Happy Tuesday! This edition of Travel Tuesday is full of tropical beauty as I recap our recent trip to the Virgin Islands. Let me start by saying this is the perfect summer trip for families with kids who don’t like to sit still. I am more than happy to lounge on a beach with a good book, but the rest of my family isn’t. That being said, I love a good adventure and anything involving crystal clear turquoise water. I also love a luxury resort with good food. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.
We decided on St. Thomas as the epicenter for our vacation so we didn’t have to deal with customs at the airport. Carry on luggage only meant that we were out the door and into our car less than fifteen minutes after landing at Cyril E. King Airport. We used RED Hospitality Transportation, Inc., for our airport transfers and they were lovely. Uber and Lyft are not available in the Virgin Islands. If you find yourself in need of a driver in St. Thomas, I highly recommend RED. Linked here: https://www.usvitransportation.com/
First Night
We stayed at the Ritz Carlton St. Thomas and it was ideal for us. The restaurants were delicious (our favorite was Alloro) and the rooms were nice. We were out and about most of the days, but the pools and beach are well staffed and come with comfortable setups. One of the pools even has a slide! Book here: https://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/hotels/sttrz-the-ritz-carlton-st-thomas/overview/
Our one dinner off property was at Sea Salt. It’s about a ten minute cab ride from the hotel and is definitely worth the trip. The views are incredible and the food is top notch. It’s easy to get to as our hotel has a slew of taxis ready at a moment’s notice. Check out Sea Salt here: https://www.seasaltvi.com/
Our days were spent on the water. We made arrangements with Captain Don at Virgin Islands Boat Rentals to lead us on an island hopping adventure. Don was fabulous. He’s lived in the USVI for over twenty years and is a wealth of information. He’s also funny and plays great music. The boat is immaculate and zipped around quickly so we could hit up all of the spots on our list. He handled customs for us when we ventured into the BVIs and knew of plenty off the beaten path spots that weren’t inundated with tourists and cruise ship passengers. WORTH EVERY PENNY. If you’d like to book Don, click here: https://virginislandsboatrental.com/. He responds to web site messages quickly.
We started our journey with Foxy’s on Jost Van Dyke. Foxy’s and Foxy himself are legendary. Ben and I have visited Foxy’s before and we couldn’t wait to share it with Emery and Bodie. They got to meet Foxy! To learn more about this famous establishment, click here: https://foxysbar.com/
About Foxy
In 1968, a young Philicianno “Foxy“ Callwood saw the future on sailing yachts that came to call on the idyllic 4 square mile of Jost Van Dyke. In the shade of a Tamarind Tree, Foxy set up a bar for the specific purpose of welcoming sailors to his island home. Foxy’s Tamarind Bar is often recognised as the birthplace of the BVI’s Yachting tourism industry. Quick with a song, joke or story, Foxy has been welcoming visitors to ‘his island’ for 5 decades. He has received numerous awards for his contributions to heritage and tourism in the British Virgin Islands, including a MBE (Member of the British Empire) from H.M. The Queen of England, Elizabeth II.
After Foxy’s we motored over to the always fabulous Soggy Dollar Bar in White Bay. Emery and Bodie were particularly excited about this place as they wanted to try a painkiller (virgin, obviously) and play the ring toss game. They’ve heard Ben and me talk about this place their entire lives. I’m so glad they loved it just as much as we do. https://www.soggydollar.com/
Soggy Dollar
We were blessed with lots of sunshine during our trip, which made the gorgeous water color even more stunning.
We were hungry at this point so we headed out to the Willy T off Norman Island for lunch and flips off the top of the boat. Again, this is a spot Ben and I have talked about for years, so it was a must-do for the kids. The food is good! Honestly, every meal we enjoyed in the Virgin Islands was delicious. Or maybe everything tastes better when you’re in paradise. To learn about the Willy T, click here: https://willytbvi.com
Willy T
The rest of the day was spent puttering around the islands and dropping anchor anyplace we wanted! Captain Don knew of some great snorkel spots and we saw plenty of these….
Green Turtle
Day two with Captain Don was more of the same, but less well known spots. We stayed on the US side for our second day, which included Happy Island, Water Island, and…
Epstein Island
Obviously we didn’t go ashore, but it was wild to see. The locals have some interesting theories about Jeffrey…
I didn’t do a great job taking pictures our second day because we were in the water enjoying sea life most of the time. We snorkeled with a huge barracuda named Bubbles and explored a shipwreck. I hate I didn’t get photos, but I thoroughly enjoyed not having my phone with me. We stopped at a great beach bar, Dinghy’s, for lunch. It’s on Water Island and, per usual, was fabulous. See it here: https://dinghysbeachbar.com/water-island/
A spur of the moment decision resulted in Ben and the kids going fishing day three. I can only handle catch and release fishing, so I decided to stay at the resort that day. I enjoyed the gym, breakfast and reading on the beach while they caught their lunch. Captain Don hooked them up with a buddy and they went out bright and early. The water was a bit rough, so they didn’t do any deep sea fishing. However, their in shore endeavors were successful and they brought back plenty of mackerel. The chef at the hotel made fish tacos with their fresh catch and Bodie declared it “the best fish he’s ever tasted.”
Relaxing and Fishing
Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions! I think this trip is ideal for families with kids who are out of the toddler phase. Tweens and teens will love it! And the adults, of course.
