Explore the beaches, historical sites, perhaps a tiki bar or two, and much more. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

Click Here to Book Now.