News of St. John

The Virgin Islands National Park put out a message yesterday regarding changes due to COVID-19. Here are the details…

• The Cruz Bay Visitor Center is closed. Information and services will not be available.
• The park dock and bulkhead at the Cruz Bay Visitor Center is closed to commercial activity.
• No more than two individuals may occupy a dinghy when traveling to or from the NPS dock.
• All restrooms and portable toilets in the park are closed.
• Guided hikes and other on-site public or educational programs are cancelled.
• Food service and watersports rentals at Trunk Bay will not be available.
• The park will not issue special visitor use or business permits.
• Trash will not be collected. When visiting the park bring garbage bags so you can take your trash with you. Pack it in, pack it out.
• Trash receptacles will not be available for boater trash. Boaters must make other arrangements for trash disposal.
• Do not leave trash on shore.
• The pavilions at Trunk, Maho, and Hawksnest Bays are closed, as are changing rooms and showers.
• The park will not operate or provide restrooms, maintain roads or walkways.
• Outdoor spaces, including park trails, beaches, and waters remain accessible to the public in accordance with the latest federal, state, and local health guidance.
• Moorings remain open.
• The waters of Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument remain open.
• Law enforcement staff will remain on duty and may be reached at 1-866-995-8467.
• Visitors may visit park beaches via taxi, provided that no more than two people sit in each row of vehicle seats.
• At beaches, BBQs and parties are not permitted. While visiting beaches, visitors must maintain social distancing and avoid crowding, the release stated.

We will let you know if/when there are changes to the above information.

• For the latest updates on COVID-19 and how it relates to St. John, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/virus.
• For the latest information on closures, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/closed.

St. Johnopoly, St. John’s only board game, is available and is still shipping. If you would like a bit of St. John to arrive at your doorstep, you can order yours at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly

Well folks, we made it to Monday. By now, you’ve probably read or been told that visitors are unable to check into any accommodation – hotel, villa, Airbnb, etc. – for a 30-day period beginning this Wednesday, March 25, 2020 per order of the Governor. This pertains to St. John, St. Thomas and St. Croix. The Governor issued this order to keep our community healthy, and I hope everyone – visitors and business owners alike – abides by it.

(In case you missed it, click here to read our story on this.)

As of today, March 23, 2020, there are seventeen cases of COVID-19 in the US Virgin Islands. Nine are in St. Croix and 8 are in St. Thomas. As of today, there are no cases on St. John. There are two pending tests – one in St. Croix and one in St. Thomas.

Beginning today, all bars must close. Restaurants can remain open, but for take-out only. There is no in house-dining at this time. This applies to the entire Virgin Islands.

The majority of shops are closing today.

The airports and seaports remain open. The Governor said he will not ask that they be closed. (Only the federal government can close the airport. Only the Coast Guard can close the seaports.)

St. John is basically shutting down. And while this will be devastating to our economy, I believe it is the right thing to do in order to limit the spread of this virus.

So what can you do? If you have a trip that is occurring within the 30-day window when you are not allowed to arrive, I ask that you postpone, not cancel. If you have a trip scheduled for May, June or beyond, I ask that you wait before making a decision to postpone or cancel. Let’s see what occurs here in the next few weeks please.

If you love St, John, you can still support us during this time. Go online, and visit your favorite shop or restaurant. Chances are they have online shopping. Many offer gift certificates too. If you plan on coming back, buy a gift certificate from your favorite restaurant now and use it later. Small steps like this can really help our economy during this time.

Planning on taking a boat charter the next time you return? How about an island tour with me? Consider booking those trips now. Let us know you are coming back. 🙂

If you are looking to bring a little St. John into your homes during this time, consider purchasing a St. Johnopoly board game. For those of you unfamiliar with the game, it’s just like the traditional Monopoly board game but for St. John. So rather than starting at Go, you will start at the Ferry Dock. You will go around the board using tokens like a Jeep and a petroglyph while landing on some of your favorite spots including Miss Lucy’s, The Beach Bar and more.

You can purchase your St. Johnopoly game at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly 

Most importantly, please come back. So many of you did after the hurricanes, and I hope you choose to again. We will be here waiting for you… when the time is right of course!

Have a great day everyone, and hang in there. We’re all in this together.

Earlier today, we told you how we thought guests should stay home rather than visiting in the near future. We also stated how we wished the Virgin Islands government would do more to ensure the safety of all residents. Well tonight, I am pleased to share the following information with all of you.

Governor Bryan just released an update on YouTube. In it, he mentioned several key changes that will take place over the next few days. Most notably, the governor stated that no hotel, timeshare, Airbnb, etc. can accept guests over the next 30 days. The only exemption would be government or emergency personnel.

“If you are coming to the Virgin Islands, you will not have anywhere to stay for the next 30 days,” Governor Bryan stated.

This order does not apply to guests that are already in the Virgin Islands, he said.

Here are additional points made by the Governor:

• The Governor urged everyone maintain social distance by staying at least six feet away from one another.
• The Governor urged everyone to stay home as much as possible, It’s ok to go out for a walk or a drive, the Governor said, but “please refrain from congregating.”
• All bars must close effective Monday.
• Restaurants can remain open, but for take-out only. No in-house dining will be permitted.
• Businesses can only allow 10 customers to enter at a time.
• Taxi capacities will be cut in half.
• The Government is monitoring the ferries and plans to meet with the operator on Monday. He will provide an update on this then.
• Effective Wednesday, the Governor is issuing a stay at home order. This is not a curfew, he stressed. The Governor stated people can engage in services necessary to daily life.

You can see the entire update below:

• For the latest updates on COVID-19 and how it relates to St. John, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/virus.
• For the latest information on closures, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/closed.

St. Johnopoly, St. John’s only board game, is available and is still shipping. If you would like a bit of St. John to arrive at your doorstep, you can order yours at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly

Hello everyone, well we made it to the weekend. It’s pretty crazy to think what can happen in one week.

As of this morning, we have six confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the US Virgin Islands. We still have 43 tests that are awaiting results.

I am still receiving emails asking whether or not people should visit us. If your trip is within the next two weeks, I ask you to ask yourself how you would feel if you unknowingly carried the virus to already vulnerable place with a fragile healthcare system. If you love St. John, please stay home if your trip is supposed to take place this month or the first week of April.

My income is based on tourism. My partner’s income is heavily based on tourism. The majority of my friends’ income is based on tourism. At this point, we recognize that it is more important to keep our community safe than to encourage guests to visit the island. It saddens me to write that, but that is the current reality here.

If your trip is in the latter part of April, May, June or beyond, I ask that you hold off before canceling or postponing this trip. Let’s take a wait and see approach. At this point, I am hopeful that tourism will resume by mid- to late spring.

For those of you who already cancelled your trips, I ask that you come back when you are able to. And if you are able to come back, please support our local businesses. Go out to eat.  Take a ride in a taxi. Purchase a souvenir. Go on a boat trip. Or even take an island tour with me.

Beginning today, businesses in the US Virgin Islands can only have 10 patrons at a time. Because of this, the majority of restaurants are offering take-out only. Some have decided to close altogether.

Starfish Market, here on St. John, will offer seniors-only hour every Thursday from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. to persons age 60 and over. This should be reserved for residents only and not guests to the island.

I’m happy that the US Virgin Islands is taking steps to stop the spread, although I wish they would take more action to keep our community safe and healthy.

We got through Irma and Maria, and we will get through this too. -Jenn xoxo

• For the latest updates on COVID-19 and how it relates to St. John, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/virus.
• For the latest information on closures, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/closed.

St. Johnopoly, St. John’s only board game, is available and is still shipping. If you would like a bit of St. John to arrive at your doorstep, you can order yours at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly

There is something so peaceful and calming about the night sounds heard on St. John. You need to have the sound on for this one. Enjoy.

For the latest updates on COVID-19 and how it relates to St. John, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/virus.

St. Johnopoly, St. John’s only board game, is available and is still shipping. If you would like a bit of St. John to arrive at your doorstep, you can order yours at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly

Hello everyone, and happy Friday! We’re committed to sharing beautiful sights and sounds from the island while the world navigates through this crisis. We’re fortunate here in that the National Park remains open, and the trails are the perfect place for social distancing. We hiked to the top of Caneel Hill yesterday, and took the following video for all of you. Enjoy!

This trail can be accessed from a few spots. The two places it’s most commonly accessed from are beside the parking lot at Mongoose Junction and across the street from the National Park sign on North Shore Road.

Last evening, I asked people over on our Facebook page what you’d like to see videos of. I have quite the list, and I am heading out soon to take videos for all of you If you have anything you would like to see, please leave a comment below.

For the latest updates on COVID-19 and how it relates to St. John, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/virus.

For the latest information on closures, please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/closed.

St. Johnopoly, St. John’s only board game, is available and is still shipping. If you would like a bit of St. John to arrive at your doorstep, you can order yours at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly

Our Governor held a press conference today to update the Territory on what’s happening here regarding COVID-19. Here are some of the top messages :

• As of Thursday, March 19, 2020, there are only three cases of COVID-19 in the US Virgin Islands (St. John, St. Thomas and St. Croix.) One case is in Croix; two cases are in the St. John/St. Thomas district. It has not been reported which island both cases are on, although it is believed both cases are on St. Thomas. The Ritz Carlton on St. Thomas announced to guests that there was a positive case at the resort.
• The government is “contact tracing” any individuals who may have come into contact with one of the three infected persons. Those people are being tested for COVID-19. The government stated there is drive thru testing for individuals marked as “persons under interest.” That drive thru testing is happening on St. Thomas and St. Croix. As of today, that testing is not happening on St. John. Currently they are awaiting results of 21 tests.
• Beginning Saturday, March 21, 2020 at 6 a.m., businesses, including bars and restaurants, will be required to limit the number of patrons to 10. Big box stores like Home Depot and Kmart on St. Thomas, for example, will be exempt as they have the ability to maintain adequate social distancing, the Governor stated.
• Regarding travel and tourism, the Governor estimated that there are only about 1,500 tourists in the Territory. He stated that air travel to the Territory “slowed to a trickle” and that people leaving the Territory remains high. “As of now, we don’t have any plans to close the airport,” the Governor said.
• All licenses will be granted a 60-day extension. This includes business licenses, motor vehicle licenses and registrations, etc.
• The Governor said he expects to increase safety measures moving forward. He emphasized that if everyone followed the rules, a curfew would not go into effect.
• Lastly, the government urged everyone to sign up for COVID-19 updates by texting COVID19USVI to 888777.

We are keeping a list of closings at www.newsofstjohn.com/closed

All information regarding COVID-19 can be found at www.newsofstjohn.com/virus

St. Johnopoly, St. John’s only board game, is available and is still shipping. If you would like a bit of St. John to arrive at your doorstep, you can order yours at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly

Hello everyone, and happy Thursday! Is this pandemic over yet?? Ugh. I hope you are all staying safe where you are, self isolating if you’ve been asked to, social distancing , etc. We’re doing our best to stay safe down here on the island. Sadly, no more group gatherings or island tours for us for the foreseeable future. And you know what? That’s ok. Because we’re going to do our part to control this thing and limit the spread.

I know many of you are at home and the stir craziness is likely starting to set in. You said you wanted your St. John escape, and I promise to continue providing it to you. I’ve been looking at our numbers, and I can see how many of you log onto the site everyday. The numbers over the last several days have been unbelievable, so we can see how much you need St. John in your lives. Thank you for that.

This morning, we’d like to remind you that we have more than a dozen live webcams for you to watch. We installed a webcam at our new place which is perched high above Cruz Bay. You can zoom in and watch town a bit, but more importantly, it’s a good place to spot rainbows. You can check out our webcam at www.newsofstjohn.com/webcam

Want to see all of our webcams? You can check them out at www.newsofstjohn.com/webcams 

If you know of a live webcam that is not on the site, please send me an email to [email protected], and I will add it.

Thanks everyone, and stay safe!

St. Johnopoly, St. John’s only board game, is available and is still shipping. If you would like a bit of St. John to arrive at your doorstep, you can order yours at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly

All of our updates on COVID-19 can be found at www.newsofstjohn.com/virus

Want to know which businesses have closed and which restaurants are offering take-out options? Please visit www.newsofstjohn.com/closed

Here is your daily St. John escape! This video was taken yesterday at Maho Bay…

Hello everyone! I just wanted to put out a quick update to let you all know what is happening down here.

As of this morning (7:30 a.m.), there are only two cases of COVID-19 in the US Virgin Islands.

Our airports and seaports remain open, and will remain open at this time.

The British Virgin Islands will begin restricting visitors beginning tomorrow, March 19, 2020. Only BVI residents, belongers and those with a valid work permit will be able to enter the BVI.

A few of our restaurants have decided to close temporarily in an effort to stop the spread. Others have decided to offer take-out only. The restaurants who continue to offer in-house dining will limit the number of patrons to 50, per order of the Governor.

At this time, only the timeshare side of Grande Bay has decided to close. The hotel side of Grande Bay is staying open. All other hotels on St. John remain open and plan to stay open.

The National Park is open and will remain open. The Park has decided to close its Visitor Center and has cancelled all guided hikes and park programs. The beaches, trails and water are open.

We’ve compiled a list of closings. You can view it at www.newsofstjohn.com/closed

We are posting all of our COVID-19 updates on one page for easy reference. You can view it at www.newsofstjohn.com/virus

St. Johnopoly, St. John’s only board game, is available and is still shipping. If you would like a bit of St. John to arrive at your doorstep, you can order yours at www.newsofstjohn.com/stjohnopoly