Life without a vehicle?

Hi Tiffany,

I wouldn't suggest moving without a car. St. Croix is a pretty large island. We do have a public bus system, but you never really can't count on them to show up on time, or at all for that matter. Taxi's are cheaper than in the states, but still pretty expensive if your on a budget.

If your kids are school age and attend public school there are school buses for them that are reliable. But sometimes the bus stop will be a long walk from the house.

Shipping a car can be a real headache, but you will be glad to have it when you get here. What I did was buy my plane ticket leaving from Jacksonville Florida. Then I loaded up my truck drove from Texas to Florida, put my truck on the dock, and left for STX from there. It actually worked out well, because the plane ticket was almost two hundred dollars cheaper departing from Florida.

Another bonus is that if things don't work out, or you find you don't need the car, you can sell it for a profit and use the money for return tickets, or rent, or whatever. Used cars are a hot commodity here! Especially new to the island cars that aren't beat to a pulp.

Good luck.

Bless Up.
J.

J,

Good morning... Greetings... My family and I are coming on walkabout starting June. What particular vehicles are "Hot Commodities"? if any. Thanks in advance, Craig

Craig,

I think J. means used cars in general. Used cars here sell for more then they would in the states. I wouldn't ship a car worth only $1000 or there abouts to the USVI its not worth it. But if you have a used car worth say $3500 or $5000 in the states your likely to pay $1500+ more for it here. And for newer cars or trucks sometimes more. Used cars cost and sell for more here in general. If it still has a nice paint job and nice inside even better.

--Islander

Have to agree, you would want a car on St. Croix. The island is spread out. You might be quite far from grocery stores if you stay in the nicer residential areas of East End. And you will also not be able to explore the island or beach hop or take advantage of the island you live on. Really need a car there.

--Islander

Hello Craig,

The roads in the VI, for the most part, are rough. So you see a lot of 4 wheel drive vehicles, Jeeps, and SUV's. These are popular all around good vehicles and very handy to own anywhere in the VI.

But on STX there are long stretches of good roads and drag racing enthusiasts, so small cars that are easy to trick out are very popular here. Mostly small sporty types. Like Mitsubishi Galant, Chevy Malibu, Ford Mustang, anything you might have seen in that movie, "The Fast and the Furious". 🙂 Funny but true.

Keep in mind the economy is slow, so if your planning on a short trip it might be hard to find a buyer. But if your gonna be here for a while, or have family/friends you trust to handle selling a car for you....could work out well for you.

Enjoy your visit.

Bless Up.
J.

Om St. Thomas folks also like the sporty cars, but also BMW's are a hot ticket used and newer. Regular cars sell well to average folks who aren't racing or trying to look good. 🙂
SUVs are popular.

--Islander

Tiffany,
J is absolutely, 100% accurate regarding a) the state of the public transportation system, and b) the value of a used car on the island. When we moved here, we did not ship our car, but opted to buy a used one on-island. Not recommended. The cars are over-priced, and usually in worse conditions because of the hills and the salt-ocean air. If I had to do it over, I would have bought a used American-made car in Florida and had it shipped over.

Boy.. I love the advice people give on this forum. It is accurate and truthful..no bs.

On St Croix a car is essential, unless you are a single ,young, short-timer. The problems of getting from here to there with a family seem almost overwhelming.
Shipping your car is at this point the most cost effective ..that was not always the case.

But, if you cannot afford to ship your car here, then it is possible that you cannot afford to live here and should re-consider your decision.

Can anyone tell me the average rates for shipping a vehicle from the states to St. Croix?

Tropical charges about $750 plus insurance. I don't know about the other shippers.

Folks,

Good morning... thanks so much for all the coments... Islander, full of great advice as usual... I read a post some time ago, domestic vehicles are more popular with the locals. Any truth to this? "pick up" vs "car" or "suv" only?

Guess I should brind a few autos ! : )
I'll take orders at cnucci08@aol.com... any regulations/licensing for reselling autos.
J, I always stay blessed up.

Best Regards All,

Craig

Hello Craig,

You don't need a license to resell your own car to another person. However there are lemon laws in the USVI.

Bring in a car - requires moving documentation to get it from the dock to DMV and then you need insurance and have to get it registered. To sell it you have to notarize the registation form, signing it over to the new buyer then you go down to DMV and transfer ownership. (Its a good idea to go down to DMV with buyer - it has happened serveral times in my experiences that the new buyer doesn't re - register the car so the car legally is still yours and any tickets or accidents they get into you are responsible for as the legal owner.... you can get out of by going to the notary and asking for a copy of the records that the new owner signed to accept buying the car... however its a big hassle better to just spend the couple hours and do it right the first time.

Trucks are not as popular as SUVs and Cars in my opionion. There are quite a few cars - often pumblers, painters, electrians, fishmen and women, landscapers - have trucks. The general population drives cars and SUVs... they hold more people -- and people here have large families/extended families and Trucks are not the best bet for this.

--Islander

Hello,
Can someone please give me the contact #' s to Tropical Shipping. I have been called to active duty in the military and have packed my Guide Book up and plan on moving to VI as soon as I finish my deployment in August of 2003. Please forward it to khan31@triad.rr.com.

Thank you!