St Croix, well worth the Effort
We started of the trip badly. We got to the airport one and a half
hours early only to be stuck in the TSA line for little over an hour.
Then we get to our flight at Jet Blue 15 minutes before the scheduled
departure only to find out that’s when they close the door and they
expect you to know that. Here’s a clue, if you say your flight leaves
at a specific time, that is the time you close the door. Don’t play
tricks to increase your on time records by misleading your customers.
As for the TSA, if you have to say you may have to wait 3 hours in
security, you have a problem.
We went to the Crown Room and got in with the Platinum American
Express Card, which is well worth the $400 annual fee. If you have a
ticket, even standby, you can get in without belonging to their club
as long as you pay a fee. But the card will let you cover costs like
those up to an amount so large, it would cover that cost for the
lounge, twice to three times.
While there, I fed the family for free, got them connected to the
internet, and tried to find my next option. I went on my company’s
travel net for employees and used myidtravel.com to get tickets to
complete our travel. These tickets were discounted heavily but they
were also stand-by. The great thing myidtravel.com does is rate how
full the loads were so I knew which flight to get.
We finally got to our hotel, the Buccaneer, which is expensive but we
wanted to splurge on one thing. This was a great idea. It had great
views, great service, and great food. We ate there every morning
because it came in our package and was a great deal. We got up early,
went sightseeing, then had a huge late breakfast which was our latest meal.
We also took advantage of there free entertainment and other things
like sea kayaks and snorkeling gear on their beaches.
The next day we rented a car and toured the island. Our first stop was
the landing site of Christopher Columbus in 1493 on his second voyage.
This is free to do and a very beautiful area. Its full name is Salt
River Bay national Park, This great spot was completely free and well worth the stop.
Next we went to the Botanical garden which
was an old sugar plantation. This is great for history buffs and
horticulturalists. Then it was off to the Sandy Point Wildlife Refuge.
This place had some of the most beautiful beaches around for free. It
only open on weekends. Finally we went to have dinner at The Beach
Side Cafe at Sand Castle on the Beach. This was a great dinner at a
reasonable price.
The next day we went to Buck Island which is a protected habitat. We snorkeled in the underwater nature park which was a great treat for use because it was my 6 year old son’s first time. The crew at Caribbean Sea Adventure made this a fantastic experience personally taking us through the park. My son enjoyed it so much, he wants to study fish for a living. Amanda, Gracy, and Captain Tommy have our warm hearted thanks. Finally we went to Buck Island to enjoy the softest sand we have found as well as enjoy its unspoiled beauty.
The next to the last day, we did a sunset cruise on Big Beards Sailing Trips. Not only was did the trip have spectacular views, but the crew was incredibly friendly. Kudos for making it kid friendly. This Island can be a little much for young children, but staff all over the island do a great job of accommodating families.
The last day we went into Christiansted to see the fort and take in the local color. The fort was incredibly well preserved and worth the entry fee. Just watch your head because the ceilings are low. The town itself is well laid back but can get a little rowdy when the sun goes down. Make sure you look at the courtyards in the building here. there are some great places to be found.
Besides the fact that that we got to the island a little late and spent 24 hours on a plane or in an airport, this was one of my families favorite trips. This is because the island is not built up like some tourist trap. The locals are very helpful and try there hardest to make you relax. The best raking I have is from my kids who said they liked it better than Hawaii. I can’t argue with that.