Hidden inside Lindquist Beach, part of the peaceful shoreline of Smith Bay Park, is one of those…read morerare places on Saint Thomas where the crowds seem to disappear. The sand stretches out wide and pale, the water sits calm and glassy, and the trade winds drift through the sea grapes like a quiet whisper. It's the sort of beach where time slows down, where you spread out a towel, listen to the gentle surf, and realize you've stumbled into a corner of the Caribbean that still feels wonderfully untouched. I remember being here with my wife somewhere between the warm sun and that impossibly blue water, the day turned quietly romantic. We wandered down the beach laughing, the breeze tugging at her hair, and at one point she reached for my hand and pulled close enough that the world seemed to shrink to just the two of us and the sound of the tide. We lingered there a while, wrapped in the moment, the kind of simple, sun-soaked memory that makes a place feel a little magical long after you've left the sand behind.

So in our cabin on the ship, they kept broadcasting this beach as a place to visit so I added it to…read morethe list to check out on our adventure day in Saint Thomas. We get our rental right off the ship and head on our way. It's early in the day(~10am local time) so with how many folks are on our boat, my expectations were that this beach would be busy but... surprisingly, there were only a few other couples there so we had this absolutely stunning beach pretty much to ourselves. I immediately get my snorkeling gear out and jump in the water. There were schools of baby permit jacks everywhere and they'd swim right up to you and even play with you while your back was turned. It was pretty exciting. There was a local there and he was laughing with us because I simply didn't expect the whole they are touching me experience(that admittedly may have cause me to squeal in excitement). The water was pristine. Almost dream like. I really feel like this beach was one I will dream about for decades. Just a prefect place to spend time. The folks working here were super nice as well. It was $16 to park in the lot and make the 500' walk to the beach. Plenty of shaded areas right off the beach. A few picnic tables and chairs. Even have a lifeguard which would be nice if we had smaller kids.

Trunk Bay is an absolute must when you're in the USVI National Park! Took the Red Hook Car Ferry…read moreover to St. John. Talk about a wildly stunning ride! Trunk Bay is home to the only underwater snorkeling trail in the U.S. national park system. The beach is pristine, tucked into the park with soft white sand and crystal blue water. The marine life is incredible! Full of depth, color, and light. Totally dreamy, super chill, and the perfect spot to soak up the sun. Out of all the beaches in VI National Park, this is my favorite. A radiant, sun soaked escape!

absolutely heaven on earth!!…read more clear blue waters, soft sand, snorkeling (lots of fishes and saw a permit fish almost a yard big!!), showers & restrooms, bar with alcohol, food & dessert shacks (get the shrimp burger), rentals (for chairs, canopy, snorkel gear), $5 admission I do appreciate how they don't give out plastic!! Please protect the oceans and be green :) recycle + reusable metal straws

Such a BEAUTIFUL BEACH - highly recommended beach... also with a gift shop with souvenirs and…read moresnacks and more   - - -   June, 2025 Visit   - - -   Short Review,   Cinnamon Bay Beach...   ... has an island you can swim / snorkel to... many fish to see closer to the island   ... has a view of Great Thatch, British Virgin Islands   ... has indoor facilities... gift shop, snack bar (indoors and outside), campsites   ... not crowded       - - - Additional information: - - -   My wonderful wife planned a relaxing trip for us to St. John's, US Virgin Islands (just east of Puerto Rico), in June, 2025; we had a great time... such a beautiful island!     We snorkeled two beaches on St. John, and we enjoyed them both.   Cinnamon Bay Beach stuns you with its beautiful colors... the beach has light tan sand, helping make the water is a light green-blue color... stunningly beautiful!!     - - - Why Cinnamon Bay Beach - - -   Most of St. John is a National Park and most of the northern part of the island provides a nearly continuous beach... nearly continuous because peninsulas that extend into the water separate each beach from the other.    We looked at the map and read the reviews and picked Hawksnest and Cinnamon Bay beaches  because they looked more likely to have slightly smaller crowds, as cruise ships apparently visit other beaches (at least when we visited).  When we visited we were not alone and it was also not crowded.   Both are within a couple miles of each other, so while they are similar in overall look and feel - similar color of the water and sand, similar plants, etc., they are unique in what you can see underwater when you're snorkeling, and unique in the views from the beach.     - - - Taxis to and from - - -   To get to and from Cinnamon Bay Beach, you can drive or take a taxi.  The taxis on St. John, at least the ones we saw, are all trucks, with the driver in the cab, and the passengers sitting, open air, in the back... on benches with a roof over our heads.  The taxis run all day and will stop at multiple beaches to drop off and pick up passengers along the way.      - - - Cell / Mobile service - - -   Cell phone service is present, but the signal is a bit weak - 1 to 2 bars of signal strength.      - - - The beach - - -   Even if you never get in the water, the scene is beautiful... the water color is such a beautiful shade of blue...   Enya's "Caribbean Blue" (from 1991 album "Shepherd Moons") was playing in our heads, and was surely inspired by waters like these...   The sand is light and soft   Beautiful green trees and plants along the beach.     - - - The view from the beach - - -   Cinnamon Bay Beach is a beautiful beach and view of the British Virgin Islands' (BVI's) Jost Van Dyke in the distance and Great Thatch island closer... both BVI; St. John's Whistling Cay is visible, closer to the left, and Mary Point, closer to the right; Cinnamon Brach curbs east, and out into the water to a point that becomes Maho Bay and we stayed within Cinnamon Cay..     - - - The water... snorkeling - - -   On any given day, the water quality and aquatic life are things you cannot control.  The day we visited water quality and aquatic life were both goo -  the water was so clear and we saw so many fish, especially as we snorkeled out toward the island... which is much closer than it looks.. 5-10 minutes of calm to quicker leg kicking should get you there.     - - - Snorkeling - what we saw - - -   While snorkeling we were blessed to see: ⁃            a stingray swam by right as we started out !! ⁃            many more parrotfish-like blue-green-purplish fish and others ⁃            on the way back in, two squid!!     - - - Back on the beach - - -   We enjoy laying back and relaxing... and taking photos of our feet as they point toward the sand + surf... and we captured another one here on Cinnamon Bay Beach.   What a great afternoon!     - - - The surf, the lack of on St. John - - -   We have been blessed to visit the Caribbean a couple times and have noticed that there is not much surf, not many waves. On an early trip someone explained that the Caribbean is just at a position in the ocean that the rides are not small; brief internet searches suggest the tide only varies a few inches to a foot or so... such small changes don't lead to many waves. You'll likely see and enjoy hearing waves "lapping at the shore," but you're not likely to do much body surfing... if you have a boogie board, while you could bring it on your flight, you'll likely be better off leaving it at home. - - - Gift Shop - t-shirts, hat pins and more - - - - - - Thank you - - - Thank you to all the park team members who maintain Cinnamon Bay Beach, and to the taxi drivers getting us visitors to and from the beach! ----- ----- -----

Full disclosure I didn't actually swim at this beach but I spent an hour or so here because it's…read moreactually a huge beach! The internet says it's one of the most famous ones and I can see why - the water is crystal clear, bright blue (as are most of the other national park beaches lol). It's spacious though, and in addition to the beach itself, there is a snack vendor area where you can buy lunch (like sandwiches and drinks), and a gear rental place for snorkeling etc. They also have a small restaurant adjacent to the campground cafeteria area which does breakfast and dinner (but not lunch). They have pretty clean bathrooms and showers too, and the most parking of all the beaches that I went to. They even had an info booth; the lady there was fairly knowledgeable about the park although I don't think she was an actual ranger (she wasn't in the ranger outfit). There's also a little area right at the entrance to the beach that is part of some ruins, it's a nice photo op spot. Overall this is a great beach! Def recommend.

I call Magen's Bay paradise! One of my favorite Caribbean…read morebeaches and my mother's favorite beach in the world. We have visited several times while cruising. We usually take the group transport offered from port and pay the entrance free. The rest is a day to enjoy the calm waters and a day of relaxation.

Nice calm waters, good for snorkeling and swimming. Although we didn't see much fish today, the…read morewater felt cool and refreshing. Sand is powdery soft and water is super clear.

Nice beach in front of a condo complex. Very calm harbor. Not too many people on the beach. There…read moreis a nice bar/and grill on site. Friendly & knowledgeable bartenders. Being your own gear if you aren't staying onsite though. They will ask you to move off the condo lounge chairs (understandable given that those who are staying should have access to those). Bring loads of bug spray or you will be eaten alive by sand fleas. They're voracious!

Secret Harbour Beach is relatively small, but it's got a nice cross-section of underwater landscape…read more(seagrass areas, coral, and sand). Tip: If you go snorkeling here you'll see a fair variety of turtles, rays, and fish, all within a small distance of one another This beach is really good for beginning level snorkeling, but it's still a nice place to go even if you're something of a snorkeling veteran. About the only drawback that comes to mind when I think of returning here is the extremely tight paring situation - virtually all the spaces available are reserved for the restaurant and the resort.

Beautiful beach with crystal-clear, lovely water and breathtaking scenic views. The atmosphere is…read morepeaceful and perfect for relaxing or enjoying nature. However, the bathrooms were a bit scary and could definitely use improvement.

We tried Trunk Bay first but parking was a nightmare so we headed on down (up, down, up down) the…read moreroad to Maho Bay. We found a parking spot in a lot and only had a short walk to set up our camp in some nice sun/shade. There are a lot of kids and families here, so expect playing, screaming, etc. but eventually they have to eat something so you'll get some nice quiet. We snorkeled right in front of where we were sitting and saw sea turtles munching on the sea grass. So cool. The beach is not super wide but it's enough to plunk down a chair and have a little shade. Perfect. Water is calm. It's the first place we saw donkeys on the island. We loved it.

I live here on st Thomas and this is probably my number 1 beach. It has great snorkeling, and has a…read morelittle something for everyone, in the middle of the beach is great for just sitting in the water or on the beach as there are not many rocks. The left has big rock as and coral all along in the water where you can find octopus, crabs, fish, stingrays. If you are more adapt at snorkeling you can go out towards the left and past the university dock and there is some great snorkeling there with sea cucumbers, giant pufferfish, eagle rays, some have reported lion fish over in that area even. The right of the beach is filled with rocks, coral and sea glass on the sand. I will leave some photos of all the creatures Ive got on my GoPro. Also tons of sea turtles

Exceptional out of the way beach with a local vibe…read more What we loved: * accessible from the terminus Jitney cab university stop (just a short walk up over a hill) * shaded areas to put out your towels * clear calm water perfect for snorkeling * bathrooms with shower to rinse off * cool handmade signs to promote maintaining the environment Loved visiting Brewers Bay Beach which felt clean safe and family friendly. We felt 100% safe leaving our backpack on the shore while snorkeling and swimming. Saw plenty of fish! There were food trucks as well as a kayak rental option but we did not partake of either.

It's a perfectly nice beach. Supposedly one of the nicer beaches on the island. It is not the best…read morebeach I've ever seen but it is fine. The water is clear and clean. If you go early you can get a spot under the trees because the sun is intense. The beach gets busy but is not overcrowded. The best part IMO is the beachside bar. I have to check it out and write a review.

Sapphire Beach is stunning! Come for the sunset and you'll definitely end up staying. Soft light,…read moreblue water, with easy, breezy island energy. There's parking right by the beach followed by a beautiful walk through the cabanas that sets such a peaceful tone. The event space is dreamy! Open, airy, and perfectly placed. Once you step onto the sand the water is clear, glowing blue. Simple, stunning, and a really nice place to unwind.