Sun kissed in St John, USVI

St. John is the perfect destination for those seeking paradise. From exploring coastline snorkelling to embracing the soothing comfort of nature’s lush greenery, you’re sure to find something for everyone. Explore the most beautiful beaches, take long walks on the soft white sand, hike to breathtaking viewpoints, and enjoy the setting sun; sounds dreamy, doesn’t it? If this is not enough, wait until you see the photos of St John and you will want to go there.

While most people get to St John for a day trip, I would gladly stay three nights while visiting.We took the morning ferry to St John and had around 7-8 hours to spend on the island. I loved every second of it, the island is filled with natural beauty. The USVI National Park, covering 60% of St. John, is home to some of the most beautiful beaches in the world!

You will fall in love with every beach you visit in St John and my obsession started with Maho Bay which is around a 15-20 mins drive from Cruz Bay. In the nearby area are a small restaurant and a small shop to rent snorkelling gear, kayaks and paddleboards. We rented chairs and snorkelling gear since we heard it was a great spot to spot seagrass turtles. Though I could not spot any turtle snorkelling in the waters of Maho Bay the experience of snorkelling to lengths in shallow water was thrilling. Maho Bay felt like a great place to relax on the water and just soak up the beauty of St John. I particularly enjoyed the turquoise water and the long stretch of palm trees.

After spending around an hour at Maho Bay we headed to Cinnamon Bay as that if another place for snorkelling. Cinnamon Bay is this long stretch of soft white sand beach and the location of Cinnamon Cay (a very small island in the middle) makes it a picture-perfect location. The shallow, clear water and the short distance to Cinnamon Cay make Cinnamon Bay excellent for snorkelling. The Schak owner also recommended we go snorkelling in the eastern part of Cinnamon bay because there are some reefs there. Unlike last time I had my GoPro with me to capture underwater photos while snorkelling. Now as I am writing this I feel we did a lot of snorkelling in USVI :D.  After snorkelling, we had a lunch of food that we packed from a restaurant in Cruz Bay. Cinnamon bay turned out to be my favourite beach on St John, I absolutely adore the scenery and crystal clear waters.

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We also did a short walk to Peace Hill Windmill, which took about 10 minutes. The windmill is no longer there because of the cyclone, but this hike is famous for its amazing views of St. John beaches and nearby small islands. We even spotted a rainbow from here.

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We only had about 1 hour left, so we decided to visit Honeymoon Beach as well. I had heard that Honeymoon Beach was one of the best beaches in St. John, but I preferred Cinnamon Beach and Maho Beach.

We stayed around for a while longer, until we had to hurry back for our ferry to St Thomas. But it was hard to leave, you don’t really have to do anything there. You can just sit on the beach and look at the water and the fleet of catamarans and a few single-hulls anchored in the bay.