DIVE US Virgin Islands DIVE TRAVEL GUIDEUS Virgin Islands - Cyber Diver Top 10 Dive Destination >>  n the beginning there was nothing. Then God created the US Virgin Islands, cruise ships and shopping malls, not necessarily in that order.
To describe the main island of St. Thomas as an over-developed cruise ship destination designed for shopping would not be overstating the problem. What is astonishing is that it also hosts more "divers" than any other island in the eastern Caribbean. Most of the divers are actually cruise ship passengers squeezing in a resort dive between duty-free shopping sprees: "I'll take half a dozen St. Thomas tea cups, two "Gimme a Virgin" t-shirts and a PADI resort dive please." Despite the congestion and fixation on shopping in the capital city of Charlotte Amalie, the island is beautiful with gorgeous turquoise blue bays, rolling forested hills and spectacular white sand beaches. Although most of the diving is somewhat pedestrian, St. Thomas offers some fairly good wreck dives. In addition to St. Thomas, there are the islands of St. John and St. Croix. If you want to escape the hustle and bustle of St. Thomas, St. John is the best choice. Most of the island is a nature reserve and development is limited to Cruz Bay. The dive sites are also limited and of little interest. St. Croix is the largest of the Virgin Islands but less developed and populated than St. Thomas. The island is surrounded by reefs and offers divers excellent wall dives off the north shore including the renowned Salt River Dropoff. Tiny Buck island 3km off St. Croix's northeastern shore is a marine park and worth the trip. Keep your eyes open. Recently a couple of snorkelers found $8 million worth of cocaine floating up on the beach. When to go Best time to visit the US Virgin Islands? Summer brings calmer seas, better visibility and half-price rates on accommodation. Click image to enlarge map |
Facts about the U.S. Virgin Islands- Area: 350 sq km
- Population: 119,827 (St Croix 60,000; St Thomas 54,000; St John 4,500)
- Capital city: Charlotte Amalie on St Thomas
- People: African descent (75%), US mainland expats (13%), Puerto Rican (5%), Danish, French
- Language: English, plus some Creole, Spanish and French
- Religion: Baptist (42%), Catholic (34%), Episcopalian (17%)
- Government: Unincorporated territory of the US
- Governor:Dr Charles Wesley Turnbull II
- GDP: US$1.9 billion
- GDP per head: US$16,000
- Inflation: 2%
- Major industries: Tourism, oil refining
- Major trading partners: USA, Puerto Rico
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