Yes, the US Virgin Islands are one of the easiest places in the Caribbean to travel on your own: English is the main language, the currency is the US dollar, and US citizens need no passport.
Logistics are simple on
St. Thomas and
St. John, where ferries between Red Hook and
Cruz Bay take about 20 minutes (US$8 to 10) and safari taxis cost roughly US$2 to 3 per ride. The harder part is money. Basic rooms run US$100 to 180 a night, so the
Cinnamon Bay campground on St. John is the closest thing to a backpacker bed. On
St. Croix you’ll want a rental car, and traffic drives on the left.
Five to seven days lets you see all three main islands of the US Virgin Islands without rushing, while two or three days is right for a single island.
Give
St. Thomas one to two days for
Charlotte Amalie,
Magens Bay and a ferry hop to
Water Island.
St. John deserves two to three days for the
Reef Bay Trail and north-shore beaches like
Trunk Bay. Plan two days on
St. Croix for
Buck Island Reef,
Christiansted and a bioluminescent bay tour. Moving between St. Thomas and St. John takes 20 to 45 minutes by ferry; St. Croix is a 25 to 30 minute seaplane or flight (US$90 to 150).
You can get around St. Thomas and St. John in the US Virgin Islands without a car, but St. Croix is far easier with one.
On
St. Thomas, open-air safari taxis link
Charlotte Amalie,
Red Hook and the beaches for about US$2 to 3 a ride, with shared taxis charging US$10 to 15 per person to spots like
Magens Bay. On
St. John, taxis from
Cruz Bay reach
Trunk Bay in 10 minutes for about US$8 to 10 per person, and the VITRAN bus to
Coral Bay costs US$1. On
St. Croix,
Christiansted and
Frederiksted sit about 30 minutes apart by road, and rentals run roughly US$60 to 90 a day.
The must-visits in the US Virgin Islands are
Trunk Bay and the
Reef Bay Trail on St. John,
Magens Bay and
Charlotte Amalie on St. Thomas, and
Buck Island Reef on St. Croix.
Trunk Bay’s marked underwater snorkel trail and the Reef Bay Trail’s Taino petroglyphs (about 3.5 km each way) fill one full day on St. John. Charlotte Amalie’s
Fort Christian and Magens Bay fit into a day on St. Thomas. On St. Croix, a half-day boat to Buck Island (US$80 to 120) pairs well with a night kayak at
Salt River Bay, one of the island’s bioluminescent bays, and an evening walk around
Christiansted.
If time is short in the US Virgin Islands, skip
Caneel Bay,
Red Hook beyond its ferry dock, and the slower museum stops on St. Croix.
The Caneel Bay resort has been closed since the 2017 hurricanes, and
Hawksnest Beach or
Trunk Bay nearby give you better swimming. Red Hook is mainly a ferry terminal with marina bars, so pass straight through to
Cruz Bay (20 minutes, US$8 to 10). On St. Croix, the
Estate Whim Museum and
Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge can wait for a longer trip; Sandy Point usually opens only on weekends. Keep your two St. Croix days for
Buck Island Reef and
Christiansted.
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