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St. Thomas Hotels All Inclusive
(All meals, beverages and more included |
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St. Thomas Hotels European Plan
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Introduction to St. Thomas
Charlotte Amalie, with its white houses
and bright red roofs glistening in the sun, is one of the most
beautiful towns in the Caribbean. It's most famous for shopping, but
the town is also filled with historic sights, like Fort Christian,
an intriguing 17th-century building constructed by the Danes. The
town's architecture reflects the island's culturally diverse past:
You'll pass Dutch doors, Danish red-tile roofs, French iron
grillwork, and Spanish-style patios.
Because of St. Thomas's thriving commercial activity
-- as well as its lingering drug and crime problems -- the island is often
referred to as the most "unvirgin" of the Virgin Islands. Charlotte Amalie's
Main Street is virtually a 3- to 4-block-long shopping center. Although this
area tends to be overcrowded, the island's beaches, major hotels, most
restaurants, and entertainment facilities are, for the most part, removed from
the cruise-ship chaos. And you can always find seclusion at a hotel in more
remote sections of the island. Hotels on the north side of St. Thomas look out
at the Atlantic; those on the south side front the calmer Caribbean Sea.
St. Thomas has much to recommend it -- not only
perfect sandy beaches but also the best dining in the islands and a string of
the most upmarket resorts. But no one ever said St. Thomas was the friendliest
of the Virgin Islands. It is, in fact, the unfriendliest -- a rather impersonal
place overrun with cruise-ship passengers and locals who cast a rather cynical
eye toward tourists. It can even be dangerous at night, especially on the back
streets of Charlotte Amalie.
If you want to escape the hordes, don't come here, as
the rush-hour traffic in and out of Charlotte Amalie will reveal. If you're
seeking something laid-back, with friendlier people, all you have to do is take
the ferry over to St. John, and you'll enter a world that's more evocative of
the sleepier 1950s. St. Thomas is for those who want action.
Additional Information about travel to St. Thomas
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St. Thomas, the busiest cruise-ship harbor in the West Indies, is not the
largest of the U.S. Virgins -- St. Croix, 40 miles south, holds that
distinction. But bustling Charlotte Amalie, at the heart of the island, is
the capital of the U.S.V.I., and it remains the shopping hub of the
Caribbean. The beaches on this island are renowned for their white sand and
calm, turquoise waters, including the very best of them all, Magens Bay.
National Geographic rated the island as one of the top destinations in the
world for sailing, scuba diving, and fishing.
