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A lot of interesting things have happened here on St. John over the years, but today I’d like to let you all know about the time when something “amazing” happened.

It was June 2014. I had been blogging about St. John for a little over a year when I first heard that a major TV show was filming in the area. I reached out to a man who always had all the latest St. John gossip – the late Captain John Brandi. Just as I thought, Captain John had all the details.

Captain John informed me that The Amazing Race had chosen the US Virgin Islands as the first stop on Season 25, which premiered on Sept. 26, 2014. Contestants started in New York City and then had to hop on either the Delta or American flight from JFK to STT. From there, they took a taxi to Vendor’s Plaza in Charlotte Amalie where they found a clue that sent them onto a nearby seaplane. This is where the St. John connection comes in.

Teams flew from Charlotte Amalie and landed between Congo and Lovango, which is just north of Cruz Bay. Numerous St. John boat companies were involved, including Island Roots Charters. According to Captain Jason Siska, owner of Island Roots, more than 20 boats participated. Some carried the camera operators while others transported the contestants from the seaplane over to Carval Rock.

Carval Rock is just east of Congo and Lovango. It’s north of Caneel Bay. You can see it from the Caneel Bay overlook, which is pictured at the top of this post.

Upon arrival at Carval Rock, teams had to climb up a net (they must have received a permit to do so as this is a protected area), and then grab a clue before jumping off and into the water below. From there, they were taken to Hans Lollik (an island north of St. Thomas) where they had to dig up another clue using a treasure map.

According to Captain Jason, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for production. The current can be pretty strong in that area, and the clues, which were initially about five to 10 feet underwater, shifted dramatically due to the strong current. Therefore production had to reset everything, holding back the race by a couple of hours. This subsequently affected the last leg of the race as several contestants were forced to dig in the dark, all while getting chewed up by our notorious no see ums.

“Typical island style,” Captain Jason joked.

The episode aired about three months after it was filmed, and although none of our boats made the final cut, it was pretty cool to see so many familiar places included.

Want to check out the episode? You can watch it on CBS or Paramount+. A subscription is required though, so borrow a friend’s password if you don’t have one of your own. 🙂 You can see all of the Season 25 episodes here.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you enjoy these blast from the past stories as much as I do. And if there is something you’d like to know more about, feel free to send me a quick email at jenn@explorestj.com. Have a fantastic day everyone!

 

 

This is a question I get asked a lot. Do I need to rent a vehicle on St. John? And if so, is a four-wheel drive vehicle really necessary? The short answer is that it depends on a few factors. Please read on to learn more.

Do I Need to Rent a Vehicle on St. John?

Let’s start with the basics. Do you need to rent a vehicle on St. John or can you rely solely on the taxis? It depends on where you are staying. For example, if you are staying right in Cruz Bay at Grande Bay, Gallows Point, Lavender Hill, or Cruz Bay Hotel, you can rely solely on taxis. If you are staying at the Westin, you can rely exclusively on the taxis. But there is a small caveat. It is challenging to get a ride beyond Maho Bay. So if you want to see more of the island, including Coral Bay, you will want to rent a vehicle. Or you can book an island tour with me. 🙂

Also, beware of accomodations described as being “an easy walk to town.” St. John is very hilly. Click here to read more about these easy walk to town properties. 

Do I Really Need Four-Wheel Drive? 

I would say yes. Our roads are very steep and winding. When it rains, these hills can be very slippery and tough to drive up without four-wheel drive. Certain roads and driveways also require four-wheel drive. These tend to be out in Coral Bay and beyond.

St. John has numerous switchbacks too. There are three just past Trunk Bay that you will have to traverse if you are driving to Cinnamon and Maho. You have to take these curves pretty tight, and four-wheel drives makes that so much easier. And when the road is wet, four-wheel drive is a must in this area. I cannot tell you the number of times I have seen a panicked driver in a car slipping backwards in this area.

Gifft Hill (Route 104) also has some pretty serious switchbacks. Route 108 does too.

Should I Rent at the Airport? 

There are a few mainstream car rental companies located at the airport in St. Thomas like Thrifty, Dollar, Avis and Budget. I caution you from renting from these companies for two reasons. 1. They tend to oversell their cars. This means you may arrive and have no vehicle. 2. They sometimes tell you a vehicle is four-wheel drive and then they arrive and give you a car. I do not recommend renting a car. A Jeep or small SUV is a must in my opinion.

The Age-Old Debate: Should I rent on St. Thomas or St. John? 

I’m a proponent of renting on St. John. I understand that it can be easier to rent of St. Thomas, but I’m in the mindset that the car barges should be reserved for residents who need it for business purposes, to go to a medical appointment, for shopping, etc.

St. John Car Rental Companies 

Here is a list of St. John Jeep rentals on St. John. St. John Car Rental is my preferred company because the owners are some of my closest friends. We also hurricaned together at their house back in 2017. (Hurricaned is a new verb now – lol.)

• St. John Car Rental: 340-776-6103
• Aqua Blu Car Rental: 340-776-2782
• Aquarius Car Rental:340-514-5262
• Bougainvillea: 800-253-7107
• C & C Car Rental: 340-693-8164
• Conrad Sutton: 340-776-6479
• Cool Breeze: 340-776-6588
• Courtesy: 340-776-6650
• Delbert Hill: 340-693-8819
• Denzil Clyne Car Rental: 340-776-6715
• Destiny Car Rental: 340-777-5337
• Hospitality Rent A Car: 340-693-9160
• Island Hopping Rentals: 340-228-2229
• Just Sun Jeeps: 340-227-2235
• L&L Jeep Rental: 340-776-1120
• Lionel Jeep Rental: 340-693-8764
• Mr. Piper’s Jeeps: 340-693-7580
• O’Connor Car Rental: 340-776-6343
• Penn’s Jeep Rentals: 340-776-6530
• Slim Man’s Jeep Rental: 508-932-2737
• Sunshine’s Jeep Rental: 340-690-1786
• Varlack Auto Rentals: 340-776-6412

Bookmark this list at www.ExploreSTJ.com/jeeps.

So there you have it. I hope you found this information to be helpful. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at jenn@explorestj.com.

And if you are looking for more information about my island tours, please visit www.ExploreSTJ.com/tour. Explore STJ is rated Excellent on TripAdvisor. We also just received TripAdvisor’s Travelers Choice Award for the second year in a row! Woohoo!

Click here to read Explore STJ Island Tour’s reviews. 

The island is busy again! Woohoo! So I thought this would be a good time to repost the following story. The St. Thomas airport is a little different, so here is a quick post about how to best navigate STT when going home.

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You’ve made it. You’re here! You just landed at the Cyril E. King (STT) airport on St. Thomas, and you are excited to get off the airplane and start your vacation. When all of a sudden, an airport employee comes on the plane’s intercom and tells you to arrive three hours before your departing flight. What??!! Can this be real? Well, unfortunately it can be for many folks. Today’s post is all about navigating the St. Thomas airport when it’s time to go home.

So let’s start with the three-hour protocol. Is that real? Honestly, it really depends. If you are traveling on a Saturday and are checking a bag, then yes, you should get there as close to three hours before your flight as possible. Are you flying out on a Tuesday with carry on bags only? Then you’re pretty safe with only two hours.

Tip #1: If you can download your boarding pass on your phone or print your boarding passes in advance, I strongly urge you to do so. This will allow to to skip the counter if you are traveling with carry ons only. Checking a bag? Then it doesn’t really matter, because you have to go to the counter anyway.

Step One: Checking Bags (Skip to Step Two if you plan to travel with carry on luggage only.)

If you are checking bags, the first thing you need to do it get your bag tags. Once you receive them, the airline does not take your bags. You actually keep them with you until you pass through Customs & Border Patrol, which is step number two.

Step Two: Customs & Border Patrol

Now you may be wondering why you have to go through Customs & Border Patrol if the US Virgin Islands are part of the United States. The reason is because we are outside of the “customs territory.” Therefore we have to pass through and answer some relative quick and easy questions. The agents will ask if you have any souvenirs, the value of the souvenirs, if you have fruits, vegetables, alcohol or tobacco, where you are heading, where you stayed, etc. Families or groups living in the same household can go up to the agent together.

You do not need a passport for Customs (or to visit the US Virgin Islands), but if you have one, bring it. You will get through Customs much faster with one. However if you do not have one, a driver’s license or state ID is fine. And for families with small children, just bring along a copy of your child’s birth certificate.

Have Global Entry? Lucky you! There is a special lane for you right in the center when you walk through the glass doors and into the Customs area. (Heads up: You must have your physical card with you to utilize Global Entry in St. Thomas.) Just lift up the belt, and let yourself in. There are two separate lanes – one on the right and one on the left – for those of us who do not have Global Entry.

Tip #2: Do not bring pork products to the airport in the USVI. 

You cannot bring certain pork products through Customs, and those that you can bring, must be in a sealed container. Here is the official verbiage from the USDA:

The revised Federal Order also allows travelers to bring certain processed swine products and byproducts in passenger baggage. These products must be shelf stable, packed in hermetically sealed containers and cooked by a commercial method. Unprocessed swine products and byproducts in passenger baggage will not be allowed to enter any other States or Territories.

Click here for more info on that. 

Step Three: Dropping off your luggage (Skip to Step Four if you have a carry on only.)

Once you leave the Customs area, you will see a sign indicating that baggage drop off is ahead to your left.

Step Four: Security

Ok, so the people dropping their bags go to the left. The people with carry ons only go in the middle. The people with precheck go to the far right against the wall. If you have precheck, and this is a service you can sign up for, you do not have to take off your shoes, belts or a light jacket, and you do not have to remove your electronics or liquids from your bag. It’s a real time saver. The application fee for precheck is $78, and it is good for five years. Click here to learn more. 

So as you can see, if you are checking a bag, it’s a four-step process. If you are not checking a bag and have your boarding passes ahead of time, it’s only a two-step process.

Tip #3: Avoid Saturdays, if possible

Saturday is the busiest day at the St. Thomas airport. This is due to the fact that most villas rent Saturday to Saturday. Also, it’s because it’s easier to travel on the weekend for many. If you are traveling on a Saturday, I would arrive as close to three hours as possible, especially if you are checking a bag. The St. Thomas airport is packed on Saturdays, and oftentimes there are more people than actual seats inside the terminal. Fridays and Sundays are pretty busy too, but not as bad at Saturdays. So if you can travel Monday through Thursday, the airport will be a bit better.

Tip #4: Hire a Porter

If you get to the airport and the Customs line is out the door, you can always hire a porter. They charge a nominal fee per bag, and they have the ability to bring you to the front of the Customs line. You can find them outside of the Customs area and near the airline counters. The porters can be easily identified by their red shirts.

Ok, so you’ve made it. You’re finally inside the St. Thomas airport! Now you may be wondering about the food and drink available inside STT. I wrote about this topic a couple of months ago. Click here to read Airport Eats: What to Expect at the St. Thomas Airport. 

Did you miss our post on How to Get to St. John? You can find that article at explorestj.com/GettingHere.

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