Just returned from STX and STT: some observations

I am glad that you enjoyed it. You do get used to the driving...most of it anyway!

:o)

driving on STX is certainly NOT insane. drivers are very courteous, see very few people drive faster than safe. in fact, i find drivers stop for little reason to allow others into traffic. maybe STT different?

Doc, Taj spent the whole trip driving on STX, we didn't drive on STT, we used taxis.

She does agree with you that SEVERAL times she saw people stop and let another motorist turn or cross--- but in driving on the one divided highway---- speeds of the surrounding motorists were WELL OVER posted limits, drivers straddling lanes, not signaling before turning, etc. We saw many accidents and near-misses.

On smaller roads and in towns, parking is every which way- no uniformity of all parking on the left going the same way, etc. Cars pull out at random. We sat at a stop light and watched a young woman in an SUV sit behind another motorist and honk and SCREAM at the rest of us to let her past us- the light was red. She wanted to turn left but it was dark and traffic was moving fast on the cross street, pedestrians everywhere, so we all were waiting for the light.

We watched two girls on motorcycles going way too fast, neither of them geared up safely---- they turned wide (went into the grassy medians) and then ran two red lights- gunning their engines and then slamming to a stop. We saw many young drivers in sedans, seats tilted back so far you could barely see their faces in the windows, driving erratic, music booming, no regard for signs, lights and other motorists.

Yes, there were many polite motorists--- but it still isn't an ideal situation for a cyclist in our opinion. On the streets of F-sted and near the beaches the traffic calmed down and was more civil. In C-sted it was the same. Mid-island, on the larger roads--- chaos prevailed in what we saw in our limited time.

And..........You wish to move here why?
Get used to life in the other lane and all the peculiarities that goes with it and island life or stay stateside.
Driving will become the least of your worries/and/or likes but haven't seen you comment yet on your likes.
Jeeze!

BTW - As far as friendly goes, one has to be friendly to get the friendly attitude back.
I can speak with anyone anywhere on STT (or elsewhere in the world) and have a good feedback so don't know what divinggirl is saying about 1 island being "friendlier" than another. It depends on your attitude.

Don't worry Randy & Taj - Alana is on STT. We are nicer here on STX and we're happy you are coming!

And..........You wish to move here why?
Get used to life in the other lane and all the peculiarities that goes with it and island life or stay stateside.
Driving will become the least of your worries/and/or likes but haven't seen you comment yet on likes.
Jeeze!

These were just observations as to things we saw that we remembered threads about here on the forum: biking as a means of transportation, driving and getting around, costs of groceries and consumables. We just made observations about things that we saw and noticed that correspond to topics here on forum. We LOVED it there--- and just as others have done--- we're bringing up items that we've seen discussed that we can now weigh in on as we've experienced them.

Likes: weather, sun, water, beaches, rocks, tide pools, food, drink, smiling people, lots of laughter with our hosts, fixing a refrigerator and toilet in thanks for being hosted and looked after, buying food from vendors on cruise ship day that was amazing, snorkeling and loving the beaches, water and breezes.....finding great potential houses for our next home, talking to lots of amazing people.....there were tons of likes for us!

I am happy to steer people to STX, Y'all need them.

Sent you a PM. Just a few questions about moving. Might be headed that way soon.

Sent you a PM. Just a few questions about moving. Might be headed that way soon.

Didn't see one from you...I'll try sending you one- might be an issue here on the forum that I didn't get it.

Just tried again. 🙂

Randy, please let the car rental agency know about your experience. The local agencies try hard to compete and need to know if they have a problem employee.

Randy, please let the car rental agency know about your experience. The local agencies try hard to compete and need to know if they have a problem employee.

We did their survey that they emailed us...and we did mention it. The full smash:

When we arrived- we called as instructions said for the shuttle. Five times. No answer. The phone rang and rang. Taj ran out to the lane where all the cabbies and shuttles were and happened to flag down their shuttle and get us there. When we got to their office, the desk lady made a lot of comments about how Taj didn't have Randy's last name (she has her own company and is a CEO with it under her name) and basically made 'Leave it to Beaver' type references that Taj was 'not normal' for having a different last name as her husband..... and then she was not very friendly about the rental and made several snide remarks that were insulting. The shuttle driver who picked us up from the airport was a decent driver, but had no idea how to open the doors/windows in the Wrangler we rented-- so it was comic relief to teach him how: "You must have had a jeep, yes?" and Taj said, "I'm from Colorado, I've had four!"

We showed up at 11:30a to return the car and catch the shuttle for our 1:45p flight to STT...and yes, the driver was a different, and younger, kid. Tall, handsome kid...but we really felt that he didn't behave in a way that reflected well on the company he represented: 1) you don't turn the radio to your music and crank it up with a couple of old fogeys in the car to where nobody can hear anyone talking. 2) You put on your seatbelt. 3) You drive the speed limit and not like you're evading in a police chase. 4) You don't stop and chit-chat with friends, buying beverages and who knows what from them on the way. Given what we are doing to get to the island (property management/resort work) we'd not recommend this car rental to anyone coming under our watch or care because of the unprofessional nature of the people working there. I'd worry someone with kids would get in the car with this second driver and it would end tragically in several ways.

Lest you think we're weak constitutioned: Randy and Taj are both race fans (Taj races motorcycles/sport bikes and has driven in France, Italy and Germany) and this kid's driving made her edgy....she can only imagine what it would be like for someone with less constitution for excessive speed, being banged from side to side in the seat with lane changes, gunning starts and slamming stops, and watching scenery whiz by at 80mph in 30-40mph zones.

So...that's what we'd tell the company should they ask us beyond the little survey they emailed us.....we'll see.

...and Randy's big one: a $600 hold on our credit card that could take FIVE WEEKS to be released. Well beyond our billing cycle then we're charged interest on it. Ugh.

Ok, now you have to identify to protect others from this very unprofessional business.

Ok, now you have to identify to protect others from this very unprofessional business.

You have a point. Sigh.
Olympic Car Rental and it went under ACE when I made the reservations online.
We wouldn't do that again--- we'll stay with the big names at the airport, and that's what we'd recommend to our clients/guests.

I can highly recommend judy of Croix.

Recommendations are welcome--- we'd take referrals for good vendors over guesswork!

...and Randy's big one: a $600 hold on our credit card that could take FIVE WEEKS to be released. Well beyond our billing cycle then we're charged interest on it. Ugh.

What credit card company do you have??? No credit card company holds that long; and even if they do you can't be charged interest on a hold. It's against your terms.

...and Randy's big one: a $600 hold on our credit card that could take FIVE WEEKS to be released. Well beyond our billing cycle then we're charged interest on it. Ugh.

What credit card company do you have??? No credit card company holds that long; and even if they do you can't be charged interest on a hold. It's against your terms.

The rental company said it could take 2-3 weeks to return the hold, and that sometimes it takes up to five. We thought that was bogus. We got home last night- so it's on our list to call our cc provider and ask them for their take on it.

Just curious, because IMHO St. Thomas and St. Croix are quite different in many ways, which of the two felt most comfortable or amenable to you two? (as you've probably surmised here, often people from STX and STT like to poke and kid at each other like rival high schools). Personally, I think both islands have a lot to offer for different people, but I think it's rare (on here A+A recently come to mind) for people to love both places equally, often one seems to be a more natural fit.

Just curious, because IMHO St. Thomas and St. Croix are quite different in many ways, which of the two felt most comfortable or amenable to you two? (as you've probably surmised here, often people from STX and STT like to poke and kid at each other like rival high schools). Personally, I think both islands have a lot to offer for different people, but I think it's rare (on here A+A recently come to mind) for people to love both places equally, often one seems to be a more natural fit.

We focused our time on STX this trip because while Taj likes cities, Randy prefers country and we had the most promising leads on STX. We did spend a day or two on STT and would like to explore it more--- and should STX not have jobs and good situations for us...we may have to consider STT next-- we're putting the word out on both.

We can't weigh in on STT much other than we liked what we saw, and want to see more!

You went with the absolute WORST rental car company on STX. Try Judi of Croix or Centerline next time.

After a while, you get used to the lawlessness of driving on STX and will eventually appreciate that the cops don't seem to have daily quotas to meet. Rolling through stop signs and other petty traffic offences become rather normal and routine even for the most law abiding among us. Knowing that its highly unlikely that you'll get a parking ticket is a nice change too.