USVI Daily Journal
DAY 1 TUESDAY NOVEMBER 30, 2021
Cookies N’ Cream
The time had finally come for us to ditch our “Winter” weather and head to a tropical paradise!
Our flight was at 5am, so we had to be at the airport EARLY! I had packed the night (more like the week) before so that we were ready to go!
Alena and I both decided to meet at the airport (so that our respected boyfriends could drop us off and say good bye). We blew through security and took it easy before boarding our plane.
Our plane ended up being delayed! We had an extremely tight layover, so I definitely started to panic a little bit.
In all honesty, I didn’t think we were going to make it to our next flight. I was worried the entire flight to Dallas. That airport is HUGE! However, by some lucky sent to us from the universe, we landed, ran off the plane, and our plane to St. Thomas was the next gate over! We were the last people on the flight! They literally shut the doors right behind us! I was so relieved.
Once we arrived in St. Thomas, we exited the plane onto the tarmac. This was Covid times still so there was a large line to show your Covid vaccine information. It wasn’t too difficult to deal with.
Once we were through all that, it was time to pick up our car! I waited in line at AVIS while Alena did a little shopping and us some rum.
Avis ended up being terrible. It was one other person and myself waiting for our cars. I kid you not, we waited for almost 2 hours while the entire airport emptied out. I still have no idea what took so long. In the island way, the desk clerks were taking their time and completely ignoring us. When we would complain, they just ignored us.
When we FINALLY got our car, it was time to find a grocery store, get some supplies and head to our air bnb. By that time, it was dark out so we figured it was best to just relax!
Driving in the Virgin Islands is quite an adventure. The steering wheel in the cars is on the left side of the car (like America). HOWEVER, you drive on the left side of the road! (Like most European countries)
We were able to find a grocery store on the way to our Airbnb. We picked quite a bit of supplies before heading off. Our Airbnb wasn’t too hard to find, however, it had the STEEPIEST incline of a gravel “driveway” I have ever seen. The host actually had to come outside and tell us everything would be fine and we would make it!
After we did, it was time to chill out, have a drink, and get a good night’s sleep.
DAY 2 WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 1, 2021
When we woke up the next day, we finally got a good look at our Airbnb during the day. This little space was perfect with such a good view! I woke a little before Alena, so I had some time on the porch with my coffee and a book!
Once we both were awake and had eaten breakfast, it was time to set out for the day!
Magens Bay
We headed to Magens Bay on the northside of the island. This beach is quite famous for its crystal clear water and gorgeous landscape!
It was only $5 USD per person to enter since it is a managed park and has facilities. We decided to spend a couple of hours here soaking up the sun!
It was also here that we discovered Alena had forgotten to pack a BATHING SUIT! There was a little boutique on the beach where we were able to get her a cute lavender bikini for $50 USD.
It did start to rain at one point, but that is ok!
Before leaving, we stopped at the Magens Bay Cafe before doing a little shopping (I wanted a new dress!) and heading back to the AirBnb to get ready for our Booze Cruise!
Our “Cocktail Sunset Cruise” left from Margaritaville on the south part of the island.
The cruise was honestly so much fun! We set sail and were immediately served with ourderves and drinks.
The whole cruise was about 2 1/2 hours. Most of the crew and the passengers kept to themselves, but it was still a fun party!
DAY 3 THURSDAY DECEMBER 2, 2021
In the morning, I journeyed off on my own to do a two tank morning dive with Aqua Marine.
The dive charter was very easy and relaxed. I was lucky in that there were only 4 divers and 6 divemasters. They were training some new employees so it was a very easy relaxed dive.
Although the conditions weren’t the best, the two dives were nice and easy and the crew gave me a pain killer cocktail to end the morning!
After the dive, I headed back to the Airbnb to pick up Alena. For the afternoon, we decided to go to a spot called “Mermaid’s Chair”. A hike on the northwestern most side of the island.
Mermaid’s Chair
Although the hike down to the beach is through a private neighborhood, the gate keeper will let you through, you just have to be gone before it is dark.
This place exceeded any and all expectations. And we had it all to ourselves!
We ended up staying here a couple of hours, exploring the area, having a little picnic, and taking photos in the water
Honestly, it is one of the best places I have ever been. Seeing a beach in between two oceans is something I feel like I will never see again!
Alena says that is in her #1 on her Most Beautiful Places list.
We ended up staying until sunset before making the climb out. Although the hike is only 3.4 miles roundtrip, it is a DIFFICULT climb out. I am glad we left enough energy and water for the climb out.
After working up and appetite, we decided some seafood was in order! We chose the Green House in Charlotte Amalie.
We both got Lobster and a cocktail because why not! Overall, it was delicious and very affordable!
DAY 4 FRIDAY DECEMBER 3, 2021
Today was another nice, early day as it was time to island hop! We were headed to St. John to go the Virgin Island National Park!
We took the ferry out of Red Hook over to St. John which took about 30 minutes. The ride was nice and easy and those guys loading on and off the cars REALLY know what they are doing!
Virgin Islands National Park
I was very excited for this day since this is what drew me to the Virgin Islands in the first place!
We had about 6 hours to spend in the park. Although there are some hikes, Alena and I were more so interested in laying on the beach and taking in the beautiful landscape! It was also quite hot and humid when we were there so we decided to take it easy!
*Feel free to head over to my National Park section to read more in depth about the actual park itself.
Cinnamon Bay
The first stop was Cinnamon Bay. We didn’t stay at this beach long because of the heat, but that didn’t mean we didn’t enjoy our time here! We spent about an hour walking along the beach and playing in the water. I even hit a spot when my phone welcome me to the British Virgin Islands (those are right in the back ground of this photo).
The water was PERFECT. Warm, clear, and beautiful.
Trunk Bay
We then moved on to the more famous Trunk Bay. Although there is a fee to enter this beach, it has facilities such as showers and bathrooms.
There was also a nice little food and bar stand. Alena and I decided to take advantage of that and get some food and drinks before relaxing on the beach for a couple of hours.
This park/ beach is the only National Park that offers an “underwater hike”.
It was quite fun! I put on my snorkel gear and swam towards the island. There were markers on the bottom of the ocean indicating which way to go with fun little facts about the National Park on them.
While snorkeling, I saw colorful fish and quite a few stingrays!
After a long day of sitting on the beach and swimming, it was time to head back to the ferry.
We rode the ferry back during sunset (another sunset cruise!) before heading back to our Airbnb to eat through some of the groceries we bought.
It was then that I realized I was very sufficiently sunburned and was happy I had used a high SPF on my tattoo!
