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Iconic Hotel Returning to Soggy Dollar Bar

Hello everyone, and happy Monday! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I am ridiculously excited to share today’s story with you!

The iconic Sandcastle Hotel is returning to White Bay! How exciting is that?! For those of you who may not be familiar with the Sandcastle Hotel, it was the original hotel built over in White Bay on Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands back in 1970. The hotel was destroyed, unfortunately, back in 2017 when Hurricane Irma rolled through the islands.

Our friends over at the Soggy Dollar Bar announced last week that the Sandcastle Hotel is expected to reopen in late 2022. I don’t know about you, but I think the thought of waking up at the Soggy Dollar Bar in picturesque White Bay sounds pretty darn good to me!

There isn’t too much other information to share at the moment,. You can, however, sign up on Soggy’s website to receive hotel updates. Click here to sign up.

Want to get over to Jost van Dyke sooner than later? Cruz Bay Watersports now offers per person trips  every Tuesday. Click here for the details on that. You can also take the Inter Islands Boat Services ferry over on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays. (There are a handful of St. Thomas boats that are currently able to bring guests over to the BVI too.)

Want to see Soggy Dollar in real time? Check out their webcam plus more than two others on St. John over on our webcam page at IslandTidbits.com/webcams

The view from Soggy Dollar Bar on Jost van Dyke

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Cafe Roma to Start Serving Lunch!

Well folks, there’s going to be another spot to eat lunch in Cruz Bay next month. And it’s air conditioned! With a full bar! It’s the little things in life sometimes. 🙂

Cafe Roma has decided to try its hand at the lunch game once again. And I have to say, I am pretty excited about it. Cafe Roma will begin serving lunch Sundays through Fridays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. beginning on Tuesday, November 1st. Cafe Roma serves dinner daily from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. and is currently open.

For those of you who are not familiar with Cafe Roma, it’s been dishing up great Italian fare in Cruz Bay since 1980. It is located just one block from the ferry dock, upstairs from The Longboard. It consistently receives the top spot for Italian food and pasta dishes in the Virgin Islands Daily News Best of the VI poll.

Take a peek at Cafe Roma’s new lunch menu.

Lunch begins on Tuesday, November 1st.

Curious about dinner? Click here to see the full dinner menu.

That’s it for today, folks. Have a great weekend!

 

Go off the beaten path. See beautiful beaches. Explore centuries-old historical sites. Grab a cocktail or two along the way. But most importantly, have fun! Explore STJ island tours is rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

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Beach Break! Saltwell Bottom

Hello everyone, and happy Friday! Who needs a little beach break to start the weekend? Today we’re heading out to one of my favorite Explore STJ stops – Saltwell Bottom beach on St. John’s quiet East End. Turn up the volume, listen to the waves, and enjoy one minute of pure island bliss.

This video, and all of our videos, can be see at www.explorestj.com/videos.

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Go off the beaten path. See beautiful beaches. Explore centuries-old historical sites. Grab a cocktail or two along the way. But most importantly, have fun! Explore STJ island tours is rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

 

Great News! Miss Lucy’s is Reopening Much Earlier than Expected!

October 11th 9am Update: Miss Lucy’s just announced that they are unable to reopen today as expected. We will keep you posted.

Hello everyone, and happy Thursday! Today’s post is short, sweet and to the point. Miss Lucy’s, one of our favorite restaurants out in Coral Bay is reopening for lunch well over a month earlier than expected! Cheers to that!

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Miss Lucy’s, it’s been a St. John staple for quite some time. It’s located right on the water in Coral Bay, about ten minutes or so from the Coral Bay triangle. Not only does Miss Lucy’s have amazing waterfront views, but it also has great food and even better staff!

Gorgeous views at Miss Lucy’s…

Miss Lucy’s was expected to reopen in late November or early December, but they announced this week that they are now reopening for lunch next Tuesday, October 11th. Miss Lucy’s will be serving a limited menu Tuesdays through Fridays from noon to 3 p.m. Despite having a limited menu at first, they will be offering a full bar. (Let’s be honest, that’s important when you’re on vacation!)

And for those of you who love a good open mic night at Miss Lucy’s, that will resume on Thursday, November, 3rd. No word on when hours will be expanded beyond that, but I will definitely let you know when I know.

I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty excited for some Johnny Cakes! Grouper Ruebens, soon come…

Want to visit Miss Lucy’s but you don’t want to rent a vehicle? Please check out Explore STJ for information on full & half day island tours.

Oh and before I go, I would like to publicly give a big CONGRATULATIONS to Candy, Miss Lucy’s amazing manager, on the birth of her new baby! Congrats to you and your family!!

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Go off the beaten path. See beautiful beaches. Explore centuries-old historical sites. Grab a cocktail or two along the way. But most importantly, have fun! Explore STJ island tours is rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

 

Island Info: Sunset Times, Pics, Video & More

Sunset from Gifft Hill – No filters. It was really this pretty!

Today we’re talking sunset…

Sunset is easily my favorite time of day on island, and we are super lucky to have some incredible ones in the Virgin Islands. I know many of you, like me, would hate to miss a good sunset when you’re on island, so here is a handy primer for you.

As of today, October 5th, sunset is at 6:04 p.m. We will lose a minute nearly every day until the end of the month when it sets at 5:47 p.m.

Did you know that the sun never sets earlier than 5:41 p.m. on St. John? That will happen between November 15th and December 3rd. We will gain a minute or so of light every day beginning on December 4th.

(Random fact: We do not observe daylight savings on St. John, so when most of you fall back an hour on November 6th, time in the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico will stay the same. That means we will be one hour ahead of EST until daylight savings on March 12, 2023.)

On the flip side, the latest that the sun sets on St. John is 6:59 p.m. That will happen between June 28th and July 14th in 2023.

There are a lot of great spots to watch the sun set on St. John. I love to watch it set from the Westin around Christmastime when it’s setting just beyond the resort. Gifft Hill, as seen in the image at the top of this post, is also a great spot to watch it. In the summer months, the Windmill Bar takes the cake for sunset watching. Check out this time lapse video I took from the Windmill Bar last July:

Beautiful, isn’t it?

Here are a few other pictures I have taken over the past couple of years. None of these pics have been edited or altered for color. It’s that pretty!

January 2019
June 2019
June 2020
April 2022

Want to see when the sun will set when you’re visiting St. John? Click this link to view the current sunset times.

Go off the beaten path. See beautiful beaches. Explore centuries-old historical sites. Grab a cocktail or two along the way. But most importantly, have fun! Explore STJ island tours is rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.

 

A New Way to Get to the BVI!

Now this looks like paradise…

Hello everyone, and happy Tuesday! Let’s talk about the British Virgin Islands, shall we?

I am super excited to tell you all that there is a brand new way to get over to the BVI! Cruz Bay Watersports, which is based out of the Westin on St. John and out of the Ritz Carlton on St. Thomas, is now offering weekly trips to Jost van Dyke. Cruz Bay Watersports is the only St. John-based company that allows you to purchase a spot on a multi-passenger boat, as opposed to chartering an entire vessel to the BVI.

Cruz Bay Watersports is now offering Jost van Dyke trips every Tuesday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., departing from the Westin dock. Guests will sail aboard a luxury 65-foot catamaran for a day of sun and a lot of fun. Guests will first visit Great Harbor, Jost van Dyke where the crew will clear you through Customs. You will then spend the day enjoying picturesque White Bay, home to the Soggy Dollar Bar, One Love, Gertrudes, Hendo’s Hideout and some of the most beautiful water you’ve ever seen!

Beautiful White Bay… (throwback pic)

The cost of this trip is $199 for adults and $149 for children ages 12 and under. There is an additional $75 fee for Customs. You must have a valid passport to book this trip. The trip includes a continental breakfast, open bar, snorkel gear, towels, flotation devices, and fresh water showers onboard. Lunch is not included.

And because Cruz Bay Watersports appreciates everyone who calls St. John home, they are offering a 40%-off local discount through November 1st. You must be a full-time USVI resident to receive the discounted rate.(The 40% comes off of the base price, not the Customs fee.) All you have to do is email Cruz Bay Watersports after booking, and they will apply the discount.

Looking for additional information? Ready to book? Click here to visit their website.

Cruz Bay Watersports also offers Discover Jost van Dyke trips out of the Ritz Carlton on St. Thomas every Thursday.

Lastly, Inter Island Boat Services offers ferry service between Cruz Bay and Great Harbor, Jost van Dyke every Sunday, Tuesday and Friday. Click here for more information on that.

I don’t know about you, but I love a good BVI day! Cheers!

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Go off the beaten path. See beautiful beaches. Explore centuries-old historical sites. Grab a cocktail or two along the way. But most importantly, have fun! Explore STJ island tours is rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor.