# St Thomas with kids



## delfam (Aug 30, 2012)

Hi!  We will be visiting in Sept. with kids age 8 & 11.  Are there must see places to visit that they will enjoy - such as Coral World or a certain beach?  This is a once in a life time visit as we mainly stay in the States.

Suggestions for not only seafood, kid friendly places would be great as only half our family will eat from the ocean.  We have rented a Jeep for grocery shopping and getting around.  Still debating whether to ship staples (salt, breakfast item, snacks...).

Any input would be greatly appreciated!!!!  Thank-you.


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## SOS8260456 (Aug 30, 2012)

delfam said:


> We have rented a Jeep for grocery shopping and getting around.  Still debating whether to ship staples (salt, breakfast item, snacks...).
> 
> Any input would be greatly appreciated!!!!  Thank-you.



Not St. Thomas, however, see Michael Coley's review of Harborside at Atlantis in the Bahamas for some great information on getting groceries to an island.  We have never been out of the country, and one reason for hesitating was meal planning due to dietary restrictions.  His original post was very informative and I saved it.  Then the past couple of days I started researching for our first trip and I saw where he had put the info into his review of Harborside.  It was the first review when I was reading it yesterday.


Have fun!


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## legalfee (Aug 31, 2012)

Plaza Extra at the Tutu Mall is a good place to get groceries. Coki Beach and Coral World are nice. You may also consider Mountaintop and Magens Bay. You could also take the car ferry to St John and snorkel or do a day sail to the BVI (need passports). This is a good site for STT restaurants:

http://vieats.com/Welcome_to_VIEats.html


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## SpikeMauler (Aug 31, 2012)

Don't know how adventurous you are but someone started a zip line tour. I think the age requirement is 8 and older.
Link below:
http://www.ziplinestthomas.com/index.html


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## winnipiseogee (Aug 31, 2012)

How old are the kids?  We just did 2 weeks on STT in march.  We weren't that excited about it (we thought it would be too overdeveloped) but we got the house for free so what the heck??  We ended up LOVING it!!!  Lots of great grocery stores on the island and things weren't that much more expensive than in the states.  Do the kids snorkel?

Let me know their ages and I will give you a list of the things we loved.  Coral World was ok but its rather pricey and I didn't think it was worth the cost.  Lots of great beaches but it depends a bit on ages.  

You will have a wonderful time.  We were really pleased at how much we enjoyed it!


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## amanda14 (Sep 1, 2012)

Winni,

I am going with my wife and 3 kids (13, 11 & 5) As well as my parents July 2nd of 2013 so any info you can share would be great. We are renting a. Minivan from Avis.

Thanks


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## delfam (Sep 1, 2012)

Thanks Lisa!  Michael is very organized and I was to get some great ideas.  We will def. be bringing food items with us.

The zipline sounds awesome!  Will have to look into that.

We have rented a jeep (from Hertz), but they don't allow travel to St. Johns.  Was debating if it was worth the trip over.

We will let you know Amanda14


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## delfam (Sep 1, 2012)

Great site and very helpful!  Thank~you.




legalfee said:


> This is a good site for STT restaurants:
> 
> http://vieats.com/Welcome_to_VIEats.html


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## delfam (Sep 1, 2012)

winnipiseogee said:


> How old are the kids?  We just did 2 weeks on STT in march.  Do the kids snorkel?
> 
> Let me know their ages and I will give you a list of the things we loved.  Coral World was ok but its rather pricey and I didn't think it was worth the cost.  Lots of great beaches but it depends a bit on ages.




We have a son, 11 and a daughter who we be turning 8 the week we are there.  They have never snorkled before.  We usually body surf/boogie board at the New Jersey shore where the waves are rough.  Calm and warm water will be new to them!

We are staying at the Frenchman's Cove and have a jeep for transportation.


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## Free2Roam (Sep 2, 2012)

If you're a beach lover, the trip to St. Johns is definitely worth it. Hop on the ferry and just get a taxi when you get there. 



delfam said:


> <snip> We have rented a jeep (from Hertz), but they don't allow travel to St. Johns.  Was debating if it was worth the trip over.


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## winnipiseogee (Sep 2, 2012)

So here are my thoughts on what worked for us and what didn't.

First, keep an eye on how many cruise ships are in town at this website:

http://www.vinow.com/general_usvi/cruiseship/ship_schedule.php

If you see a lot of ships in town avoid going downtown or to the touristy areas between 10am and 4pm.  

Magens Bay is truly spectacular when there are not tons of cruise shippers in town.  We would head down early each morning (say about 8am) and they don't change an entrance fee.  We would only stay a few hours until the cruise ships started to arrive and then take off.  Near the entrance of Magens is a place called Udderly Delicous that has great milk shakes and also serves "adult milkshakes" which I highly reccomend.  Often times we would head back around 4 (again no entrance fee then) and hang out for a few hours.

Coral world was OK but parking is a nightmare, the beach can be insanely crowded and petty crime is a concern here.  If you run out of things to do give it a try but it was pricey and only ok.

Secret Harbor Beach is by far our favorite beach for snorkeling especially the stone formations off to the right hand side. Just make sure the kids have a noodle or something else to help them float.  It gets deep here (15ft) but its very calm and lots of fish! They have a great little restaurant and the hotel is good about non-guest visitors.

Sapphire Beach is a really good snorkeling beach especially for younger kids.  It can be pretty crowded but they have multiple restaurants and its big enough not to feel too crazy.  It doesn't get too deep and you can see lots of rays and turtles.

The beach at the Marriott timeshare (perhaps this is where you are staying) is great for waves and body surfing or at least it was in the spring.  The Marriott however isn't all that nice about non-hotel guests using the beach.  You are allowed to they just don't make it too easy.

Don't worry too much about bringing food.  There are 2 Kmarts and lots of grocery stores and prices really aren't that bad at all except for fresh fruits and produce.  

Mountaintop is a fun drive with beautiful views.  It is also the world's largest souvenir shop so good for that.

Its also fun to head down to the cruise ship shopping areas. There is the downtown area which is nice but more jewelry, artwork etc, Yacht Haven Grand is the VERY high end shopping and then off to the side is the very kid friendly shopping area that they would probably really enjoying spending a few hours walking around.

Redhook is where the ferry leaves for St John.  Its a great little town with shops, lots of restaurants, a decent little grocery store and we hung out here a good bit.  Its small size makes it easy to keep track of the kiddos.  

St John's is gorgeous and the kids will surely enjoy the ferry ride over there.  Its pricey when you get there and there isn't a ton to do outside the beaches.  Make sure you go to St John's on a day without lots of cruise ships at dock though or things will be nuts.

OK - that all I've got for you.  Good luck driving on the "wrong" side of the road.  We had a blast with the little ones!  I am sure you guys will have a wonderful time as well.


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## SOS8260456 (Sep 2, 2012)

Another good info thread for me to save.  I cant wait for our trip.  I just have to get planning it.


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