News of St. John

I’m sure many of you are heading back to work today after having yesterday off, so we figured we would send some good vibes your way. Instead of a traditional story today, we’re going to show you a beautiful beach. Please take about 40 seconds to enjoy a beach break at Francis Bay…

 

Well folks, they did it. The Beach Bar finally reopened yesterday afternoon, and I could not be happier for owners Reed and Sherry Compton. I know it may seem silly that a reopening of a bar could mean so much to so many people, myself included, but it truly does. The Beach Bar is one of the island’s staples, in my opinion, and its continued closure repeatedly reminded us of what happened here on September 6, 2017. Its reopening is yet another step forward in the island’s recovery. Now if we could only get the rest of Wharfside reopened. And no, I don’t know what’s happening at Joe’s Rum Hut  other than it no longer looks like a hut. It looks very Miami to me. But that’s just my opinion. 🙂

Many people ask me how the island is doing, and my answer is always “great!” because we truly are doing great. But this past two weeks have been different. We’re doing better than great. This island is hopping. All of our villas are filled. The Westin, Gallows Point and Grande Bay are filled. Our restaurants are packed, so much so that it’s hard to get a table some nights. Our shops are full, and the beaches are too. This island is thriving, and that simply makes me smile.

I have not seen this many people on island since before the hurricanes. This island is back. You should really come and see for yourselves.

Christmas and New Year’s weeks are always the busiest weeks of the year. So don’t worry, if you come any other week of the year, you will be able to get a table in a restaurant and a spot at the beach. 🙂 

Yesterday was such a great day in Cruz Bay. I was at The Beach Bar right at 3 p.m. (a big thanks to my babysitters yesterday!), and sat there with a smile on my face for several hours. The bar was full. The beach was full. Drink had a party next door, and it was full. The street was shut down, and it was packed with people – both those who live here and those who were visiting here. There was a concert over in the custom’s lot, and I heard that was full too. Destra played, and that is huge! She is the queen of soca music, and soca is huge here. (That was past my babysitter curfew, so I apologize for not having a video of that for all of you.) And there were even fireworks over Cruz Bay. It was just a magical night.

Please check out this quick video we made. And a big thanks to Katie Rockefeller, owner of Drink, for sharing a video from Drink’s VIP section with us.

I don’t really know how to end this post today, other than to say thank you to all of you who love this place. I hope you have a wonderful 2020, and I hope you get a chance to visit us soon. Happy New Year everyone!

I don’t know about you, but I simply cannot believe that it is the end of 2019. This has been such a great year here on St. John, and so many things have happened over the past 12 months. Some have been positive, and some have been not so positive. But that’s life I guess. 🙂

Here’s a little recap to remind you all about several of the happenings here on St. John this year. But before I get into it, I just wanted to thank you all, yet again, for taking the time to read this website daily. I am so appreciative of each and every one of you. For the third year in a row, we have surpassed two million page views on newsofstjohn.com. That’s a pretty amazing feat for a little blog in the Caribbean. And together, we have raised more than $323,000 for charity just this year alone. That brings our all time total to more than a half-million dollars raised for charity. Simply amazing. You all deserve to give yourselves a pat on the back for that one.

Now without further ado, here is News of St. John’s 2019 Year in Review…

The year started off on an extremely high note with the reopening of the Westin resort. I stood on my back porch and watched the first ferry pull in with passengers on January 4th. The staff was cheering and clapping, and I have to admit it brought a few tears to my eyes. It was so nice to see the Westin resort welcome guests again. It was a huge step for our recovery in my opinion.

But that wasn’t the only exciting thing that happened in January. Inter Island Boat Services launched a new ferry service between Cruz Bay and the Crown Bay marina on St. Thomas. This ferry brings you much closer to the airport, so you can have a five minute taxi ride as opposed to a 30-40 minute taxi ride. Since they launched the Crown Bay ferry, they’ve launched weekend service to Jost Van Dyke as well.

And to finish our the month, The Beach Bar served its first post-hurricane drink back on January 17th. They started offering happy hour on the beach, but sadly that was short lived. The great news is that they are reopening on Tuesday with a New Year’s Eve bash. Fingers crossed that the inside bar will be ready Tuesday for us all to enjoy. They’re working day and night to get it done, so it’s very possible. And of course, we will keep you posted on that!

In February, we saw the return of Kekoa, and it was such a lovely sight. It took 17 months, but repairs to the storm-battered boat were finally completed and she returned to her mooring ball in Cruz Bay. We had a few big announcements that month too including the opening of the new tiki bar at Maho Bay, the opening of Lime Out on the East End and the launch of the 3rd edition of St. Johnopoly. All such exciting stuff!

(If you would like to purchase a copy of St. Johnopoly, please email me at [email protected] and I will put you on our waitlist.)

We got our hopes up at the beginning of March when Caneel Bay actually started some cleanup work. Sadly that didn’t last long, and the property remains in shambles today.

Our good friends opened Irie Pops across from the National Park Visitor Center in April, and we also received a visit from the 9th largest yacht in the world. The yacht got some online hate, but we don’t pay any mind to the keyboard warriors here at News of St. John. It was an impressive ship, and I heard they tipped well in Cruz Bay. So there’s that. 🙂

We took some much-needed time off in May and head over to Italy, a vacation that was originally scheduled for Sept. 14, 2017. But you know me, I just have to tell you the news, so I grabbed the computer the moment I heard about big news pertaining to Cinnamon Bay. It was announced that Tom Secunda, a part-time St. John resident and a cofounder of Bloomberg in NYC had purchased the contract at Cinnamon Bay and planned to turn the campground into a philanthropic endeavor. When the campground reopens (hopefully next year), all of the proceeds will be given back to the island. How amazing, kind and generous is that!

There was a lot going on in June starting with the announcement that the Caneel Bay leaseholder wants $70 million to walk away from its agreement prior to its expiration in September 2023. I think it’s an insane request, and I am happy to report that they have yet to receive anything. Hopefully they never will.

Also in June, our friend Thomas expanded his popular smoothie shop in Cruz Bay, a new steakhouse was announced , Extra Virgin opened 1864, its sister restaurant over at Mongoose Junction, and Sloop Jones began creating art again for the first time since the storms.

July started off on a sad note when it was announced that Pickles in Paradise was closing out in Coral Bay. But on a happier note, the owner of the former Driftwood David’s spot which was destroyed during Irma, reopened a restaurant on Centerline Line. He appropriately named it Shambles. And lastly in July, we introduced you to our friend Charles, the gardener at Annaberg. He is one of St. John’s treasures, and I wish the National Park would once again employ him full time out there.

More great transportation news kicked of the month of August with the announcement that Inter Island Boat Services would resume service between Cruz Bay and Tortola’s West End. Later that month, the Friends of the Virgin Islands National Park released a statement denouncing Caneel Bay’s request for a $70 million payout. And just before the month ended, Hurricane Dorian made a quick appearance on St. John. It was forecast to pass 140 miles south of the island and instead, it formed into a hurricane as it passed over St. Thomas. St. John saw little damage, but it definitely triggered some not-so-good memories for many residents on island at the time.

The two-year anniversary of Irma took place on September 6th, and we really weren’t sure what to write or do that day. So we did what we do best… We held a raffle. But rather than supporting St. John, we chose to support our neighbors in the Abacos. And what happened was simply amazing. Thanks to all of you, we raised $80,000 in one day. Yes, in one day. Now if that doesn’t prove how great humans are, I’m not sure what does. That raffle went on to raise $200,000. The proceeds were donated to All Hands and Hearts, an organization that was instrumental in our recovery and is now working in the Abaco Islands.

Later that month, we told you all how backseat seatbelts were being discussed by our local government. And I ended that story with a flippant remark regarding the Territory’s lack of an open container law. Well the National Park gently let me know that federal law supersedes local law, and there actually is an open container law with St. John’s National Park boundaries. Who knew!

Visitors started to trickle back to the island in October following low season which coincides with hurricane season. We posted a nice little island updated and invited you all to take an island tour around the island with us. We ended the month with a heartwarming story about some of St. John’s most beloved creatures – our turtles. We received a video of hatchlings making their way to the ocean for the first time. It was one of those things where if it didn’t make you smile, maybe you don’t have a heart. (Kidding of course, but it was pretty cool.)

We took a golf cart ride through Caneel Bay in November as we made our way over to Honeymoon Beach. Naturally we took a video to share with all of you. We set it to the music from Jurassic Park because, well, that’s exactly what it looks like these days. What a shame. And later that month, we learned that Caneel Bay purposefully chose to underinsure itself. I’m not sure how many times I can shake my head about this one…

But on a happier note, The Danforth opened in Coral Bay in November. It’s an upscale spot that recently had a beautiful renovation. It’s located across the water from Coral Bay, so just think… great views and gentle breezes.

We had a decent amount of restaurant news in December. First came the announcement of a new rum bar, which was followed by the opening of Dave & Jerry’s Island Steakhouse. Brunch returned to Miss Lucy’s in December, and open mic night – which used to be held at the now-closed Pickles – began happening there too.

And we had some more positive transportation news. The Big Red Barge finally received a spot on the car barge schedule, and was given the go-ahead to begin transporting vehicles between St. John and St. Thomas.

We had lots of great news to end the year including the announcement of a reopening date for The Beach Bar. The guided hikes to Reef Bay resumed, and we told you about a new ice cream truck here on island. Yum!

Of course there was so much more that happened this year. These are simply some of the highlights.

The BIG story this year, in my opinion, is the sheer amount of visitors that we received on the island. This week, for example, is the busiest week I have seen on island in years. The beaches are packed. The restaurants are packed. The shops are packed. The villas are packed. The Westin is packed. Is it fun finding a parking spot at the beach or a seat at the bar at night? No. But am I ecstatic over the amount of people who have chosen this place as their vacation spot? Absolutely. So thank you, thank you, thank you for choosing to spend your hard earned dollars here on this island. I am so appreciative of all of you. And to those of you who read the blog but haven’t had the opportunity to do so yet, I look forward to welcoming you one day.

And with that, the year has come to a close. Sending so much love from my family to yours… Here’s to a great 2020!

 

It’s pretty hard to work a Friday at the end of a holiday week, so we figured we’d help you escape to St. John for a few minutes this morning. Let’s take a ride to Coral Bay…

Please check out this GoPro video we recently took. It starts at Mamey Peak and goes along Centerline Road out to Skinny Legs. Enjoy!

Tag: Ride to Coral Bay

Hello everyone and happy Thursday! I hope you all had a great holiday! I know I did! Today we’d like to tell you about something “cool” that recently began operating in Cruz Bay…

I don’t know about you, but I love a good ice cream truck. Heck, I love any sort of ice cream! So I was ecstatic when I first stumbled upon Love City Delights a few months ago, St. John’s only ice cream truck.

Love City Delights is owned and operated by Aubrey Bridgewater. Aubrey was born and raised here on St. John, but now calls St. Thomas home. He’s retired from USVI law enforcement and often came to St. John to bring his children and grandchildren for ice cream. His five-year-old granddaughter particularly loves ice cream (just like me!), so he decided to open an ice cream truck for her. What a fantastic grandfather!

Love City Delights first arrived back in August. It comes to Cruz Bay between 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. and is located near the ferry dock but closer to the public restrooms near customs parking lot. He then goes to the basketball court in Pine Peace from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. and then over to Bellevue on Gifft Hill from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.(All times are approximate.)

Of course I had to sample it, and it was delish! And it’s also pretty inexpensive. One scoop of ice cream is just $3 and two scoops are $5. And even better, Love City Delights is available for private functions. For more information, you can reach out to Aubrey at (340) 626-3404.

So the next time you’re in Cruz Bay, be sure to stop by Love City Delights and show Aubrey some love. 🙂

That’s all we have for you today, folks. Have a great day!

Tag: Cruz Bay Ice Cream

Hello everyone, Merry Christmas! I’d like to send you all warm wishes from St. John! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday! Hopefully some of you were lucky enough to find a trip to St. John under your Christmas tree!

Unfortunately life got in the way this year, so we weren’t able to complete our annual Christmas video. My apologies for that. I was just watching some of our old videos, and my goodness, they made me fall in love with this island all over again. We’ve come so far over the past two or so years. Thank you for sticking by us.

Merry Christmas everyone. Sending lots of love to each and every one of you. xoxo -Jenn

Check out our 2017 Christmas video:

Check out our 2018 video:

Here it is folks, our annual holiday tradition. I hope you enjoy it!

‘Twas the night before Christmas, in a place called Love City,
Everyone was happy, the kids were so giddy!
The park was lit up, so festive and bright,
Lights were strung everywhere, it’s such a delight!
So here on the island, we do things our way.
We don’t need reindeer & we don’t need a sleigh.
Our St. Nicholas, well, he comes on a ferry,
And when his foot hits the dock, he’s just so darn merry!
His boat is courtesy of the now-defunct Caneel Bay,
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they reopened one day…
But speaking of closed spots, The Beach Bar’s coming back!
Soon come Painkillers, Bushwackers & snacks!
I’m not sure about you, but I love a good beach,
And here on St. John, we have so many within reach!
If turtles are your thing, head over to Maho,
There’s a tiki bar too, a nice little combo.
And speaking of bars, have you been to Lime Out?
It floats in the sea, a cool place to hang out.
But there’s more to this island than beaches and bars,
The residents here are truly the stars.
Whether you were born here or moved here, you matter a lot.
We all have our roles, which makes St. John a great spot.
But back to the holiday, that’s why we’re here today, right?
Because Santa himself will show up tonight!
Let’s head to the dock and check out the bay,
Oh my gosh, it looks like he’s headed our way!
More rapid than mongoose, his ferry, it’s coming!
The Pan Dragons are here, they just started drumming!
Santa looks to be ready, a conch shell in his hand,
He blew on it hard as he stepped on the sand.
Now, Dasher! Now, Dancer! Now Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! On, Cupid! On, Donder and Blixen!
To the top of the island, high up on Bordeaux,
It’s a bit of a climb, at least there’s no snow!
Santa was dressed in flip flops, Corona in hand,
And looked so happy to’ve ditched the snow for the sand.
With a snorkel in tow and fins for his feet,
He waved to the Spice Cam, then walked down the street.
His eyes, how they twinkled! His dimples, how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
He picked up his koozie, and we grabbed a cold drink,
Played the dice game real fast and he gave me a wink.
He had a broad face and a cute little belly,
That shook when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
He then checked his phone and hopped off his stool,
Who would have thought this guy was so cool!
The fun had to end, it’s now time to work,
He paid his bar tab, and gave me a smirk.
He sprang to the dock, to his crew gave a whistle,
And away they all went, like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he cruised toward the Bight—
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

***

Click here to read out 2018 version.

Click here to read our 2017 version.

Click here to read our 2015 version. 

Click here to read our 2014 version.

Click here to read our 2013 version.

We have amazing news to start the week with… The Beach Bar is expected to reopen very soon! It’s a Christmas miracle! Ok, it’s not really a Christmas miracle, but it’s pretty darn exciting!

It’s been 840 days since The Beach Bar has officially been open (not counting the popup parties or happy hours on the beach which happened every then and again over the past two or so years), but who’s counting? Well I am, and I know many of you are too!

So here is what we know…

The Beach Bar will be open on New Year’s Eve for its annual bash. If all goes as planned (hoped) for owners Reed and Sherry Compton, they will open at 3 p.m. for happy hour at the bar. The party will continue onto the beach with live music starting at 6 p.m. It will be a drinks only night, which is perfectly fine by me!

Erin Hart starts singing at 6 p.m. followed by Lourdes and the Switch at 7 p.m. Live Bait will begin playing at 9:30 p.m. and will continue until… well they will continue until they are done. 🙂

And then if all goes as planned (or if all goes as hoped), The Beach Bar will be open regularly beginning on January 1st. But again, it will be bar only at first. The kitchen will begin serving food shortly after the New Year’s Day opening. How exciting is all of this??!!

I don’t know about you, but I desperately miss The Beach Bar. And I am super excited that it’s going to reopen soon.

So just to let you all know, The Beach Bar has a bit of a different look, but it will still be the good ole’ beach bar that we all know and love. It’s been rebuilt stronger and now has a concrete ceiling. There’s some pretty wood paneling throughout and a new stone wall beside the bar. The old Beach Bar stools were spared from the wrath of Irma and Maria, and the owners are pretty pumped to put them to good use once again. The chalkboard which had some great one liners – I got 99 problems but a beach ain’t one – has also been saved, and so has the shirt shack doors that were covered in stickers (although those doors now lead to a bathroom as opposed to the shirt shack). Oh and the Bowery has a new look too! Garage doors have been installed to create a better, open air space for guests of The Beach Bar.

I stopped by Sunday afternoon and took a few pics and a video. Please know that these were taken in the midst of construction, but they definitely show the progress. Enjoy!

Ahh, Beach Bar Bushwacker soon come…